I've Fallen in Love!!!

I know that my readers read the title of this post and then looked at the above picture and became very excited. Who doesn't want to read about someone finding the love of their life?

Well, my readers, My King has not presented himself as My King yet, but I know that he is somewhere being groomed for me. However, I fell in love with biking this summer, and it feels the same way that falling in love with a man does. (It feels so good!) 

I've been biking for years mostly by myself or with my friend Nancy. I had a hybrid bike and there really is not a biking community for hybrids. There are dirt and road bike communities but no hybrid community. But, once I got my road bike, a whole world opened up to me.

I am a firm believer that whatever we need comes to us. We don't have to spend a lot of time pondering, worrying, researching, talking about etc, it just comes. Once I got my road bike in March, biking groups started to chase me down.

Wednesday morning I met about 15 to 20 women from the group Babes on Bikes to do a ride that we call the Arlington loop. It is about 17 miles and it goes from Arlington to DC then Alexandria and loops back around to Arlington. It has hills, curves, turns, and the most beautiful views that I never forget to notice. As we were riding on the George Washington trail, and I viewed the Potomac River, all of the DC landmarks, and a line of women bikers, it dawned on me: "I am in love!!!"

You know when you have been going out with a guy for awhile, and you enjoy his company, spending time with him, but you are not giving the relationship much thought. Then one day you look at him and think "I love this guy with my whole heart." Well, that's how I felt on that ride Wednesday; I realized that I love biking and group biking with my whole heart, and it feels so good.

My biking this summer has gone to a whole 'nother level. I've gotten several riding pointers from different people. I implemented them, and I have become a much stronger rider. My Tuesday night rides use to make me feel completely defeated. But now, after learning when to shift gears and how to correctly pedal, I no longer feel defeated. As a matter of fact, I am able to hold my own now.

I've ridden with so many different groups and people this summer which served to cause me to fall more and more in love with biking. I thought that loving so many people and Jesus with my whole heart, I really thought that my heart couldn't stretch more, but it did! The heart is like every other muscle in the body, the more we use it, the stronger it gets and the more room that it makes to love. (Try using every muscle in your body more and see how strong you become and how good you feel.)

It's easy to tell what people love, just pay attention to what they spend their time doing!

People, find out what you love to do, do it often, and fall in love; it feels sooo darn good!

I'm in love.......

Enjoy This day and everyday.

Babes on Bikes!

Thankful Thursday: Quick Weekend Getaways

Biking Weekend 2012 in West Virginia

So, I am on a lot of biking groups' email lists, and I got this one email about a biking weekend in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, and I acted on it right away. I didn't know the people, but I know that I love activity filled trips. I contacted the organizers and sent the email to two of my easy going friends who would make this an extra fun trip: Nancy and Deitrea, and the rest is history. What a good for the heart, in more than one way, weekend!!!!

We hiked, biked over 100 miles in two days, ate almost every meal outside, and talked much s@$#!!

Harpers Ferry is a little over an hour from DC, but I felt like we were very far away.

So, you can leave after work on Friday, have a short weekend getaway, and get enough joy to last for awhile.

I am Thankful for Weekend Getaways!

Happy Thankful Thursday My People.

Do the things that you love to do often....

Wench by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

I always say that I don't want another degree, but if I ever go back to school, I will be in somebody's PhD program in the Anthropology or Women's History department studying and researching women and our rich history.

When you read diverse literature and also when you read history, women have really suffered. A few years back, one of my students wrote a research paper about women during the Holocaust, and I wanted to cry a river. She wrote about women having cycles, giving birth, seeing their children killed, being pregnant, getting rape and getting pregnant all while being in a concentration camp. In Afghanistan, some of the first restrictions that were place by the Taliban were against women and boy were they severe. Reading some of those stories is enough to make someone want to start a revolution and free all of the Afghan women. There are so many books written about the African woman who was turned into a slave, but the novel Wench, by Dolen Perkins-Valdez, tells a tale that I have never heard before: slaveholders taking their slave mistresses to resorts for the summer in Ohio. The characters are all fictional, but the situation is not.

Dolen can write, that's all that I can say. This story is very captivating, because we get to know the characters quite well, she cleverly gives enough background information to help with understanding, and she tells a tale that really is not known, or should I say, it's a side of slavery that was not known to me.

She has characters that I really loved and others that I really wanted to understand. She shows sides of African women who were turned into slaves that really made me think and other sides that made me so proud to be of African descent.

I truly believe that everyone, but especially women, need to know the history of women world wide so that we can know women's strength and weakness.

If you find me in school somewhere, I'll be buried in a library, in the stacks, yes the stacks, studying women's history with many other people who value our history.

All praises to Dolen who is telling this part of slavery that needs to be told. You Go Girl!!

Dolen Perkins-Valdez

Please click on the link below to hear Dolen talk about this book:

People, get to reading! There is a whole lot to know out there........

Thankful Thursday: Where I live!

