My life has been shaped by military service, even though I’ve never served in the armed forces myself. Before I was born, my father served in Vietnam in the Marine … Continue reading Remembering Military Families on Veterans Day
NaNoWriMo Day 6 word count: 10,074 We love the farmers market. And we’re sad that it’s done for the winter. The market in Salt Lake City runs from mid-June to … Continue reading Getting to Know the Hand That Feeds Us
I don’t know if it’s country-wide, but in our neck of the woods, trick-or-treating happens on the 30th when the 31st falls on a Sunday. My Halloween experiences have given … Continue reading Martha Stewart is no Friend of Mine
Last night I followed two of my commandments: Risk Looking Silly, and If It’s Worth Doing, It’s Worth Doing Poorly. First I side-stepped my inner perfectionist by finally framing and … Continue reading Compromising with Gravity
I got to attend the Monday night step class at my gym tonight, which I’ve only done once before, even though I loved it that one time I went. I’ve … Continue reading Joyfully Moving
As I’ve come to expect at this point in the month, I’ve started losing my zest for my resolutions. I’ve not done much decluttering this week since my mom left. … Continue reading Week 12 Review: The Dangers of Openness
Today’s posts on Gretchen Rubin‘s blog are, I think, convincing me more and more that my goal isn’t really happiness, per se. The first post is, “Consider the Elephant, or, … Continue reading Driven to Distraction
Here’s part of what I read today in Marion Woodman’s Addiction to Perfection: The overconscientious perfectionist knows she cannot control her obsession; she recognizes at the center of her whirlpool … Continue reading Conscious Sacrifice
This week, my mom has been visiting from Ohio. As usual, we’ve been busy doing projects non-stop. My mom leaves tomorrow afternoon. The week has just flown by, also as … Continue reading Week 11 Review: Reflecting on my Mom’s Visit
My mother is visiting this week. As a result, my daughter and I attended Sunday Mass with her for the second time in our lives (our family wasn’t Catholic growing … Continue reading Mass Gratitude
I started this post Sunday evening, then abandoned it when I began feeling ill. I won’t go into details, but suffice it to say I’ve lost 6 pounds in less … Continue reading Week 10 Review: Dietary Disarray
In North Carolina, we had a friend—a fellow graduate student with my husband—who wore a string around his wrist all of the time. My husband asked him about the string … Continue reading Blacker Than Black
Imperfect Happiness 