Decemberserking continues

Today we are celebrating two things:

FIRST, it is the 53rd anniversary of the beginning of the Montgomery bus boycott. I missed the 1st, the anniversary of the day Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of the bus (which is what I used to celebrate with my class).

You most likely know the story. What you might not know is that 12 years earlier, Ms. Parks had been kicked off another bus for boarding through the front door. The driver insisted that she get off the bus and re-enter via the back door, but when she did, he closed the doors and drove away, leaving her in the rain. Here's the kicker: James Blake was the bus driver in both circumstances. Rosa Parks recognized him when she got on that bus in 1955. Which I think makes her all the braver for standing her ground the second time. And, as a writer, it makes an even more fascinating story.

As long as we are talking about promoting understanding between different races (okay, it's a stretch, I know, but I wanted to share this), you can go here, where they are celebrating National Buy a Book By a Black Author and Give It To Somebody Not Black month. Which I love, and not only because it has a million words in it like all of my projects.

And SECONDLY (drum roll), we are celebrating the fact that this building exists in the world:


It's the Kansas City Public Library. Has anyone been there? Does it really look like that?! Have you EVER SEEN anything cooler?!