Welcome!
My name is Lori L. Tharps. I am a writer, an author, an educator, and the mother of three incredible humans. I am fueled by color, creativity and passion, and I am terribly fond of pancakes. I am an Aquarius, I cry easily, laugh hard, and my favorite colors are orange, yellow and green. I am the founder and chief storyteller here at My American Meltingpot and I’m really glad you’re here.
Change My Life, Change My Blog
In May 2021, I radically changed my life by walking away from everything I knew in the United States – an excellent job in academia, a nice house, friends and family – and moved to Spain with my husband(known on the blog as el esposo) and two of my three children. I was all about starting over and I felt it was time to do the same with this blog. But I didn’t want to scrap everything I’d built over the last 15 years, I just wanted to change the focus. So, on this new-ish iteration of My American Meltingpot, we’re just going to focus on telling Black stories in a multicultural world.
Black Stories in a Multicultural World:
I mean stories about Black people and Black culture in conversation with other cultures and communities. Stories about Black people and Black culture in unexpected places. Stories about Black people and Black culture that expand the narrative of the Black experience. Also, because I’m an expert on the subject and because it’s just so much a part of the culture, expect stories about Black hair as well.
Because my own Black experience has unfolded in very unexpected places – I was born and raised in Wisconsin and now I live in Spain – Here on The Meltingpot you’ll also find stories about my own literary life, as well as updates about my adventures with my family as we start to explore the world as newly arrived expats/immigrants in Spain. And I should mention that I am mildly obsessed with uncovering Spain’s hidden Black history, so there’s an entire page on The Meltingpot dedicated to Black in Spain content here too. (Note: If you’re particularly interested in the Black experience in Spain, check out my memoir, Kinky Gazpacho: Life, Love & Spain.)
Welcome to My American Meltingpot
I want this blog to be a colorful space and a welcoming place for those interested in the intersection of color and culture.
