I have noticed when anyone has a strong prejudice against a certain group, she or he is armed with some sort of reference material.
For instance, when men defend their superior status over women in society, they reference published history, suggesting that’s simply how things have always been. When someone speaks out against the gay community, there is usually a Bible in their hand.
But what if an unknown piece of the past was uncovered that told a different story?
I think we’ve made great progress with Trevor. Our first foster dog, this GoldenDoodle was found on the streets of Alabama and sent to Adopt A Golden Atlanta.
A few years ago, we adopted our dog GiGi from Adopt-A-Golden. They asked that we foster Trevor and try to get him more comfortable and emotionally healthy so he could one day soon be moved into a loving and permanent home.
When Trevor came to us he kept his distance, literally. We let him out in our fenced back yard and that is where he stayed, choosing instead to sleep outside the first night. He wouldn’t let us pet him and showed his teeth to our other animals when they came too close.
I am a smarter person because of Made-for-TV movies. I realized this the other night when Katie Jo and I were sitting on our back porch talking. The topic of Helen Keller came up, and I began to tearfully recall the scene from “The Miracle Worker” where Patty Duke’s Anne Sullivan finally gets through to Melissa Gilbert’s Helen at the well.
W. A. T. E. R. Who doesn’t get choked up at that memory? Katie Jo.
When I realized my other half gave no reaction to my description of that pivotal scene, I questioned if she had ever seen “The Miracle Worker.” She had not, and went on to tell me she really wasn’t that familiar with Helen Keller’s life. I was shocked, but remembered that if it weren’t for Duke and Gilbert, I might not be either.
So much of my early education came from those mini dramas, which provided greater opportunities for learning than books or theatrical releases ever could. That’s because Made-for-TV movies came on one of the only three or four channels available then, and the lack of choice forced everyone in the family, and the country, to watch it together.
Christmas is a time for joy and peace — until you get around your family. There always seems to be one nagging holiday issue that resurfaces each year for every clan.
It might be where and when you gather, or even who gets to come celebrate. For my family, the big issue has always been determining the best gift exchange scenario.
It began after I started college. Since I was the youngest child, my parents finally had an empty nest. As a broke college student, I cried to my mom that I wasn’t going to be able to buy proper gifts for my whole family, which then forced her to initiate the conversation with everyone about a structured gift exchange to save us all money. Twenty years later we still haven’t found an arrangement that makes everyone happy.
Melissa Carter on surviving family at Christmas
Melissa Carter of the popular Q100 Bert Show announced today she is leaving the station with her last day being April 15.
Carter, who is openly gay, was the first out lesbian on Atlanta's airwaves and is likely one of the few openly gay radio hosts for a major program in the nation.
In an interview with Rich Eldredge, a gay journalist for Atlanta Magazine, Carter said she is ready for something new in her career.
"It's just the right time to try something new," she said. "It's been a privilege to be a part of something as wonderful and unique as The Bert Show. But on a personal level, it's time to challenge myself, take a risk and let the universe pull me in the direction I need to be in."