Heat Weirdlastname The poem above, found here on Instagram, describes what many people are feeling. Coping skills aren’t the answer to the current problems—at least not in the way that they’re sold. Sure, mindfulness and meditation are useful (and on the aforementioned never-ending to-do list…) and they make a difference, but the problem is bigger than us. … Read more
I hope you spend your holiday with people who leave you better than they found you. I hope you have food you can eat, food you like, and no one gives you shit about it, regardless what you’re eating. (See above.) I hope you’re kind to retail workers always but especially now through the end … Read more
I’ve been having problems with my ankles. “Well, you’re getting older.” It’s not inherently or exclusively an age problem, and I fiercely resist this mindset. Lots of people my age and older—including much older—don’t have problems with their ankles. If it was an age problem, most people my age and older would share this problem. … Read more
If you can’t see the photo, it’s a screenshot of a tweet that reads: Why does the school pick-up line feel like Best Buy on Black Friday? People are rolling in like 2 hours early to be first in line. Calm down—it’s just Aiden, not a 60” flat screen. It’s meant to be funny. I … Read more
“I’ve had a medical condition that’s required me to be taken care of for the last few years and now I’m ready to be taken seriously.” Despite the quotation marks it’s not a direct quote, but it is the story of a person I was in conversation with recently. She was maybe in her 30s? … Read more
One hundred days. Barely more than a quarter of a year. Not that much time in the span of our lives or even in the span of now-ish. But ask someone to commit to doing something every day for 100 days and they hesitate. I took a course in the fall of 2020 that was … Read more
“You need to increase your protein and make sure you’re strength training.” -advice from a medical professional earlier this week in response to perimenopausal concerns. She didn’t ask me anything about my diet, and she knew that I’ve been running but no more. She also didn’t tell me how much I should aim for in … Read more
“Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.” or “If you want different results, take different actions.” I understand the point of these. But also, when I’m learning to play a new song, I’m doing the same thing over and over with the intention of getting … Read more
I heard it when I was diagnosed with cancer and in other less-potentially-lethal situations. I hear it said to and about other people in precarious financial positions, in unenviable health crises, in situations with their kids or their siblings or their parents. “It’s God’s will.” Is it supposed to relieve the afflicted of guilt? Comfort … Read more
Still sweating from my run, bent at the hips, fingers touching my shoes, I noticed the artwork on my legs. An old scar from a bike accident. A newer scar from falling while trail running. A pair newer than that from tripping while running up stone steps. And a large bruise from last week. We … Read more