Author Archives: Jaclynn Loibl

I get these little panics. Seismic ripples. Barely perceivable if I weren’t looking—but I am. No one else would notice. It’s impossible to see someone’s underwater activities. Like the hidden depth of an iceberg, what’s below belongs only to the one carrying it. Mine is smaller now, manageable—like a few percent skimmed from your paycheckContinue reading “Our Ripples Beneath”

Structure, structure, structure. That’s the name of the game in our house today. Last night, after an inspiring talk with my brother about the daily routines he’s established for my 18-year-old twin nephews and 14-year-old niece, I realized—he’s onto something. So onto something that even he’s surprised himself. “Jack,” he said (he calls me Jack),Continue reading “Structured Scheduling Stylings”

On the car ride home from the Braves-Mariners game, I opened my laptop and wrote what follows—a brain download of all the pinballing ideas for TikTok videos. First, I thought about More Glee Counseling, how my business got its name, and why it holds so much meaning for me. Spoiler, before marrying Dave, my lastContinue reading “Noodling on Future Ideas”

Two minutes into the whole reason I went to town, I was already headed back out. The worker’s response, “You don’t have Apple Care?” followed by a $500 quote to clean my keyboard and reinsert the Enter key, made the decision easy. Exit stage left. So Dave and I are putting our genius minds together—thoughContinue reading “Seven Donuts Deep”

I haven’t seen a shooting star in a while. I’m swaying in the hammock, legs crossed, head tipped back as my eyes search the sky. It’s the color of blue cotton candy—the last bit of light before darkness takes over. One bird, larger than a robin, maybe even a bird of prey, darted across theContinue reading “Settled Under a Lavender Sky”

I can write so fast, I tell Dave. But between that sentence and this one, I pause—frustrated by the keyboard keys that don’t respond without an extra-strong push. The stickiness under the “n” and the uprooted enter key had me browsing refurbished laptops before I thought: What if this one could just be repaired? So,Continue reading “When Vulnerability Wants Compost”

I’m very good at spontaneous. The on-the-fly, chaos-scrambling, ninja-karate-chopping-away-the-fat-and-focusing-on-the-meat-and-potatoes kind of thing is my jam. Dave reminded me of this skill, and he’s right. Whether it’s whipping up a homecooked meal from a blank canvas in the time of a sitcom or writing a blog post out of thin air, I can pull something togetherContinue reading “Hairdryers and Irons Begone”

I’m giddy—like a squirrel in a wind tunnel of nuts, grinning in blissful reverence at his unexpected jackpot. That’s me with TikTok right now. I like having a broader audience. I can talk about being adopted, attending the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, show a dolphin leaping out of the water, and ramble about the joy ofContinue reading “Cravings for More”

I’ve been overthinking—scratch that, extra thinking—about TikTok content. My metric is authenticity. But when something feels off, when my thoughts don’t sound like me, it’s like I’m toppling off a log into an ice-cold river. Sometimes I ask, “Okay, but what is me?” And that’s when doubt geysers up like Old Faithful, making me wantContinue reading “Finding Me in the Messes”

An aardvark stuffie toy brought over by Evelyn’s friend Robert was forgotten at our house. Reassuring him (via texting his mom), I asked which side of the bed the brown fuzzball preferred and what his snack preferences were. “Any side,” came the reply. “And pistachios and other nuts.” Meanwhile, my nervous system is a littleContinue reading “Board Game Bosoms”