Featured Posts
A Girl with a Fast Car
My first car (1979 Datsun) was not nearly as cool as Margaret Gasperi Kloecke’s first car. I bet yours wasn’t either. And do you still have it? Me neither—but Margaret does. Her bright purple 1970 Dodge Charger is in such pristine condition that it’s a national treasure.
Game Time for Rookies
Sports have an undeniable element of risk, physically and emotionally. Unlike other forms of entertainment which are carefully choreographed and rehearsed so they are performed with perfect consistency each time, sports are unpredictable. The energy of the unknown is powerful and beautiful … as long as you’re willing to embrace the chance that your team might lose. That tension provides a rush of adrenaline with every tip or face-off or kick-off. It’s not for everyone, but it’s definitely for me.
Like Mother, Like Daughter
One of my favorite photos shows my toddler son sitting on my desk, gripping a pen in his chubby hand, scribbling in one of my notebooks with a look of utter concentration. He grew up with a penchant for telling stories, and although his chosen media are not the same as mine, I love that he feels comfortable sharing his creativity with the world.
I imagine that’s how my friend Lisa feels about her daughter, Fiona. They both threw caution to the wind and tried something new recently. And then they both wrote with vulnerability and charm about what they did. The situations are totally different, but I think you’ll agree that jumping off a cliff might actually be the easier of the two adventures.
Trusting Your Life to Golden Coils of Grass
Does it take courage to be the first one to cross this one-of-a-kind bridge, re-woven from grass every June? Or does it take trust in the craftsmanship of one man, descended from five centuries of bridge-builders? I’m completely fascinated by this story from Eliot Stein’s book “Custodians of Wonder: Ancient Customs, Profound Traditions, and the Last People Keeping Them Alive.”
Community IDs for New Residents Suddenly Make a Splash
I’m guessing that most of the folks who renew their resident card each year in my suburb don’t know any of the backstory about municipal IDs and wouldn’t connect the card they scan at the pool to the wider conversations around immigration, trust in law enforcement, access to healthcare, support for the arts, and more.
Reporting from the Squirrel Cooking World Championship
This story from Eater about the World Champion Squirrel Cook Off is my favorite kind of writing: quirky, fun, but ultimately very respectful of the unique people and traditions that make our world so wonderfully diverse.
‘Tis the Season for Fireflies and Glow Worms
An Australian journalist details his search for the first fireflies of the season in a New South Wales park in 2023. His guide is a bioluminescence chaser who also points out glow worms during their excursion.
Translating the Sights of the Holidays for Those with Vision Impairments
When my son was diagnosed with red-green colorblindness as a teenager in 2019, fall colors were at their height. I suddenly understood why he had always been meh about the changing leaves—unless they happened to be vibrant yellow. In the past three years, I’ve learned a great deal about my son’s visual experiences, and I’m better (but nowhere near perfect) at skipping past colors and identifying the many other sensory delights during the winter holidays.
5 Paths to New Outdoor Adventures
My first time rappelling happened in France. I was with a longtime friend and her cousin, who only spoke French. He suggested something that I vaguely understood to be an outdoor activity. My friend agreed with gusto for both of us. And that’s how I found myself strapped to a rope and descending off an abandoned railroad bridge to practice. Then it was off to the real adventure on the cliffs of Ardeche.