Puerto Rico - An American State 113 Years In The Making; Part III

When I started this undertaking, of clarifying Puerto Rico's and its peoples' political status, I had no idea that it would be such an extensive project.  I did not jump into this project on a whim.  I have been pondering this subject for years.  I am proud and humbled by the new found information I have uncovered;  and a little disappointed at myself for not digging deeper into my Puerto Rican heritage sooner.  As a Genealogist, specializing in Puerto Rican Genealogy for the past 13 years, that should have been my first endeavour.

Well, so far, I've written a summarized version of pre- and post-Columbian history of Puerto Rico.  I gave you a glimpse into Puerto Rico's attempts to free itself from Spain's domination and gain independence.  And a taste of what Puerto Rico has contributed militarily in the early stages and thereafter, of a newly created Nation called the United States of America; keep in mind, we haven't yet discussed in depth Puerto Rico's role in the Cuban Independence Movement.   And now we will get down to the nitty gritty of some major impact Puerto Rican-US policies, terrorist plots and Puerto Rico's commingled history with Cuba.

The Foraker Act of 1900, an act passed by the U.S. Senate, gave Puerto Rico a civilian popular government including a popularly elected House of Representatives.  It also allowed a judicial system following the American legal system that includes both State and Federal courts; establishing within that system a Puerto Rico Supreme Court, a United States District Court and a non-voting member of Congress, by the title of "Resident Commissioner".  In addition, this Act extended all U.S. laws "not locally inapplicable" to Puerto Rico, specifying specific exemption from U.S. Internal Revenue laws.

In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt recommended that Puerto Ricans become U.S. citizens.  In 1917, "Puerto Ricans were collectively made U.S. citizens" via the Jones-Shafroth Act, signed by President Woodrow Wilson.  The same Act also provided for a popularly elected Senate to complete a bicameral Legislative Assembly, a bill of rights and authorized the election of the Resident Commissioner to a four-year term. 

Translation?  A mini-U.S. government was unilaterally formed on the island of Puerto Rico.

More than a century later, this does not seem like such a negative occurrence, after all, from the American point of view, Puerto Rico at this time in history was only beginning to see itself as a Nation, as a separate entity from the World's Super Powers; and although wanting very much to become self reliant, economically, did not have the resources to accomplish that goal.  But to a contemporary Puerto Rico, who had only less than a decade earlier gained its independence from Spain, this American government, imposed upon it, without it's consent or participation, was devastating to the morale of it's people.  Most of the population accepted their fate in accordance with the humility that is still very much a common characteristic among modern Puerto Ricans; most but not all. 

Natural disasters and the Great Depression impoverished the island during the first few decades under U.S. rule.  Tensions ran high for both sides for the next 50 years.  On March 21, 1937, a march was organized in the southern city of Ponce by the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party, lead by Pedro Albizu Campos.  The march turned tragic when the Insular Police (comparable to the National Guard) opened fire on the unarmed civilians.  Nineteen were killed and over 200 badly wounded.  Most shot in the back while trying to run away from the police.  This incident came to be known as the Ponce Massacre.   Thirteen and a half years later, on October 30, 1950, Pedro Albizu Campos and other nationalists lead a 3 day revolt against the United States.  The most notable were in the towns of Jayuya and Utuado.  These became known as the Jayuya Uprising and the Utuado Massacre.  These were by no means the only Uprisings or Massacres occurring on the island; but were the most prominent and most publicized.

Meanwhile, during these turmoil filled years, Puerto Rican politicians like Luis Munoz Marin, member of the Popular Democratic Party, championed a compromise with President Truman to appoint, in 1946, the first Puerto Rican born Governor Jesus T. Pinero.  A year later, in 1947, the Puerto Rican people, won the right to democratically elect their own Governor.  Luis Munoz Marin, ran a successful campaign, and became Puerto Rico's first democratically elected Governor, on January 2, 1949; he was immensely popular for previous public works, including securing the inclusion of Puerto Rico in President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal program, thus, maintaining his Governorship for the next 16 years.

