Category: college

Dieting, Body Image, and Stay Out of my Business

Posted in anorexia, body image, bulimia, college, diet, Karen Carpenter, memoir, mental health, mental illness, pregnancy, restricting, teacher, teaching, weight loss1 Comment

(re-run) “Are you going to eat all of that?” I was sitting at a table in the teachers’ lounge, my lunch spread out before me. There was a sandwich, a red apple, carrot sticks and a glass of juice, maybe a chocolate or two. Why was the teacher I barely knew commenting on my lunch?… Continue reading Dieting, Body Image, and Stay Out of my Business

The Tennis Shoe and the Broken Window

Posted in classmates, college, high school, Iowa, Iowa State University, locker room, memoir, physical fitness, physical fitness award, softball, teacher, windowLeave a comment

(re-run) It was senior year in high school. I was on my last semester of PE, my least favorite class. I maintained a straight-A average in all other classes. Not PE. It alternated between a B and a C. I was feeling good. We were in our next-to last unit, the physical fitness award. I… Continue reading The Tennis Shoe and the Broken Window

Frostbite Memories

Posted in beach, California, college, dog walks, dogs, frostbite, gardening, Iowa, memoir, Monterey Bay, old lady card, tourists, tree trimmer, trees, wind, winter breakLeave a comment

(re-run) Today the sun was shining, the ocean was royal blue and the wind was bitter cold. I had the dog on a choke chain since I couldn’t squeeze the prong collar back together (I’d taken it apart in the wrong place).  I headed down my street past a tree- trimmer truck that has just… Continue reading Frostbite Memories

The Dog That Everyone Wanted

Posted in Bay Area, California, college, dogs, drugs, Judge Judy, marijuana, mountain lion, pot farm, small claims court, spring break, Trinity National ForestLeave a comment

(re-run) Scott heard from his college buddy, Joe, that someone was giving away a four-month-old puppy that had cost them $300, a mix of Jack Russell terrier and something bigger.  The family felt bad that they were gone all day, and the puppy was crated every day for hours. Scott thought about the puppy as… Continue reading The Dog That Everyone Wanted

Bricks, Ricks, & Cardboard

Posted in blind date, college, dating, firsts, humor, Iowa, memoir, Midwestern, relationships, restaurant, Rocky Mountains, worstsLeave a comment

(re-run) The college mixer was hosted by the men of Lorch House in Friley Hall, in the heart of the Iowa State University campus. Tappan House, the top two floors of Barton Hall, was invited. Yes, I am old. Yes, dorm floors are co-ed now. This was in the days of the dinosaurs, girl dinosaurs… Continue reading Bricks, Ricks, & Cardboard

Chemistry is Everything

Posted in Berkeley, best, California, college, dating, firsts, fraternity, getting pinned, marriage proposal, relationshipsLeave a comment

(re-run) Sharon was a Sigma Kappa at Cal Berkeley, in her junior year. As she stood outside her sorority house, chatting with the house mom, a guy that she knew from Kappa Sigma crossed the street. “Hey Sharon, do you want to go to a pinning party with me tonight?” “Okay,” Sharon said, even though… Continue reading Chemistry is Everything

Dieting, Body Image, and Stay Out of my Business

Posted in anorexia, body image, bulimia, college, diet, Karen Carpenter, memoir, mental health, mental illness, pregnancy, restricting, teacher, teaching, weight lossLeave a comment

(re-run) “Are you going to eat all of that?” I was sitting at a table in the teachers’ lounge, my lunch spread out before me. There was a sandwich, a red apple, carrot sticks and a glass of juice, maybe a chocolate or two. Why was the teacher I barely knew commenting on my lunch?… Continue reading Dieting, Body Image, and Stay Out of my Business

Almost Toast

Posted in California, college, dating, divorce, friends, holidays, humor, marijuana, marriage, mom, relationships, roommate, San Francisco, travelLeave a comment

(re-run) Marlene and her friend Beth came out to California from New Hampshire after college to work for Bank of America. They each made a new friend, and each new friend brought another friend to the party (plus one more) until they were a group of seven recent college graduates, living in the city of… Continue reading Almost Toast