The Silence Breaks

I've had a few notions to blog in the past few weeks, but you see what became of that.  Today, though, I'm doing it because, clearly--I need help.  My favorite seven year old asked me to play Scrabble with her on a cute and handy board that stores all your tiles and racks inside and has a convenient carrying handle.

Three days later, I bought my own; The Diamond Edition.

My son and I began a ritual of playing Scrabble at meal time.  On the upside, I began to nuke cook more often, and that was nice--and even edible mostly.   What wasn't nice was when bonding became pestering. There's only so much Scrabble he's going to play, after all, even to indulge his beloved mom; he's a chess fiend.  I had to find another way to get my fix.

I've never  been the least compelled to respond to any of the game requests I get on Facebook for Farmville, Mafia Wars, Bejeweled Blitz, whatever.   However, I am a word nerd from way back, so when my childhood best friend kept nagging inviting me to play, I eventually succumbed, and followed her down the path to vice, yet again.

Before you know it, I'm playing Words With Friends in the wee hours, then on my phone --at work-- (on breaks, of course).  Next I started trolling for Friends to play with, (after said childhood best friend stopped responding to my REMINDERS TO PLAY) sending people the dreaded unsolicited invitations, having 3 or 4 simultaneous games going, and when THAT wasn't enough,  I began playing random opponents.  In a few short weeks, I'd crossed the divide eagerly;  without a second thought, nor a glance back, from Words with Friends, to Words with Strangers.

What finally brought me back to blogging was not the fact that it's THEIR move in all 7 of my current games, nor that I've sent all my reminders out.  What brought me back to blog was another cultural icon, Don Cornelius.

Don Cornelius was the big afroed guy with the beautiful baritone voice who hosted acts like The Bar Kays, Kool and the Gang, Rick James and Teena Marie,  Rose Royce and The Jackson 5 in my living room every Saturday.   Soul Train was the source for the latest grooves and dance moves--but it wasn't the Soul Train line that drew me (my standard move on the Soul Train line is the fastest walk to the end of it--while clapping.  People with 'two left feet' have threatened--aggressively--to sue me for slander.)

What drew me to the TV on Saturday mornings, even more eagerly than Friday night's back to back Brady Bunch and  Partridge Family offering,  was the opportunity to see on TV, folks who were Black like me.  In a town with a 6% Black population,  that was not a small thing.

Thanks, Don Cornelius.  Wishing you Love, Peace and SOOOOOOOUL!  May you rest in peace.