Sing-song insults hurled,
the cruelest ranking game played; only half joking. Big bright eyes focused,
their gaze forward past the lense; Kodak captured hope. If it's your birthday, make some noise! If it's your birthday, make some noise! Toby McGuire, Helen Keller, Vera Wang, Paul Lawrence Dunbar, and one of those Kardash...nevermind. You get the picture. Some famous people, internet trolls, and I were born on this day. It's also National HIV Testing Day, and you should put your mind at ease by getting testing at any of the many facilities near you. Visit https://www.cdc.gov/actagainstaids/campaigns/doingit/myway/index.html to find a testing site near you.
Not only is June an incredible birth month for outstanding people, but it's apparently a pretty good time to see planets bopping across the sky too. From the dying embers of sunset to the first twinkles of sunrise, you can see Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn plainly without the aid of a telescope on a clear night.
For some inexplicable reason, I woke up at 4:00 am this morning and my eyes automatically darted to my window where I saw what I thought was a big glowing star. It appeared yellowish to me - amber yellow. Turns out it was a planet. But, the only info I could find was a page called timeanddate.com. It has interactive charts that help you determine when a planet will have the best visibility in your area. According to the site, the only planet visible around the time I woke up must have been Mars. Strange. I guess Mars is reddish-orange... Juneteenth is a US holiday commemorating the date news of the Emancipation Proclamation, issued by President Lincoln on September 22, 1962, reached enslaved people living in Galveston, Texas on June 19th, 1865. While I grew up hearing about the holiday, I don't think I've every intentionally observed it. Like most folks, my family routinely celebrates July 4th commemorating the country's independence. But, Juneteenth is a uniquely black independence. Though Jim Crow laws and mass incarceration have plagued black folks since emancipation, it is important to observe the end of a very painful chapter of our history. It's also important to celebrate the triumphant spirit and determination of our ancestral survivors of slavery. The holiday falls on a Tuesday this year, but the weekend will be full of free and ticketed celebrations across Baltimore. I plan to be in the place.
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AuthorBae is a Baltimore-based art lover, foodie, music-head, history buff, and afro-futurism enthusiast. Archives
July 2018
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