A woman refers to her Southern relatives as “black” but, growing up, she knew it was more complicated than that.

(from The O. Henry Prize Stories, 2002)

A smart, unique examination of a cultural curiosity, Southern people whose racial backgrounds are so mixed, they live in a sort of midway race between black and white. They defy easy explanation, and this story — framed as a conversation between two cousins who’ve moved on to more metropolitan lifestyles — tries to define their ways and means without reading like a National Geographic article. It is “anthropogy” we’re dealing with here, but it doesn’t seem like explainable science. Which what makes the daughter’s assessment of her family as “black” an unnecessary simplification. Does that make sense?

Cool story.

I saw Regina Spektor perform tonight. She was so great. Some experiences can just lift the bad feelings right up out of you. Maybe you should play Reginetris.