With new skates on my feet, I stepped from the safety of the grass and rolled uncertainly onto the walking path that loops around Audubon Park. My legs were stiff and shaking, wheels turning from the momentum of that last step. I held my arms out like a woman on a tight rope, afraid to… Continue reading Mid Life Derby Flyer
First, dear me, it’s been a long time since I’ve posted. Sorry about that. I’ve been dealing with some family medical stuff that’s been impacting the writing. Not writing in general (I’ve written a lot), but posting or getting it out there in print. But I’m back, baby! And my dog, Frankie, is not happy… Continue reading Dog Days of Distraction
Sometimes I see chickens where there are no chickens. This made me worry about myself at first, but I’ve come to find it delightful. Even though most of the time it happens to me while I’m driving. The other morning my wife and I saw a woman jogging on the side of the road.… Continue reading Poultry Dilemma
The night that Hurricane Ida crashed into town I was putting together a puzzle of Queen Elizabeth II by lantern light, with a cat and a glass of bourbon. Melanie was on the storm team at the zoo that night. She was hunkered down in the fortified reptile house with the other zookeepers who were… Continue reading Ida and the Puzzle Queen
On September 13th, two weeks after Hurricane Ida tore through my neighborhood, I was sitting on the back patio trying to contact my suicidal daughter’s psychiatrist. Claire swore that she didn’t want to kill herself, but was having suicidal ideation, which is the inability to get the idea of hurting herself out of her head.… Continue reading As the World Stinks
According to the articulate minds at the Merriam-Webster dictionary website, the word for the day is defenestration. Do we know what that means without looking it up? “Yes!” you say. “It is deforestation as a direct result of menstruation. ” No, no, no. That would be silly. What it really means is, “a throwing of… Continue reading Word of the Day
My brain isn’t just bananas. It’s a bunch of bananas that jump out of the bowl and chase the monkees around. That is to say that I have a hard time focusing. I used to be able to write or read for hours, but the introduction of the smart phone has taken what little attenspan… Continue reading The To-Don’t List
Huffing and puffing, I raised my foot to the next step. This is how I walked up the whole staircase on the side of a suburban hill in Portland. Here was my process: step up , heave body, drop left foot heavily next to right. Wheeze. Think, “I’m going to die.” Repeat. They say that… Continue reading Extended Family Trip: The Landing
In the spirit of doing things a little bit different, instead of telling you about something that has already happened I’m going to tell you about something that hasn’t happened yet. Today I’m flying to Portland with my wife, ex-husband, and two out of three children to visit the third child in Portland for an… Continue reading Extended Family Trip: The Take Off
Before I met Melanie (cue sad, lesbian guitar music) I was alone. Staring into the flicker of a single candle, muttering dreary things to myself in French. Ennui? Oui. Actually, that’s not true. The month before I met her I was finishing my master’s degree in fiction and working a full time job. There wasn’t… Continue reading Geekgirl & Gwnyvr
