I write things
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mail and poems
There are piles of mail that live on my kitchen counter. It did not used to be like this. It used to be I was organized and uncluttered, but now it seems there are piles everywhere. Piles in the car, piles on the couch, piles on the desk. I don’t know how they arrive; they (…)
At least he’s consistent
They say it is a mark of intelligence to be able to change your mind. Watching the news [which you should not] you’d think the opposite. “Flip flopper!” gets lobbed against political candidates as a sign of non-reliability. A mark against you. When really, it’s the hallmark of a good leader. When you vote for (…)
Lecture Series: A Tribute to Dads on Father’s Day
Growing up I spent a lot of time with my dad. We would go on what he called “drives” which were actually him working on weekends, but I had no idea because we talked and sang the entire time. The “drives” were to properties he needed to visit, but to me, they were adventures filled with (…)
Can We Have More of This? On The Skills That Make For a Better Society
To my knowledge, I have never once modeled the behavior of flushing public toilets that were not used by me. My daughter (she’s five) tells me, “There are a lot of poops in the bathroom at school and people just leave them there.” I listened wondering why, of all the things to share about your (…)
How To Protect Your Brain From Being Eaten by Ideology, Idiocy, and Bad-Faith Arguments
A few years ago when I quit the news, I also quit reading articles. Specifically, ones forwarded to me via email by people who do not generally read. Like a food diet, my information diet needed to be protected. Books were allowed in. Documentaries, in. Debate, in. Forwarded articles were a no. Social media, no. (…)
Enjoying Yourself While The World Burns
I managed to coerce myself to have what I’m told is called “fun” a few weekends ago and it got me thinking about the difficulty inherent in “letting go” and enjoying yourself while the world burns. For me, I can’t. I get instantly assaulted with guilt, then shame, and then my brain tells me that if I just (…)
On The Privilege of Hiding
There are a few places outside of Texas or California where I will agree to eat tacos. Born and raised in Texas, I am a taco snob; so when a new taco joint opened in Jersey City about 10 or so years ago, I agreed to go reluctantly. There were maybe seven of us at dinner (…)
Exist
One of the things you grow up thinking about when you are the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors is, “What would I have done?” Who would I be? There are things that get discussed fairly openly that you don’t realize are odd until you are exposed to “non-Holocaust” families. Like: How many languages can you speak? (…)