On Ordinary Chaos, I interviewed three beautiful people who happen to be trans. (Listen to those here, here, and here, or wherever you get your podcasts.) I have known all three of them for a long time—between 15 and 30 years—well before any of them transitioned. There are closeted gays I’ve loved before and after … Read more
Validation is a beautiful thing on any day, especially valuable on a rough day or in a rough season. Anyone not having a rough season? We often think about this in the context of an argument or disagreement where we would like our points validated, but it’s applicable to many circumstances. • You belong here. … Read more
Adults telling teenagers that they’re in the best years of their life always struck me as kind of gross, especially if the teens in question weren’t having a particularly good time. Something recently made me wonder… do people say that because they didn’t have stress as a kid, then have no joy in their middle-aged-ness, … Read more
I don’t watch TV, rarely watch movies, and don’t know who a lot of famous people are. So if I know Will Smith hit Chris Rock at the Oscars earlier this week because of a tasteless joke Rock made about Smith’s wife, I assume you also know. Others have picked the event apart from a … Read more
While editing podcasts recently, I had a thought. Am I doing the audio equivalent of Photoshopping the cellulite or wrinkles off a model? In some cases, the answer is an easy “no.” The dog barks and we have a laugh about it and I cut it out. The connection fritzes for a moment and I … Read more
In a podcasting workshop I took, the half-joke was that you’re not a real podcaster until you forget to hit record. I half-joke with my guests that I hope never to be a real podcaster. For the past few weeks, I’ve been trail running for the first time. (Typically, I’ve saved running for smoother surfaces … Read more
I’m an extremely sentimental person, especially about people. Someone recently asked, “Do you collect people?” Why yes, yes I do. If you and I have had any remotely significant relationship at any point in my life for any length of time, you are a piece of me. For better or for worse. Regardless the state … Read more
Spring has sprung here in the Valley of the Sun, bringing flowers, leaves, bugs, weeds, snakes… The trees growing new leaves highlights an issue we have with specific plants here—they have dead branches from the winter. Some trees that grow well here aren’t frost-tolerant, and after an especially cold winter, it’s common to see trees … Read more
From my Facebook memories: Aaaaaand another assessment tool that requires written student work as “evidence.” *sigh* I was an elementary band teacher, and while some knowledge of how notation works can be assessed using traditional paper-pencil tests, “before and after” student work is what we hear. My job was to teach them to play, to … Read more
Annie Duke was the guest on an engaging episode of A Slight Change of Plans. The theme of the episode was quitting and it offered so many new thoughts to me. “If you think about the way that we process narratives, we don’t really see the quitters…The heroes are the ones who persevere beyond the … Read more