Everyday, I am so Thankful that I live in the DC area; this area is the best. Now, I know people who have lived here, and it just did not do it for them, but I thrive off the energy of this city.

So, here are some of the things that I am Thankful for in this area:

1. The Smithsonian Museums! First and foremost they are FREE. Yes, that's right. They are absolutely free always and are open every day of the the week with the exception of a few holidays. They have some of the greatest permanent exhibits and there are always great traveling exhibits as well. I spend quite a bit of time at these museum just because I can, and I really enjoy them. My favorite is the American History Museum, and my favorite two exhibits in the History Museum is the first lady exhibit and the American Flag exhibit. I see these two exhibits quite often, and I am always in awe.

The American Flag

Helen Taft's Inaugural Gown

 2. The Trails! There is the W&OD trail, the Mount Vernon Trail, The Custis Trail, The Capital Crescent Trail, The Sligo Creek and Branch Trails, and the list goes on and on. Most of these trails are for exercise: walking, biking, running etc. There are always people taking advantage of these trails. So, living here is very conducive to living an active lifestyle. I rode on the W&OD trail yesterday, and the scenery is wonderful.

W & OD Trail

3. The Closeness! From the DC area a person can get to great wineries, national Historic sites such as Jamestown, Virginia, New York City, Baltimore, Philadelphia and a whole bunch of other cities in four hours or less. I love to get in my car and drive to Philadelphia, see the liberty bell, and drive back home. Anyday can be a day full of adventure and a person can be back at home in their own bed by night fall.

The liberty bell!

4. The Bars and Restaurants! The DC area has some fabulous bars and restaurants and there seem to be new ones popping up all of the time. Dining out here is such a great experience, because there are so many unique places with such great character. One of my favorite things to do is too meet someone out at a great bar or restaurant just because of the atmosphere.

Masa 14: One of my favorite restaurants.

Now, let's bring this back to my neighborhood!

5. My street! On my street are my two favorite grocery stores, the Best Trainer in the World, my favorite Dunkin Donut, one of my favorite restaurants etc. Very close to my house is my gym, Old Town Alexandria, another one of my favorite grocery stores, two train stations, a trail, a movie theater, a community center, a great park, my church etc. I could remain within five miles of my condo all day everyday and be quite content.

Old Town Alexandria

6. Condo Building! I believe that my condo building is the best on my street. The people are friendly, the building is clean, the grounds are well manicured, we have a well-kept tennis group, an Olympic size pool, public gardens, and the scene from my balcony is quite awesome; it's where I do most of my writing in the summer. When I bought and moved into this place, it was a true leap of faith. The market was so hot back then, and I had about 24 hours to make a decision, and it just so happened to be the right decision.

Scene from my balcony

Now, I could go on and on and on, but I won't. But, the DC area and my neighborhood suit me just fine.

When I moved here 13 years ago, a small voice said to me "Everything that you need is here," and so far, this statement has been very true.

I am just soooo Thankful that I followed that voice inside and ended up in a place that is perfect for me.

I know there are other people who are Thankful for where they live so, tell me about it.......

Happy, HAPPY Thankful Thursday!!!!!

Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

So, today, I was going to workout at 10, go to the pool after that for some relaxation and reading, and then I was going to do my favorite Tuesday night bike ride with free food from Baja Fresh. However, Norwegian Wood slightly changed my plans.

I started reading Norwegian Wood on Saturday, and all that I have wanted to do is read this book. I finished all 270 some pages on Monday night around 10:30pm. I was so moved by this book until I wanted to write about it right after I finished. But, if you know anything about me, I am no good after 10 or 10:30pm. So, I decided to write this post in between my morning workout and pool time. Norwegian Wood is completely amazing!

The narrator of this story, Toru, tells this story through a flashback. He is on a plane and he hears the song "Norwegian Wood" by The Beatles and it causes him to reflect back 18 years to August 1969 when he was getting ready to turn twenty. And that's where this story begins. He is in college and there is a roommate, good friends, girls, drinking. All of the things that may encompass a twenty year old college student's life and sometimes shapes a person's life. (College, college, college... The good, bad, and the ugly, and we made it!!!!!!)

With this story, Murakami uses plan beautiful language to tell a lot of different people's story through the voice of Turu, and boy are the stories captivating. He starts stories and then go to other stories and picks back up with the previous story in a way that makes the reader read with urgency. (My heart was racing throughout this novel.) I am a true sucker for love, and the love scenes and love in this novel shows that love will and can show up when we least expect it, and it may not look the way that we planned for it to look. (Oh My!)

At the end of this novel, I felt totally satisfied with the idea that all of the characters were going to be ALL RIGHT! (I do love happy endings.)

Now, the author, Haruki Murakami, is a contemporary Japanese writer whose work is described as 'easily accessible, yet profoundly complex,' and I couldn't agree more. 

Norwegian Wood pretty much made Haruki a superstar in Japan, and when you read this book, you will know why. 

