Parallel Universe

It’s easy to get carried away while editing. I do sometimes. I remove a sentence and discover that the piece is improved. I take out a paragraph and see it’s even better. Delete a page, then two. Eventually the screen is blank. It’s perfect! I think, Unimpeachable! It’s the same thing with housewares. Every time […]

Underbrush

Every time I go hiking in the Ozarks I think about the Civil War. There were a bunch of Civil War battles fought around here, including at Wilson’s Creek, the site of the second major battle of the Civil War and the first battle west of the Mississippi. The vast majority of my Civil War […]

Is leg hair visible from six feet away?

Wearing shorts on a recent sunny day, I wondered if it was possible to see my copious leg hair from six feet away. I haven’t wanted to shave my legs during the lockdown—truly, what is the point?—and of course it doesn’t matter if someone sees my leg hair, but I was curious. I googled, sure […]

The Library

It’s a tough time for people who like reading books. It’s a tough time for people in general. It’s a tough time. Have you heard of this thing called coronavirus? Libraries are closed, my favorite local bookstore is not considered an essential business, and Amazon warehouse workers are striking for basic safety precautions and paid […]

We’re Not in the Business of Not Dealing with Jerks

Yesterday I went looking in my email account for a poem Tony and I once wrote together, which mentioned Taco Bell. I was looking for this poem because I recently discovered Taco Bell Quarterly, a real and wonderful literary journal that just released its second issue. It is no way associated with or endorsed by […]

Now is Better than Before

Five years ago I was taking science classes at Ozarks Technical Community College and writing grants as a freelancer. I thought at the time that I wanted to get a master’s degree in public health and dietetics, but I hadn’t taken any of the needed prerequisites. I ended up taking a bunch of science classes […]

Flowers for Kylie Jenner

After I had my daughter, I stopped thinking. There was so much to do—changing diapers, nursing, cleaning pump parts, doing laundry, etc.—that I had no time for it. So, I stopped. I remember realizing I’d stopped thinking somewhere in those muddy first months with my daughter. I felt relieved. It struck me that the problem […]

BookMarx

The best place in Springfield, BookMarx, is closing after five years. A locally owned bookstore is an improbable thing, especially in 2019 and especially in a mid-sized city in southwest Missouri. Still, the end of this particular improbable thing strikes me as incredibly sad. I have no claim to BookMarx. I know the people who […]

Cousins

I have fifteen cousins and I like them all. I don’t mean to brag, but it’s true. I am rich with cousins, the best kind of family member. Cousins ask so little of me, but give me so much. I feel nothing but pity for those people with no cousins. As a kid, my cousins […]

The Moon and The Little Red Hen

Last spring my daughter brought home The Little Red Hen from school. This is the story about the hen who plants the wheat, grows the wheat, cuts the wheat, grinds it into flour, makes it into bread, all without her lazy friends’ help. When the bread is fresh from the oven, the hen asks who will help […]