Confessions of a Wannabe Activist
I asked my boyfriend, “Are we bad protestors?”
Is there a god of Cars?
God the Creator, Mitsubishi the Manufacturer.
How to Convince Your Friends to Play DnD
“I’ll make a cheese plate for every session!”
Let’s Call Villains “Villains”
If Lord of the Rings was published today, Sarumann would get the Joker treatment and have thirst edits go viral.
In Loving Memory
How strange it is to choose to labor over writing the perfect string of words, singing with the perfect tone, preparing the perfect meal to honor a person who can’t experience their veneration.
Facebook Condolences
He was the one that got our entire family to switch to the Signal messaging app because it’s supposed to be safer. We’re still using it now.
Christianity, Ghosts, and the Unknown
They whispered, “Did you feel that too?”
Starting Over
This was the first time my two-week notice meant anything significant.
Regression
Even after you’re determined to start loving yourself, the world will still echo the same questions and judgements you’ve been using to crush yourself.
Dating Advice For My Past Self
You’ll realize that you don’t want someone who won’t cry with you when you’re mourning.
On Being Young and Still Lonely
My loneliness is an echo from a silent sound, a shadow with an invisible caster.
Milestones for Single People
If we can romanticize diapers and spit up and sleep deprivation, let’s romanticize the pains of single people too.
Pride and Preju-dress
I tried to make dresses one summer, but I mostly massacred innocent bed sheets
Craig the Caramel Ghost
Someone—or something—keeps turning on the lights.
On Losing College Friends
I decided to see it as you inviting me into your life, asking me to pay witness to the rhythms of your life.
When You Butcher a Musical
It feels like the team working on this musical doesn’t believe anyone wants to go to a musical
Presents Politics
I had to hype myself up to buy a pack of three dollar udon at the grocery store—I certainly can’t afford the forty dollar Roblox gift cards.
Amtrak and Anime
I attend a work conference to sell books the week before Thanksgiving. This year, the plan was that I was going to take the Amtrak down to my parents’ place in Chicago, and I would fly to San Antonio the next day. Since the train leaves at 6:00 a.m., I knew it was...
Taylor’s Worst Ex
I hope you’re constantly getting images of the Eras Tour.
First Boyfriends and Flaming Lanterns
As soon as I drew my first heart, Drew said, “I’m gonna draw a Goomba.”
Rating the bathrooms of Cuyahoga National Park
There might still be a piece of my tooth there.
On Being Young and Lonely
Her expression tightened as she said, “At least you had a couple friends in the city.”
Mary Kajiwara’s Hundredth Birthday
When everyone gathered around her and started singing “Happy Birthday” in a key far too high, she knew to blow out the candles.
First Queer Date
Mental calculations fly through my head, and I cannot imagine a scenario where you kiss me and don’t spill soup all over both of us.
A Cheapskate’s Sentimental Guide to Chicago
I’d walk along the lake and listen to the birds, thinking about how strange it was that a man-made peninsula became a spot of natural beauty amongst glass skyscrapers.
Three Swoon-Worthy Romances and Three that Should’ve Stayed Friends
I can’t believe that I’m unconvinced about a romance with People Magazine’s Sexist Man Alive Paul Rudd. It’s a waste, really.
It Gets Better
To my surprise, my first thought was, “Ha! Little does she know that gays walk among us.”
Fleas Almost Defeated Me
Idiots. They had stealth, but I had Google search.
In Celebration of Being a True Crime Wimp
I texted my friend with the encyclopedic podcast knowledge to ask why she liked true crime. Instead, she told me why she quit.
Sirius
Astronomy is thought of as the future or the cutting edge, but it studies slow processes and ancient objects.
