Note to My Most Stubborn Self
Madam Persnickety-Pants: You are in Europe. Henceforth into perpetuity, when ordering a latte while visiting here – you must come to understand there is only one kind of milk – it’s called MILK. It’s not 2%, fat free, almond, coconut or soy – just plain old, whole milk from the mature female of a brown-eyed bovine animal, not unlike what was served in Frankfurt, Madrid and Rome, and to you when you were an unassuming, snot-nosed kid after playing in the dirt of Northern Indiana. So, stop asking for something new in your froth, because the subsequent disappointed pout is not becoming to a lady of your stature. Madam, here in Italy, MILK most certainly does not swing from a tree!
P.S. Milk Does Not Swing from a Tree, is a very good title for a picture book.
Author: Tonia Allen Gould
About Tonia Allen Gould
Tonia Allen Gould is a writer, public speaker, entrepreneur, and investigative voice who tells the stories most people are afraid to touch. She is the author of the award-winning children’s book Samuel T. Moore of Corte Magore and the CEO of TAGSOURCE, LLC, a 31-year-old marketing agency specializing in branded merchandise and consumer promotions. Her career spans national recognition as a top thought leader in the promotional products industry and a columnist role at InformationWeek, where she explored digital risk, corporate overreach, and organized fraud.
Today, Tonia’s most powerful work emerges at the intersection of truth and trauma. A survivor of stalking, financial fraud, and systemic erasure, she uses her voice—and platform—to expose the systems that silence women who speak out. Her work-in-progress, Invasive Species, is an intense, genre-bending narrative of survival, hypervigilance, and reclaiming personal power.
Through storytelling, advocacy, and an unflinching gaze, Tonia invites readers into a world where justice isn’t guaranteed—but the pursuit of it is relentless.
Learn more at ToniaAllenGould.com
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