Weep Not

I haven't posted in the past week or so because my grandfather passed away. I have been blessed to know all of my grandparents for many years, and it always hurts to lose a loved one; however, my grandfather was just shy of 100 years (1 year and 2 months to be exact) on this earth and I imagine that's enough to make anyone weary and ready to move on - a fact he made clear to me not too long ago. "I'm old. People don't live forever. Death is a part of life." He was very blunt and no-nonsense that way - a trait I inherited, much to the chagrin of family and friends.

I appreciate the time I had with him and viewed his funeral as a celebration of life - a life during which he overcame adversity, witnessed change, and accomplished more than we can only hope to imagine or experience in our lifetime.

Grandaddy...


...sang in a quartet. 

...was a sharecropper who taught his suburban/city slicker grandkids where our food really came from.

...was a man's man. We had it out a few times when I was a "feisty" little girl because I couldn't ride with my male cousins in the back of his blue pick-up truck. He laughed at his mouthy little granddaughter and proceeded to leave me standing in the yard in the dust - literally. He taught me to be tough and that I couldn't always get my way.

...watched As the World Turns and baked a mean 3-layered jelly cake with chocolate frosting after a hard day's work on the farm (despite his manly man ways.)

...walked approximately 180 miles (a 3-hour drive) from his birthplace of Baxley, Georgia to Alachua, Florida in search of steady work.

...overcame illiteracy (having dropped out of school at a young age to support his siblings) to build a home for his own family, purchase property for all 8 of his children, and become a skilled carpenter.

...was forced to stop working when he was caught repairing the roof of his house at 80+ years old. He was a hard working man who would have likely worked until the day he died.

...told me to, "find a man with a job. Make sure he has a job!" That was the only dating advice he's ever given me. LOL


Grandaddy, Rest in Peace.

My grandfather and his brother circa 1933

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"Let the Good Times Roll"

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Miami Pt. II: Uhmaaaaaaah!

Since the point of heading to the beach was relaxation, I was forced encouraged to squeeze in some spa time. I'm not exactly a spa baby because - as I've said before - I don't like strangers rubbing me; therapeutic or not. But when someone is asking you every day if you're going to make a spa appointment, you tend to give in. I agreed, with the following caveats:

 - It must be an eco-friendly spa
- It must be affordable


Enter Uhma Spa - a green/organic spa in South Beach. Although walking distance from Ocean Drive, Uhma is in an urban neighborhood, so don't expect to get your treatments while staring out at the sea. Nevertheless, the spa itself is very much an oasis in the city.

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Meee Ahhh Meeee! Pt. 1

I know I haven't gone into detail, but some bad ish has been going down lately in tbyrd's world. I was dragging and getting on everybody's nerves, so I took a break and went to South Beach for some much needed sunshine (it was rainy and 40 degrees here at the time).

I honestly didn't think I would be able to enjoy myself but the sun really enhances one's mood. I also visited an amazing spa there;which I will blog about later this week. Anywho, here's a slideshow:

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Vintage Fab: Cricket Match

I stopped by to visit my grandparents yesterday and flipped through a book on Bermuda's history, to this photo of my grandmother (second from left) and friends headed to a cricket match in the 1940s. I took her to a demo cricket match once on the National Mall and that's when I discovered her love for the sport. She says she was about 17 years old in this photo.

(Since I couldn't carry the book home to scan the photo, I made do with my camera so her face is rather hard to make out here. Click the image for an expanded view.)

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