I’ve been listening to the audiobook of Brene Brown’s Atlas of the Heart, and it’s led me to a revelation. I love Brown’s work as a researcher, how she explicates our inner emotional landscapes and describes how our inner needs drive us. I don’t always agree 100% with her definitions, but she always gives me something to think about. Anyway, Atlas of the Heart is an attempt to map and […]
Life lessons. We’ve all experienced them. It takes some of us a little longer than others to learn certain things, and I am no exception. So here are some lessons I didn’t learn until I’d been beaten over the head with them a couple of times. 1. If I’m going to remember something, I’m going to have to write it down. I don’t know how many times I had to
Things it took me way too long to learn Read More »
The last two weeks has been incredibly difficult. I had a lot going on anyway, but then my son moved in with me. That wasn’t a bad thing, but he’s nineteen. And on top of the usual 19-year-old nonsense, he’s been on and off his meds and has been yo-yo-ing through various stages of a mental health crisis and the whole things has just been exhausting. Every day I do
Equanimity (or, the subtle art of not losing your shit) Read More »
The other day, my BFF Nick and I were talking about writing and, specifically characters. And somehow, we got on the topic of strong characters., and it made me think about what makes a strong character, how you tell if you’ve written one, and how you might go about defining that for yourself. This led me to think about strength in general, and what made up a strong person in
Getting things done has always been a struggle for me. I have pretty intense adhd and keeping up with things has been difficult. I spent years trying to write books and not being able to, years trying to keep up with housework and home improvement products and getting halfway through and just … not finishing. My life was chaos. But somewhere in the last three years or so,
How to get things done when your brain is an asshole Read More »
It has been a rough couple of weeks. I was exposed to Covid and ended up in quarantine (yes, again) so I had to stay in my house for a week. At this point, I am used to it. But instead of harping on that fact, I thought I’d focus on something positive. The things I have been enjoying in quarantine (and out) that have gotten me through the last
3 Things that are making me happy right now Read More »
I got sick of looking at myself and decided to get serious about doing something about my weight, so I joined Noom. Because I am pre-diabetic, it was even covered by my insurance. Well, it’s been a week, and it wasn’t exactly easy, but it feels doable. I have even lost 5.5 pounds. I know it’s not healthy to continue losing at that pace, but it was nice to
Today was my 49th birthday. There were times, over the years, when I didn’t think I would make it to this age. I couldn’t imagine getting here without having killed myself. But I am here, and I am happy, and this provides a convenient moment to take stock. My relationships with my family members have never been better. I have no secrets form them, not anymore. I am
Taking stock at 49 Read More »
I have a lot of joy in my life. It wasn’t always this way. I was very depressed for many years, and when I wasn’t depressed, I was experiencing dysphoric mania, which was worse. But in 2019 things changed. I left a bad marriage, and then left behind the dark thoughts that had been holding me down. I cracked through the layer of ice I was trapped beneath. I
In 2020 I read something like 148 books. This is the most books I’ve ever read. Mostly, this was because I was in quarantine most of the year and there was nothing else to do. By contrast, in 2021, I read 78 books. This is the lowest number in the last ten years. I did a lot of writing, and the library I work at was open all year.
My Top 5 Books of 2021 Read More »