Author Archives: mathdreads
Confessions of a Hat: Bamboo & Bones
When you see me coming Larger than life I derail your train Of thought No mere mortal Gazes upon me Unaffected I collect bones Unanswered queries Delivered by Gawk hawk Fly into my bamboo There’s no rhyme Nor reason No familiar Character to pin me to I’m the nightmarish Original Residing Under your bed Shape-shifting … Continue reading
Fallfest 2019
I recycled my Princess Leia costume for the company White Out party that many people kept referring to as the “White Only” party. I didn’t bother correcting anyone or pointing out the double entendre since I’d driven nearly 4 hours and had a hot second to check into my room, shower and change into costume. … Continue reading
Seven Squared Birthday
I only send a group email itinerary to celebrate my birthday when my new age ends in a “0” or “5,” so turning 49 was a low-key celebration, where I texted a few friends for fish and chips at an English-styled restaurant. We enjoyed dinner so much, that we took no pictures. We managed to … Continue reading
Out-of-Town Literary Night
Months ago, a friend of mine invited me to participate in a literary event, which included submitting several pieces to a juried magazine. As usual, I’d been juggling a lot of other things at the time and looked for several reasons to decline since participation involved an overnight trip. After he sent me a copy … Continue reading
2019 Cap City Black Film Festival
Almost by fluke, I found out about the 7th Capital City Black Film Festival. First thought that crossed my mind, “Why haven’t I’ve heard about this before now?” The second thought was to find out whether I could volunteer for this. Yes and no, but ultimately yes. Once I checked out the website, I discovered … Continue reading
Nilla Wafers Aren’t Cookies
My family lived on a military base when my father was stationed at Little Rock Air Force Base. My best friend, Bill, who lived across the street had two younger twin brothers and a stay at home mom. This was back in the 70s when kids could play around the entire neighborhood without parental supervision. … Continue reading
More than a Donation
One good thing about moving, especially after nearly a decade in the same apartment, was taking that inevitable trip down memory lane of forgotten items. What to keep, recycle, trash and donate. I unearthed a lot of teaching materials that could have been either donated or recycled, depending on whether it was something that I’d … Continue reading
Cooling Off Texas Style
I’m always amazed how silent those assholes who make a snowball in the wintertime as visual “proof” there’s no such thing as global warming are when we have record high temperatures year after year. I met my writing group at a restaurant and hoped I’d misunderstood the organizer’s text when she stated that she was … Continue reading
Everyone’s a Wolf
Remember that story about Little Red Riding Hood? Which version of it do you tell? Is the wolf the bad character? Does the huntsman save the day? Is grandma feeble? Does Little Red still walk the straight and narrow because the whole journey symbolically talks about losing her virginity and the red denotes her menses? … Continue reading
Don’t Call the Cops: Your New Neighbors Are Black
My roommate rented the moving truck and I hired the mover. Never before in life have I been so self-conscious of “moving while black,” but in this current political climate, I seriously considered getting a canvas banner printed up with all three of our pictures on it with a caption that read, “Don’t Call the … Continue reading