Heat Weirdlastname I heard a saying recently: someone who is self-taught is learning from someone who doesn’t know anything. Ha. Very clever. Most people who I know who are self-taught use resources created by people who know stuff, they’re just not in a formal class or studying with a teacher. And those who just dive in and figure … Read more
Sometimes, we have stuff going on and a friend will make an inquiry. This is a good thing—we want our friends to notice and care when we have stuff going on. We want them to try to understand us, right? But we’ve all been there, where someone asked us about what was going on and … Read more
We didn’t get to hike the peak last weekend when we camped there, so the other mom and I took off early yesterday morning to go hike the peak. The weather was perfect, the company was lovely, the hike was hard, and it was a day well-spent. And we both were happy to stop and … Read more
The persona of the tortured artist is so commonplace that we don’t often think twice about its validity. The first place I remember seeing pushback against it was by Hannah Gadsby, in this little clip from a larger work. More recently for me, it came up in Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert, where she points … Read more
Yesterday was the 23rd anniversary of my senior recital, a performance required for graduating with a music degree. It is one of the accomplishments in my life that I’m most proud of, and it represents a pivotal shift in my thinking. While my mindset on many things has changed over time, I can’t imagine another … Read more
We went camping! Just for a night, at Picacho Peak, a lovely little state park in between Phoenix and Tucson. Due to time and weather and children, we didn’t actually hike up to Picacho Peak. But we did some other hiking, and between the phone and the Nikon, I got some good shots. An unedited … Read more
Most of the time, I write blog posts within a week of publishing them (though rarely the same day). Most of the time, I prepare food the day we’re going to eat it. Most of the time, I do laundry when I’m almost out of the type of clothes that I’m washing. Or I’m out … Read more
The following things happened in one 40-minute conversation with my brilliant book club. One member noted that in this week’s lesson for an online course she’s taking, the book we’re reading came to mind several times because the messages were similar. Another noted that in several spaces in her life recently, including our book, people … Read more
I was challenged recently to see anger as a positive thing, a flow of energy, a necessary force. This was … different. I have no or very few positive role models for or experiences with anger. The only options offered were exploding or being passive-aggressive. Anger is something bad, something to be avoided whenever possible, … Read more
A memory that came up from third grade or younger… I’m watching a couple of adults have a conversation. The person talking isn’t noticing that the person listening is clearly not interested in what they have to say. Fear of being clueless like that is part of what stopped me from talking much to people … Read more