A few years ago, I self-published a book: How to Be a Good Mom (Or at Least Not an Epic Failure). It was meant to be sort of tongue-in-cheek, a funny take on my experience raising three kids. In it, I set out the 5 “rules” of parenting (or being…
As a native of Hot Springs, you really should read The Vapors. Christi W. That’s what a friend and fellow book lover told me not long back. So, of course, I downloaded the audiobook stat. The Vapors: A Southern Family, the New York Mob, and the Rise and Fall of…
If you’ve read many of my previous posts, then you likely know that I’m an adjunct. I’ve been surprised lately by how many people don’t know what that means (my surprise means I’ve lived in my academia bubble for too long, I suppose). An adjunct is a contract teacher, typically…
Blogging isn’t one of my Daily Big 3 today; in fact, it’s not even on my to-do list this week. And that spotlighted for me the larger problem: I rarely prioritize my own writing. So I guess you’re not solely to blame for almost ruining my writing. I often place…
Practically every single day this past week, I had an idea of what I wanted to blog about but couldn’t get to it on my to-do list. By the next day, that idea was supplanted with another one. Then, last night, we watched Netflix’s The Social Dilemma. The Social Dilemma…
Showing respect for Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, or anyone for that matter, should not be about politics. It should be about acknowledging her (or anyone’s) accomplishments, contributions to society, and unwavering human kindness. When news broke last Friday that Justice Ginsburg had passed at the age of…
I had planned on blogging about something else this week. But then a conversation with one of the teenagers brought this phrase to mind: “Some teachers are bad.” Of course, when I think of that phrase, I hear it (in my head) in Cate Blanchett’s voice from Hanna – just…
In a continuing effort to stop censoring myself, I’m about to go on a rant of sorts. So, before I do that, I feel the need to offer a disclaimer and toot my own horn a bit. Disclaimer/Own-Horn-Tooting: I love teaching. I really do. I wouldn’t keep accepting course assignments…
As a writing teacher, it’s probably sacrilege for me to say I’ve got to stop thinking about audience. After all, I teach my students that they must consider audience when they’re working on writing projects; it’s one of the “big 3” of rhetorical context: topic, purpose, and audience. An imagined…
Author’s note: I wrote the following essay as a part of a class I’m taking on feedback and assessment in online writing courses. However, I decided to share it here on the blog since many of my readers are writers and/or teachers. Enjoy! A team of distinguished writing professors and…
I had intended on blogging this week about our Captain Marvel viewing from the weekend. But then yesterday happened. Even though I’m an adjunct rather than full-time faculty, there’s this annual teaching/writing conference that I like to go to, whenever I can get grant money to cover my registration, that…
If you remember that song, sorry for the earworm. If you aren’t familiar with it, well here you go: But, honestly, it’s a bit of a red herring. This post should probably really be called Things That Make Me Go GRRR, 😠, or 😤. Or Things That Make Me Wish…
#iwillpunchthefirstpersonwhosaysillmissthis “I will punch the first person who says I’ll miss this.†I saw that hashtag on a Facebook post yesterday and literally laughed out loud. The poster, you may have guessed, was a mom at her wit’s end. She’d taken to Facebook to vent about what we all face…
I’ve been really struggling this week with what to post. Basically, I’m censoring myself because a lot of what I want to talk about isn’t pretty. I’m talking toxic people, unsettling world events, and other such depressing stuff. So, until I have something more cheerful to share or am ready…
#nofilter I’m sure you’ve seen this hashtag, right? It’s commonly used on social media, accompanying what the poster is claiming to be an untouched, unedited photograph. Sometimes the photo is of a beautiful sunset, or of someone being him/herself. I don’t know for sure – and didn’t even try to…
