Saving for a Rainy DayShortly before I graduated with my MFA in Writing, I turned my temp job into a full-time job offer. The money wasn't good—I had to take a second job once my student loan repayment kicked in. Eventually, I negotiated a raise for myself that enabled me to quit my moonlighting. At that point, I set-up a separate 'rainy day' savings account into which I direct deposited $25 dollars per paycheck without fail, even though I was literally living payday-to-payday. When I decided to leave that…Keep Reading
It's a Small WorldI probably spend about one to two weeks per month staying with my mom so she has support and company, because living and doing things alone all the time isn't healthy. Loneliness, after all, is an epidemic for pretty much every generation and that was before the pandemic forced us all into our cocoons and pods. The last time I was home, finding something both my mom and I wanted to watch was a bit of a challenge…after Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune, of course. We're puzzle people in my…Keep Reading
I Don't Want No SatisfactionHow satisfied are you with this survey? Oh, the fury this incites in me whenever I'm asked it on a survey I've just invested my precious time completing! Why do so many companies want to gather this useless information and alienate me in the process? I just don't understand. And I can't believe I'm the only one who feels this way. In the first place, the concept of satisfaction as it relates to evaluating experience is problematic all on its own. I categorize it as ‘dead language’ because it…Keep Reading
The Sound of SilenceHave you ever seen the movie Stranger Than Fiction (2006) with Will Ferrell and Emma Thompson? In it, Will Ferrell's character hears this voice in his head (Emma Thompson) narrating and commenting on his life. After a fairly mundane action, resetting his watch, the voice tells him that this one act will eventually lead to his death. Comedy and drama ensue. The premise of the film is predicated on the assumption that most people have an inner monologue—though for most of us it's some version…Keep Reading
Lights! Camera! Action!Late last week, I met my friend and client Andrea Young of Sweet Vegan to record one of the inaugural episodes of her new podcast, Vegan Voices, which she'll be launching this fall. Her show focuses on passion and purpose and the various journeys we travel to get us where we are and that make us who we are. I'll be honest, I have considerably more experience conducting interviews than I do being interviewed especially in person and on camera. So I was really happy when Andrea's recording…Keep Reading
What a Pain in the NeckThe fact is, I've been suffering from neck pain for well over a year now. It's not debilitating but it's just painful enough to be annoying and, at times, pretty distracting. Last week, I saw someone on social media touting a C-shaped pillow that had helped her relieve her neck tension. She wasn't the first person I've seen review this product, but her review is the reason I decided to bite the bullet and finally try it out for myself. Now, I'm a pretty skeptical shopper, especially when it…Keep Reading
Shortly before I graduated with my MFA in Writing, I turned my temp job into a full-time job offer. The money wasn't good—I had to take a second job once my student loan repayment kicked in. Eventually, I negotiated a raise for myself that enabled me to quit my moonlighting. At that point, I set-up a separate 'rainy day' savings account into which I direct deposited $25 dollars per paycheck without fail, even though I was literally living payday-to-payday. When I decided to leave that…Keep Reading
I probably spend about one to two weeks per month staying with my mom so she has support and company, because living and doing things alone all the time isn't healthy. Loneliness, after all, is an epidemic for pretty much every generation and that was before the pandemic forced us all into our cocoons and pods. The last time I was home, finding something both my mom and I wanted to watch was a bit of a challenge…after Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune, of course. We're puzzle people in my…Keep Reading
How satisfied are you with this survey? Oh, the fury this incites in me whenever I'm asked it on a survey I've just invested my precious time completing! Why do so many companies want to gather this useless information and alienate me in the process? I just don't understand. And I can't believe I'm the only one who feels this way. In the first place, the concept of satisfaction as it relates to evaluating experience is problematic all on its own. I categorize it as ‘dead language’ because it…Keep Reading
Have you ever seen the movie Stranger Than Fiction (2006) with Will Ferrell and Emma Thompson? In it, Will Ferrell's character hears this voice in his head (Emma Thompson) narrating and commenting on his life. After a fairly mundane action, resetting his watch, the voice tells him that this one act will eventually lead to his death. Comedy and drama ensue. The premise of the film is predicated on the assumption that most people have an inner monologue—though for most of us it's some version…Keep Reading
Late last week, I met my friend and client Andrea Young of Sweet Vegan to record one of the inaugural episodes of her new podcast, Vegan Voices, which she'll be launching this fall. Her show focuses on passion and purpose and the various journeys we travel to get us where we are and that make us who we are. I'll be honest, I have considerably more experience conducting interviews than I do being interviewed especially in person and on camera. So I was really happy when Andrea's recording…Keep Reading
The fact is, I've been suffering from neck pain for well over a year now. It's not debilitating but it's just painful enough to be annoying and, at times, pretty distracting. Last week, I saw someone on social media touting a C-shaped pillow that had helped her relieve her neck tension. She wasn't the first person I've seen review this product, but her review is the reason I decided to bite the bullet and finally try it out for myself. Now, I'm a pretty skeptical shopper, especially when it…Keep Reading