I'll Call It Like I See It

by sheila morris

For any who want more, complete list of all posts by month since 2011
  • one lesbian’s journey for a simple matter of justice (part 1)

    one lesbian’s journey for a simple matter of justice (part 1)


    30 years later we remain people you know and like

    thanks to Pretty for taking these pictures

    (we were there with different partners and friends – she saved pictures)

    When I left Columbia, South Carolina in April of 1993 to drive to Washington, D. C. with my partner and two gay friends to participate in a weekend known as the 1993 March for Gay, Lesbian and Bi Equal Rights, I had no idea my life would be changed forever by the events I took part in. Change was in the air – I could feel a seismic shift from my personal shame and fear to a collective sense of pride as I walked with the South Carolina delegation in the middle of this mass of humanity that championed a cause I had needed since I was a child growing up in the piney woods of rural southeast Texas, thinking I was the only one with feelings I dared not express. At forty seven years of age I felt a sense of belonging, a feeling that this wave of a million people marching for a simple matter of justice had finally brought me home.

    the Names Project AIDS Memorial Quilt on display that weekend –

    next to the Washington Monument

    Onward.

  • cat on a cold cement step

    cat on a cold cement step


    I don’t care how many dogs you have

    I want to come inside this morning before the dogs are awake

    I’m sorry for your allergies, but I know you have zyrtec

    please let me in

    Our friend Erin tells us this is a male cat that’s been neutered – I refuse to give him a name other than Cat because he deserves a forever home to welcome him indoors which is where he evidently believes he belongs. He is affectionate, playful, and has grown bigger during the relentlessly hot South Carolina summer months. Full disclosure he has a knot on his neck that should be removed. Pretty and I will gladly pay for the surgery but can’t provide care he would need afterwards.

    This Cat needs to be rescued from our carport – and from us.

    Anyone interested please contact me at smortex@aol.com.

  • All Aboard the Summer of Coco Express Unlimited!

    All Aboard the Summer of Coco Express Unlimited!


    Coco Gauff is now the youngest American to win the US Open since Serena Williams in 1999 and the fourth teenage American in the Open era to win the home Slam. And she did so on the anniversary of both Arthur Ashe’s breakthrough US Open victory in 1968 and Venus Williams‘ maiden title at the event in 2000. (D’Arcy Maine, ESPN.com)

    Gauff won her final on the Arthur Ashe Stadium Court of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, the same court where she watched Venus and Serena Williams play ten years earlier in 2013 at the age of nine when her father took her to see her first US Open tennis tournament. The Williams sisters inspired a new generation of American tennis players for more than two decades – their legacy will be as powerful as their play was on the Ashe Stadium Court.

    Serena won her fifth US Open women’s singles championship in 2013

    Pretty and I watched Coco overcome losing the first set of the championship match to Aryna Sabalenka who will be the number 1 player in the world tomorrow when the rankings come out by winning the next two sets with power, placement, and perseverance. When I finally could breathe, I told Pretty I was thankful to have lived long enough to witness a new generation of American tennis players who have the potential to fulfill the legacy the Williams sisters created.

    Coco wins her first US Open title in 2023

    When Gauff was handed her $3 million check during the presentation, she turned to find tennis legend and social justice activist King standing a few feet away from her on the podium and said thank you Billie, for fighting for this.

    Congratulations to Coco Gauff not only for her incredible victory on the courts but also for her remarkable understanding of what this victory will mean off the courts as well. I believe the Summer of Coco Express in 2023 is unlimited.

  • Labor Day 2023

    Labor Day 2023


    What glorious weather! What a fun time with family and friends!

    Molly looks for her favorite person from the screen porch – Ella? Ella?

    Ella plays with her pool peeps Saskia and Finn

    Nana directs fun at our pool party

    I asked Nana why this pool towel has so many holes?

    Nana said it was very old, but it was her favorite towel

    I wonder if that’s why she keeps Naynay, too?

    **********************

    Happy Labor Day from our family to yours!

    ,

  • feels like home to me

    feels like home to me


    As Hurricane Idalia barrels across the southeastern section of the USA today, Pretty has gone for dog food and I’m watching the rain begin to softly fall through my office windows, listening to Alexa shuffle my playlist of songs I love. Feels like Home to Me by my favorite trio of Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris reminds me of who and what are most important to me when the storms of life threaten to overwhelm.

    Something in your eyes
    Makes me wanna lose myself
    Makes me wanna lose myself
    In your arms

    … There’s something in your voice

    … Makes my heart beat fast
    Hope this feeling lasts
    The rest of my life
    If you knew how lonely my life has been

    … And how long I’ve been so alone

    … If you knew how I wanted someone to come along
    And change my life the way you’ve done

    … Feels like home to me
    Feels like home to me
    Feels like I’m all the way back where

    … I come from
    Feels like home to me
    Feels like home to me
    Feels like I’m all the way back where I belong

    … A window breaks down a long dark street
    And a siren wails in the night

    … But I’m alright ’cause I have you here with me
    And I can almost see through the dark there is light

    … If you knew how much this moment means to me
    And how long I’ve waited for your touch
    If you knew how happy you are making me
    I’ve never thought that I’d love anyone so much

    … Feels like home to me
    Feels like home to me
    Feels like I’m all the way back where
    I come from

    … Feels like home to me
    Feels like home to me
    Feels like I’m all the way back where I belong
    Feels like I’m all the way back where I belong

    (Randy Newman, songwriter)

    ****************

    Pretty and I hope all our cyberspace friends are staying safe from whatever storms threaten today – and every day.

    Molly and me

    Pretty and Ella with son Drew glued to golf tournament

    Feels like home to me.