Communication. With all the different ways we have to communicate, people either do not utilize them or use them inappropriately. Some people can talk forever and never say anything. People breed r…

There are a lot of artists that I follow who make prints or stickers of their artwork (depending on the type of art they do). I love this idea so much more than taking commissions because they are …

I think my dad has been the relationship that has taught me the most about not only who I am but who I want to be. My father passed away yesterday. A lot of my humor and personality was shaped by m…

I want to believe in it. A lot of people confuse it for immediate retribution for doing something bad, but that is not actually how the idea works. It is a cataloging at the end of a life of how go…

I am not someone who goes out of my way to pander to people. I do not do that. I am too old to feel like I need to do that ever again. I am who I am and I write what I write. For me it is finding w…

I do not think time is the actual issue most people face. I think it is a matter of priority. As every therapist I have ever worked with has told me, “You have to put on your oxygen mask befo…

There are few places I ever feel truly comfortable and that is what I consider a home to be. Our house, the house I grew up in, and my partner’s aunt’s house. I really liked her right o…

There have been a lot of charismatic villains in media. However, to pick a villain over a hero, the hero has either got to be incompetent, upholding an unjust system, or some other ridiculousness. …

We have had similar prompts in the past and each time I try and come up with a new response. This time I am telling the youth that they can enjoy things without trying to monopolize it or being the…

This is all based off what you consider financial success. My parents owned their own business and had two full time jobs when I was growing up and they still struggled to pay the bills for our ver…

A lot of people would not like to hear this, but the book I have most regretted reading is the Bible. It is not about the book itself. I have read many compilations of stories over time which is wh…

Most annoying trope to me is the whole idea that the plot and conflict could be completely resolved with a single conversation. Not even a misunderstanding but simply asking a question or going out…

I would really like to go back to the first year of my relationship with my partner. We have had our ups and downs throughout the years and we have always come out stronger together. But sometimes …

I published a book. I was sick over it and freaked out so much during the whole editing and publishing process. I loved the writing process and learned so much from doing that, but I was still not …

There was a lot of strange thinking in the older generations. In my family, they pretty much did not start going to the doctor until they started falling apart. They did not do any preventive healt…

This is an entirely fair observation. I had a reader send me this question. There is a lot of truth behind the words. For some reasons it is a biological imperative to have kids. For another, it is…

I had been having a difficult day. The girls had been living with us for a couple years at that point. It was a school day and they both had appointments. The oldest had therapy and the youngest ha…

Well, as I wrote yesterday I had a dream about being an alpaca farmer. That would still be really great. I would love to have enough fiber to process into various products. Alpacas have such fun pe…

I have gotten interested in making my own yarn. I have an Angora rabbit and he is so sweet. I trim off his hair when it gets over three inches long and I plan to purchase some sheep wool and combin…

On principle, I feel you can never judge whether a book is good, bad, or not for you unless you finish it. I have never not finished a book because it was boring or poorly written. Even if it turns…

At first I was going to say another day with both my cats alive, then I remembered my childhood dog. I got her when I was six and she had to be put to sleep when I was away at college at twenty. I …

I certainly do not deal with it well at first. Then I strap in and figure out possible courses of action. I like to have several plans for various outcomes. It is extremely needed when my children …

I was a parentified child, a mini-adult. I never felt that growing up but I did a lot of things that most kids did not. I took care of my brother when my parents were at work. I worked at their bus…

“Trust your gut.” It is something that took me a long time to come to terms with. Every time I ignored my instincts, things ended in disaster. Then I would have to deal with the fallout…

One moment that always stands out in my memory was when I went to the zoo one day. This was before I had kids. After seeing so many out of control children and parents who were at their wit’s…

“Forget your worry and self doubt, write your stories now.” Pushing myself to begin writing earlier I think would have brought me a lot more satisfaction with my life. I am meeting peop…

After spending a lot of time on the road lately, I wish they taught driver education. Our school district offered it as an additional thing that you had to pay for in order to get the required driv…

“Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing” Of course this is a piece of advice that took me a long time to accept, as I think it does for most people. Especially since the in…

Wow. This is a question. A few things jumped to mind, but I was not sure I wanted to write about them in a public forum in case they may be misconstrued. I think the biggest thing is probably that …

“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” – Friedrich Nietzsche There is a lot of negativity around this quote and examples of if something is broken it will not have the s…

The saga continues. The kid messaged about wanting to come home because her health was falling apart. We handled that and gave her resources and reminded her she is still on our insurance and every…

“Actions speak louder than words” People put too much emphasis on the words people say. Anyone can promise to change, to do better, or that they have your best interest at heart. It is …

Live your life like the person you want to become. If you want to be a confident, self assured person, then stop hiding who you are. Be you. Be proud of your hobbies, your interests, and your perso…

I would like to think that things happen for a reason. It does not necessarily mean it is a good reason. People make choices and those choices affect the world and people around them. It is the but…

I am all about comfort. My home is my sanctuary. Furniture and fabrics are super comfy. Lots of different places to rest to keep up with the chronic pain problem. I love color, every room has a dif…

“But I couldn’t see spending the rest of my life With my head hung down in shame You know I might have been born just plain white trash But Fancy was my name” Fancy – Reba M…

Last time, I wrote Romeo and Juliet. This time, I am going after “Sleeping Beauty” and “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.” Everyone uses the Disney-style writings of these s…

Since I was a little girl I wanted to visit every continent. Early on I realized going to every country seemed unlikely, but six more continents seemed reasonable. I have yet to leave my home conti…

When my youngest left home, I promised myself that I would not go rushing to the rescue the first time she had a meltdown. She has had a few and we have been helping her work through them. This las…

Technically, that would have to be my pets. Not that I shopped for them, but I did pay their adoption fees, their supplies, veterinary care, and toys. They have all been great companions and nothin…

Life has been pretty good. We have welcomed a new animal into our brood and soon we will have cats again! Our neighbors have begun spearheading the effort to curb the cat population in our neighbor…

You have heard it your whole life. Do not believe everything you read or see, especially on the internet. People are always surprised that I do not hold any ill will towards my children. In fact, I…

I honestly would like to get rid of health advice that is not from your own doctor. There are two major problems with people who try to encourage people to change their daily habits. One is that it…

We are definitely shaped more by our experiences than any inherent sense of self. Learning about the effects of attachment, trauma, and exposure easily explains a lot of behaviors that most people …

There are so many things out there about being a mother or having children. One area I have always struggled with is finding songs that work with being an adoptive mother. Adoption itself is a stru…

Yes, obviously. I am always trying to perfect my craft or try something new. What is the point of living if you are not trying to experience new and interesting things? The last eight months have b…

As I wrote in yesterday’s post, I experienced the first wave of Covid-19. I was incredibly sick for a long time. Since then, my memory is not as good as it once was. Things are harder to thin…

There were probably two sets of years that I would title the hard years and they both have to deal with the adoption, but in different ways. The first two years were super hard because our kids had…

This has to be a trick question. Perhaps all the books that were planned to have sequels but publishers pulled out before release. I cannot think of one offhand, but I know I have been irked in the…