The Puerto Rican Nationalist Party, whom interpreted the U.S. actions as the, once again, colonization of Puerto Rico; decided to gain publicity to their cause by committing several terrorist acts, ordered by Pedro Albizu Campos while incarcerated in prison, upon the Continental United States.  One of which was the attempted assassination of President Harry S. Truman, in his home, by Griselio Torresola and Oscar Collazo, on November, 01, 1950.  Another well documented case was that of Dolores "Lolita" Lebron Sotomayor, who proceeded to attack the United States House of Representatives on March, 01, 1954; by opening fire with a semi-automatic rifle while the House was in full session.

Here lies the reason why I have said time and time again, since our involvement in Afghanistan, send an Elite Force of Puerto Ricans and our Bin Laden problems will be over!!!

Now, to our Cuban Connection!

Many Puerto Ricans sympathized with Cuba's plight in that it was so fundamentally tied to their own.  I could only speculate that our brave Puerto Rican men believed that helping Cuba free itself from Spain would cause a domino effect and facilitate Puerto Rico's independence.  A very well known saying among our Hispanic community is "Cuba y Puerto Rico, de un pajaro, las dos alas"; translated, "Cuba and Puerto Rico, from a bird, it's wings".  Meaning, at some point in time, Cuba and Puerto Rico were so closely related by idealogy, customs, heritage and struggle that we were blood brothers.

Among the illustrious group of Puerto Rican men that were involved in Cuba's Independence from Spain were:

• Juan Riuz Rivera, Commander in Chief, Cuban Liberation Army, he fought in the "Grito de Lares" revolt, under the command of Mathias Brugman.  He also fought in Cuba's Ten Year War (1868-1878).  

• Jose Semidei Rodriguez, Brigadier General, Cuban Liberation Army.  He was involved in Cuba's Ten Year War (1868-1878), after Cuba gained its independence he continued to serve in that country as a diplomat. 

• Francisco Gonzalo Marin, Lieutenant, Cuban Liberation Army, he was so inspired by the Cuban cause that he adapted the Cuban Flag by introverting its colors and is credited with designing the Puerto Rican flag; he was a poet and journalist who fought alongside Jose Marti.

It is rumored that people of the northeastern province of Oriente, Cuba, have a peculiar dialect, idiosyncrasies and other mannerisms that are not common in any other part of the island.  I like to think that our ancestral Puerto Rican warrior brothers, after accomplishing their mission, decided to take a well deserved vacation and rested in Oriente for a while.

Puerto Rico - An American State 113 Years in The Making; Part II

I will start this second segment with some very interesting and previously unknown, at least to me, historical facts concerning Puerto Rico's involvement in world affairs, political events and other tidbits .  And just for fun,  I will format it as a "Did you know" gossip column.

Did you know that?

• In 1607, Puerto Rico served as a port for provisions for the English ships, the Godspeed, Susan Constant and the Discovery who were on their way to establish the Jamestown Settlement, the first English settlement in the New World.

• In 1779, citizens of the still-Spanish colony of Puerto Rico fought in the American Revolutionary War under the command of Bernardo de Galvez, named Field Marshal of the Spanish colonial army in North America.  Puerto Ricans participated in the capture of Pensacola, the capital of the British colony of West Florida, and the cities of Baton Rouge, St. Louis and Mobile.  The Puerto Rican troops, under the leadership of Brigadier General Ramon de Castro, helped defeat the British and Indian army of 2,500 soldiers and British warships in Pensacola.

• Augusto Rodriguez, Lieutenant, United States Union Army, was Puerto Rican, a member of the 15th Connecticut Regiment (a.k.a Lyon Regiment) and served in the defenses of Washington, D.C.  He lead his men in the battles of Fredericksburg and Wyseford in the American Civil War.

• Since being granted U.S. Citizenship, in 1917, Puerto Ricans have been included in the compulsory draft whenever it has been in effect and more than 400,000 Puerto Ricans have served in the United States Armed Forces. Puerto Ricans have participated in all U.S. wars since 1898, most notably World War I, World II, the Korean and Vietnam wars, as well as the current Middle Eastern conflicts.  During the first two wars, Puerto Ricans served as segregated units, subject to racial discrimination and lead by "continentals", non-hispanic, English speaking commanding officers.  The majority of the troops spoke only Spanish.

