I live next to a hoarder. Seriously, I now believe it is a real thing, like a disease, because this is not your run of the mill ‘stacks of papers’ ‘so hard to get through’…this is like full on cable TV reality series at your door: bonafide hoarder. The garage so stuffed that when you [...]
Author Archive — mariamg
Brave Heart
My son Dylan and I have been talking a lot about bravery. He is 5 and in his kindergarten world, bravery, speed and Ninja skills (real or imagined) are the currency of the land. Dylan had an accident a month ago. The bird’s eye view is that he broke his arm. Up close, he had [...]
To Schedule or not to Schedule…That is the Question
Dylan told me the other day that he did not want ‘an important job.’ I flashed to a sullen 20-year-old, and then a sullen 30 year-old playing Wii-9000 on my couch. ‘Oh, really?’ was my best answer. (I was also watching 54th President slide off the table). “I don’t want a job where you have [...]
I’m OK, You’re OK
What if we are all just doing a good job? Seriously, what if in our working or not working status, serving frozen chicken nuggets for dinner and later than we meant to sometimes, not leaving the house until the afternoons on the weekends sometimes; the truth is we are all just doing a good job? [...]
Minefields in the Livingroom
I get jacked up around my extended family. I know this makes me unique and none of you can relate. While 10 years of therapy took the edge off; I am not cured. I was in my regular hyper-alert mode visiting my brother and sister-in-law the other day–tracking with the attention and precision found only [...]
Smelling Like Vanilla
My hairdresser, we’ll call her Whitney (because that is her name) was studiously studying what happens when she does my hair and then it receives no care and no consideration and no touch up cut for 5 months. “Um, let’s start to work on some of this shag.” “Go for it.” Whitney is an adorable [...]
2 Kids-2 Coasts-96 Hours
I traveled with my kids this week over a 4-day period. We left the beach community where we live on the Pacific to go to a beach community across space and time on the Atlantic. 2 cross country flights (1 w/screaming baby whole way, 1 with 4hr delay—happily spread between the two), 2 grandmothers, 3 [...]
My Vanity Left Me Years Ago for a Much Younger Woman
I walked out of the house today in the jeans I could find, a shirt that no one claimed after xmas last year at my Dad’s and a pair of black clogs that are so scuffed they look like I’ve been painting in them. How did this happen? I used to ‘go shopping’. It was [...]
Little Miss-Understood
The case for 3-pair socks: I really called this one wrong. About 2 years ago my daughter decided the best expression of herself was to wear mismatched socks. To school, to parties, to special occasions. Really mismatched sometimes. Like these here. I hated it. I felt like it made her look like no one noticed [...]
