It is not the day of her passing, though my mother is much on my mind. She is here, as I pad around the house to the ticking of the wall clock that brings me back to mornings in her kitchen. Today, I write from a chair I rarely use. It is most often the […]
Big Things
Dealing with the next big thing, and the next, when it comes to parenting.
The Forest for the Trees
We were pressed for time. Again. While my son finished dressing and filling his backpack, I put a plate of fried eggs and toast on the table. Orange juice next to it. I paced a little. I hate running late. He swallowed down breakfast and gulped the juice, grabbed his things, asked for the car […]
Who do you trust?
When I wrote about the film, Closer, I was intrigued by the fine line between honesty and dishonesty, genuine connection and its simulation, and the ways in which we deceive ourselves when we love. There is nothing more fascinating – to me – than adults dealing with each other. Men and women, interacting. The issue […]
Is “reputation” old hat?
Are you about getting it done, or how well you get it done? Do you dash off memos, emails, or work product of other sorts, with only a quick look – if that? Do you insist on being proud of whatever you produce and put your name to? Quality, quality, quality The other day I […]
News
Yesterday I was doing some editing and talking on the phone, when I was told to look at the news. A man had taken hostages at the Discovery Channel just outside of Washington, DC. There was a gun, and possibly explosives. I got off the phone. I put on CNN. I watched, and then had […]
Travel Day
It’s here. Again. A day of last minute laundry and packing, goodbyes, airports. The house, suddenly so quiet, as my teenager prepares to fly back to college. To begin his sophomore year. It was an evening of more loads of wash than I can count, the heap of luggage in the living room finally emptied, […]
The life behind the face
I am the face of the aftermath of divorce, the aftermath of layoff, the aftermath of defeat. I am the face of invisible illness, of piercing isolation, of daily hide-and-seek. Would you know me if you saw me? I am your neighbor, your colleague, your sister; I am the woman who yells at the cashier […]
Mall Walking
When I was younger, easy fitness options were abundant. I was strong and vibrant, and health clubs were affordable. There were 5-mile hikes for pleasure, and there was disco! Not that I took advantage of dancing for fitness and enjoyment as much as I would have liked. Work was always pressing, and time, in short […]
How to Do Nothing – Effectively
Rain is streaming down the window panes. Less so than last night, but the morning sky remains an angry, bloated charcoal. The house sleeps, though I am awake. “It’s Saturday,” I remind myself, taking a deep breath. “I can do nothing.” I sip my coffee. I listen to the quiet. I type an email to […]