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Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson Is...

Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson Is...

He's... He's...

You know what? Fuck it! That bigot isn't even worth my time, nor is anyone who is so ignorant and intolerant as to call his level of bullshit bigotry "religious freedom" deserving of support.


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I am the Biracial Whisperer (or Maybe I have Biracialdar?)

I am the Biracial Whisperer (or Maybe I have Biracialdar?)

I was watching 'Suits' this morning and actually paying close attention for a change. There was a close up of Rachel (played by Meghan Markle) taking the LSATs. I saw her freckles and hair and immediately and excitedly blurted (out loud, sadly), "OMG! She's biracial!" For some reason, I always had assumed she was Hispanic, even though "Zane" (her character's last name) isn't a particularly Latino name. But there wasn't any mistaking the HD closeup. I Googled "Meghan Markle biracial," and BOOM, there it was. Just like my kids, her mom is black, and her father is white of Irish descent. 




Meghan Markle and her mother (from her Instagram)


Mariah Carey... Jennifer Beals... Rashida Jones... Soledad O'Brien...  Vin Diesel... Wentworth Miller... and now Rachel Markle. Even before seeing some "OMG! She looks white, but SURPRISE!!" article, I could tell they were biracial. Look, I know I am not the only one. There are probably a lot of you reading this going, "Duh! I knew too!" But, just like when a celebrity comes out as gay or lesbian, there's something oddly wonderful and fantastic to me about finding the closeted (whether it is simply because the issue has never been raised or addressed because here's no necessity to it or because a record company or TV producer intentionally wanted to leave the impression that the performer is white) biracial people.

I also get people who don't understand my excitement about these discoveries. But for those people, when someone asks you if or implies that you are the nanny of your own child, you'll get it.






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Review and GIVEAWAY!! Win a copy of Sandra Boyton's "Frog Trouble"

Review and GIVEAWAY!! Win a copy of Sandra Boyton's "Frog Trouble"

Disclaimer: I did not and will not receive any financial compensation for this post. I received a copy of the Frog Trouble CD for review purposes. All opinions expressed in the review are solely the opinions of the Pop Culture Family and shall in no way be imputed to the Warner Music Group, Sandra Boyton, or Big Honcho Media.




REVIEW

As I have mentioned before, my house is filled with Sandra Boynton fans. So you can imagine how over-the-moon giddy I was when I was asked to review her latest CD. Now, everyone in my house likes country music. Pop Culture Dad, despite being born on the East Coast and raised in the Midwest, is probably the biggest country music fan in our house; and I, despite being born and raised in Texas and owning horses and a cattle ranch (seriously, I do), am a much smaller country music fan. My dad raised me on mostly Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, and Kenny Rogers-type country, with some Crystal Gayle thrown in here and there (the classic stuff). In high school, I frequently played Pam Tillis, Trisha Yearwood, or John Michael Montgomery in rotation with Boys II Men, Madonna, and Dr. Dre. But as I got older, my tastes in country music got more pop-py. Sure, I still like the songs I used to, but if I'm going to pick new country music to listen to, I'm more likely to rev up Shedaisy, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Sugarland, or Dixie Chicks than… I dunno, pick someone who's won a CMA recently. You can keep your Tobey Keith, thank you.

So I approached this CD with some reservations. I love Sandra Boynton, but would I like this CD? The answer is apparently, for the most part, yes. Pop Culture Dad had no such reservations. When the CD arrived, he looked at the list of artists and said, "I'm going to love this song… and that one… and that one." He was right in most cases. [The Pop Culture Kids have pure minds, free of biases, and went into this whole gig with no pre-formed opinions whatsoever].

Overall, it's a great CD. It's very kid-friendly, and definitely doesn't give a parent pause like some of the songs on Radio Disney sometimes can. This is not a CD for people who don't like country music, however. If you consider Taylor Swift real country and are expecting that kind of sound, this is not the CD for you. Some of these tracks (most of them) have a real, old country kind of feel, banjos and all. There are some crossover hits, like Darius Rucker's "Beautiful Baby" or Ben Folds' "Broken Piano," but overall, there is no doubt that Frog Trouble is country.

The Good: My entire family agrees that "Heartache Song" is the best track on this CD. It's a fun, bluesy track that starts with Kacey Musgraves belting, "They made me cleanup my room..." before launching into other apparent woes of being a kid. Not gonna lie, the Grease geek in me kind of thought of Stockard Channing singing "Look at Me I'm Sandra Dee" in parts (this is a good thing, people). Another favorite of mine (though Pop Culture Dad may disagree) is "Beautiful Baby." Darius Rucker has this uncanny ability to sing songs that make you look at your children and breakdown into happy tears.

