Monthly Archives: June 2013
Confessions of an information addict
My mother-in-law leans over my shoulder, “What are you reading?”
“Snowden has fled to Russia and they’re speculating on his next destination.”
“Who’s Snowden?”
Oh dear. And then, I suspend judgment and explain.
“Oh, him, right.”
“Jill’s an information junkie,” Mary says. “You should have … Read more
Posted in Writing
Tagged boundaries, character, control, grace, grief, heart, heartbreak, injury, joy, love, marriage, mary, memory, mindfulness, mother, news blackout, power, queer, relationships, safe, savor, self, shame, simple, social workers get plenty, story, women, Writing
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How Margaret Thatcher taught me not to be an asshole
I dislike Margaret Thatcher, and it’s interesting to me when people argue, But she was a woman! Shouldn’t we celebrate the fact that she was a woman in power?
No. There is nothing to celebrate about ruthless power whether it’s male or female.
And that’s … Read more
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Tagged boundaries, brokenness, character, control, DOMA, grace, grief, heart, heartbreak, injury, joy, lesbian, love, Margaret Thatcher, marriage, marriage equality, marriage project, memory, mindfulness, power, queer, relationships, safe, savor, self, simple, story, Wendy Davis, women, Writing
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Nothing keeps me up at night
There are any number of upsetting things about the play Much Ado About Nothing. Joss Whedon’s interpretation is likable, even though its weird visual homage to Fellini is distracting. What strikes me hardest is that Shakespeare’s insights are still painfully relevant. Here we are, centuries … Read more
Posted in Writing
Tagged adventure, art, artist, boundaries, brokenness, character, control, heart, heartbreak, injury, Joss Whedon, marriage, Much Ado About Nothing, patriarchy forever!, power, relationships, safe, Shakespeare, shame, simple, story, women, Writing
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Teen up
One of the many reasons I’m drawn to teen protagonists is that they have the benefit of being unformed while still deserving our sympathy. We expect teenagers to be selfish and egocentric. It is all about them. And if they can work through that shit … Read more
Posted in Giraffe People, News & Events, Writing
Tagged adventure, art, bliss, boundaries, brokenness, character, control, friends, god, heart, high school builds character?, joy, lesbian, love, memory, mindfulness, power, queer, relationships, safe, savor, self, shame, simple, story, women, Writing
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In my youth I was younger
I think compulsively about Susan Sontag. The way I think about Joan Didion. And when Sontag was ill, I read her criticism, and criticism about her. Nearly every article about her casually mentioned that she’d taken flak for changing her position on certain issues. Critics … Read more
Posted in Writing
Tagged adventure, art, bliss, boundaries, brokenness, character, control, grace, grief, heart, heartbreak, injury, Joan Didion, joy, kid, memory, mindfulness, power, queer, relationships, Roger Ebert, safe, savor, self, shame, simple, story, susan sontag, women, Writing
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Cognitive dissonance seemed like fun
What happens when we live in contradiction to our values? When our experience of being alive in the world — the things we buy, the place we live, the work we do, the relationships we foster — is out of sync with our values?
I … Read more
Granted
We have a marmot in the side yard. I haven’t seen the creature, but the tunnels cannot be ignored. Latte walks a path beside them because you never know: it might surface anywhere. Keeping track of the marmot and all the quail is a serious … Read more
Virtually
Maybe we live faster now. A kind of hysteria of busy work where we have to be more deliberate about our lives. We have to remind ourselves to eat together at the table, food we have cooked rather than microwaved, no electronic devices. Meals where … Read more
Posted in Writing
Tagged art, character, grace, memory, mindfulness, New Orleans, relationships, savor, self, simple, story, wedding art, women, Writing
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