It was a Friday afternoon and I was reminding my family that they would have to fend for themselves that evening because I was going out to celebrate a friend’s birthday. My daughter asked the question I wasn’t prepared for. “What’d you get her?” I had completely forgotten. I had exactly three hours before the … Continue reading The Wrong Kind of Careful
I asked AI to read 16 years of my writing and it told me: "You repeatedly enter new rooms, learn the invisible rules through observation and pattern recognition, integrate into those systems without fully abandoning yourself, and then translate what you learned back to others." I've had this blog since 2010. Apparently I've been doing … Continue reading I Let AI Read 16 Years of My Writing – Then I Built Something With It
I was at my daughter's recital when a close acquaintance arrived. We hugged, exchanged pleasantries. The week before, we'd both attended a party celebrating a mutual friend's promotion. I wanted to say something simple — wasn't it wonderful? Aren't you proud of her? But I knew my acquaintance worked in the same field. So I … Continue reading The Isolation of Hypervigilance
One night, I was feeling a bit tense and uneasy…okay, I’ll be real. I was having a “what’s the meaning of life?!” moment…so I asked Alexa to play a relaxing song. She chose “Gangsta’s Paradise.” The opening line: “As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death…” I stood there in my kitchen, … Continue reading The Day Alexa Misunderstood the Assignment
One day, I was late picking up my daughter from ballet class. When I arrived, the ballet teacher is standing outside with my daughter and I start explaining why I was late -- I left the house a little later than usual, I had to pick up dinner, there was a line for pick up … Continue reading The Dictionary Nobody Gives You
A couple of years ago, someone said in passing: “Why is Target so expensive?” I remember pausing, caught off guard. “Yeah,” I said. To me, Target was where I’d run the night before pajama day to grab something cheap for my daughter. It wasn’t where I went when things were expensive—it was where I went … Continue reading The Language I Almost Lost
