#itooamharvard OR Haven't You Ever Been Misjudged?

Wanted to share with you all a link I saw on my Facebook newsfeed:

http://bzfd.it/1n4xc3Q

And, of course, the reaction I had.

This is the article that sparked the absolute, utter fabulousness that is #itooamharvard:

http://www.thecrimson.com/column/the-snollygoster/article/2012/11/2/Siskind-affirmative-action/

Here's what I had to say upon sharing #itooamharvard:

"Oh good grief.  It's funny, and mind-boggling, and disgusting all at the same time.

And looking back... I've gotten so many of these, and it's not just from non-black people. Most common one is "What ARE you?" You mean, other than annoyed at that question?

It's also funny, looking at how much stuff I've gotten away with. I mean, I don't relax my hair to look white. I do it because it makes my hair easier to manage. But when my hair doesn't get done for a long time? Because of demographics I can get away with just brushing my hair back and going about my business. Most people will say it looks fine... Probably partly out of not knowing better. LOL... Oi...

OH! And before I forget... My first college roommate. When we first met face-to-face she said she was surprised to have seen my Facebook profile, because on the phone I "sounded like a redhead".

I'm still trying to figure out what the hell a redhead sounds like.

And the parting shot... I love that the girl who was told "Don't get any tanner" clarified it was her EX-boyfriend who said that."

I like to be optimistic and think that things work so much better than this in the real world. But unfortunately that isn't the case.

Now, you might notice that the link on there only gives you the first 21 photos. That means there are 42 more photos to see.

(To the exceptionally ignorant/rude out there... Surprise surprise! I can do math! 42+21=63)

...

Sorry, just had to add that in there.

Math isn't my best subject. It's not because I'm black. It's because I haven't really practiced it in years, and pre-algebra all the way up through calculus I struggled with it.

BUT I do have a M.S. in counseling, as well as my PLMHP and some other credentials I won't bore you all with. That's gotta count for something, right? ;)

Isn't it interesting how the target audience/population involved impact how such statements are taken? I mean, I HATE the "What are you?" question like you don't even underSTAND. I remember the first time I heard it, too. I was in... 6th grade, I believe. A black girl said it to me, along with "Why do you talk so proper?" And questions about the hair, the skin...

Just because I typically don't use Black American English Vernacular / African American Vernacular English / Ebonics / whatever the proper term for it is today... Doesn't mean I am less than. Although if anything, I could stand to learn it (BAEV/AAVE/etc.) a bit better.

Just because I don't use AAVE doesn't mean I am MORE than, either.

Wouldn't it surprise you to learn that BAEV/AAVE/Ebonics is actually recognized as its own language?

Have a little Wikipedia :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_American_Vernacular_English

ANYWAY! The purpose of this post wasn't for me to get on my little soapbox. I just wanted to talk about my own experience and share an article that really his home for me.

That said...

Haven't you ever been misjudged?

(The preview of the #itooamharvard video that will be shared on Friday:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uAMTSPGZRiI 

I'm kind of excited for this!)

Why not make "Some Day" today?

It's only been, what, 4 months since I last posted? And in that time a lot has happened. 2 half marathon PRs, my first full marathon, a whole lot of headache and enjoying time and Skyping with my best friend... Sounds like life, right?

(One day I'll get my race recaps up... I only need to post 7-8 of them, between Dumbo over Labor Day Weekend, Women's Running Series St. Pete, and the entire Dopey Challenge a month ago... No big, right?)

😳

😅

And through all of this, the hubs and I have been talking about what we want our future to be like, and how we're going to get there. Health, finances, eventually babies (although that's a long way off), travel, and overall quality of life.

Well, health is one of those big things for me, and I hope for us as individuals and as a family - and yes, even though there are only two of us we're still a family! 😊

The discussion is and continues to be that we have a lot of health problems in our immediate family - just the parents. We're talking obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular concerns with a hx of heart attack, stroke, cancer... It's not a pretty picture.

Sorry, "hx" = "history". It just flows really well to say that, because that's what I'm used to.

For future reference, "dx" = "diagnosis", "tx" = "treatment", and maybe I should just leave all the technical stuff at work, no? 😉

Anyway, we've been talking about becoming healthier as individuals and as a family.

I've been running for two years this month (Yay!) and I'm working on eating better and everything... But one of the things I kept getting from the hubs was "I'll do it when..."

That's short for:

• When I'm less stressed

• When finals are over

• When I lose weight

• When we buy a treadmill

• When I'm not tired

• When I finish that

• When it's warm and not snowy (... BTW, we only live in the Midwest. It snowed a couple inches last night. AND today's high is about 54*F)

There are so many others that I've lost count.

Finally I had to say "There will never be perfect conditions. You're going to get stressed out, and have a million things going on at once, and have bad days. That's. Life."

Don't get me wrong, I have days of "I'll get around to it!", too! I'm only a little embarrassed of the number of cookies I've eaten the last few days (Come at me, PMS!)

But how often in our own lives do we just put our foot down and say "You know what? "Some Day"? That day is TODAY!"

I wonder how much happier/less stressed/more vibrant/more fulfilled we would be as individuals, and what our quality of life will be like.

I know after Dopey I got hung up on the excuses. I'll run: in a few days, after it warms up to like 20*F cuz that's better than -10*F (ok, that was a garbage temp, but true! Lol), after I feel better, etc. etc. etc... And then it ended up being 4.5 weeks until my next run. And I was a crabby MESS. I wasn't very nice when I finally did go for a run 😳

I guess the point of this is... What's stopping you? How do you plan to overcome it? How can I (or anyone else) help you get to where you want to be in your life? (You know, aside from picking winning lottery numbers for you!) 😉

Sometimes we're all that's standing in our way.

ETA: AH! I knew I forgot something! I was going to brag a little. Last month the hubs came to me and said he wanted to do his first half marathon!! Super excited. He decided it'll be Dumbo at Disneyland - as in, the whole challenge (10k + half). I'm probably more excited that he is, if we're being real. This feels like a huge step for us being healthier and happier together... Like you couldn't tell that that's a big thing for me 😉