Two weeks after 10-year old Sarah’s parents told her she couldn’t have a dog Sarah bought a small little collar. It was pink with rhinestones. The rhinestones captured her heart like only rhinestones in the eyes of a tween can. She clipped the price tag off and threw away the receipt.
“You know you can’t return it if you do that,” I said.
“I’m not going to return it,” she said smugly.
A week later she picked out a name.
“I know what you’re up to Sarah,” her mother told her. “And it’s not …

I’m writing a magazine article for Airstream Life, and another for submission to The New Yorker (are you listening NY?) I recently interviewed one of the van drivers at NASA about being a shuttle driver for the Airstream Astrovan. One of his off handed comments fascinated me and made me think:
They have walked on the moon, walked in space, orbited the earth, touched the universe in ways none of us ever will. They strap themselves onto rockets, endure incredible G-forces, risk their lives, leave their families, risk …

A vicious storm knocked out the power and the cell towers in my area last night. They’re still out. So I drove to the local library to use their wifi since they’re next door to the Sheriff’s Department and were first to get their power back on. There’s no one else around since it’s only 6 a.m. and the library doesn’t open for two more hours. So, I’m just sitting here, enjoying the deliciously cool air, the quiet, the last dregs of a cup of coffee and the joy of …

Part of feeling pressured, overwhelmed and frazzled is having a ton of demands and no outlets or ways to minimize pressure. There are a lot of ways to cope with that - the best one being exercise or simply “taking a break.” I’m not a big television person and don’t even own a tv. But I wanted a way to “take a break” without having to go to the gym or get sweaty or eat. So I bought an ant farm. I always wanted one, so I indugled. $19.95. You …