At 4:30 in the morning, when my house is quiet and dark, I write novels. To date, I have seven of them, all in manuscript form and all in various states of metamorphosis from an idea (a creeping caterpillar) to a submission package (a basking butterfly). Each story of mine falls under the genre of […]

Read more "Yay! It’s Almost Time to #RevPit"

Yesterday, I stood in solidarity with close to three hundred students, ranging in age from 12 to 18. I was there to show my support for their non-violent, social activism. Because my 10-year-old son’s school was not planning a “walk out,” I brought him to be with his older three siblings after he had expressed […]

Read more "What Have We Done?"

A while ago, I shared my thoughts about the cultural acceptance of fathers controlling their daughters, but really, controlling their vaginas. As offensive as that paternalistic behavior is, it appears that in some families, the sexist clamp around a girl’s sexuality is controlled by an older brother or two. Take for example this description I […]

Read more "What Are We Teaching Our Boys?"

When I travel to see my sister on the other side of the country, I always get an aisle seat. The fear of  blood clots killing me–were I to not get up every hour or so–make an aisle seat both necessary and thoughtful of my row mates. On my last trip, I met a woman–trapped […]

Read more "What’s That Like?"

Recently, I had a late-night conversation with my spouse about the “psychology” behind consumerism and learned that when there is glut of any one item available for purchase that the average consumer will by more then what the grocery list calls for. Rob illustrated the theory by using avocados. In essence, he asserted that if […]

Read more "The Motivating Force behind Avocado Acquisitions"

Remember back when you were mired in teenage angst and told your parents about a friend who was “ignoring” you for “some reason” but you didn’t know what or why? Can you recall that feeling of anxiety, almost fear, sitting in your center and possessing your thoughts over what you could have possibly done to […]

Read more "“Are You Mad at Me?”"

On this day in 1874, the US Patent Office granted a patent to Samuel W. Francis for this “invention.” Maybe it was less of an “invention” and more of a combination of two things which, prior to Mr Francis’s bright idea, had not been put into one handy utensil.   One hundred forty-four years later, […]

Read more "What Would You Call This?"

While I’m no expert in Buddhism, I do know that most practicing Buddhists make a concerted effort to “stay in the present moment.” They endeavor to remain unattached to what has already occurred in the past and not affix expectations to what has yet to occur in the future. Buddhists focus on the here and […]

Read more "Don’t Forget, You’re Going To Die"

Every December 31st, I, along with many others, resolve to do things differently. For over two decades, I have annually come up with three-part resolution. Part one: “Give To.” The goal of this resolution is to be generous toward oneself, to “give to” oneself. It can be as easy a committing to a monthly massage […]

Read more "Search for Profundity in the New Year"

The best part of being a member of a group is the access to its privileges. As an American, I have a shared understanding of the ideals upon which our nation was built and the rights afforded to those of us who are, by birth or naturalization, part of this group. (The unbiased implementation of […]

Read more "Red Jays and the Unifying/Fragmenting Power of Language"