Moon Mami Writes

So, I decided at the last minute that I was going to spend the night in NYC for the BlogHer conference this weekend. I'm presenting on Saturday for a 3pm panel session and had originally intended on showing up and then rolling out (of course after the session on how to perk up your blog). But, the BlogHer is a really big deal-- bigger than I had realized, and I want to stick around to meet folks, learn some new things and, of course, get some swag. It's going to be modified, of course, because my 6 year-old is traveling with me, but I'm in it to win it. The swag I speak of is not the term one uses when talking about getting some "cool". No. I'm talking about free stuff. Giveaways. Stuff that you would normally pay for. I had missed my boat in getting sponsored for this trip (my play's recent run had me pre-occupied)so the travel is coming out of my pocket. So, the thought of free swag is exciting, particularly when I have been reading on twitter and the ...

So, today, I presented my "Body Jeopardy" presentation at a conference in Maryland for girls 13-20 years-old and I had more fun than I expected. I hadn't been doing as many workshops in the last six months around reproduction, self-esteem and the like as I was doing last year and when I was the Assistant Director for a youth program in DC from 2001-2006. I had decided to facilitate at this conference because I always like to keep my feet fresh as a youth worker and the conference was specifically targeting African-American young ladies. I talked to them about Saartjie Baartman , the woman known as the Hottentot Venus, and how her story of exploitation is a useful parable to look at when we think about self-esteem and body image. I learned that my session had been a bit controversial when parents had read what my subject matter was about. Because of my honest approach to reproductive health, self-esteem and sexuality, only girls 14 years-old and up could sign up for m...

( In photo: That's me as a panelist representing Liberated Muse at the 2008 International Soul Music Summit ) I'm going to be presenting at this year's BlogHer '10 Conference in New York and I'm thrilled! I submitted a proposal on the encouragement of author Ananda Leeke, and not only was I asked to be a panelist, but the panel title will actually be the title I suggested--"Transforming Online Places into Art Spaces". Cool beans! I got online as a blogger for the first time in 2003 when I became a Mommy to the world's most divine little girl. I created a profile on iParenting and an assortment of other websites that offered free blogging space and I blogged (seemingly day and night) about the wonders of motherhood. From the mundane "Look at my baby, she is yawning sooo cute" to the emotional "My daughter has created a new life purpose for me on this earth", my blogs outed me as a writer and an emotional and often conflicted mother....