Un-Wanted: Random magazine subscriptions.

Has anyone else encountered this phenomena? It started shortly after I moved into my new place near the heart of this dear city that's now been my home for almost NINE years! I opened our mailbox to find a copy of Redbook, a women's magazine, addressed to me. This is the only magazine to come monthly (so far) and with its target audience being women who want it all - career, family, immaculate home, killer wardrobe, loads of time to contemplate self as goddess, with all being on their own terms - it's the one magazine that even comes close to being something I'd flip through from month to month.

The magazines, or solicitations for magazine subscriptions, have become increasingly more bizarre. I next received The Source, AKA The Bible of Hip Hop Music, Culture, and Politics. Then Ebony started sending me weekly letters asking me to submit payment for a subscription. I'm honored the people at Ebony think I am a cool-enough white girl to receive its publication - I just want to know how they heard about me. Later there was an offer for Guitar Player. And yesterday's selection? Latina!

Anyone think I should be worried? I can't imagine why anyone would steal my identity to send ME these magazines that, as far as I can tell, I haven't paid for. Those are great lengths for a stranger to go to provide me with a wide and wild variety of reading material.

Or should I take all these glossy pages as a message from the universe to expand my horizons and include handy casserole recipes, hip-hop, black empowerment, and Latin flavor? Perhaps my Christianity Todays, Runners Worlds, and Pastes are in need of new friends? Can The Economist, Marie Claire, and Real Simple be next?

I'm baaaack...but not in the Poltergeist, creep ya out sort of way.

I am embarrassed to say it's been about two years since I've published on this blog. It's a relief to say that since my last post, the North Carolina Executive Cabinet has instituted a de facto moratorium on capital punishment due possibly to their realization that decisions of life and death had been placed in their hands and found it difficult to sleep at night with thoughts of bloodied fingers dancing in their heads. I can't blame them for avoiding tough decisions -- I do it all the time. Before the conundrum of how we should kill people to punish them for killing people put a halt to killing people, the State put to death two more souls. Unfortunately, the finger-pointing and indecisiveness of our elected officials did not come soon enough to save Willie Brown, Jr. and Samuel Flippen. I hope they are resting in peace and the people left behind -- the friends and family of both the victims and the executed -- have been able to find some peace as well.

Although I am thankful the death chamber down the street has remained unoccupied for over a year, that's not why I decided to start posting again. I am in the midst of applying for graduate school and am wrestling with writer's block. And not the playful, horsing around with your sibling wrestling. This writer's block is more so of the Jacob wrestling God kind. So before I blaspheme and run, let me just say I'm hoping the task of putting down the not so important thoughts out of mind will help knock lose my block so I can share my more important ideas with the fine people at NC Central School of Law and NC State School of Social Work. Here's hoping!