• Several Puerto Ricans became notable commanders, five have been awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration in the United States, and several Puerto Ricans have attained the rank of General or Admiral, which requires a Presidential nomination and Senate confirmation, as is the case of judges and ambassadors.  In World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam War, Puerto Ricans were the most decorated Hispanic soldiers and in some cases were the first to die in combat.

• The U.S. Congress can withdraw the U.S. citizenship of Puerto Rican residents of Puerto Rico at any time, for a legitimate Federal purpose.  The Constitution does not enfranchise Puerto Rican residents living on the island.  Meaning, I have more rights and am fully protected by the Constitution being a resident of the State of Florida, than I would be, if I was to relocate and decided to live in my beloved island of Puerto Rico.

• El Yunque National Forest, is the United States' only rainforest and it is located in the northeast area of the island. Among the many protected species are the Puerto Rican Amazon, a critically endangered bird; and a symbol of our Puerto Rican pride the Coqui, a small frog easily identified by the sound of its call, and from which it gets its name.

• Puerto Rico has several tropical, illuminating, Phosphorescent Bays.  This phenomenon occurs sporadically in warm seas around the world, but Puerto Rico is one of the only places on the planet where you can depend on it every evening.  The three most spectacular bays are La Parguera, Mosquito Bay and in Farjado.

• According to the 2000 Census, most Puerto Ricans self-identified themselves as being White and few declared to be Black or of some other race; this in spite, of a recent study which suggests that around 52.6% of the population possess Amerindian mtDNA.  Meaning, the majority of Puerto Ricans had a Taina ancestor in their distant past.

• The first Roman Catholic dioceses in the Americas, including the first in Puerto Rico, were authorized by Pope Julius II in 1511.  The first Protestant church, Holy Trinity Church in Ponce, was established by the Anglican diocese of Antigua in 1872.  Also in 1872, German settlers in Ponce founded the Iglesia Santisima Trinidad, an Anglican Church, the first non-Roman Catholic Church in the Spanish colonies.  

• In 1952, a handful of American Jews established the island's first synagogue in the former residence of William Korber, a wealthy Puerto Rican of German descent, which was designed and built by Czech architect Antonin Nechodoma. The synagogue, called Sha'are Zedeck, hired its first rabbi in 1954. Puerto Rico is also home to the largest and richest Jewish community in the Caribbean with 3,000 Jewish inhabitants.  Puerto Rico is the only Caribbean island in which the Conservative, Reform and Orthodox Jewish movements are represented.

• In 2007, Islam had over 5,000 Muslims in Puerto Rico, representing about 0.10% of the population.  There were eight Islamic mosques spread throughout the island, with most Muslims living in Rio Piedras.

• The Padmasambhava Buddhist Center, whose followers practice Tibetan Buddhism, has a branch in Puerto Rico.  (Thank you Wikipedia for providing us with all these wonderful facts about Puerto Rico, this blog would definitely not be the same without you!!)

Now, in light of all these facts that I have thrown at you, I must again, divide my blog, thus, this becomes Part II.  And yes, you guessed it, I'm not done, therefore stay turned to hopefully the last segment, but mind you, I'm not promising anything, Part III.

Puerto Rico - An American State 113 Years in The Making; Part I

Throughout my lifetime, I have had to explain to my American countrymen exactly what is the correlation between Puerto Rico and the United States.  It boggles my mind how little the average American knows regarding the politics that have given puertoricans their current U.S. Citizen status. Some aren't even aware that puertorricans are in fact U.S. Citizens.  Let this blog serve as Legal Notice to all my fellow Americans, we are indeed, real bona fide Americans; with some stipulations, of course.

As with all my blogs, a brief history into the subject matter is necessary and my pleasure to oblige.

The island of Puerto Rico is merely 110 miles long by 40 miles wide.  Among its territory is included the smaller surrounding islands of Vieques, Culebra and Mona.  It is the smallest of the Greater Antilles Islands, in the Caribbean Sea; an unincorporated territory of the United States, located east of the Dominican Republic and west of the Virgin Islands.

