The other day I was in a coffee shop working on my laptop and I overheard an interesting conversation happening next to me. A woman in her 30s was having coffee and talking with two older adults, who I assume are her parents. The woman’s talking about politics and about how terrible this administration is and right away the dynamics of this relationship are clear. The dad is conservative and practical while mom prefers to keep the peace and tries to see both sides of every argument. I see myself in the woman because despite seeming to be a fully-functional … Continue reading Combating Despair with Facts

My coworkers and I were chatting about books earlier this week and I found myself trying to explain my love of fiction, maybe for the first time ever. I’ve never had to explain this to anyone before. I assumed most people read fiction for fun. Maybe they do. I probably read more fiction than any other category. I’ve always worked with smart people, and of course smart people come in all shapes and sizes with varied interests and concerns. Some smart people like business books, some like romance novels. But the people I work with now are, without exception, much … Continue reading Thoughts on Fiction

I love to talk about books. When it was my job I used to talk about books all day every day. Now that I don’t have that luxury I try to find other ways to scratch that itch. Of course there’s this blog, where I can talk to Elise and to the rest of you about what I’m reading. It’s awesome and I love it but it’s not enough. I’m in a book club (shout out to Quitters Club Book Club!) and I love it but we only meet once a month and talk about one book at a time. … Continue reading How to Talk (and talk and talk) About Books