Monday morning we got up bright and early. After breakfast I dressed my daughter in her new uniform. Then we got on the bike and rode on down to her new school. Last year Persephone went to Pre-K3 at a Catholic school in Jefferson Parish on the West Bank. It was a good experience, I [...]
Dear Persephone, You are forty-seven months old today. A few weeks ago I mentioned to you that I was writing these letters, and you were intrigued. What are they about, you wanted to know. I told you that, in part, I try to record some of the things that you’re doing so that you’ll be [...]
Dear Persephone, You are forty-five months old today. It seems like you’ve packed a lot of living into the last month. Especially around the holiday: We had fun making simple skull garlands out of paper and decorating the house. You had a blast on your first real round of trick-or-treating. (Afterward you wanted to wait [...]
A Good Juicy Paradox Since the birth of my daughter Persephone, life has been very interesting to say the least. That comes as no surprise, and yet it’s a huge surprise at the same time. Contradict myself much? I do love a good juicy paradox. It’s no surprise because, after all, it’s blindingly obvious that [...]
A quick guide to help you out. If it’s gender-neutral that would be a plus. It it’s made of plastic that would be a minus. Mass-manufactured is a minus, but hand-crafted is a plus. Batteries? Minus. Noisy? Minus. Educational? Plus. Reflecting values antithetical to our own? Minus, minus, minus. When in doubt, remember: The best [...]
This morning Persephone smacked me on the chest as I was carrying her into her bedroom to get dressed. I don’t remember why. She is so tiny I don’t think she could hurt me even if she hit me with all her strength. So in some ways it was no big deal, but I decided [...]
I took Persephone to the doctor yesterday for her three-year checkup. I was going to ask the doctor about getting a lead test, even though it was my understanding that standard protocol doesn’t call for it. A brief recapitulation of her numbers might be in order. These are all expressed in µg/dL (micrograms per deciliter [...]
Dear Persephone, You are three years old today. I just realized that your birthday is exactly five weeks after mine. That means when my birthday falls on Martin Luther King Day, yours falls on Presidents’ Day. I guess that will occur about every seven years or so. One year ago, I was impressed by your [...]
Item #1: According to Editorial Anonymous (a blog of a children’s book editor): Trend Watch: Persephone Is the New Zombies/Vampires Well, I certainly wouldn’t have predicted this one. We’re seeing a lot of YA Persephone retellings. Maybe this is in part due to the greek myth renaissance effected by Mr. Riordan? I don’t know. Maybe [...]
Dear Persephone, Oops. You made thirty-five months yesterday, but I didn’t realize it until I was lying down in bed last night. So this letter is one day late. As I’m trying to type this, you are sitting on the couch behind me. You’ve got a book you want me to read to you. I’ve [...]
In addition to Xy’s birthday, we’re also celebrating Persephone’s 25,000th hour of life today; but how to explain this number to a toddler?
Dear Persephone, You sure are getting big. I know this because you tell me about it. Constantly. “I’m big. I’m big. I’m so big. I’m too big.” There was a statue of at the New Orleans Museum of Art, a headless Winged Figure, which used to scare you, but now you’re not frightened anymore, because [...]
As a number of people pointed out to me, the trouble with celebrating the first thousand days of life is that the number 1,000 is generally beyond the grasp of most two-year-olds. A couple friends had funny ideas about how to communicate the idea. “Let her play in a pile of 1,000 $1 bills so [...]
Persephone is a thousand today. It’s her thousandth day of life. It seems like the sort of thing that should be celebrated, and I’ve had it marked on my calendar for a while. But time got away from me, and now it’s here, and I haven’t a clue what to do. How do you celebrate [...]
Dear Persephone, On the first of this month, as we were riding the bicycle on our way home from a meeting, I heard you exclaim, “Look at that black man!” I was a bit startled. What? Since when does my little girl identify people on the basis of race? Then I saw that you were [...]
Here’s something I wrote on March 18, 2008, but never published for some strange reason. Two and a half years later, these words still ring true for me — especially the last line. I didn’t really notice it until J pointed it out. Then I couldn’t stop noticing it. As we got ready to have [...]
Dear Persephone, A friend recently asked me if we would be having a party for your half-birthday. That conjured images of yet more presents. Trust me when I say you’ve got more than enough stuff at this point in your life. Our friends and family have been very generous to you. So I thought we’d [...]
The dry spell was broken at last this morning. Purple (and Black) Rain by Editor B
Living, working, loving, playing in the great, tragic city of New Orleans. My hood: Mid-City. This is my personal blog which features all the joys and sorrows and random musings that comprise the story of my life.
I use the sobriquet "Editor B" when writing here to maintain a minimal level of privacy and freedom.
Hit my celly at 812-391-0818. Or leave a comment on a post. Or connect via the various social nets listed below. Or e-mail me: my address is the second letter of the alphabet at ye olde rox dotte com.