Discovered by Christopher Columbus, November 19, 1493, on his second voyage to the Americas; it is so small in land mass that he just simply sailed right by it the first time.  Puerto Rico was originally named by Columbus, Saint John the Baptist (San Juan el Bautista).  As time went on, due to popular common usage, the name of its principal port and the island were reversed.  Sailors and merchants referred to the entire island as Puerto Rico (Rich Port) and the northeastern port where they made their fortunes as San Juan.

The indigenous people that inhabited the island at the time of discovery, were Arawak Indians known as Tainos.  Mostly hunters and fishermen, whom by archeological findings, are theorizied to have traveled from the region of the Orinoco river, on the northern South American area of what is today known as Venezuela.  They called the island "Borike", meaning "Land of the Valiant Lord", in Spanish, Borike became "Borinquen", a phrase still commonly used by and for modern day puertoricans.  "Boricua" or "Borinqueno" is used to describe a person born on the island or of puertorican heritage.  The island is also popularly known in Spanish as "La Isla del Encanto" which means "The Island of Enchantment" in English.  It is the main reason why I proudly proclaim that we, the United States, have a little piece of paradise in our own backyard, Puerto Rico.

As is now so commonly known with the history of the colonization of the New World, these indigenous people were nearly driven to extinction by the diseases (small pox), forced labor (slavery) and many years of ill treatment inflicted by their Spanish conquerors.  Within 50 years the Taino population were reduced to such small numbers that the importation of Sub-Saharan African slaves was introduced to provide the new manual work force for the Spanish colonists and merchants.  African slavery was primarily restricted to coastal ports and cities, while the interior of the island continued to be essentially unexplored and undeveloped. Wikipedia


Spain quickly realized this newly discovered island's strategic location in its quest for colonial expansion.  Various forts and walls, such as La Fortaleza, El Castillo San Felipe del Morro and El Castillo de San Cristobal, were built to protect the port of San Juan from numerous European invasion attempts.  The port of San Juan became an important port of call for ships of all European nations for the purposes of replenishing water, food and other necessities, and making repairs for the continuation of their journeys to North, Central and South America.  Puerto Rico was under Spanish rule, influence and military protection for over 500 years.

Just before the Spanish-American War broke out between the two super powers, Puerto Rico was going through some political growing pains with the Motherland.  In 1809, Spain attempted to secure its stronghold on its New World colonies, by allowing representatives of its Spanish colonies to participate in parliamentary proceedings in the Mainland Iberia.  The first Spanish parliamentary representative from the island of Puerto Rico was Ramon Power y Giralt.  Several independent movements organized themselves during this time.  Poverty and political estrangement with Spain led to a small but significant uprising in 1868 known as "Grito de Lares."  Leaders of this independence movement included Ramon Emeterio Betances, considered the "father" of the Puerto Rican independence movement, and other political figures such as Segundo Ruiz Belvis. Wikipedia

To elaborate on the above Wikipedia notation, on September, 28, 1868, Manuel Rojas, Commander in Chief, of the Puerto Rican Liberation Army, led 800 men and women in a revolt against Spanish rule and took the town of Lares, in what is known as the "Grito de Lares" (The Cry of Lares).

In 1897, Luis Munoz Rivera, an autonomous political thinker and father of the future first democratically elected Governor of Puerto Rico, Luis Munoz Marin; along with others, persuaded the liberal Spanish government to agree to Charters of Autonomy for Cuba and Puerto Rico.  In the month of February, in 1898, Puerto Rico's first, but short-lived, autonomous government was organized as an "overseas province" of Spain.  In other words, Puerto Rico became an autonomous, if not, a totally independent country on July 17, 1898.

On July 25, 1898, during the Spanish-American War, Puerto Rico was invaded by the United States with a landing at Guanica.  As an outcome of the war, Spain ceded Puerto Rico, along with the Philippines and Guam to the U.S. under the Treaty of Paris.  Spain relinquished sovereignty over Cuba, but did not cede it to the U.S.  Wikipedia  And thus, ended our romance with the idea of Independence; for the moment.  This chapter is still in deliberations with Congress and the puertorican population on the island.

