Lela Davidson's Blog, page 31

Listen To Your Mother NWA Has a Cast!

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Couldn't be more excited about our Listen To Your Mother Northwest Arkansas cast. We had to up our line-up from 12 to 14 to accommodate all the amzaing stories we heard. Head on over to the LTYM page to see who will be reading on April 29th, and then order your tickets. We will sell out quickly!

Image: Rev Dan Cat, Flickr

 

Calling for a Permission Slip Revolution

 

My son texted me the other day because he had forgotten a permission slip and the teacher needed my approval to let him to watch a film. It wasn'tSaving Private Ryan or An Inconvenient Truth or even sex education. It wasRoots. Naturally, I was confused because when I was his age, the mini-series aired during primetime, bumping Laverne & Shirley and Three's Company,if I recall. Why the need for consent? It's not like the teacher wanted to take my son to Africa, or even to a Confederate state. I texted back that he could watch the movie with my blessing.

Read the rest of this post on Today Show Moms.

Image: Erix!, Flickr

 

 

Welcome to the Age of the Cocktail Police

 

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Pouring a drink is legal, healthy and perfectly acceptable adult behavior. (So long as you're not a Baptist.) And yet, my 6th and 8th grader are increasingly on my case whenever they catch me with a corkscrew in hand. Maybe instead of inundating our children with the dangers of alcohol, we ought to be educating them about its proper and diverse uses, such as celebrating special occasions, getting through uncomfortable family gatherings, or because it is Tuesday.

Read the rest of this post on Today Show Moms.

Image: Sing Ming Lee, Flickr

How Do You Face Fears?

 

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Honored to be included in guest over on Life After Tampons. Jennifer Boykin wanted to know how I get past fear, to realize my "big dreams." How do I know? I suppose if the fear is something that can be associated with achieving a big dream, it's not a real fear anyway. It's a fakey first world kind of fear like "they might not like me" or "everyone's going to find out I don't know WTF I'm doing." As opposed to your practical fears, such as "wonder if that water will make me shit my guts out" and "wow, that machete looks sharp."

Head on over to Life After Tampons for mine and many other approaches to the question of fear. (The picture will make sense if you do.)

PS – Just to be clear, I'm not quite old enough for "Life After Tampons," but I'm taking it as a compliment that I was invited to participate. Like, on account of I'm wise, and stuff.

Image: star5112, Flickr

From Blacklist to A-List! First Literary Award

 

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Couldn't be happier to announce that Blacklisted from the PTA has been honored two literary awards from Reader Views.

My humble essay collection took First Place in the Humor category, and–in a huge surprise–also snagged the Reviewers Choice Best Nonfiction Book of the Year!

Many thanks to all who have supported Blacklisted and me.

If you're interested in how I did it, please vote with your click to see me present at BlogHer12 in "So, You Want to Write a Book."

Special Event Look: Live from My Bathroom

Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit http://www.discoverbeautywithin.com/

Let the magic begin

Other girls go to the spa, the salon, maybe the MAC counter. All I need to go from sad to special is a trip to Walgreen's. Here is my "sad" look. I think the hockey mom shirt enhances the overall housewife milieu. Them are crystals y'all. (That will make sense later, I promise.)

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I don't know if you can see those grey hairs, but there are quite a few. I don't love them, but I would like to pause for a moment of gratitude that they are not those squiggly kind. They are nice and smooth little previews of my golden years. So far. Still, I prefer a dark and warm tone. Bring on the color. I know, I know, "You color your own hair?" But here's the thing – I used to have very short hair. Very. I think we can all agree the GI Jane look of 2006 was a severe breakdown in communication between my beloved stylist and myself. Anyway, having kept short hair for many years, I always self-colored. This, on the logic that if I screwed it up, I'd just get it cut off.

When I started to grow the new hair, I kept the old routines. Last time I got my haircut I asked my stylist if I needed to switch to professional coloring. He looked over both shoulders before whispering quickly, "Keep doing what you're doing."

 

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Yes, that is the cheap stuff, and yes, it works just fine.

