Last evening thunderstorms hit while I was grocery shopping at my local superstore. The lights flickered and went out – several times – and with each, I was plunged into darkness in the middle of a large space. Have I mentioned that I’m a bit claustrophobic? I didn’t panic, but I’d be lying if I […]
Calling for the Tow Truck
“You have an idea parked in your head now,” he murmured. And he was right. It was one of those perfectly reasonable and measured conversations, romantic even, that had taken a strange and unanticipated turn. What he intended as simple disclosure of something in the past triggered a surprising chain reaction. In me. It was […]
No Turning Back
When I first read this article on why keeping your options open is less satisfying than making irreversible decisions, I was shaking my head. No, no, and no. I’m good at decision-making, yet I love having alternatives, not to mention contingency plans. But I persisted with the article (despite my own resistance), and like its […]
What Would You Become?
I wanted to be a dancer, an artist, a fashion designer. More than anything, I aspired to become a writer. I imagined that I might try on each of these roles and perhaps even simultaneously. When I was young, like the rest of us, I wove my futures from child-like fabric without knowledge of complexities, […]
At Loose Ends
Perhaps it’s the same for marathoners. For recent college graduates. For prize winners of any sort. I distinctly remember feeling this way twenty years ago, in the days and weeks following my wedding. Months of planning and effort had yielded the desired outcome and after the excitement, the commotion, and the relief of having gotten […]
730 Reasons
The coffee is hot. Black. Strong. 12 reasons that’s exactly how I’m determined to drink it. More shoes than I care to count – and 22 reasons I adore them all the same. 1800 books (at least) – and 16 reasons I wouldn’t have it any other way. 300 gray hairs (an estimate) – and […]
The “Big” House
Bigger is not necessarily better.
Peccadilloes
Some words are oddly likable. Their meaning may not stick, but the sound rolls around your mouth amiably. Last night I was reaching for a word that escaped me. I pictured Spanish food, with meat and olives. But no, that wasn’t it. Then I visualized thin paper bands in gold and red – the kind […]
Lounge Act
There have been tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands. From the widely known to the utterly obscure. Occasionally the brunt of jokes but always atmospheric, one way or another. And usually, encouraging us to relax in spite of ourselves. It’s my new Go-To Dream Job. My Next Big Thing. My Scandalous Ambition. Lounge Act. […]
Slicing the Onion
You know the recipe by heart and you move through the preparations as usual. You grab the red onion and slice through its textured flesh with a practiced hand. You begin the quick business of cutting rings or dicing squares, and your eyes begin to burn, to tear uncontrollably, and you’re caught off guard. So […]