Author Archives: mathdreads
Sipping with Snoop
So, I was just pushing my shopping cart toward the checkout area after getting all the items on my list, which I keep on the note app on my smartphone, when I had to do a double take because I thought I saw, via my peripheral vision, a familiar face looking at me. To my … Continue reading
2021 Inauguration
Never has an inauguration been so riveting since when Obama was first elected. Back then, I lived and taught at an American school in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. In order not to miss the historic moment, I got permission from the high school principal to organize an assembly just so I could watch it. This time around, … Continue reading
Snow Day?
Usually when I advise someone to “take a picture, it’ll last longer,” I’m being sarcastic. This time though, I was being practical. Austin normally gets ice storms and flooding rains. So, when I prepared the living room for my daily virtual yoga class and witnessed a light dusting of snow, I figured it would melt … Continue reading
Im-Peach-Mint Cocktail
On January 6th, some Christians celebrated Three Kings Day, to commemorate when the three wise men brought gifts to baby Jesus. I’ve never observed this celebration, but I thought it was fitting that the two democratic Georgian senators, Warnock and Ossoff, officially won their elections on this day. There were many factors that led to … Continue reading
The Best Monday Ever
On the first Monday of 2021, I received two things that I’d been expecting for a while, which I hope doesn’t mean my good fortune has peaked too soon. After being in a pandemic along with all its accoutrements, January 4th felt like a holiday grande finale. The government stimulus had been deposited, then later … Continue reading
Dad’s New Shoes
Dad is a man of few words. Mom’s just the opposite. So, on this rare occasion, Dad took the conversational lead to tell me about when he got his first pair of shoes as a child–a big accomplishment since money was scarce. Of course, this doesn’t mean that Mom remained silent the whole time.
NYE 2020
If I’d been absolutely oblivious to the fact that I lived in a capitalist country, I would know it without a doubt with all these offers to buy New Year’s Eve tickets. As if I need to pay money to sit at home, drink my own alcohol while looking at a screen. And for those … Continue reading
Superspreader Santa
If anyone’s irresponsible enough to tell their kids that Santa’s coming to town in 2020, I just hope they update that creative lie by incorporating how Santa’s visiting everyone’s homes safely during the plague. Of course, the beauty of lies is that they aren’t confined to the truth, so there’s a lot of room for … Continue reading
Creative Compensation
In the past, one of my writing friends hired me as a sensitivity reader, specifically to focus on how she handled racism in her last manuscript. She was so impressed with the critique that I gave her, she encouraged me to promote myself professionally as a sensitivity reader. Of course, I’ve not followed up with … Continue reading
2020 Capital City Black Film Festival
Last year, I volunteered for the CCBFF for the first time because I had never heard of this festival before. This year my very first short film, There’s Always Something, had been selected to participate. With giddy excitement, I experienced the behind the scenes activities of being selected, starting with participating in a prerecorded panel … Continue reading