nice moments | Puttylike

Grendel

Monday, June 18, 2012

It’s 6am. I’m sitting on a futon in an apartment that’s brimming with potential, but presently bare. My brain is fried from the heat of the night. My body aches from carrying that microwave home yesterday. Over the last three weeks, my work has suffered, my social life has suffered, my sleeping hours have diminished. […]

Meeting a New Family Member

Thursday, April 19, 2012

5 Comments

I remember the day well. I was 7 years old. My dad and I drove to the airport to pick up my mom, who had been in Romania for a very long three weeks. She came through the gate, beaming. She walked up to us and introduced me to my new little brother– a tiny, […]

Magic Days in Santa Cruz

Monday, November 28, 2011

13 Comments

I was all ready to sit down at a cafe and write about confidence, or following your dreams, or something. But then I met someone and everything changed. Imagine jangling crystal jewelery, curly silver hair, a maternal energy. She turned to me in line and asked how my day was going. I mentioned that this […]

The Common Languages of Blogging, Music and Multipotentiality

Monday, October 17, 2011

34 Comments

Every day I wake up and give thanks for the fact that I’m here. Not just here, as in alive (though I do that too), but thanks for the fact that I’m in Portland, Oregon. Sometimes I’ll express my gratitude on a jog or bike ride to whatever coffee shop will be making up my […]

My Tumultuous Relationship with the Violin, and Why Some Interests Deserve a Second Chance

Thursday, July 21, 2011

29 Comments

My Tumultuous Relationship with the Violin, and Why Some Interests Deserve a Second Chance

I started begging for violin lessons when I was three. My mom played the violin (when she wasn’t painting or being a psychology professor). Dad played the piano (when he wasn’t studying his Scrabble words or being a music education professor). (Does that about explain me?) The violin was a no-brainer. To me, it was […]

A Love Letter to Portland

Thursday, June 30, 2011

41 Comments

The bus pulled over to the curb. Outside, a woman with bright pink hair was securing a large black pug in its carrier purse. I smiled. The spot beside me was free. They’re going to sit next to me and when they do, I’m going to strike up a conversation, I willed to the universe. […]

What Matters

Monday, March 21, 2011

22 Comments

I was in the kitchen the other day, making apple-cinnamon cookies and listening to Joni Mitchell. My mom came in and cocked her head, perplexed and amused.