For ten-and-a-half months of the year, this is me: via GIPHY But as soon as Thanksgiving hits, I morph into something different: via GIPHY Trying to get me to concentrate on anything is like herding cats. I give up on being productive and spend inordinate amounts of time watching cheesy holiday movies and skipping around…
Review: Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant?
Seeing your parents grow old is a universal — and difficult — experience. In 2001, cartoonist Roz Chast could see the writing on the wall. Her parents were in their 90s, and not doing well. Her mother was in the hospital after a fall from a step stool, and her father’s senile dementia kept him…
Consider Me Professionally Developed
I despise stagnation. If I’m not learning or growing, it feels like I’m dying. This is partially because it’s the way I am (learning is so much fun!), and partially because I’ve got a lot of baggage when it comes to job progression and success. In my anxiety-infested brain, not having enough to do at…
The Write Stuff: A Mixed Bag
We’re rounding the last turn of 2017, and The Write Stuff isn’t steaming along quite as well as I hoped. Goal 1: Finish four short stories in 2017 I’d love to meet this goal, but the harder I push to come up with an idea, the less creative my brain seems. I’ve been relying on…
Review: Good Night, Mr. Wodehouse
Most people would consider Nell Stillman’s life rather ordinary. Harvester, Minnesota was founded when God was a boy, and no amount of modern conveniences seem able to drag it into the modern age. But when you look closer, you see that Nell’s life is actually extraordinary. She raises her son alone, falls in love, experiences…