My 2010 mantra.

It takes a lot of courage to grow up and be who you really are.

- e. e. cummings

Ain'ts no more!

I dare anyone to speak badly of the New Orleans Saints....  WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!

Bless you, boys!!!!!

High Five.

Five things I'm thankful for today are:

1. A father who knows his stuff, especially when it comes to cars.

2. A sister who is genuinely sweeter than and has the purest heart of anyone I've ever met.

3. A mother who listens and loves, even when she might not understand or approve.

4. Blood pressure medicine.

5. The spirit of the area I'm from and live in.

Bring it!

Tomorrow marks a historical day for us Southerners: our Saints are going to the Super Bowl!!!

This cartoon from ESPN, shared with me by a friend, aptly describes the cultural excitement we're experiencing in the Who Dat region.

Geaux Saints! ALL THE WAY! ;-)

The Saints Are Coming...

THE SAINTS ARE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL!!!!


FOR REAL!!!


Bless you, boys.

Hometown Boy or Hometown Team?

The Mississippi Gulf Coast (and maybe even more of the state and region) has a dilemma this weekend.

We've watched our hometown boy, Brett Favre, go from cocky (but talented) high school and college football player to somewhat settled NFL quarterback to more mature, valuistic, family-oriented star football player.

This weekend, Brett Favre's current team, the Minnesota Vikings, are playing our hometown team, the New Orleans Saints, in the NFL playoffs.

Nearly everyone I know from home is a Saints fan. If they're not, they probably just don't like football. Many of us have remained faithful to our Saints, despite years of losses and disappointments. Some are more fair-weather, but everyone would love to see this team with a heart of gold (and a little black) go to the Super Bowl.

I can remember as a little girl, riding home from church with the family listening to the games on WWL (News Radio 87). My poor Daddy might've been outnumbered in gender, but that AM station, then the game on TV once we got home, won out every Sunday afternoon during football season.

I didn't really get into football until the past few years, but have always kept up with the Saints. I've been teased endlessly: "If you're going to be loyal to one team, why THEM?"

My question is: "Why NOT?"

To me, the Saints feel like home just as much as the Gulf of Mexico, and gumbo, and boiled shrimp. My high school and college both had the Saints' black and gold colors, which just worked out nicely. In fact, until I moved to Baton Rouge and got caught up in LSU, purple was just another shade of the rainbow.

When I moved to Jackson, MS after college, I distinctly remember being in the mall one Sunday afternoon and passing a TV that showed the Saints nearing a win. I was so excited that I ran to the nearest pay phone -- remember those? -- and called my Daddy while jumping up and down and screaming, "The Saints are going to the Super Bowl! I knew it! I knew it!"

With the pride and grounded nature of a true Saints fan, my Daddy said, "Ok, Rebekah... But remember, it ain't over till it's over. They've just reached the playoffs."

And he was right, of course... But now, 2010 might be THE YEAR!!!! :-)

So, back to Favre. Most of the people I've talked to and heard from like Brett Favre, and are proud of his successes, but are die-hard Saints fans, and want to see them go all the way. I can imagine even Brett Favre himself, having grown up in Kiln, MS, less than an hour from New Orleans, secretly wants the Saints to go all the way. I mean, it's the SAINTS!

So, we'll see, come Sunday. But for now, the chant continues...

Who dat! Who dat! Who dat say 'dey gonna beat 'dem Saints?! :-)

To Haiti -- from Mississippi, with love.

Political cartoonist Marshall Ramsey summed up Mississippians' sympathy for Haiti very well:

Five is Enough.

I originally started posting "Five things I'm thankful for" as an idea my friend Liz got from Oprah. It's come to be something I rely on, and that when I neglect, I really miss.

Five things I'm thankful for lately are:

1. Being an American. It's really something I try not to take lightly ever, but it's especially impossible not to be grateful when world news points to poverty-stricken countries, and how natural disasters further devastate their lives.

2. The things I've left behind. It's nice to know that things I've put in the past really are in my past, and that they don't have to be in my present unless I allow them to be.

3. Good books. I love to read -- that actually might be an understatement -- so I'm really glad there are so many great books out there to fill my insatiable need to be reading something every chance I get!

4. The elimination of long-distance. Remember that? I'm grateful for cell phones, and anytime minutes, and free nights and weekends, and the fact that I can call friends and family anywhere in the country and not have to worry about how long we take to catch up.

5. Technology. I'm hooked. I don't know when I'll start grumbling about things changing, and why things can't just stay the same, but I'm sure it'll come soon enough. So for now, I'm glad I like new technology. :-)