Sunday Snippets: Springtime

I'm so ready for some warmer weather.

Book Donkey. Yes.

Maryland House votes to ban fracking by veto-proof margin

Apache Helicopter Guns Down Boat Full of Somali Refugees Fleeing Yemen

Women Wore ‘Handmaid’s Tale’ Robes To The Texas Senate Floor

Janet Mock's new campaign

*dies of laughter*

Beautiful photos of childbirth

KING: It's no accident that we hear so little about missing black girls in this country

Sunday Snippets: Travelling Edition

I'm heading to Texas for a work trip. I get a king size bed all to myself. I see sprawling in my future.

Heartbreaking

Gah, cute seals!

Just a horse and a kitty being friends

Dear god, yes I HATE being called Jill/Jilly (a select few friends are permitted) but heaven above if someone who isn't close to me tries to call me that.

WHY in the hell did it take over a week for the mainstream news to talk about this?!! & More & More here

It's been 14 days since the girls went missing and no progress has been made on tracking their whereabouts, either by the military or by groups of machete-wielding parents searching through the countryside. The search for the kidnapped girls also has been muddled by misinformation. In the immediate wake of the kidnapping, says BuzzFeed reporter Jina Moore, the Nigerian military claimed to have found and freed the girls and captured one of the terrorists involved—a claim that was proven wrong and ultimately retracted. And, according to a report by Voice of America, the Boko Haram terrorists are threatening to kill the girls if the search operations aren't called off.

A really interesting video with Janet Mock

Mind-boggling I know where this is. The rain has been insane this week. Parts of Laurel, MD were underwater, too.

Good to know tip for kitties

Exactly. Done and done.

When a majority of people in a marginalized community tells you a word is offensive to them, you don't fracking use it if you wish to be considered respectful allies to that community.

#WeNeedDiverseBooks & More

Book Review: Redefining Realness

Janet Mock's debut book, Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love and So Much More is the memoir to read this year. I would almost hesitate to call this book a coming-of-age story because the former lumps Mock's words in with contrived messages and the latter doesn't convey the significance; it is not a story, it is Mock's truth, exquisitely written.

Mock opens the book with an eloquent introduction, where she states:

"I was reluctant to open up to the world for the same reasons I had been afraid to reveal myself as Janet to my mother and siblings at thirteen, to wear a dress through the halls of my high school, to tell the man I loved my truth: I didn't want to be 'othered,' reduced to just being trans."

But she realizes that given the harsh stigma, discrimination and violence that the trans community faces, "the reality was that I was one of these women" and
                   "we need stories of hope and possibility, stories that reflect the reality of our lived experiences...trans women, specifically those of color and those from low-income communities, who aim to reach  the not-so-extraordinary things I have grasped: living freely and without threat or notice as I am, making a safe, healthy living, and finding love. These things should not be out of reach."

As a reader you end up cheering for her, as she crosses Hawaii, California, Texas and finally to New York, meeting treasured friends along the way. Her family, while not always being the most supportive or understanding, never stops loving Mock and makes the journey, albeit a different one than Mock, with her.

Her journey is not to a perfect or idealized self; it is to her true self. One of the doctors she encounters tells her that it is a "blessing that I get to make people like you more happy." The scene is very touching as Mock realizes how true the statement is, that she has a very wonderful life, but knows that the appointment will help her "to more fully inhabit my most authentic self."

To call this book brave falls short. In fact, most words like courageous and strong, all fall short to fully describe this memoir. Mock lays everything on the table, including past sexual abuse, violence, family drug abuse, and her time in the sex work industry. Her determination is clearly shown on every single page of this book and it's a beautiful thing to witness.

(Photo Credit: janetmock.com)