You empty your bank account of the $1,326 and sink it all into Facebook advertisements.

"Intake" and "Progress"

The great thing about Betty and Rosalynn Carter working together was showing the world how to find common ground even when coming from different political stances. We could use a lot more of that right now.

Many a novel today is a screenplay with feelings. 

Mike and Miriam lay in bed and pretended to be blind, eyes closed, gently touching each others' faces. It was something they had seen in a movie, maybe.

When we were five or six, well before that shot, we walked together in those woods. It was fall and we had just touched, for the first time that I can remember, in his room, under blankets. They were either 101 Dalmatians or Power Rangers-themed

THE TENSION

Sliced peach cool

under fresh yoghurt,

steaming creamy coffee,

the slow, dark wake of an October... more

After high school, I moved from Minnesota to Texas. Average annual number of Tornados in Minnesota: 41.9. Average annual number of tornados in Texas: 146.7. 

I want Paula to feel the pain I’ve felt, the pain of being left behind, and not by someone who has died, which would be less painful, in my opinion. Because when someone leaves you in life, they’re still out there; they just have a new life you’re not a part of.

fire inherent spectrum

the martyr no longer I walk beyond the cradle the peach tree the... more

I’m a white middle-aged mom driving through a mainly white college town listening to a now-dead Jewish hip-hop artist whose video for “Self-Care,” released right around the time of his death featured him trapped in a coffin. I’m older now than I’ve ever been. Obviously. Who cares.

did I know that we’re making global warming worse by eating beef because cow farts heal the ozone layer

1. We are young and we snake through synagogue back hallways. Play truth or dare. Seven minutes in heaven. Stay away from the sanctuary.

Tomorrow he will crash from the sugar buzz. I will not look at him with eyes that suggest I told you so, which is part of love. 

The New Rules for a Brooklyn Neighborhood 

I thought home was like

the word water. You would... more

along with the memory

The height of fall.  The streets are buried in leaves.  Morning is rising.  Red-tinged shadows... more

If we add three points to Athleticism, we have three left to spend on our son. We already have 8 points toward Intelligence. Virtue is a 7, Athleticism would be an 8 if we add those last three. 

MEASUREMENTS

How great must a shock be to determine X number of years? We go to therapists to answer... more

My alcoholic uncle, Bill, was pacing back and forth across the five by five foot living room, asking where his beer was. His beer was wearing a new koozie that had a hood and zipped up like a real sweatshirt.

As teenagers, my friends and I spent Friday nights driving backroads, throwing soda cans at street signs. The wind... more

At my husband’s funeral, we drank Moscow Mules. I served them in copper mugs, just like you’re supposed to, and everyone thought it was adorable and heartfelt. 

Reverse Invocation 
 

To the god of thresholds: for is it not
tradition to call upon a... more

dogged night

the moon is black

or green i go

a little nuts

flaying flowers

from the brocade

i cord the stems

&... more

I started reading My Struggle in the spring of 2014. I didn’t know what I was getting into, but... more

Hollowing in Three Parts

1

Although it’s the last day of September and the talons of winter have taken hold... more

Larry didn’t try to talk to me, but whenever the silence got too thick, he would squeeze my knee or knead my shoulder. I was pretty fucked up on cold medicine, and it felt like he was grabbing a hold of my bones.