Haruki Murakami

This story has everything that I love for a story to have in order to make my heart happy: love, suspense, sex, great writing, peoples' life stories etc.....

There are some things that you must do for yourself and reading this book is one of them!

Now it's...............POOL TIME!

Go and buy and read this book.

I must leave you with "Norwegian Wood" by The Beatles:

Children of the River by Linda Crew

When I read the novel Lord of the Flies with my students, one of the nonfiction short stories that I use to explore the theme of The Human Capacity for Evil is titled "Cambodia," and I can not remember the name of the author right now. The nonfiction short story tells the story of how badly people were treated in Cambodia under the leadership of Pol Pot from 1975 to 1979. However, many of the children during Pol Pot's reign saw many terrible things happen to their parents and other people, and many decided to NOT be bitter.

This novel, Children of the River, is a young adult fiction novel that looks at the life of a Cambodian teenager after her family was forced to flee Cambodia to Oregon. Like many young adult novels, teenage love helps to spotlight the differences in Cambodian and American culture. The main character, Sundara is caught between two worlds....

Reading this novel, I thought about the US immigration policy and the idea that many people are forced to this country because of conditions in their own countries. Once they are here, many would love to go back to their homes, but their homeland circumstances will sometimes not allow it. Once here, do they deserve the same rights and treatment as people who were born here or not? Immigration is a huge topic today.

This school year, I am looking to include more diverse novels into my curriculum, and this may be one that I chose. The school where I teach has so many students from different countries, and I think that this novel will help to facilitate discussion on differences and to foster cultural sensitivity.

Yes, this is a young adult novel, but if you don't know anything about Cambodia and the leader Pol Pot, this is a great place to start along with the short story "Cambodia."

Easy read that I think almost any reader would enjoy.

Linda Crew: the Author

I ran 10 miles this morning and did a little shopping at the market and now, "this sister" is getting ready to REST before I play later.

Happy Saturday!

Thankful Thursday: Written and Spoken Words

“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:33-37

Today, I have so many things to be Thankful for until I was totally confused about what I should write about. I thought about summer, fresh vegetables, love, digital devices, where I live, Jesus, lunch, my biking groups, my mother, but I saw this quote on Facebook:

and, I knew that I had to write about how much I love words. Whoever wrote this quote is a master with words, and this quote touched my heart and made me want to take my relationships to a whole 'nother level. (Words do have the power to transform.) 

My love for words began when my mother use to take my siblings and I to the BookMobile, for those who do not know, a BookMobile is a library that is on a bus and it normally travels to places that do not have a libraries so that the people can have access to books that they can borrow. (Yes, I grew up in a town that did not have a public library.)

This bus looks a lot like the bus that use to come
to my hometown!

I would get enough books from the BookMobile to last for two weeks and could not wait for the BookMobile to return so that I could borrow more books. As a kid, I fell in love with the Flowers in the Attic series by V.C. Andrews, and I loved those romance novels by Bertice Small. I remember spending boring Saturdays reading a good book, and I would soon forget that I was bored; I would be in the attic with the children from Flowers in the Attic, and I would travel the world with the women in Bertice Small novels. (Oh, the places you can go with words.)

Once I became a high school teacher of literature, I really started to pay closer attention to words: "Why would a writer use this word instead of that word?" etc. I can take a passage and analyze the words forever, because words are loaded with meaning and most authors use words purposefully. (I just love words.)


I must admit that I have so many words stored in my brain, on my phone, on sticky notes, underlined in books. I have a quote that can match almost any situation, and I use them mostly to inspire me and anyone else who may need a word of encouragement.  (I am a quote junkie.) 


Asha Bandele and Zora Neale Hurston use words to write about love like no other.. Randall Robinson takes words and makes really heavy topics read like mystery novels.. Toni Morrison takes words and can seriously confuse the reader by telling the same story from many perspectives in the same book.. Tananarive Due uses words that can make a reader not able to sleep for quite a long time.. Langston Hughes uses words that makes the reader marvel..and I hope that I use words to inspire.........

People, I can't live without words!

Today, and everyday, I am Thankful, Thankful, soooo very Thankful for written and spoken words.

Let me leave you with a poem titled "Words" by Anne Sexton:

Be careful of words, 
even the miraculous ones. 
For the miraculous we do our best, 
sometimes they swarm like insects
and leave not a sting but a kiss.
They can be as good as fingers.
They can be as trusty as the rock
you stick your bottom on.
But they can be both daisies and bruises.


Yet I am in love with words.
They are doves falling out of the ceiling.
They are six holy oranges sitting in my lap.
They are the trees, the legs of summer,
and the sun, its passionate face.


Yet often they fail me.
I have so much I want to say,
so many stories, images, proverbs, etc.
But the words aren't good enough,
the wrong ones kiss me.
Sometimes I fly like an eagle
but with the wings of a wren.


But I try to take care
and be gentle to them.
Words and eggs must be handled with care.
Once broken they are impossible
things to repair.

Happy Thankful Thursday "My People."