just another bronx girl

Well, I guess we should have expected this. But it seems the TY toy company, famous for its Beanie Babies, has now come out with two new dolls: "Marvelous Malia" and "Sweet Sasha."



The company says they used the names Malia and Sasha because they are beautiful names, and that they have nothing at all to do with the President's children. Well, of course not! I mean, why would anyone assume something like that?

[Insert cringe here]

This is just the beginning. So many people and companies are going to look to exploit the Obama kids to make a dollar. I'm not really sure if anything can be done to stop it, but I hope it won't get too out of control.

I just got back from watching the inauguration at a community screening luncheon here in the Bronx. It was a nice gathering of folks from the neighborhood, along with the community leaders. The whole thing was such a beautiful experience and I'm glad I shared it with the older people who did all the hard work during the civil rights days to help get our country into a position where it was even possible to elect an African American president. A lot of tears were shed today. I tried to hold out, but I couldn't. It was all too much. And again I wish my father were still alive to share this day with us.

Yesterday was a truly emotional one, for me and for millions of Americans. I stayed up until 4am (Swiss time) to watch live streaming video of Barack Obama's speech from the Democratic National Convention and I have to say I was completely blown away. It was so much more than I expected, which, given all the hype, was quite a lot! I love that this man has a vision for our country and that he's passionate and confident and, yes, hopeful, that he can be the one to lead us in the right direction.

As an American and, more specifically, as an African-American, I couldn't have felt more proud of him. I had tears of joy in my eyes as I watched him, and tears of sadness because I wish my father were still alive to see the day when a Black man was officially nominated for President of The United States. My father grew up in West Virginia and had to attend segregated "Negro" schools. Seeing Barack Obama up there in front of all those people would have meant so much to him. I just wish it had happened a few years sooner.