What's The Story?
The story behind the picture.
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I think I burned the popcorn
I am usually very well-coordinated, organized, and able to follow directions. But when it comes to cooking, I am a completely, absolutely, and entirely helpless mess. It is maybe one of the only things (from the list of life essentials) that I just can’t get right. It’s been a running a joke among my family and friends for as long as I can remember, but it’s not even funny anymore; it is ridiculous. It doesn’t help that the kitchen is the last place I want to be. And I gave up on trying to be a chef a long time ago, but thought I’d talk about it one more time…
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It’s not your dog, it’s me
“Good-natured, thoroughly emphatic human being who doesn’t love animals but means well.” Those are the first words that came to mind as an idea for a potential dating profile, if I ever had one, after an encounter with a dog yesterday. First, let me say that I don’t understand why people act surprised when I won’t even ask them about their dog. I witness a lot of dog and human interaction in my neighborhood, and dog owners almost seem to expect you to ask if their dogs can be pet. Evidently, a lot of people ask. There’s a lot of petting from strangers going on. But not me; I’m not…
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Bruises, Scrapes and Missing Teeth: A Day with 1st Graders
In 2012, when I briefly worked as a teacher in Spain, I wrote this blog post about a classroom experience I had. It is a very much true story, and still so funny to me, that I feel like I have to keep it alive. Here it is. You never really know what to expect or what you will get when working with children. At any given moment, literally anything can happen. Kids are very clever, but they are also very fragile. For instance, many of my students always seem to have a runny nose that mysteriously never goes away. It’s like an eternal cold. And occasionally, one or two…
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Fitting Right In
The other day, after a woman who must’ve been in her late 50’s or early 60’s started talking to me out of nowhere, I started reflecting on the relationship I have with people of all ages. This lady and I both walked out of a store at the same time, and walked the same couple of blocks towards the train station. Once there, we sat on the same side of the platform: southbound. Perhaps it was this coincidence that inspired her to want to start a conversation. “I love Sephora,” she said. “OMG, so do I!” I replied. Next thing I know, we’re deep in a conversation about skincare. Then,…
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The Odds: Cosmic Significance
If you’ve lived past fifteen years of age on this planet (and, honestly, maybe even less than that), you’ve probably found yourself saying, “small world!” at some point because of a peculiar experience you went through. Whenever this thought pops up, I always remember these lines from the movie 500 Days of Summer: “…you can’t ascribe great cosmic significance to a simple earthly event. Coincidence, that’s all anything ever is, nothing more than coincidence… There are no miracles. There’s no such thing as fate. Nothing is meant to be.” While I find a lot of truth in those words, I also have my suspicions: why does the universe align some…
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Bluer skies on winter nights
You know all that curiosity baggage that comes with the questions people make about why you don’t like something? And sometimes you don’t even quite remember how it all came to be, but their questioning brings the whole history to consciousness and, ahh, you remember. I say I’ve never liked the cold. They look at me as if I am out of my mind. Why wouldn’t anyone? Why wouldn’t I? I say I’ve never liked the cold as if it were the whole truth, when thinking back, I didn’t mind it as much for about fifteen years. Miniskirts in November. Lace tops under a trench coat in December. Gloveless hands…
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In a Shell: There’s Nothing Wrong With You
I originally shared this video back in 2013, and came across the post again now in 2022 as I was looking at my archives. I’m glad the video is still around because, as I said on my original post, it resonated with me in a big way; it made me feel understood. And I’m sure it can send a message of relief to others. Like Harry, I was a very shy, introverted kid. I know what it’s like to live in your head and see no way out of it, and I wish more people had told me that I was not alone and it was going to be okay.…
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Unraveling Thin Walls
My neighbors go quiet every so often. And on occasions, they’re as loud as a Saturday market. I can tell they’re a couple, unless their idea of “casual” also means living together. Their instability is loud. I can’t quite make out their day-long arguments, but I hear the yelling, the sobbing, and the door slamming. It got me thinking, if that’s love, then I don’t want it. But of course, it is not. Though I never have and never could stay in that sort of relationship, I know toxic when I see it. I’d say theirs is way past toxicity; it’s lethal. I grew up in a peaceful environment, so…
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If I Were Lady Whistledown
I can’t lie — I’m a big fan of Lady Whistledown (and that pen name!). In season 2 of the Netflix series Bridgeton, she becomes a focal point, understandably. Once they revealed her identity and her discretion while gathering her stories is shown, it reminded me of myself. Not because I’m a gossiper (like at all!) but because I overhear a lot of conversations that I wish not to be part of — but which I sometimes go back to in my head to build dialogues. Never do I intend to eavesdrop on anyone, but for some reason I find myself in that situation quite a lot. (Anyone remember Eavesdropping…
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Friday Night Plans for Loners
It’s a warm Friday afternoon and, before everyone at work storms out the door and never look back—well, not for the next two days—they’re all telling you about their Friday night plans. You, a lone soul still navigating your way through a mad city; a city full of people too fake to inspire you to make new friends, don’t have anything planned out. But hey, you could go all out and accept an invite to a house party or maybe to a nightclub, even though you hate those. But the only invitation comes from, what’s her name? The new girl, who doesn’t know yet that everyone is a different person…
