Category Archives: Writings

Before inputting the Buggy Town Auction into Google Maps, Evelyn asked if there would be rides. “No, it’s just animals to buy,” I told her. The next question, coming from a kid, was obvious: “Are we buying one?” I explained that we’d need a fence, a barn, and food, to which Dave added, “And we’dContinue reading “Buggy Town Auction”

I knew my 3pm appointment was carrying a burdensome load. The mounting family dysfunction of the past few months had accumulated, leaving them holding it together by a thread. Their problem-solving, troubleshooting, and overanalytical assessment of the situation led me to take a step below the surface and ask, “Yeah, but how are you reallyContinue reading “When the Dam Breaks”

I don’t want to write. I know because I keep cutting off my thoughts before they fully take shape on the page. Delete, delete, delete. There’s this unrelenting expectation of authenticity, like a bloodhound sniffing out what’s not genuine. And when it finds something lacking, it vetoes the idea without hesitation. I’m not a fan.Continue reading “The Battle with the Blank”

I’m worried my foot’s heel is going to get infected. Remember that callus cheese-slice grater I was gifted for Christmas that I over-shaved my foot with? Well, now three deep cracks have formed, like little river tendrils, and I’ve been tending to them. My routine: hydrogen peroxide for cleaning, followed by wrapping my foot inContinue reading “The Healing Heel”

Lately, I’m on a health food kick—not the “pile-your-plate-with-veggies” kind, but the “revitalize-your-gut” kind. Fermented foods like sourdough and kefir are the stars of my kitchen right now. One health book I read suggested setting a goal of introducing 200 foods (including spices) into your diet in a month to diversify your microbiome and promoteContinue reading “Fermentation Station”

When I force myself to write, I resist. I’m a stubborn donkey that way. It’s much better to gently invite myself to the page and remind myself of the value of spending some quiet time with my thoughts. Now that I think of it, I actually do a lot of caring things for myself duringContinue reading “Blow, Grow, Let Go”

As I squeegeed the glass shower wall—my least favorite chore—I found my mind wandering to writing. I thought about the world I’ve created on the page and felt that familiar push and pull: how much does it reflect reality, and how much of it is my own imagining? “You have a vivid imagination,” I’ve beenContinue reading “Twinkle and Tinker”

Like the White Rabbit’s frantic chant—“I’m late, I’m late, I’m late!”—I hurry myself forward. When did it start, I wonder? A pocket watch stretches to the tip of my nose, the numbers blurring as I strain to see. I’m so this that to be anything else feels like losing the thread of who I am.Continue reading “Finding Light’s Compass”

I dared to dream a dream—a dream of sledding, tubing, and making snow angels. It felt like a distant fantasy, but a quick search on Google revealed something unexpected. Ober Mountain Ski Resort, nestled in the ancient Great Smoky Mountains, was just a mere 5-hour drive away. The “smoke” I once assumed was the grayContinue reading “Snow Much Fun”

I’m all in for gross things—like experiencing the orgasmic sensation that comes with the volcanic-like surfacing of deep-rooted cysts and blackheads, or the moment when metal pinchers, under a microscopic lens, pry away the flaky, sticky earwax, like a lollipop that a kid licked and left out on the counter. I fell into a paragraphContinue reading “Callous for Concern”