Something beautiful happened in Baltimore yesterday: thermometers reached 78 degrees on February 21—a date usually blanketed with snow. Naturally, I found a path near water to walk at lunch and stopped for post-Valentine’s-ridiculously-on-sale flowers on the way home. Today I put on a shirt that looks exactly like a shirt would look if the [...]
On one end of my street, construction workers are knee-deep in building a multi-million dollar library. On the other end, a multi-million dollar fire station will soon have firefighters sliding down the poles they are staking in the ground. It is a mess. Literally. As I've walked by the construction zones on casual strolls [...]
Yesterday, I taught a writing class. We flipped through dogeared pages of Bird by Bird together on a screened-in back porch that overlooked a wooded lot with trees changing colors on me. We waited for the french press to brew our Starbucks medium roast, then wrapped cold fingers around steaming mugs as the temperature dropped. [...]
They asked me, “What brought you back?” “Just to visit,” I said. “Just to see you.” (Did I need a better reason?) This weekend, I had a few options for reunions: high school, college, or grad school. I nearly vomited at the Facebook invite for a ten-year high school reunion. Somehow reliving those years [...]
I desperately want to grow up to become the gray-haired great grandmother who bakes you a seven-layer chocolate cake with buttercream icing. Ignore the fact that I've never baked a cake that didn't start with a little help from my friend Betty. And yet, I press on. She pressed her white pants the night [...]
Recently, I spruced up my tagline on my social media bios. It says, "Lover of words, sprinkles, & wooden pews." I think you understand the love of words, and if you spend some time with me you'll know I have a very best friend who wants to throw me a sprinkle-themed party. And I [...]
Years ago, I wrote a story about a man jogging. I saw him the other day, jogging down my same street, and I wondered about his story, both the real version and the one I invented. Has it changed over the years? Or, would I tell the story differently today? Friends who read my [...]
I remember the first time I cried in front of these women, the same four women I have met with in the same place at the same time for the last two years. Not just an ordinary cry where one delicate tear streams down your cheek, the kind where Kate Middleton might lightly dab [...]
I grew up as a competitive cheerleader. (I know what you're thinking. Do they even know how to write? Fight the stereotype and stick with me.) For almost 15 years, I traveled around the country to compete in large arenas in front of hundreds of screaming and painted fans. Our routines lasted for 2 minutes and [...]
The floor of my shower felt cold when I first sat down, until the warm water and my warm body made it tolerable. Over these last couple years, I've learned how to take hot and long showers. Nothing about it is good for my precious planet, I get that. But, honestly, it's my rookie attempt at [...]