The Not-So-Good: The first song Pop Culture Dad prematurely declared he would love turned out to be the Pop Culture Family's least favorite. Look, no disrespect to Alison Krauss (one of Pop Culture Dad's favorite singers), but "End of a Summer Storm" was a wee but depressing. I mean, her voice sounded just fine (I guess), but the song was overall kind of a bummer. Pop Culture Dad thought it just didn't have a place on a kids' album. Also, I liked "Copycat," but I don't want to, because I still don't forgive Brad Paisley for that intentionally racist "Accidental Racist," so despite liking the song, I'm giving it a very stubborn thumbs-down.  



In general, I think any family who likes country music or just fun kids' music, regardless of genre, will like Frog Trouble. Now, thanks to Warner Music Group, one lucky reader will get a chance to own it for free!


THE GIVEAWAY

Before we get into the details from the concert sponsor, Warner Music Group, let me do some additional disclaimers [sorry, I'm a lawyer. That's what we do].

° The giveaway ends at midnight Monday, October 14, 2013, prevailing Central Time. Any entries received after 11:59.59 CT on October 13, 2013 will not be entered in the giveaway.
° The prizes will actually be furnished by Warner Music Group. I'm the facilitator. Once the winner is chosen, Warner is the one sending the prize. If the Post is slow, don't yell at me, please.
° The prize can only be shipped to a US address.
° While the CD does not in any way contain adult content, this giveaway is limited to people 18 and older
° All the information below is from Warner Music Group. When you hit the line, that's when my opinion ends and theirs begins.
° There are four ways to enter: 

1. The first is mandatory—leave a comment. I'm disabling comment verification just for this giveaway. Your comment can be about anything. Don't use it as an excuse to get all crazy and internet-trollie. I am still a member of the Mom Pledge, and anyone who uses this free period to go bananas with hate-speech or bullying will not only be ineligible from the contest, but will be banned from the site.
2. Like The Pop Culture Mom Facebook page. This option is worth two entries. If you already like the page, leave a separate comment to make sure your "like" is counted.
3. Follow me on Twitter
4. Retweet about the contest. One Tweet per day only, please.
° The giveaway is being managed by Rafflecopter, so to make sure your entry counts, go here:  a Rafflecopter giveaway


That's it! That's all you have to do! And now... A word from our sponsor:





FROG TROUBLE

Audio CD by Sandra Boynton
In Stores Now

Hang on to yer hat, Cowboy! Experience Sandra Boynton’s Frog Trouble with your little one!

One (1) winner receives:

·         Kid-safe headphones
·         copy of Frog Trouble CD


Giveaway open to U.S. addresses only.
Prizing & samples courtesy of Warner Music Group.

About the CD

Grammy nominated and bestselling children’s author, songwriter and music producer, Sandra Boynton, presents her first Country album, Frog Trouble. The album features 12 original songs by Boynton, arranged and mixed with Michael Ford.

Boynton produced the tracks mostly in Nashville, with renowned session musicians and an All-Star roster. Each artist was hand-picked by Boynton for this retro sounding album, including Dwight Yoakam, Fountains of Wayne, Mark Lanegan, Kacey Musgraves, Ryan Adams, Ben Folds, Brad Paisley, Alison Krauss, Josh Turner, Darius Rucker, Linda Eder, and Falls Mountain Cowboys.

With composer Michael Ford, Boynton has written and produced five albums, three of which have been certified Gold. She also received a GRAMMY nomination for the Boynton/Ford album Philadelphia Chickens. Frog Trouble has tracks ranging from Country to Bluegrass to Rockabilly to Honkytonk to Blues. It’s truly an album for everyone or, as the cover says, "For ages one to older than dirt."

FROG TROUBLE Track Listing

1.         I’ve Got a Dog – Dwight Yoakam
2.         Trucks – Fountains of Wayne
3.         Frog Trouble – Mark Lanegan
4.         Heartache Song – Kacey Musgraves
5.         When Pigs Fly – Ryan Adams
6.         Broken Piano – Ben Folds
7.         Copycat – Brad Paisley
8.         End of a Summer Storm – Alison Krauss
9.         Alligator Stroll – Josh Turner
10.       Beautiful Baby – Darius Rucker
11.       Deepest Blue – Linda Eder
12.       More Frog Trouble – Falls Mountain Cowboys (a fictitious group)

Frog Trouble Online
Visit the official website
Like Sandra Boynton on Facebook                   
Watch clips on YouTube                  
Follow @SandyBoynton on Twitter #FrogTrouble

Available at the following retailers

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
iTunes

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Parenthood: "She's So White!"

Parenthood: "She's So White!"

While I was party planning this afternoon, I started watching last night's episode of 'Parenthood'. Barely five minutes in, I fell over laughing when Crosby held up his newly-born daughter and exclaimed with shock, "She's so white!" And 10 minutes in, I nearly died again when Grandpa Braverman said, "She's even lighter than she was in the hospital!" and then expressed his confusion at the term light-skinned. Ah... All of this is so familiar to parents of biracial children.

