ThatTimeJuls...

Danielle's artwork in the background   Welcome back to another post on That Time Juls. Last post I talked about the decision of friendship and how we want our friendship to be defined. I’m so excited this week because I get to write about my definition of friendship. I hope by the end of this post my excitement is leaping off the pages and into your hearts, filling you with hope and joy of what friendship can look like in your life. Have you met someone and thought I could be friends this them forever? When I was in seventh grade my mother and I moved back to the city (well closer to the city than where we previously lived) of New Orleans. I was one of 2 seventh graders in the marching band at this new school. Danielle Warsley- Williams, my very best friend whom I call Dannie Boo or Dannie was the other 7 th grader. Dannie and I met in band, but our friendship blossomed when we quit the band for cheerleading. A little-known fact about me is that I am an introvert. As I reflect...

I am a lover of “Black 90’s Love Stories.” My favorite is Love Jones . I love the artistry, the weaving and intermingling of lives met at random. I am a sucker for 90’s R&B, the “baby making” music, the stories of love lost and of course the songs of one finding themselves after dodging the bullet of bad love. I lived in those words and in those spaces of love stories created for the culture. Black buster classics are where I began to identify my blackness. I have recently been watching “Love Is…” (on the Own network). I am brought back to the girl that I wanted to become, the imagery of how I wanted my identity shaped. The story is so beautifully written it reminds me of how simple love is yet it’s so complex. The tapestry and fabric of love are defined so differently for everyone that when weaving these delicate yet luxurious hearts (and lives) together we have to remember to be patient. There are some areas that seamlessly come together but there are other areas that ...

Yesterday was Valentine’s Day.  I don’t know if that means anything to you but if it does, “Happy Belated Valentine’s Day.” It doesn’t mean much to me and not because I don’t have a “Valentine.” This day has never been a thing for me. Please don’t get offended if this is your day. I am in no way knocking the day. I’m not anti-Valentine’s Day. I’m just not into the demand of it all. Love will forever exist with or without this day in my book.  Nevertheless, in this post I’ll tell you about some of the crazy things that have been blamed on “LOVE.” When I was in high school, I had the coolest friends. There were three of us and we’d  been friends since eighth  grade. By our sophomore year in high school most of us had paired up and had boyfriends. I (of course) refused to date the boys at my school because I called myself not mixing business with pleasure.  Someone please go back, get that child, and shake her. It’s not about me though. One of my friend...

Have you ever heard a song, smelled a scent or saw something that triggered a memory so vivid it brought you back to that exact moment in your life? I know, it can be good or bad but my hopes are the great moments overshadow the bad ones. Writing this week’s blog has set off a change reaction in my mind and to be honest I’m having a hard time focusing with the flood of memories rushing in. I want to share funny, interesting and maybe even odd things about me to help you get to know me better. I’ve shared about my family, I’ve even shared about my children (well one of them) and now it’s time for me to share some of my story. I grew up in New Orleans and I was a very “active” child. I’ve learned when people say you have an “active” child with an “active imagination” in the south it’s not meant as a compliment (much like “bless her heart”). I was also the mixed kid that was constantly asked if I was adopted. It got to the point kids at school would just tell me that I was probab...