There’s little question that if you ask me what my job is, I’ll answer “parent.” That doesn’t preclude the fact that I am a writer, and many other things; that my professional endeavors predated my maternal duties by more than a decade. But my primary job these days – as it has been for years […]
Bags, Mags, and Shags
The best Rx: Take two chick flicks and call me in the morning.
Pampering
I wouldn’t say I was a “girly girl” exactly. I’m strong. I’m opinionated. But I love the differences between men and women. Perhaps it is my years in France. Perhaps I should own up to a few girly girl tendencies all the same. But I’ve fallen behind. Way behind – in everything that enables me […]
Paper
Yesterday began maliciously: my laptop’s functioning ground to a near halt. Everything from word documents to image files to internet access was stalled. Nightmare. I spent a considerable chunk of the day running scans and updates, dealing with the frustration of not having what I needed on the backup computer. So I resorted to paper. […]
Cynical, skeptical, or cautious?
We had both been waiting at the hospital for three hours. She’s a registered nurse, and was even more annoyed than I was. “I don’t know what could be taking so long for a few simple tests,” she says. “A little blood work and the basics. This is a woman’s clinic now.” I am sitting […]
Traveling Home
“What do you think about changing the stairs, over there, in that corner?” he asks. My father points to an area of our living room, though it doesn’t seem to fully resemble the place I grew up. Not as I recall it. I wonder what he is doing here, why he is standing in our […]
Wits’ End
It’s another parenting morning during which I can feel the hairs on my head repainting themselves silver and the fist in my gut tightening. A typical morning with a teenager under stress and it’s become the rhythm of every morning for the most part, and I’ll sum it by saying: it’s rough. No matter how […]
Monday Morning Moments
After a really lousy few days, there’s nothing like a different sort of reality check. For example, everything that could have gone wrong that didn’t. On a Monday! For example: My computer didn’t crash. My car started despite the cold. I got the kid to school on time. His painting project is going well. I […]
Send Saint Bernards. Kegs of coffee. Or another pair of hands and eyes.
Reality: I have been writing through continuing sludge these past days – and very quickly. I’m not sure how I”m managing to do it (the “quickly” part helps); I’ve been struggling through an on-again off-again migraine, blurred vision, physical exhaustion. But no matter how I feel, there are tasks that need addressing. And there is […]
Confidence (Our Secret Weapon)
Perhaps our most important asset. French women know it, and show it.