In noticing the extensive background of the puertorican experience, I have decided that this is a good place to divide this blog into at least two parts.  I will end Part I here.  And continue with the modern day issues and my own commentaries on the subject in Part II; to be concluded, hopefully within the next few days. 

Listen to Your Cat!

When I met my significant other, Scott (I can't bring myself to say "boyfriend" since we are both almost middle aged),  I was brought into the fascinating feline world.  Maverick is beautiful smokey gray, 10 year old,  mild mannered male Tabby.

Don't get me wrong, he has his moments.  Like when we introduced him to our Maltese/Terrier mixed dog Sparky.  He is not acclimating well and refuses to play nice.  Or when he does not wish to be held.  Good luck with trying to keep him in your arms!  But for better or worst, we are a family and somehow we will all get along, eventually.

Maverick is quite a character.  Once in a while he remembers that he loves something else other than his catnip and climbs into bed with us.  Normally he is quite a loner, preferring to spend most of his day sitting by a window watching the day go by, this was part of the reason we decided to get a second pet.  One who would interact more with me during the day.

Oddly enough on several occasions when Scott and I have gone to sleep, not entirely happy with one another, Maverick jumps on the bed in the middle of the night and wakes us up by bumping our heads with his, and caressing our faces.  He especially likes it when his daddy has a little stubble on his face.  I have come to the conclusion that he wakes us up, so that we can make up.  It's totally within my nature to come up with such a conclusion, I like to find any occasion to get my freak on.  "Listen to your cat," I have told Scott, "he has a lot of common sense."

Scott just laughs and marvels at the many creative ways I come up with to try and entice him that it's time to make love.  He is a lot more conservative than I, hell, that's a flat out lie, I'm not conservative at all.  I have no problem with discussing, practicing, enjoying, exploring sex in all its forms.  Just so happens that my newest ploy is to implicate his beloved Maverick, to my advantage, of course.

I believe all couples have their own secret language when it comes to letting each other know when they wish to be intimate.  Some are more outspoken than others.  Some more discrete.  Me?  I added a new phrase to an already long list of private communication between me and my partner.  "Listen to your cat!" now has a whole new delicious meaning.

Shorties Unite!

I was born in the beautiful Caribbean island of Puerto Rico, in the mid 1960's, but was raised in New York City, in the 1970's. 

Somehow I have managed to convinced my mind that both places are of equal importance in my heart.  And they are.  I am a loud and proud Newyorkrican.  As I was growing up, it was the Hispanic barrios in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx and even Long Branch, NJ, that I called home.   Funny thing is, I never noticed a height difference in the people surrounding me; we were all basically of similar physique. 

Imagine my horror, when my family relocated to Florida and I first realized that I was a shorty! 

Hell, here, among the short, I am considered short!

Living in New York was tough.  A vivid memory, which will always stay with me is that, every new kid in school had to prove he was not a punk.  Girls were not immune to this "unwritten" requirement.  Let's just say, my family moved around often and I was the new kid in school a lot.  Lucky or unlucky for me, depending on whether you look at life as a glass half empty or half full, I had seven brothers at home and got plenty of practice in the art of boxing(at least that's what they called it).  I did fairly well surviving these school yard fights.  I could remember losing only one fight, and this girl was tall and lanky. 

I should have taken my first hint there, don't you think?

Attending High School in Florida was not that much different than in New York.  I guess kids are mean everywhere and indiscriminately so.  The bullies tended to underestimate me because of my height and paid the consequences.  One day, I learned about Napoleon Bonaparte.  An insignificant non-commissioned French soldier who rose through the ranks to conquer most of Europe and become Emperor.   Many people surmised he  compensated for his lack of height by seeking power, war and conquest.  Thus, the term Napoleon complex was coined, geared towards vertically challenged individuals who exhibit overly aggressive and cunning characteristics.

