TONI TALKS | SHOW & TELL | VISUAL VOCABULARY
Me ➖ A thru Z ➖
Translated in alpha order via 26 color-blocked keywords.
Toni is a dual acronym. The four letters that form my first name spell out two phrases. God whispered it into my mother’s ear when she was pregnant. They started silently speaking to me at birth. The message that’s delivered confirms my life’s mission.
Take ͡on Neighborhood Interaction ° Try Out Novel Ideas
A is for ARTivist
Here’s the thing. I never write about my passion project on Medium. That audience doesn’t hang out here. We’ve connected at the grassroots of community… in the real 🌎 world.
Summarily, I’m a longtime advocate for Black (African-American) History. It was the driving force behind my founding of Juneteenth in Joliet. The annual event is hosted at the Joliet Area History Museum. It’s how I’m leaving a local legacy.
Exactly 25, years ago (circa 1999) I wrote the script and narrated the documentary entitled, “Soul Of A People.” It debuted at the Rialto Theater in Joliet. A producer (Abe Kurien) entered it in festivals. Then he proceeded to show it around the country.
In 2001, it was nominated for a Telly, which is Oscar’s baby brother.
B is for Becoming… Better NOT Bitter
On the heels of sustaining blows, my modus operandi has been to keep it moving. Trust and believe life has knocked me down… repeatedly. But, I keep popping up.
The biggest life lesson is that it’s okay to lay down, just not okay to stay down. The hardest hit, I’ve ever sustained was from Walmart. That one really stung. It nearly put me out of business. There’s still a lot of bad blood between me and the lying lowlife rat bastard buyer. I’m still trying to find it in my heart to forgive his heinous actions.
C is for Collaborative
Alignment with professionals, who owned unbundled companies, empowered me to sustain a business from startup in 2–1-1996 to shut down (retirement) 2–1-2022.
BTW: Restarting 2–1–2024. This time with a ton of experience.
D is for Determined
To design my next decade.
E is for Extremely Extroverted + Extraordinarily Energetic
Enough said…
F is for Feeling
Energy sponge… Every emotion.
G is for Greathouse
That’s my last name by way of marriage. Funny story. When I met the guy who would be my husband, and he introduced himself, my first thought was what a strange last name. My second thought was… why do you care, you’re not going to marry the man. 😳
H is for Help Is Here
This is the name of my publication on Medium. Please follow it.
Low-key: It will take a year to build. Once it’s completed 12–31–2024. It will morph into an evergreen resource that encourages, educates, entertains, and empowers readers.
I is for 💡 Ideas ➕ Imagination
The way I’m wired.
J is for Jokes
Find humorous bits, every Friday, courtesy of my dearly departed dad.
K is for Kindness
Share it… L👀k for it… Pay It Forward.
L is for Library Lover ➕ Life-Long-Learner
Proud member of the American Library Association, Black Libriarians subgroup. I joined last summer (2023) after attending the ALA’s National Conference in Chicago. NO: I’m not a librarian.
Fun Fact: ¿Dónde está la biblioteca? It’s the only Spanish phrase that I can remember after studying the language, as an adult, for 2 years.
M is for Mastery
Approaching age 60, I’ve mastered the mechanics of myself. Read more about me 🎤 HERE.
N is for Nice
Reformed People Pleaser. Former Doormat. Hackles Up & Hyper-Aware. Steering clear of energy vampires, soul suckers, and walking dead who seek to take advantage of my predisposition for kindness.
O is for Optimistic
Consistency achieved it in seeing the silver lining in every situation. Correction… almost every situation.
P is for Productive
It’s a habit honed over decades. That’s an accomplishment for someone who has struggled mightily, early in life, with finishing what I started.
Low Key: My unchecked attention span may be less than a goldfish.
Q is for Quirky
From the top of my head to the tip of my toes.
R stands for Resourceful
Doing what I can, with what I have, where I am.
S is for Sharing
Lessons learned surfing the site since joining Medium in 2019.
T is for Tremendously Tenacious
Like the energizer bunny… I keep going!
U is for Unmuted
Took me five decades to be able to freely speak my mind.
V is for Voracious
Reader of traditionally published books. The authors of some of my favorites are… Isabelle Wilkerson, Anna Quindlen, Paulo Cohelo, Yung Pueblo, Napoleon Hill, Brene Brown and Nikole Hannah Jones.
W is for Weirdly Wonderful
Caricature art started speaking to me as a child. Mad Magazine was my staple as a teen. As an adult, I started a company (circa 2012) exclusively creating caricature maps for the municipal tourism sector.
X is for X-Factor
Infused with an extra dose of energy at birth.
Y is for Youthful
Age… just a number. I ❤️ mine. BTW: I’m 59 turning 60 in August. Finally, feel free to be odd ole me!
Z is for Zone
In the right arena. On track. Staying in my lane. Running my race. Chasing the best version of myself!
Counting Down the Days in 2024… Making Every Day Count ❣️
