i missed everything!

sure, i enjoyed watching the results roll in from the comfort of a deluxe hotel suite with family and friend and brand new baby nephew all the way on the other side of the country. and yes, i had fun. but truth be told, my heart was in harlem -- the capital of black america if we ever had one.  i could help but wonder what was happening on 125th street. these videos gave me a small slight glimpse into the way everyone came together and celebrated with real abandon. 

some small part of me is sad that i wasn't there in the middle of it all with my girl renee -- shell-shocked that yes we can and yes we did and staggering down the street in a happy daze, arms akimbo as we stop and take it all in every so often, screaming our heads off when we see black folk we know, running into ralph in the middle of the fray, or james, or kenny, or God knows who all, hugging perfect strangers, dancing with the kenyans, getting high as hell off of euphoria alone, greeting the senegalese mamas in french, tossing one back and then some with a random mexican or dominican or puerto rican or nuyorican, letting some african perch us up high on a phone booth or a box of some sort or maybe even his shoulders so we could have a kodak moment and relish it all later.  feeling the unity, the oneness. feeling the love. and thinking over and over and over, just like tiny tim -- God bless us, everyone. 

the last time that happened, the last time i felt anything that was anywhere near that feeling of togetherness and love that spanned the african diaspora and the whole world, really was at james brown's wake.  that was nothing short of incredible.  what a bright shining black moment that was.  how elegant, how lovely. our differences melted away that night. the black pride was so strong, it was very nearly tangible.  at least, mine was. always has been, actually. that's a bigger part of what makes me such an uppity negress. but i digress...

election night was our finest blackest moment. and i missed it. then again, so did renee. she's in puerto rico visiting a friend. 

maybe they'll blow it out on 125 when he's inaugurated...

this one is interesting.

here's more.

this is my favorite.