I know everyone keeps saying 2016 was awful, full of losses, and I really can’t argue with that. But Thanksgiving is coming up and with it, a reminder that even in the midst of mourning the things we’ve lost, we can still be thankful for the things that remain, and that feeling of gratitude can … More A Thanksgiving Wish
By the time I reached 17 years of age, I knew everything. If you don’t believe me, you should build a time machine, go back to 1990, quiz me, and prepare to be amazed. The things knew back then include (but aren’t limited to): all the state capitals the trigonometric functions how to diagram sentences … More Losing my Mind
For the last few weeks, we’ve been going through a bit of drama in our little treehouse. It’s minuscule in the scheme of things, but Brandon and I are both amazed at how far word has traveled, how many friends and colleagues have approached with expressions of care and concern, asking in hushed tones, “Is … More Summertime Sadness Slain
This week, I was faced with a task that seemed simple on the surface, yet my repeated attempts to execute it somehow resulted in one failure after another. Over the weekend, we’d gone through our clothing, gathered together three bags of donations for the thrift store, and put them in the trunk of my car … More Dope at Dropping Things Off
My mama used to tell me that life isn’t fair and life isn’t easy, and in all my years, I have yet to gather a scrap of evidence to disprove her. But even her wise words couldn’t have prepared me for the extreme difficulty of the task I was faced with a couple weeks ago. … More Mama Told Me
Today, I dusted all the ceiling fans, the baseboards, got the cobwebs out of the corners, even dusted the tippy tops of the door frames. Just kidding. What I really did was make this collage. You really shouldn’t believe everything you read on the internet.
There comes a pivotal moment each weekday morning when you’re standing in the shower, and everything has been washed, and it’s time to shut off the water, but you can’t, because it feels so wonderfully warm and comforting and you know that nothing awaits you outside of the confines of the bath tub but coldness, … More Shower Shutting-Off Superheroes
Thankfulness, I haz it. I’m off work today, ensconced in easy pants and surrounded by kitties and bunnies, and tomorrow is Thanksgiving. All fine reasons for gratitude. This is the new kitten, Smidgen, who was found in the forest and deserves his own entry at a future date. He alternates between wild creature attacking anything … More Giving Thanks for Woodland Creature Wins
It occurs to me that my history classes failed me. They gave me an unrealistic conception of war. The textbooks made it seem like various events and tensions built up over time, and most everyone knew a battle would break out sooner or later, but there always seemed to be a lot of preparation, mustering … More Winning Even when Outnumbered and Out-legged
Have you ever lost something that’s precious to you, and after failed searches, become convinced that the item was stolen and that the world is full of assholes who can’t be trusted, except that later on, you find it after all, and then you feel a mixture of relief at being reunited with your lost … More Finding That Which Was Deemed Forever Lost
Maria Linn 