On a tour at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, while looking at the equipment and reproductions of the photographs that were used to discover Pluto, we learned about Clyde Tombaugh, the man behind the discovery. The story as I remember it is that Percival Lowell believed there to be another planet because of oddities in … Read more
Rocket Kid is attending half day camp. (We’re all very grateful for places that are maintaining COVID protocols.) We don’t have to leave the house until eight or so. On Tuesday, his first day, I woke up at about six and decided I was going to run before I had to get him up, then … Read more
(Just a heads up: this post contains affiliate links, as well as the background behind how I came to use them. Because I’ve historically not been an affiliate kind of gal.) When I was in seventh grade, my basketball coach told the team that drinking soda during the season was bad for our game. I … Read more
It doesn’t feel right to prattle on about the usual things today. The problem of gun violence is overwhelming. The problem of black people murdered by police is overwhelming. The problem of racism is overwhelming. There are solutions or partial solutions to these, and we rationalize our way around them. How do we connect when … Read more
As part of a conversation in episode 42 of No Stupid Questions, Stephen Dubner made mention of people who lived through—and therefore, for a period of time, adapted to—horrible situations, and then shared this hypothesis: “All of us can adapt to some degree. But with something as simple as removing sugar from your coffee, to … Read more
It finally happened. I reached the limit for how heavy I am willing to be. I didn’t know ahead of time what that was. It’s not something I’ve kept in mind all along. I just reached the point where I had to say, “No more!” When I went back to school in 2016, I gained … Read more
During college, I ended up changing my primary instrument from flute to trombone, taking two extra years to complete my degree because I needed to be proficient enough on the trombone to pass a jury or a recital. With all of the metaphorical sweat equity that went into becoming competent, there was no way I … Read more
Selfies are given a bad rap. As with most reputations, there’s some legitimacy in there, and also as with most reputations, the legitimacy is overgeneralized. Some selfies are from single parents who have no one else to take photos of them much of the time. If they want a picture together with their kid, they … Read more
There are two Heats. (I suspect there are two of you, too.) There’s Ideal Heat, the one that does All The Things. The one that followed through on learning to crochet, or had the patience and attention span to sew. She makes some of her own clothes and when it’s cold and she needs an … Read more
In a conversation on Zoom this morning, we chatted about staying on track with work and life. A system I guess-and-checked my way into is working really well for me right now and seemed to resonate with others, so I thought I’d share it with you. Take what resonates, leave the rest. First, I made … Read more