I think of the word ratchet like a friend you graciously let stay on your couch: it was cool at the beginning, but it’s really overstayed its welcome by about a year. The first time I heard the word was in a 2009 song by Hurricane Chris called “Halle Berry (She Fine),” where the rapperContinue reading “Decoding Ratchets, Respectability, and Racism”
Author Archives: d. tafakari
One Less Crab in the Barrel
Over the years, I’ve come to realize that an aphorism is the particle board of conversation: cheap and easy to drill holes through. They hold no weight, and when challenged, the trite words collapse as if we never meant them at all. Like many linguistic tools, aphorisms are best used with care instead of beingContinue reading “One Less Crab in the Barrel”
Happy NFL Kickoff Day! Go Bucs!
In case there was any doubt, let me state my allegiance now: I hail from the land of palm trees and cool breezes, the land where we be free from winter’s freeze where sunshine appears all four seasons home of Gasparilla and Cuban sandwiches Ybor’s cigars and hurricane damages where pewter pirates pillage defenses andContinue reading “Happy NFL Kickoff Day! Go Bucs!”
Parkinson’s: Stealing from Grandma
I began stealing from my grandma three years ago. When I realized that one day I would not be able to wake up and find her sitting in the kitchen, watching a 13-inch black-and-white television, I needed something concrete. I needed something tangible to slow the slide of time that had pushed, like a looseContinue reading “Parkinson’s: Stealing from Grandma”
Social Media and the Unfollow Button
Over the past year, I joined a slew of social media networks: Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and WordPress. I’ve long been a Facebook junkie but was reluctant to spread the love to other sites. I run the risk of alienating the real people in the room with me when I delve into my screens.Continue reading “Social Media and the Unfollow Button”
dara t. mathis 