Not your Momma's History

I just discovered this wonderful interpretive historian, Cheyney McKnight, and her channel Not your Momma's History, on YouTube. It's an education to follow her careful, meticulously researched reenactment of the daily lives of enslaved people. She's honoring the people whose lives were hard, frightening and unrecorded.

Simply stated, all her statements are  historical, documented, facts, gently presented.  They're stark, to white people who might, like me, have concern but only a vague understanding of those lives and the endless fear and stress.  

She's a teacher, enlightening, not accusing. Presenting accurate historical reenactments, patient and good humored. Very well worth your attention.

And the forerunner of the Philly cheese steak, the dish called Pepper Pot, spicy, African origin, with beef scraps, tripe, vegetables, peppers. It was a street food, sold as an extra source of income in addition to full-time work for a freed woman. 

Even free, there was always the danger of being kidnapped off the street, and sold into slavery. The danger never ended. Enslaved runaways  fleeing north, were pursued and captured by slave catchers. 

Modern day police forces are largely following this pattern in brutal dealings with African American citizens. Reform us urgently needed. 

Back to the day to day, she routinely shows you her dressing process, explaining all the parts of the working woman's daily clothing. So many layers. And no maid to help -- she's the maid.

In this series there's also a day in the life of a skilled cook in a big plantation house, taking orders from the white lady of the house, half his age. A lot of the cooking is done over an open wood fire. And we see the contrast between the workers' relationship with each other when the lady of the house is present or absent.

Anyway, I'm definitely following and learning from now on.

And, one extreme to the other here's the most recent Textiles and Tea, with

She's a weaver, using all kinds of high tech approaches, which didn't appeal to me much until she exclaimed I love to find something I don't know yet, so I can learn it! Definitely on board with that.

I also liked her preference for free work rather than commissions. One of her very few commission is hanging in a residence college of Princeton university, Meg Whitman  (you know, founder of eBay) College. I plan to see if they'll let me in to see it, as an outsider.

This isn't a church, it's the cafeteria!

This book, a collaborative work, is still the standard reference on its subject.

She's a totally engaging speaker, the q and a jammed with greetings from former students who credited her with opening their minds to the contemplative side of weaving.  

She loves to introduce words and names into her work. Her highly sophisticated computer set-up enables her to design and redesign easily in great detail, sidestepping the linear nature of weaving. The technicalities were beyond this participant, beyond that general statement. She's involved with Jacquard looms, in the course of these complications.

She's influenced by Buddhist principles, and by Indian deities and their powers.  Such an appealing person. Her next plan is a white on white overshot work.  I have a feeling it won't be as simple as it sounds.

So that's Boud today. Not doing too badly, no plans for anything energetic. 

And the real estate taxes were debited from my bank account yesterday, pretty much leaving it empty and echoing. I'm continuing to do the aftercare for the increasingly less dramatic biopsy site, using a tube of   application the dermatologist gave me.

So you could say I'm vaxxed, taxed and waxed!

Cup of tea next.