I learn things about myself and my world every day I lift my head from the pillow. Every day. But when I travel I am moved in ways good and bad that elevate my journey. I’ve returned from Amsterdam and here is what I have learned. I prefer the country to the city. I used…
Changing habits and challenging established expectations is stressful stuff, but this is my year. All the wrapping will be recycled or reusable, and all of my gifts will be local or handmade by small shops via Etsy. I will not purchase one gift from a big store. This year and every year after, I am doing…
Inviting a pet into your life is an exercise in being in the now. When I was searching for my Jack, I read about different dog breeds, and there was one section I still find troubling—life expectancy. Jack is a Brittany, and the average life expectancy for his breed is 12-13 years. That’s not…
I was born tomorrow. Technically, forty-five years ago tomorrow, but I’m not a stickler for details. I was born right into the lives of my parents. They were stupid in love with one another and I came into a world of cable cars, yellow, and motor oil. I tend to romanticize this time. The…
Poke is raw tuna cut into small cubes and mixed with different spices. My current favorite is dynamite because it has avocado. It’s a big deal in Hawaii and we have eaten it for lunch pretty much every day since we arrived on Kona. It’s delicious and so fresh here. But there are other restaurants,…
Last week it was decided we need a new mattress. I have learned many things as I have. . . aged. Yuck. I have learned many things as I have. . . cascaded through my years. No. I’ve learned a few things on my hopefully long walk toward the grave. Yes, that’s the one.…
My friend calls her happy place “Yellow”. It’s become a bit of a catchword for us, she even bought me yellow mittens for Christmas this year. Yellow is warmth in the midst of cold, peace in the middle of a shit storm, it’s the happy. Jinger is my friend and a few days a week, she’s also…
I’m not feeling it. I know, I type this every year, but jeez why is it Christmas again? Maybe my internal calendar is off because it feels like . . . March to me. I sometimes have these fantasies of getting on a plane bound for somewhere that doesn’t care that it’s Christmas. I’m not…
Show, don’t tell. It’s a common phrase among editors and high school English teachers love to write it in red pen on a student’s paper. In writing it means instead of telling the reader a story, let them feel the story, invite them in to sit with the characters through dialogue or setting. The first…