The Chronicles of a VBG (Voluptuous Brown Gurl)

I like to think I'm not overly superstitious but I do have a little in me. I was born on the 16th day of the month so I consider it one of my lucky numbers.  When I was 16 my Mom  began dating the man who would become one of the major pillars of my life, the man I'm proud to call my Dad. My second favorite day of the year was the 7th day of the 12th month - yes, I know that's Pearl Harbor Day - and yes, I know for most normal people it's Christmas or Thanksgiving but you know I'm proudly a few shades off normal or you'd have stopped reading long ago. Anyway, I had a perfect pregnancy - gained the doctor recommended 21 lbs (with a 7+ lb baby), had no morning sickness, no Braxton Hicks, no actual labor either. The only hitch was (and you knew there was one) my gurl didn't like her projected birth date of January 11, 1997.  So despite attempts to hasten her arrival on the 22nd and again on the morning of 27th, she had to be forcibly removed from my womb in the

My listening preferences are solidly chill, lounge, smooth jazz and  new agey tunes mostly devoid of vocals. Though the wunderkind plays music from new artists every week, it's pretty rare that I take a liking to any of them. But since she first introduced me to Bruno Mars a couple of summers ago, he remains the only "pop" artist whose music I have consistently embraced. I guess it's a sign that she's maturing that she thoughtfully put that information to use on Christmas day giving me the gift of music - in the form of that little hunk's latest production, Unorthodox Jukebox. Oh pipe down, he is a hunk.  He's as as pretty as men come but I only wish little Bruno was my son. He's a little guy and I'm way past the pretty boy stage so even  his most suggestive lyrics and dance moves fail to make me feel anything other than proudly maternal toward the little darling. Sorry, Bruno.  He's a kapelophilic, brown profusion of energy and

Since the Wunderkid talked me into murdering a completely defenseless but breathtakingly beautiful  frazier fir this holiday season (we've never had a live tree even when I was a kid) I will start the year with a poem I have loved for years that honors those precious lungs of the earth and gives us, mere mortals, encouragement to embrace a new year. ADVICE FROM A TREE    by Ilan Shamir   Dear Friend Stand tall and proud Sink your roots deeply into the earth Reflect the light of your true nature Think long term Go out on a limb Remember your place among all living beings Embrace with joy the changing seasons For each yields its own abundance The energy and birth of spring The growth and contentment of summer The wisdom to let go the leaves in the fall The rest and quiet renewal of winter Feel the wind and the sun And delight in their presence Look up at the moon that shines down upon you And the mystery of the stars at night Seek nourishment from the good things in li