Today in History - April 20
Billie Holiday records Strange Fruit, 1939.
Noted as the first major rallying cry for the Civil Rights movement, Strange Fruit was a poem originally written by Abel Meeropol, and first performed by his wife and singer Laura Duncan, at protest venues in New York City. However, it wasn’t until Billie Holiday recorded the song for Commodore Records that it became a major hit.
Southern trees bear strange fruit,
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,
Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze,
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.
Pastoral scene of the gallant south,
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth,
Scent of magnolias, sweet and fresh,
Then the sudden smell of burning flesh.
Here is fruit for the crows to pluck,
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck,
For the sun to rot, for the trees to drop,
Here is a strange and bitter crop.Image by TerryBlas
Biography at JAZZ: A Film By Ken Burns on PBS.
(via adrowningwoman)
It was a flood that wrecked this home.
Sorry I’ve dropped off the radar this past weekend. I haven’t been eating very well and it’s taken me a few days to get back on track. And when I feel bad about my eating I don’t like coming on tumblr… it makes me feel some combination of guilt, shame, desire to do more—none of those things (except the last) feel especially good.
I haven’t weight lifted in a few weeks and I really want to get back to it, but midterm season has started and it’s getting harder to carve out a time to go to the gym. That’s just an excuse though—if I planned my time better and was truly dedicated, I’d get it done.
It’s been a good week so far though.
My next goal: absolutely zero muffin top in my black jeans. I should take a BEFORE picture.
One of my regrets is not taking a BEFORE picture back in December, so I’d have something visually to compare to now.
why can’t i take my computer in the shower yet
it’s 2012
(via frompillow)
to do list, 4/18:
- be kind to yourself. taking pride in self depravation is dangerous. and ultimately, your refusal to listen to yourself is completely destructive.
- remember the chain reaction of the past, present, future. future is dictated by present.
- taking it slow and inaction are…