Velcro is the New Hot

I have burnt out my share of hot roller sets. Today's electric rollers are nothing more than warm and miss the old burning hair scent, and the way hair spray would cake around the edges of the heating elements. [Big Sigh]

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But what I love about the velcro rollers is that they are fat. Because for this particular special event, I wanted Texas hair.

I think I got it. what do you say? Very GCB? Y'all?

 

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My Spring Fashion Trend: Carry On Luggage

Will you take me shopping? Seriously, I hate it. Ask anyone. Very rarely I catch the wardrobe shopping mood and then, watch out! I make up for lost time. Still, I don't enjoy it and usually end up with some unfortunate choices that may or may not be returnable. What I need is a stylist, and a personal shopper, and my very own tryer-onner.

Except for those shoes. I will try those on any day. And if you want to be my Loubou sponsor, I will buy them, too.

Back here in reality I have a lot of travel scheduled this spring. A girl wants to be cute, especially when one travels with Facebook enthusiasts. Also, I like to travel light, so I need things that work together.

Left to my own fashion sense, I'd stick with the tried and true white t-shirt with black slacks and a cardigan. So I decided to consult Pinterest for the latest fashion trends this spring. Stuff I learned:

Bright colors are in. Cool.
Metallics are in. Could be time to pull out the silver bag.
Jackets over dresses a la Annie Hall and Elaine Benes appear to be making a come back. Tread carefully, Short Girl.
Wedges still rock. Yes!
Pattern skinny jeans? Not going to happen.
Something called peplum is popular. I *think* that's a waistline, and I *think* I could pull it off.
Iris Apfel is amazing.

Is it too much to ask to have a classic wardrobe with trendy touches that can all be worn with the same shoes and fits into my carry-on luggage? Where are Stacy London and Clinton Kelly when you need them?


Maybe I should just buy those shoes.


For actual fashion trend spotting, see the spring fashion trends round up on BlogHer. And don't forget to enter the Life Well Lived sweepstakes. You could win a Kindle Fire just for sharing a cool moment, and we all have our moments.  


Image: nicolasputz, Flickr

 

 

Podcast: Got Hotel Rooms?

If you travel with your family for sporting events, Quiz Bowl competitions, or even family "vacation," you may recognize the special brand of pain that is sharing a tiny little space with the people that you love the most. (Because loving them doesn't mean you like them in close quarters, and uninterrupted.)

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Meet Me at the Hotel Room

Can you relate? There's more where that came from.

Order Blacklisted from the PTA in paperback or Kindle now.

Like This? Try These:

Podcast: Does Sam's Club Count as Date Night?
Podcast: Holiday Baking Disaster

Audio: Lela Davidson

Image: Funky Tee: Flickr

Neil Young: Anthem for Sad Old People

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Doesn't this picture look exactly like a Neil Young song? Or, every Neil Young song?

And how do you not love The Godfather of Grunge? Well, turns out if you're so young you think grunge is Old People Music, you have zero tolerance for Young.

The other day I was playing Prairie Wind in the car when my son got in.

Big dramatic sigh grunt, and then: "PLEASE turn off this Neil Old crap."

I didn't.

"When did you buy this CD anyway?"

"I dont' know. A few years ago. Why?"

"How did you feel when you bought it?"

"Admit it, you love it."

"Seriously, Mom, were you, like, depressed? Because this is like, suicidal. Or, were you just deaf."

That was the day I realized I could keep him in line with a simple threat to blast Neil Young with the windows open. Boys are so easy.

Image: Oslo In the Summertime, Flickr

Crampy Sex, Male Aim, and Other Junk

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What do these things have in common? Not much, other than they have been on my mind lately.

If you cramp up during sex, you may want to hydrate. And have a banana. What are your home remedies?
I understand why very tall men may occasionally miss the mark in the bathroom. What is the short man's excuse?
I have heard that something like 90% of all household dust is dead human skin cells. Which means I empty the equivalent of an entire person from my vacuum each week. Is this legal?
3,000 square feet, crown molding, wood floors, and granite countertops. Why can't we flush and shower at the same time?
A local man was arrested recently for exercising naked in front of the window, of his home, across from the sorority house. He was a high school administrator. On how many levels is this wrong?

Talk amongst yourselves.

Image: robin_24, Flickr