You Rise

(For my dear sister, Kay, I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you.) Your face is fading. I see shadows of chin, cheekbone, childhood inside my mind. Orange Kool-Aid, baloney sandwiches, Aunt Carol’s peonies like colossal, pink faces thrill us. He loves me, he loves me not. You tell me you Read more

Pebbles in Water: Self-Awareness and You

Spoiler Alert, I people watch. Partly because I don’t like to engage in idle chatter with near strangers to pass the time and partly because I’m an over serious fiction writer determined to make the most complex characters I can muster. Self-awareness has been a trait I’ve been paying attention Read more

An Open Letter to U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez: Changing the Culture of Sexual Violence

Dear Secretary Perez, More than 27 million women shared their experiences of sexual assault, tweeting in the wake of Donald Trump’s “locker room talk.” The #NotOkay movement, initiated by social media maven Kelly Oxford, has crystallized around women’s stories of sexual violence. Secretary Perez, you are a scheduled keynote speaker Read more

10 Tips on Becoming the Perfect Houseguest

“Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days.” ―Benjamin Franklin I lived in Laguna Beach, California and hosted many friends who came to visit this picturesque, quaint village on the Pacific boasting art galleries, restaurants, and world-class art festivals in the summer including the unique Pageant of the Masters. It’s Read more

Being Jennifer Levin’s Mother

I grew up in the same building that Jennifer Levin’s mother lived in. Do you remember Jennifer Levin? She was the 18-year-old girl who was murdered by Robert Chambers in the late ‘80’s – in New York City. I think it was April of 1988. I remember I had won a Read more