To the Americans who woke up this morning feeling less safe than they did yesterday; to the parents panicking about how to explain the outcome of this election to their children; and to my own sweet, growing daughter: I am sorry for not fighting harder for you. I am sorry that the combination of my […]

It is 3:37 in the morning two nights after getting engaged to be married and I cannot sleep. Instead of assuming my typical location at this hour – curled up with my warm and handsome now fiancé with our sweet dog’s legs sprawled across my hair – I’m standing over our kitchen sink. I’m tackling the […]

Somebody asked me last week what you’re like. I paused. Tried out a few lines in my mind. I could tell them about how your eyes twinkle when you’re telling a story. Or how you draw me flowers instead of buying them and slip them into my pockets. Or how when you’re reading, you’re so […]

It’s autumn in Iowa City. The leaves are changing, it’s getting colder, and it’s somehow warming my heart. Last weekend I took a trip to Oakland Cemetery to check out the graves and do some reading. I visited Iowa City’s famous “Black Angel”, a large bronze statue that a woman had built for her late […]

Today my beautiful mother turned 53 years young, and boy is she looking fine. Here’s Mom, her sister Sue, our cousins Kyle and Evan, Christie, and me back in like, 1996.   In honor of her special day, here’s just one short example of how her quirkiness made TT, Mike, and me into the fab […]

Once every couple of years, I go through a strange period of time when I feel compelled to join a church. I think this especially occurs when I’m feeling lonely; the idea of a group of people all sitting around thinking positive thoughts can be pretty appealing. It never seems to stick though, largely because […]

In recent months I’ve repeatedly considered starting a blog to document life in our nation’s middle, and then I remembered I already had! I’ve decided to give it another go, and I’m not ashamed to say that the final bit of necessary motivation to do so is a result of my experiences in the bathroom […]

People told me before I came here that Midwesterners are typically nicer than people from the rest of this great country but I didn’t buy it.  I felt that I myself grew up in a pretty friendly, helpful culture in upstate New York, with people going out of their way to help strangers on a […]

A week of orientation down and it looks like it’s going to be a crazy five years.  I’ve gotten to know some of the people in my program quite well this week, and am again reminded of one of the best parts of academia: the much higher tolerance had for quirkiness and absurdity.  I have […]