In my mind, this guy, Napoleon, was the embodiment of what I perceived as being wrong with the world.  At least, my world.  Short people tend to get picked on.  Short people have no choice but to become aggressive to survive.  To out smart the evil that naturally comes with the accumulation of height.  Heck, its the reason Chihuahuas have developed their instinctively aggressive defense mechanism, they too, are shorties.  Everything makes sense.  Everything is right in the world.

There is only one problem, actually several.  In researching this topic; mind you, I am a conscientious writer, I don't want to mislead anyone nor God forbid, miseducate the masses; I came across information which disputes the validity of this line of thought.   It seems that the well accepted Napoleon complex is nothing more than the combination of confirmation bias alongside bigotry, used to describe an alleged type of inferiority complex which is said to affect some people, especially men, who are short in stature.  The term is also used more generally to describe people who are driven by a perceived handicap or overcompensate in other aspects of their lives. Wikipedia


To add insult to injury, Napoleon, was not short.  He was 5'6, well within the normal height for men in that era and in that part of the world.

The world I thought I knew is shattered.  I can no longer act out, finding comfort in the blanket that the Napoleon complex afforded me once and must cease to accuse the giants around me as instigator conspirators to the blight of my temper. 

I must accept, that if I want height, I must bare the pain of extremely high heeled shoes.  I must accept, that if something falls on the floor, the shortest person is always expected to bend over and pick it up, it's only logical, we are closest to the ground!  I must accept that if I want to reach something in the kitchen cabinet, a step latter is my best friend.

This was suppose to be a battle cry to all shorties around the world to stand up and fight for their rights!!!  Damn you Napoleon!!!  :)

Female Warriors in All Their Glory

Those who know me personally know that I love History. History in any shape or form.  It doesn't matter to me if you want to talk about the History of Baseball, Ancient Civilizations, Modern Philosophy, heck even the commode has it's history.  The origins of the subject matter is what fascinates me.  How did it come about?  Who thought of it first?  What circumstances necessitated such a contraption, political system, mathematical equation, way of life?  That is how my mind works!

I must admit, though, that of the few mentioned subjects above, my absolute favorite is Ancient Civilizations.  This blog will be dedicated to the Amazons.  A nation of all-female warriors in Classical Antiquity and Greek mythology.*  Please indulge me in a summary of these fascinating women and their culture.

Notable queens of the Amazons are Penthesilea, who participated in the Trojan War, and her sister, Hippolyte, whose magical girdle, given to her by her fatherAres, was the object of one of the labours of Hercules.  Meaning, Hercules, was commanded, as part of his many quests to prove his worth to the Gods, to captured Hippolyte's girdle.  Hercules, was not the only mythical entity lured to the magical girdle, in one of the many battles Hippolyte engaged in to protect her girdle, she lost her life to Archilles.

The Amazons have become associated with various historical peoples throughout the Roman Empire period and Late Antiquity.  In Roman historiography, there are various accounts of Amazon raids in Asia Minor.  From early Modern period, their name has become a term for women warriors in general.   The Amazon name is believed to have come from the Iranian language, "ha-mazan" which means warriors.  Another source is a Greek derivation from n-mn-gw-jon-es meaning "manless, without husbands."  Yet another, from Classical Greek comes from the word a-mazos, "without breast"; connected with a tradition that Amazons had their right breast cut off or burnt out so they would be able to use a bow more freely and throw spears without physical limitations or obstruction. Verbatim*-Wikipedia 

It is believed that these women originated from the area which is today known as Turkey.  Some versions of the myth surrounding these women are that no men were permitted to have sexual encounters  or reside in Amazon country, but once a year, to continue their race, they visited a neighboring tribe.  The male children produced by these encounters were either killed, sent back to their fathers or exposed to the wilderness; the females were kept and brought up by their mothers, trained in agriculture, hunting and the act of war.  In other versions, men were captured as a spoil of war and were brought back as slaves.  Then once or twice a year they would have sex with their slaves, thus, procreating the next generation of female warriors.

