Me and Mom, December 1980.
At the point I’m reminded that I have plenty of dresses.
Packing for a trip to Texas finally warranted switching seasons in my closet. New York, can you switch to sundress weather already?
For those of you who criticize Janelle’s signature monochromatic look.
From her speech on “Black Girls Rock”:
“When I started my music career, I was a maid. I used to clean houses. My mother was a proud janitor. My stepfather, who raised me like his very own, worked at the post office and my father was a trashman. They all wore uniforms and that’s why I stand here today, in my black and white, and I wear my uniform to honor them.
This is a reminder that I have work to do. I have people to uplift. I have people to inspire. And today, I wear my uniform proudly as a Cover Girl. I want to be clear, young girls, I didn’t have to change who I was to become a Cover Girl. I didn’t have to become perfect because I’ve learned throughout my journey that perfection is the enemy of greatness.
Embrace what makes you unique, even if it makes others uncomfortable.” - Janelle Monáe
“…perfection is the enemy of greatness.” I like that.
(via laughterkey)
life:
“Ballet dancing,” LIFE magazine told its readers in 1936, “is a hard, steady, painstaking job.”
Seen through Alfred Eisenstaedt’s lens, it is also a singularly beautiful pursuit. See for yourself here.
(Alfred Eisenstaedt—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Painstaking indeed. The technique will always be in my bones, even though I never reached professional heights.
(via laughterkey)
In the spirit of openheartedness and what life is really all about, I’ll go so far as to say that the fear of others may mask some deep-seated desire to understand, and maybe even to love. Because really, what is there to be afraid of? Few people today don’t know—or have in their families—at least one loving couple who are raising children, same-sex or not. And it’s really just the loving part that matters. That same-sex marriage could go from its preliminary draft of “diagnosable” to the final edit of “so what?” must indicate some positive evolution on the part of the larger human consciousness. My wife, being a biology teacher, puts it even more succinctly: “Why are all these people so worried about who everybody else is sleeping with, anyway?” (Score two for Moms.)
—Chris Ware on his cover of the May 13, 2013 issue, “Mother’s Day.” Get the story behind the cover: http://nyr.kr/10d7TyC
(via newyorker)
Because it’s Friday.
