Virginia Woolf and Tillie Olsen: Inventing Women’s Literature

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“I Stand Here Ironing” is Olsen’s classic; Virginia Woolf was a heroine We didn’t always have women’s studies. I remember clearly the independent study I took with a part-time professor of English, a faculty wife who had an advanced degree … Read More

Therapist, Confidante, Beauty Consultant

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The disloyalty of a haircut by another stylist I have been loyal to hairstylists over the years because of our relationship, not the haircut. I was reminded of this silly allegiance when my stylist of the last several years was … Read More

Roy from Kerouac’s On the Road: Kerouac’s novel and real-life experience

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“I heard you were one of the characters in On the Road,” I said to Bill, one day in his apartment. “I don’t talk about it!” he growled. Bill was the executive director of a skid-row service center where I … Read More

The Best New York Times Headline Ever

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“When an Eel Climbs a Ramp to Eat Squid from a Clamp…” Moray eel — https://unsplash.com/photos/V2kr8EI5zlc — Koh Tao When I read the headline, I was thunderstruck by how good it was. The internet loved it too. A science story … Read More

Ways to Entertain a 3-Year-Old

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A guide for grandparents and other adults Blow dandelions Adults look at a lawn of seeding dandelions and see weeds about to spread. A three-year-old is delighted by picking a bouquet of yellow flowers. You pick a round-seeded head of … Read More

Ethnic Pride vs. Ethnic Inclusivity

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Can we have the best of both at the same time? I am 100% Scandinavian, mostly Swedish with one Danish grandparent. I have an interracial family of my choosing. I dated outside of my race and adopted outside my race. … Read More

Right, Wrong, and Prophetic: Angela Davis

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Dr. Davis was on Time’s 2020 List of Most Influential People In 2020, Angela Davis was included on Time’s list of the 100 most influential people in the world. That is 2020, when the list includes Kamala Harris and Joe Biden and other contemporary figures … Read More

I am a 1957 Chevy

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Let me count the ways a classic Chevy is superior I bought a 2022 Honda recently because of all the safety features: backup camera, lane drift warning, blue-tooth enabled radio/sound system/map finding. It gets good mileage and should last a … Read More

Great Writer of Fear, Shirley Jackson

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Psychobiography, haunting, and women’s mags The best opening paragraph in writing is often agreed to be from Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle: “”My name is Mary Katherine Blackwood. I am eighteen years old, and I live with my sister … Read More

Amazon, a Warrior Woman, is the Wrong Name for that Company

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The biggest river by volume is named for warrior women The Amazon Book Store Collective in Minneapolis was run by women, featuring books for women. I dropped into the store on occasion and browsed the selection. A good coffee shop … Read More

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