Although, the history of Amazon women has been tainted by mythology, there is an abundance of evidence to their actual existence.  Today we are aware of this amazing culture due mostly in part to literature, artwork and artifacts discovered throughout the ages.  Amazon tombs could be found in many different areas of what was once known as the ancient Greek world.  Amazonian portraits can be identified in vase paintings by the fact that they are wearing only one earring.  Amazons are accredited with inventing the Battle Axe.

The ultimate female warriors, the Amazons, an ancient culture of strong capable women.  Women who relied not only on their wits but also on their physical strengths.  Women who did battle with men and who won most of those battles.  Women warriors who accomplished the advancement of their culture, in spite of their exclusion of male participation and assistance.  Well, to me, that's just icing on the cake! 

In Retrospect

It is a sad thing to see when one of your children, the one that you have devoted so much love and attention to, suddenly informs you that she has had enough of you and tells you goodbye.  I guess I took a little too long to heal this time. I guess I have taken too long to become successful, rich, thin...the type of mother she would be proud of.

I guess it doesn't matter that I took her side, time and time again, even when I knew she was wrong, just because I wish I had had someone on my side as a child.  For that, I publicly apologize to my sons.  I should have listened to you more and cuddled her less.

I was trying to build a strong independent woman.  A woman who no matter what circumstances she found herself in, would be capable to stand on her own two feet and be the only one who chose what her destiny was going to be.  A woman who didn't need anyone to lift her up and make her soar.  A woman who can count on her wits and charms to make her dreams come true.  Well, I guess, I'm better at what I do than I thought.  My daughter is all those things and more.  I guess in all the lessons I was teaching my precious daughter, in making her so independent that she relied on no one, I forgot to teach her one more; compassion.

Funny thing that such an artistic person, who deals with music, colors, fashion, abstract objects and deals with multi-dimensional individuals on a daily basis, can be so "black and white" in her personal views.   A conservative artist.  That is who she is.  Quite an oxymoron.

All in all, I have no regrets.  I raised her and my other two children with an eye on the future.  I taught them to think for themselves, to be proud of who they are, of their heritage, of their family, to stand up for themselves and not allow others to take advantage of them.  To break the cycle of poverty, abuse and ignorance that I was born into.  And that, I have accomplished.  That, no one can take from them.  Or from me.  Not even her.

Honestly Be Honest

Most people when they think of themselves will include in their list of self serving attributes that of being honest.  But really.  Is the characteristic of being honest a full time attribute?  Should it be?  Is it possible to be honest in all circumstances?  Then there is the very difficult, almost impossible scenario of being honest with oneself.

How many people go around thinking they are living a healthy lifestyle?  Even when they have medical problems that indicate otherwise; high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, diabetes, the list can go on indefinitely.

How about the ones that have addictions? Gambling, shopping (yes ladies, shopping can be an addiction), over eating, nicotine, not to mention hard core addictions, like cocaine, methadone and heroine.  For those poor souls involved in the more serious life altering addictions, they tend to create an alternate universe where their addictions are just part of their everyday lives, therefore, the norm.  Most of the time, it is not until their addictions interfere with their livelihood, that they wake up and smell the coffee.  This is the time that some lucky few seek help.  The more common scenario is that family steps in and forces them to deal with reality.  Honesty is of upmost importance.

Honor (which by the way is the base root of honesty), Love, Commit(ment), Adore, Respect. Incredible how usually the smallest words are the most powerful and the most difficult to accomplish.  These small but significant words are very important to me.  The greatest gift a person can give themselves is to know who they truly are, what they truly expect of themselves and of others.  This can not be accomplished without making an honest inventory of your character, values and hopes for the future.  Yes, the past does influence who you are today, without a doubt, but learn from the  past, don't make it a walking cane that prevents you from running into your future.  Honestly.

The Joys of O

My man dared me to write a blog on a subject that I happen to be pretty knowledgeable of, female sexuality.

Poor dear, can someone hand him a pamphlet on dealing with females?  Rule number one, never dare a woman to do anything, especially a latin woman!  No one stepping up?  No such pamphlet exists?   Oh well, I guess I'll have to write it myself!

