thelmablack

Home Can’t Be Home Again When They take it away

I’ve always found the phrase forgive or forget to be too simplistic to ever serve as a go to for resolving conflicts or getting over a transgression. I think at the heart of it ,it is asking the wronged to erase the episode in one way or another. Make it blank , clear it outContinue reading “Home Can’t Be Home Again When They take it away”

They get us young and pretty

The violence that afflicts the lives of Black trans women keeps us wondering when. When be the day that we are a headline, a mis-gendered corpse that elicits hashtags and sweet memories from those who claim to know us best. I’ve written before about keeping up with my murdered kin, if for no other reasonContinue reading “They get us young and pretty”

Don’t expect too much

Least of all from one person to you. Time and time again you put your belief in someone , you hope that you are to them what they are to you. And it doesn’t take long to realize that is not the case. And interest and investment is fleeting. And all your gifts and allContinue reading “Don’t expect too much”

San Francisco, a review

I had the pleasure to continue my expeditions into the world most recently. Found myself in the Bay Area for the first time. Immediately off the plane in a terminal plastered with Gay icon Harvey Milk, you get the sense that the town bleeds a liberalism that is tantamount to its’ existence. On the rideContinue reading “San Francisco, a review”

B-Boy Blues: Banjee love in the 90s

There are very few books or authors that have ever addressed love between two Black men. But of the few that do exist , none stand out more than the B-Boy Blues series written by James Earl Hardy. It follows the romance of Mitchell “Little Bit ” and Raheim ” Pooquie” and takes place overContinue reading “B-Boy Blues: Banjee love in the 90s”

On touching privilege sometimes…

I always remark that I am never sure about how I’m read in the world. It’s something that I never rid myself of, wondering. Wondering how I’m being perceived , am I being spooked, what will I deal with as a result or not of being known. It’s such an enormous load of rubbish atContinue reading “On touching privilege sometimes…”

Loss of my Village

I struggle with letting go of people, places and things. When they have meant something ,it is so challenging to accept that it will never be for me what it once was. There is no truer case of this for me than Greenwich Village and the Piers. As a New Yorker born and bred, I’veContinue reading “Loss of my Village”

MAD AS FUCK

My Uber driver made me cry today. I self flagellate sometimes because of my inability to be a “nice person”. I’m not the one who is going to make small talk and look for friends everywhere I go. I work hard at being aloof and not engaging with people often. And I realized today whatContinue reading “MAD AS FUCK”

Senses

You saw my titties and did not touch them I did not take it personal I smiled at your refusal and enticed you with my eyes hoping to warm your ice You heard my brain but asked no questions I continued to spill but it was never mopped up You felt my pleas and turnedContinue reading “Senses”

“Don’t throw it in face ” and other shit cis-hets need to stop saying

I’ve found that revealing one’s self is one of the most challenging tasks someone can perform sometimes. Cause at the heart of revelations people want to be seen, to be accepted, to have their truth recognized as valid. Having lived my life a member of the Rainbow tribe, I’ve long dealt with closets and comingContinue reading ““Don’t throw it in face ” and other shit cis-hets need to stop saying”