The kind that means I’m hungry, accompanied by lightheadedness The kind that means I drank too much, ones I finally learned to avoid long ago The kind I got each time I was pregnant, a mixture of caffeine withdrawal and estrogen depletion The kind I got back when I had a diseased uterus, seemingly caused by random squirts of all…
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Do you listen to Hidden Brain? I love it so much, and incidentally, if I could have every interesting thing I learn read to me by Shankar Vedantam, I would grab that opportunity right quick. In this episode from a while back, guest Cal Newport shares part of the little ritual he uses to step away from work mode and…
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Why is it that all my best writing ideas happen when I’m driving a car? I don’t even like driving. It’s been like this for as long as I could drive. Wait… it’s been like this for as long as I could write. When I’m cleaning, or walking, or driving, I have so many ideas. And they are all so…
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My daughter and I went on a mini trip by ourselves… and it was WARM! There’s nothing like the first warm day. We’ve been inside, bundled, too little movement and too many snacks, since November. We’ve been in each other’s space, in each other’s business, on each other’s nerves. We’ve been tired. So tired. And then today. Today was the…
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My feet haven’t touched grass since September. Heck, until yesterday even my shoes hadn’t touched grass since December sometime. My skin hasn’t felt the cool pool, nor have my toes touched sand, since August. I haven’t been married for over a year. I haven’t worked from my office in 729 days. Exactly. I haven’t eaten banana pudding since 2013. It…
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This week I am… Driving kids places, again and again endlessly Resisting dessert some days, eating three brownies another Rearranging furniture in my basement, making a sewing space, reorganizing the supplies, so much aspirationally-purchased fabric it fills a dresser, yet I have sewn exactly once in this house since I moved in Selling off furniture I bought used in a…
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From my table in the corner of the trampoline park… I see boys somersaulting over barriers I hear a little girl repeating “Mommy, watch me! Watch me!” I see a cool dad inventing jump challenges for a lucky son I hear a squeaky voice yelling, “Keep going! I’m jumping to space!” I see moms zoning out on their phones at…
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He forgot to read his book for school today. This he realized as he was putting on shoes to leave for school this morning after a leisurely four-day weekend. Instantly he transformed, from boisterous, cheerful almost-middle-school weirdo to panicked, shame-filled, sobbing nine year old. Oh, my child. I know how it feels. I know how it feels to find myself…
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I wrote tonight. Before that, I wrote with a group of teachers, all tired from a long day, a long winter, a long year, all brave and committing to write together. Before that, I quickly ate the chicken with peanut sauce, brown rice, snap peas and potstickers that I had made. On my son’s plate was just the chicken, plain.…
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I randomly happened across this amazing list, and it is resonating so hard in my heart! So many things I think are my job just… aren’t. A wise therapist taught me to ask, “What does this situation call for?” with attention to what it actually calls for from me. Before I get overwhelmed from doing way too many jobs, and…