Let's begin at the beginning.  At the time of conception, we all start out as females.  It is towards the latter part of gestation period; once the vital organs are formed, heart, brain, liver, kidneys, stomach, and all of our extremities; that the sex genes kick in to determine your gender.  If you are lucky enough to have two X chromosomes, female; one X chromosome and one Y chromosome, male.

The reason I needed to start where I did is to let the men in our lives know that we have more common ground than what separates us.  The fact that your sexual organ is in the exterior of your groin area and ours, by contrast, in the interior, is of very little consequence when it comes to pleasure.  We both deal with the same feelings, insecurities and expectations.

Women's sexual organs have the primary function of procreation.  We all know that.  But of what use would they be without sexual desire?  It is this desire which convinces us to let a male get close enough to impregnate us.

Our differences as human beings of the opposite sex, develops mostly from the environmental aspects of our childhood upbringing.   Were your parents kind and respectful of each other in your presence?  Did they teach you to respect the opposite sex?  Or were the women, or for that matter the men, in your family subjugated to sexual innuendos and harassment?

Believe it or not, these aspects of childhood experiences, have a lot to do in how a person learns to perceive themselves, their bodies and the role that sexual pleasure plays once they become adults.

There have been studies that confirm that men are attracted by what is visually pleasant to them.  Did we really need to spend all that money on such studies?   Well, some guy thought so!!!   On the other hand, women are attracted by more than just appearance.  High on her list is the possibilities of what a good match can bring to the relationship.   Healthy children, financial stability, physical security, compatibility, mutual respect, among other traits, she might feel, will assure a successful union.

Now that that is out of the way, let's get to the good part.  The joys of orgasms.

Let's face it, orgasms are great, but there is more than meets the eye to a truly spectacular out of this world experience.  Women need to feel loved and cherished as part of the equation. Sexual abuse, domestic violence, unreasonable expectations are common impediments to a woman's ability to enjoy intimacy.  There is also the aspect of stimulation.  Women require longer periods of stimulation to climax, than their male counterparts.  Men are fully capable of screwing anything that happens to be in their paths, at any time.  Ok, I'm being a little harsh, just kidding, sweetheart!

My suggestion to all couples, regardless of how new or established your relationship is, be mindful of your partners needs.  Take the time to find out what those needs are and make it your business to be a willing participant. Sexual compatibility is of utmost importance in any healthy relationship.   Don't assume that what attracted you to your partner in the early stages of your courtship, will guarantee instant compatibility in the bedroom.   All hurdles can be overcome with love, patience and understanding.   And last, but not least, for Pete's sake, learn to enjoy each other's company, in and out of the bedroom.

X Y Factor

It's been a long time since I attended Biology in High School, but how many of you remember when they were explaining the properties of the X and Y chromosomes?   I have an interesting theory which I hope is uniquely mine, but who knows, I have been proven wrong, once or twice in my lifetime!!

The X chromosome is one of two sex chromosomes inherited from the parent to its offspring .  Both genders can inherit this chromosome from either parent.  By contrast, the Y chromosome belongs exclusively to the male line.  Meaning only males can pass this gene to their male offspring.

Becoming a female requires two X chromosomes, becoming a male requires one X and one Y chromosome.  Being the eccentric feminist that I am, I have concluded that the Y chromosome is just a variant of an X chromosome.  Meaning, the Y chromosome is deficient in its genetic information.  If you truly look at it, a Y is really an X with a missing "leg", therefore, men have some genetic information missing.  Yes ladies and gentlemen, I am theorizing that women are superior to men! 

We get two perfect XX chromosomes, while males are stuck with only one perfect X chromosome.  If you really think about it, it explains a lot. It explains why they tend to be selfish, egotistical, violent, easily distracted, irresponsible, intolerant to pain and just plain smelly.  Don't get me wrong, I like men well enough, I just happen to think females are fabulous.

I hope with this new found information women will now, once and for all,  come to the conclusion that men will never truly understand them.  A lucky few, will find that rare elusive gem, that will only "go with the flow" in the hopes of living a semi-happy life.  But true understanding of what a woman is all about can only be achieved by another woman. It's in the genes!!!