On Hanukah in Brooklyn

Lighting candles with the family for the entirety of the last week in December. This blog will resume in 2012. Happiest of holidays to you and yours! [Photo Location: Park Slope, Brooklyn]

On (the) Brevity (of words)

Selected Shorts.

Incredibly grateful
for a healthy holiday
with the people I love.

(Happy holidays!)

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On Asking Google

Worth Every Devastation.

Given that significant portions of people each year are eliminated from short lists of would-be employers, cognizance of our online profiles (facebook, twitter, and – ahem – sacred blog postings) is probably worth a second thought. Googling our names to reveal the online truth may save us some life-changing e-barrassment in the long run, however painful to e-face. Enjoy!

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On Unprecedented Anticipation

The Morning After.

Few things elicit the unprecedented anticipation of the alarm-induced excitement like the presence of the tooth fairy...the morning after. Tiny fingers slide beneath the goose-down rainbow-covered pillow searching for evidence that their latest milestone merits magical validation, as adrenaline from their a.m. discovery masks the pain of their teeth that once were. Enjoy!

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On Checking It Twice

Literary Must-Reads.

While I don't make a habit of re-reading books-that-changed-my-life, I do have a running list of must-reads, handy at a moment's notice for last-minute birthday gifts and/or novel recommendations upon-request. The one time I did attempt to psychoanalyze my favorite character (circa fall 2007 for a graduate school course on "human development"), I found myself detesting the very things I once adored, only to quickly abandon my task-at-hand in order to uphold his infallible exterior. Enjoy!

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On Familial Exclusion

Lessons Learned the Hard Way.

Even the most challenged (familial) relationships occasionally signify moderate acceptance and minuscule love, reminding us that while we're stuck with the hand we're dealt with, poker faces do exist. Grudges are (temporarily) set aside and qualities (partially) redeemed, as common ground is sought after - and found - if only momentarily. Enjoy!

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On Fitting In

Childhood Blues.

In addition to the angst associated with (un)expected physical maturation, children have to contend with (un)kind judgments of inexperienced peers, as they struggle to fit in with the people and places that (in adulthood) will (mostly) be forgotten. Teasing is avoided with occasional false fevers, as tactics to retaliate are fantasized from home. Enjoy!

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On Books on Tape

One Man's Trash...

After several four hour drives to the Catskill Mountains during which books-on-tape served the sole purpose of background noise, I resigned myself to the limitations of hard copy novels. Distracted by the picturesque window shopping along the Palisades and Route 28, I found myself distracted by the character interactions, missing crucial turning points without the luxury of turning back. Enjoy!

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On Shapes & Sizes

Of Infidelity.

The justified flirty g-chat here and borderline-inappropriate email there doth not a faithful relationship maketh. Rather than indulging the misdemeanor that would undoubtedly be unforgivable if roles were reversed, an easier -- and less destructive -- approach would be to confront the issues that lie beneath instead of texting (other people) about them. Enjoy!

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On Dating Truths

Friends with the Ex.

Being frhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifiends with your ex within the first zero to 365 days is a necessary crutch to manage the initial loss of the relationship. As each day passes, memories are rehashed, mistakes acknowledged and the ability to stand alone becomes possible. Enjoy!

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On Internet Roulette

e-ddiction.

Having recently traded the New York City subway commute for a leisurely 30-minute road trip to my place of employment (in Colorado) each morning, I find myself fighting the addiction to check my email one more time just in case an (un)likely letter of interest shows up (un)expectedly at 7:37 a.m. In a community where checking email, text, & twitter with pathological frequency -- while operating a vehicle -- is neither illegal nor discouraged, I nostalgically recall the forced abandonment imposed by the underground railway system (of the Big Apple) that led to an increase in Angry Bird adventures, i-pod dance parties, and commitments to actual novels. Enjoy!

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On e-Bombardment

Dodge-Call.

Some might say the best part about the myriad of e-communication options is the lost responsibility to make eye contact, contribute undivided attention, and respond in a timely (and qualitative) manner to the person on the receiving end. Yet with this welcomed gain in freedom comes the necessity to maintain organization (texts/emails/twitters/chats), use spell-check, and (carefully) REPLY TO ALL only when required. Enjoy!

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On MPDG

Manic Pixie Dream Girl.

Like most television-watching female patrons would, I felt innate pride when my raggedy, felt-decorated, Anthropologie cardigan was sported on the adorkable guidance counselor on Glee, and then a few months later on the least-cool granddaughter on Parenthood, especially after debating for way too many minutes/hours/days/months (given their generous return policy) about whether to trade it in for that shiny gold dress I would never wear but needed to have. Because it's easy to get distracted by the authenticity of our favorite characters, comparing the nuances of our own (real-life) wardrobes and haircuts to the endearing, quirky actors on the other sides of our screens, forgetting almost immediately that actual bangs and pixie cuts (almost always) never look as good. Enjoy!

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On Repeated Relocations

Oh, The Places We'll Go.

The pros and cons of (eventually) relocating to a bat-free abode come lease re-signing month (next August) brings pangs of cardboard box dread (packing, waiting, moving, unpacking) combined with a not-so-unrealistic-fantasy of anxiety-free summer nights ... once the sun goes down. Yet the nine months (in between) with twelve hundred affordable square feet of shabby chic hardwood floors and mint green vintage wall charm distracts from the three-month bout during which dark corners and shadowy hallways are off limits when the lights are out, and the "mammal net" by the door sits patiently until needed. Enjoy!

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On the Crack of Dawn

Morning People.

For those of us awake before or by sunrise -- whether by choice or the coercion of our stubborn, internal clocks -- the perks of those quiet, solitary hours supersede (at times) the lost comforts of long sought after shut-eye. Understood only by the secret club of morning dwellers is the comforting silence blanketing the buzzing responsibilities of the day ahead, as they sip their morning coffee in much appreciated peace. Enjoy!

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On the Dark Side of the Moon

Heaven & Hell.

During the latter half of (F)or better or for worse, the upside is hardly discussed. When lights at the end of our tunnels appear eternally faint, and black holes infinitely endless, it only dawns on us in retrospect that (our) perspective (on life) was strikingly lucid, and (half of) our whole uncharacteristically strong, and the people around us unexpectedly appreciated. Enjoy!

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On Teetering Tweets

The Bitter End.

Following (facebook) wall postings and daily (twitter) tweets is as time-consuming and addicting as local blog and newspaper updates. The intimate -- and often mundane -- details of other people's lives fill an inexplicable void in our own daily routines, spicing up the time between after-dinner dish-washing and toothbrush preparation with less-than-spicy information. Enjoy!

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On Feeling Old(er)

Remembering When (You Can).

A child of the 80's, my (aging) understanding of video games halts abruptly at Super Mario Brothers (the original) as I marvel at the speed with which children (under the age of two) manage i-phone touch screens and the angriest of birds. Pop magazines fill with celebrities I don't recognize, and when I do (eventually remember to) dabble with Justin Bieber youtube videos (56 million views!), I am strangely appalled. And pre-pubescent, scantily-clothed girls merit whispered disdain between horrified (early) thirty-something companions whose wardrobes have (most likely) seen better days...or years. Enjoy!

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