#JustThinkingOutLoud with this one… This massacre is heart-wrenching, unthinkable, heart-stopping and all too-close to home… My daughter’s high school was on a full lockdown just yesterday for a gun on campus!!!  Last summer I had to pull my son out of summer school (he’s special needs and it was his first time back after two years of COVID and he absolutely needed the extra schooling)… but I couldn’t send him back after a fifth grader brought the firearm… and my sons teacher/class had to take in the class of the student who brought the gun because the fifth grade teacher had to do police briefings and reports for the rest of the day. Last Friday my daughter told me of a shooting that took place after a highschool graduation at a school where she trains and runs track.  Shooting at Highschool on May 19, 2022 . It’s worth nothing that, although we may not hear about school  shootings everyday, they’re occurring frequently. Think about it! Were you aware of the shooting in Michigan, in w

 Today’s Adventures of #JustJacQuaye...  Confession… I’ve suffered from body dysmorphia for decades!  When I was 140, a size 10, slim in all the right places and thick where it counted, I’d look in the mirror every single day and think I was fat! #BodyDysmorphia After gaining 60 pounds during my first high-risk pregnancy and getting down to 170 (in which I almost died from childbirth and had a six-month grueling recovery process that included a month long stay in the hospital), I was even fatter AND my stomach was nasty AND my breasts were saggy. #BodyDysmorphia I realized recently that years of molestation as a child brought about severe body shaming and an incredible lack of self-worth. That set me up to accept almost two decades of bondage with the men that I entrusted my heart, mind and body to (folks I actually called husbands 🙄, who made sure to tell me regularly that I was fat, ugly, undesirable and how they could have any other woman of their choosing (and did have other women

So, since my daughter, Jayda is now a freshmen, I’m absolutely learning what it means for Michigan to be a play-2-play state, at the high school level! Jayda’s summer track camp was $200, her essentials (spikes, duffle bag, sports bra, compression shorts, etc.) cost well over $250. Jayda’s high school sports insurance cost $50 for the year. Her band uniform was $210. Her cross-country warm up’s were $150… the uniform was provided by the school (thank Gawd). And I had no idea anyyyy if these costs were associated with her participation beforehand!!! In Cleveland, we had minor fees like cheer shoes; in college, dance shoes; but most uniforms and fees were covered … Not to mention gas/mileage to commute her back and forth to track practice over an hour away for 8 weeks (I have a gas-guzzling truck; literally each day cost me about $25)… Also have to mention the many track meets that we traveled to and each meet costing between $10-15 for admission/parking for me and my son… When I look

There I was this beautiful morning, minding my own business, doing what I’ve done several times before, when GRANDMA KAREN & GRANDPA BOB felt the need to tell me how my (obvious blackness) wasn’t welcomed where they were!!! The audacity and disrespect! Crazy thing is, as a black person, we can absolutely expect it at some point, any point, every point, any where and any place… at all times !!! I was unaware that this community had closed off its trail and premises to outsiders due to quarantining as no signage was posted and we’ve previously gone there on plenty occasions. #WalkingATrailWhileBlack The most upsetting part for me, is that my 6YO son was instantly able to pick up on something wrong when the rude couple started saying filth out of their nasty mouths. I noticed his mood instantly changed and he became mopey and so did his body language as he positioned himself behind my body while we went back and forth. Well, we just got home and he was sitting on the floor. I ask

*I made this post on Saturday via Facebook, but had to share my thoughts on my blog!  So, I’m watching Soul on Disney Plus... it just came out yesterday and is about a black musician who’s voiced by Jamie Foxx. I have SOUL many issues with this movie! #SpoilerAlert Within the first 10 minutes of the movie, the main character done turned into a blue marshmallow thing 🤦🏾‍♀️! Just like Princess and the Frog, the black characters don’t seem to stay their authentic, black selves... they’ve apparently gotta change into something else in order to be relatable. Then, his soul returns back to Earth and is stuck in a cat’s body (yet, another animal... like the friggin frog... I guess black people can only be animals according to Disney)... while his physical body inhabits the soul of “middle-aged white lady” (it’s what’s stated in the movie)... he’s way feminine as a result, and has a woman’s voice for a huge chunk of the movie.  He seeks the validation from his “mama” who doesn’t approve of h

Click to listen to The Single Wife Life Podcast, Episode 6  I'd taken a job over an hour away from where I lived. Partly because I'd set my career goals on the organization as I admired the great work being done there and within the community overall, around diversity, equity and inclusion. The other part was simply because I wanted to move. I never really had plans of staying in the small-country town in Michigan that had become my home for almost 10 years. So when the opportunity of employment elsewhere presented itself, I jumped.  Problem is, when you're married, you can't jump in whatever direction you please, whenever you please. Well, I'd been meeting opposition for years and I was the only person who wanted to move forward and progress. Inwardly, I was on a journey to have a much better life than what my children and I had experienced. As such, I took the job in another town, was willing to commute two to three hours per day, and had the mindset that I'd