A catalog of the stuff in my apartment
Not long ago, I ran out of reading material during an out-of-town trip, so I dragged my husband, Frank, who was with me, inside the next bookstore we encountered. I asked him to pick out something for me, ‘cause I didn’t have access to my Books to Read lists and was therefore incapable of making […]
I have recently come to the conclusion that turtlenecks suit me. Maybe that’s because I have a thin neck and the fabric supplies an illusion of bulk. Or maybe it’s that, when worn with my glasses and habitually severe expression, a turtleneck seems to complete what should perhaps be my signature look: a visual homage […]
When I was growing up, my family had a World Book encyclopedia set. This print compendium of knowledge was arranged in alphabetical order across 22 volumes bound in red leather. At the time, encyclopedias were a common sight on living room bookshelves and in public libraries. The primary purpose of the books was to give […]
Cooking is like Restoration comedy: not as fun as it sounds, full of tedious business, and very likely to involve a fruity fop swooning onto a fainting couch. In the case of food prep, the fruit liable to feel overwhelmed is me. The task I find especially tiresome is the chopping of vegetables. What a […]
As far as I’m concerned, you can display your books however you like, provided you’re not one of those people who arranges books by color. I hate that. It’s disrespectful to the book and makes you look like the sort of superficial twit who quite literally judges a book by its cover. I’ve divided my […]
When I was a kid, my family referred to the TV remote as “the controls.” As in, Hey, pass me the controls! I wanna watch Family Matters ‘cause it’s 1991 and I gotta learn how to do the Urkel. I’ve never heard anybody else refer to a remote as “the controls.” Course, I’ve never seen […]
Around this time last year, I followed the 6-week self-improvement program laid out in a book called The Listening Path by Julia Cameron. The goal was to become a better listener. A key part of the regimen involved writing three stream-of-consciousness pages in longhand immediately upon waking each morning. And I mean immediately. You were […]
I recently read Lord of the Flies for the first time. I know, I know: You read it in ninth grade. Well, excuse me, but I attended an evangelical Christian school. We’re lucky I know my multiplication tables. I found the novel distressing, though I suppose I do agree with author William Golding’s pessimistic assessment […]
Not long ago, I was working on the Boston Globe’s Sunday crossword puzzle while riding the T. A young woman seated next to me kept looking over my shoulder. Eventually, a spot opened up next to her friend on the other side of the car, and the looky-loo took her prying eyes over there. I’m […]
I received a fair amount of Dolly Parton merch for Christmas. I got to interview the country legend in the fall for a travel story I did on Dollywood, so I guess my loved ones were still associating me with her in their minds. I am not complaining. One of the Dolly-related items I got […]
Indirect Objects 