Pop Culture Dad and I had the same reaction when Little Diva was born. I mean, we knew she would likely be born much more pale than she would eventually end up. Many black children (particularly with lighter-skinned parents) and most biracial kids are. My doula with Little Diva has biracial grandchildren, and she tried to prep us for the possibility before we went into the delivery room. This wasn't an earth shattering revelation. I was a pale child, and I've been around plenty of black and biracial newborns. I don't know any black person who would be particularly shocked by the revelation that some black and biracial babies will be darn-near white at birth.

What Pop Culture Dad and I were not prepared for, however, was that our then-blue eyed (now green), pale child, would pretty much stay pale—very pale—for years. My multi-ethnic mother comes from a long line of "high yella" women. My dad's mother was also very beige. But I'm brown. And my mother-in-law is a pretty deep tan. My husband isn't even that pale himself. Somehow, though, for the first three-and-a-half years of her life, our baby girl was lighter than her father.

This was a real problem for me when Little Diva was a baby. Despite the fact that she looks just like my toddler pictures, when it was just the two of us, people often asked me if she was my child or just assumed I was the nanny. I was so glad when she learned to talk and started calling me "Mommy" in public, so the people who were staring and trying to figure things out would look away. I also bought her several shirts that said things like "She's my mommy, not the nanny!" or which hadn't picture of a vanilla/chocolate ice cream cone baring the slogan "Swirled!" Even now that Little Diva has (finally) got a little bit of a tan, her skin color is often a topic of conversation among people. Annoying...

All of this "nanny" and "OMG, she looks white" [she does not] stuff is perhaps why immediately after giving birth to Super Girl, I exclaimed, "Oh, thank goodness! She has some color!" No one wants to be called the nanny.

I'll be interested to see as the season plays out, if Jasmine will experience any of the "Uh... Is that... um... your baby,... or, uh... are you the, um....?" nonsense that so many black mothers of biracial (or just light-skinned) babies deal with. If there are any black writers (or white writers with biracial families) on staff, I imagine it's coming.




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Why Green Eggs and Ham, Mr. Cruz?

Why Green Eggs and Ham, Mr. Cruz?

Last night, Ted Cruz, the junior senator from my state (and general stain on humanity), decided to filibuster into the wee hours of the night on his crusade against ensuring proper healthcare coverage for million Americans. During his all-night-long rage against quality of life, he read Green Eggs and Ham. Why that book instead of any other Dr. Seuss tale? Well, ignoring the irony of reading a book about someone who stubbornly insists he hates something he's never tried only to find out in the end he likes it to protest something Sen. Cruz has declared he hates, even though it is yet untested, I have some theories about why the other Seuss books were a no-go:



1. Mr. Brown Can Moo, but that mooing was the result of a pre-existing medical condition. Formerly, Mr. Brown could not qualify for insurance based on that condition; but now, thanks to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), he can no longer be turned down by insurance companies because of any pre-existing conditions, even mooing.

2. The Cat and the Hat's friends, Dick and Sally, are now college students in their 20s. Their mothers did not mind at all if the did opt to stay on their families' plans as dependent children. Thanks to the ACA, Dick and Sally can stay on that plan as long as they are dependents, up to age 26.

3. Oh The Places You'll Go, like to the doctor when you're mildly sick, instead of the minor emergency room; because now that you have insurance, you'll have real co-pays instead of attempting to duck hospital bills that come later.

4. Horton Hears a Who, but now that the ACA requires strengthened standards for community mental health centers, there's a good chance he can find a qualified doctor to help him work through the schizophrenic episodes.

5. You're Only Old Once!, and under the ACA, there will now be a temporary reinsurance program for employers (reimbursing them for 80% of claims between $15,000 and $90,000) providing health insurance coverage to retirees over the age of 55 who are not yet eligible for Medicare.

6. If I Ran the Circus, it would have to provide me healthcare insurance or pay a nominal penalty so long as I remained full-time and it had 50 or more employees.

7. I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today!, but I'm pretty sure I would need immediate medical attention afterward. Now I can afford it!

8. I am not Going to Get up Today! Well, I wasn't. But then my employer, a small business, received a grant under the ACA for establishing a wellness program, and now I realize the benefits of getting up and moving.

9. The Butter Battle (Book) was resolved when I read the nutritional content on my menu at Cracker Barrel. The ACA requires chain restaurants and food sold from vending machines to disclose the nutritional content of each item. Whelp! I dodged a bullet there!

10. The Lorax developed a powerful cancer-fighting drug from those glorious trees, and he received a 12-year patent on exclusive use before the FDA will be able to make a generic version of the biologic drug (which hopefully will not further deplete the tree resources!).
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