Every word of the following cautionary tale is true. I know so because the cautioner texted the tale to me herself. (If you cannot believe a text, you cannot believe anything.) Many of you know the texter in question. Some of you are her neighbors and may wish, after reading the … [Read more...]

Your daughter’s been asked on her first date! She’s excited, she’s nervous, she’s unsure, and she needs you…not to embarrass her! Do you remember the time your own mother, wearing acid washed jeans and leg warmers, answered the knock of the eighth-grade John Travolta-lookalike … [Read more...]

As any mother of teenage daughters can attest, their threshold of embarrassment begins at subterranean levels and goes downward from there. “Mom, really!” is their mantra and the offenses that generate that response are multitude. When I shared space with not one but two … [Read more...]

This piece was written from my basement while I taught my youngest to swim. I never intended to own an indoor pool, but with all the rain that filled our bottom floor, we have no choice. But my flooded basement is only partially the problem. More accurately this piece should be … [Read more...]

How do you break up with a dog? You can’t whip out any classic excuse: “It’s not you, it’s me.” “I’m not looking for a boyfriend right now.” Dogs just don’t understand that stuff. My parents had wanted a dog for about a year, and finally stopped their wishy-washiness about six … [Read more...]