This Week
"I look great. I feel great." (Image via Twitter)
An excellent look back at Tina Turner’s reinvention in middle age, on the occasion of her 80th birthday. Plus, check out Tina’s special birthday message to her fans. Rachel Balkovec believed to be the first woman hired by a Major League Baseball team as a full time hitting instructor (Go Yankees!). A relatable story about helping older parents de-clutter. 82 year old Willie Murphy’s inspiring story of fighting off an intruder may inspire you to start lifting weights. It turns out bulls have been getting a bad rap about that whole china shop thing. This Baroness Von Sketch Show bit on perimenopause is sheer perfection. And finally, the #shero of the week, Fiona Hill.
NOVEMBER THEME: AMENDS
Editor's Note: As the year careens toward closure and we start the holiday run, gratitude and thankfulness are on our minds. But what about gratitude's shadow sister, forgiveness? This month we're making AMENDS.
I Wanted to Say Thanks; I Ended Up Saying Sorry
By Nancy Davis Kho
"By challenging myself to acknowledge all the ways in which I had been helped over the years, I necessarily faced facts: there were situations in which I hadn’t always conducted myself in a way that made me deserving of the help. And in situations where I’d clung to historical slights by a family member or close friend, writing a letter documenting all the ways those people had supported me over the years made me blush with embarrassment over my hard work and determination to maintain ancient disappointments."
Keep reading...
Gifties: Party Time! What to bring your hosts.
(Images via Etsy, Amazon and Emily's List)
If you’re anything like us, when it comes to bringing a host/hostess gift to a party, it’s usually a last minute scramble to run into a liquor store on the way to grab a decent bottle of wine shoved into one of those shiny rectangular bags. We figured our brain trust in TueNighters had at least a few people with more forethought and creativity to help us come up with some cool ideas to stock up on instead, and boy were we right! Here are some of our favorites:
For the friend who loves belting out the Pina Colada song: Yacht Rock wine charms (enter promo code TUENIGHT for free shipping thanks to TueNighter Lizz Porter!)
For the friend who is a foodie: A “fancy” olive oil and/or vinegar and a box of Maldon sea salt.
For the friend who has a potty mouth: This Adult Coloring Book or these coasters.
For the friend who wants a woman to be President already, dammit! These playing cards.
For the friend who loves Prince: All of the purple things.
Join the conversation and let us know what you enjoy giving and receiving.
TueNight 10: Angela Howze Pitts
Angela on the 7th floor balcony of the GSA Building in Washington, D.C.
Age: 49
Quick bio: Angela lives in the Fredericksburg, VA area where she is an armchair social media activist/philosopher on Facebook. She makes a living as an IT Consultant in DC and spends (too) much of her time on the sidelines of basketball courts and soccer fields with her sports-obsessed sons and husband.
Beyond the Bio: “The most memorable years of my career and public life were in my 20s and early 30s working as an English teacher/instructor in a high school and community college and as a public librarian. Those experiences sparked an enduring passion for public education. It took me a while to reconcile in my mind that my calling would be separate and distinct from my career once I settled into being an IT consultant, but I appreciate the way in which my career doesn't require an emotional investment and leaves me energy to invest in my family and the causes I really care about. Also, it pays well.”
1. On the nightstand: A stack of The Atlantic, Essence and People En Espanol magazines. I try to read an article before I go to sleep (to reduce blue screen exposure). I fail early and often on all accounts.
2. Can't stop/won't stop: Voting. Stuntin' on those Trumpsters on my timeline. Talking about injustice.
3. Jam of the minute: My daily soundtrack is dominated by Gregory Porter and Lizzo. I'll drop anything to talk about Black Mirror or Greenleaf.
4. Thing I miss: Talking to my father who passed away over 25 years ago. He is still my muse whenever I'm arguing with someone about politics or encouraging a child, including my own, to do well in school.
5. 80s crush: Michael Jordan, Prince, and Oprah
6. Current crush: Idris Elba, Lennie Kravitz, Roxanne Gay's Twitter persona and Oprah…still.
7. Will whine about: Willful ignorance.
8. Will wine about: Nothing right now…(sigh) I'm not drinking…on a diet…people around me are catching hell...Ask me in a few months.
9. Best thing that happened recently: Seeing the August Wilson play Jitney with my 17- year- old son, watching the Pixar movie Coco with my 13 year old son and experiencing the Toyin Ojin Odutula's gallery exhibit When Legends Die with the whole family. It's the little things.
10. Looking forward to: Growing older and wiser in the next half of my century. Oh yeah and finally losing my baby weight (it's only been 14 years)
We're so thankful for you! Please share us with a friend.