If you ask the thermometer on my car dashboard, summer is in full swing. But Sophie goes back to school next week so we’ve been washing backpacks, shopping for highlighters and generally returning to reality after several weeks of travel. Last week the girls and I dragged ourselves away from the beach, moving slowly […]
Today we have a guest post from one of my favorite writing students, Anita Whitely. For her final project in “Mapping Your Memoir,” a class I teach at Phoenix College, Anita wrote a letter. I won’t say anything more — except thank you, Anita. I have learned so much from you. I am a […]
Dear Annabelle, Today you graduate from high school. You were born such an old soul, so to me, these rituals feel a little funny. And a little sad, because this means you will “leave leave” soon, as one mom (whose kid is staying in town for college) put it to me last night at your […]
Fifty people packed into my kitchen, drinks in hand, ready for cake. I glanced around and realized I hadn’t seen the guest of honor for at least half an hour. The back door opened and someone called, “Hey, Sophie’s ready for her entrance.” I looked outside and there she was, standing in the driveway, waiting to […]
Packing lunches this morning, I dumped the contents of Sophie’s bag onto the kitchen table — the only good and fast way to get rid of the loose goldfish crackers roaming around in there. As usual, her calculator was there, too, as well as her school ID and about a dozen mechanical pencils, […]
Dear Dax: More than anything, this is a piece of fan mail. I hope you consider it as such. I know it probably won’t make its way to you, but social media is so weird and connective that I guess there’s a chance it will. I hope it does. I love your […]
Editor’s Note: I read this essay at the December 20, 2o18 Bar Flies at The Van Buren in Phoenix. The theme: Eating Christmas. So, here’s the thing no one really ever tells you about Christmas. It gets harder as you get older. This occurred to me last week, when my daughter Sophie ran sobbing to […]
I finally bought my kid some overalls last week. It was time. And not because it was Halloween, although that was her excuse – this time. Sophie’s been asking for overalls for years, and for years I’ve been changing the subject. That’s not to say this isn’t a kid who gets what she wants, particularly […]
This morning, Sophie’s high school classmates are taking the PSAT. Sophie is home, sleeping in. When she gets up, she’ll do math homework, get her bangs trimmed, watch some YouTube videos. Later in the day, she’ll go to ballet class. I’ve never let her miss a test before. For 15 years, this kid […]
Fall is here, but I’m still thinking about my summer gig. I spent the hot months of the year with my nose in the dictionary — rifling through medical journals, Googling the history of words, jotting down notes. And clapping my hand over my own mouth several times a day. I’ve been a journalist […]
