La Vie en Curlsz Part One

(taken from www.blackpeopleloveus.com)

I am, to use proper English, a mulatto - that is to say half black and half white - yes Oreo, Zebra etc. Actually I can't think of any other slang terms right now so fill in the etc. on your own.

In this day and age and in this city you would think this would be no big deal, and for the most part it isn't. I mean it's not 1980's in conservative west Texas anymore - thank God! But for some reason I constantly - and that is not an exaggeration - constantly get the question - what are you? Hispanic, Greek, Italian? I think the mixture of my "exotic" dark looks (ha ha) and unusual name just throw most people for a loop. So I say I'm mulatto -actually I stammer out whatever comes to mind and sometimes that's "I'm half black, half white" and sometimes the Mulatto word get's tossed out.

INEVITABLY I get the same reaction from EVERY single person. First the stunned dear in headlights look - then the blank stare as they process what I have just said, then the piece de resistance "NO WAY, are you kidding me, your lying, are you serious?"

UMMM Yeah! Because that is SO something to lie about in the south!!!!!!

Think about it people, why would I lie about that???? What would be my motivation, what's the point????? Why is this such a shocker. Crap I live in a city where a half naked man in a thong can run for Govenor every year, and the fact that I'm half black shocks you - c'mon!!

So this is my blanket statement - I'm half black - no that's not where I got my curly hair, no that's not where I got my name, and yes my eyes and skin are very light I am well aware of this - I'm sorry to disappoint you that I am not more "black" looking - catch me in August I'll be closer to being black then.

So stop with the ridiculous hillbilly responses already - welcome to 2006! Of course I say this in light hearted fun b/c this just happened to me again yesterday! Maybe I should start telling people that I am lying - really confuse them.