The world is far different today than when I was a kid. How many generations have said the exact same thing? Cave Man: Me cold. Cave Woman: Me cold cold. Next generation: Cave man: Me cold. Me strike rock against rock. Fire! Me warm! Cave woman: Me cold. Move over! You get the idea. Every… Continue reading Is That a Mouse, Mr. Milkman?
Category: mom
Tattoos for You
I look around and see athletes with tattoos, ex-military people with tattoos, mothers of small children with tattoos . . .
Dear Racist
Laurie had graduated college and had boomeranged back home to Seattle. She met a cute guy with horn-rimmed glasses. He invited her on a picnic at the beach. She said yes. “Have fun,” her mom said when Greg came to the house. Greg drove to a sandy spot with a view of the city. They… Continue reading Dear Racist
Kavanaugh Hearing a Trigger Event
My high school girlfriend’s little sister from Iowa told me this on Facebook Messenger yesterday. Because I had come out about my rape, she wanted to tell me about her date rape at age fifteen. This is verbatim and hard to read, but the world needs to know that this happens. “I really need to… Continue reading Kavanaugh Hearing a Trigger Event
The Racist and the Ficus Tree
When I was young, the one black boy in my elementary school was my classmate. His name was Teddy. This was white-white-white Iowa in the 60’s. My first grade teacher, Mrs. Van Cura, got angry at the class one day for misbehaving and said, “Whoever doesn’t behave will have to play with Teddy at recess.”… Continue reading The Racist and the Ficus Tree
Mr. No Class
They met online through a singles website (not the swiping one). Tom lived and worked in Napa. Carin lived less than an hour away in the San Francisco East Bay on a horse ranchette with her seven horses. She ran a small upscale hair salon. After much texting and talking, they got together for dinner… Continue reading Mr. No Class
Don’t Date the Neighbor
Julie got divorced and moved into her new townhouse with her six-year-old son. One day, when she was out walking her dog, a guy mowing his lawn turned off the mower and said hello. They chatted about her dog, and Julie mentioned that she had just moved in. Doug rode his bike a lot while… Continue reading Don’t Date the Neighbor
Her Left Foot
It was Labor Day weekend. We needed to get a handle on the mess in the garage. I asked my oldest to watch my youngest while we parents worked outside. She was nine, in 4th grade already for a week, and the baby was almost two and a half. Then a series of unfortunate events… Continue reading Her Left Foot
Landing In the Dog House
When you’re in the dog house, you are in trouble. You’ve done something bad. As a child, I was never in the dog house because we didn’t have one. We didn’t even have a dog. My mother had her own strain of weird expressions that she said to us kids on a regular basis, probably… Continue reading Landing In the Dog House
A Girl, A Creek, and an Hour to Spare
When my worker woman showed up Monday morning after having been gone for a two-week long vacation, I had a long list of to–do’s for her. I answered the door and found her nine year old daughter standing next to her. I said hello and went over the list with Kelly. I left to go… Continue reading A Girl, A Creek, and an Hour to Spare
