Not the Marrying Kind
I'm adjusting well as I return to my single life. I have more time for friends, dinner parties, myself, reading, writing and getting to work on time. I lived alone for 13 years before my five-year marriage and, after we got the dog, I really missed coming home to an...
The Word “Lady,” Part Two (Please Stop Calling Me That)
Here's part one of my discussion of the word "lady." Maybe read that first. Since that post last September, I've become more vocal about not wanting to be called a lady, but my female Midwestern friends (and male friends) continue to do it. "Hello, ladies." "Have any...
Only 143 Days Til Christmas!
I ordered this 5 foot tree that even I can reach the top of. Whereas: I just moved into a new apartment and am starting a new life on my own, I love Christmas, I believe it's never too early to get ready for the holidays, This weekend I: Ordered my new Christmas tree,...
Fatter But Wiser
Being unmarried does NOT make you inferior. Yeah, I had to learn this. Previous post on weight & health: PLoosening the grip of food over me In April 2007 I left my spinster pad and moved in with my boyfriend, who would later become my husband. I...
What Is It To You If I’m Married?
In the early days of realizing my marriage was over, I'd say to friends, "This is it. I'm not getting married again." I'd get responses like, "Don't say that," and "Don't give up on marriage." People would genuinely try to convince me that I should keep an open mind...
Happy Birthday/Housewarming/Divorce!
2 p.m. on Saturday From Central Continental Bakery in Mt. Prospect, Illinois USA: white cake with lemon filling. This half sheet cake was worth every penny of $70 because it's my favorite cake from my favorite bakery of all time. With this cake, I [and many others]...
Happy Birthday to Me
Today is my big pink 47th birthday! And the Chicago weather is cooperating as well as it can. It's summer, so I can't expect cold, but at least it's not in the 80s or 90s Fahrenheit. (Still don't understand why women don't like to give their age on their birthday. Can...
When You Fall for No Reason
I was walking down from the elevated train platform yesterday after work, on perfectly normal stairs, wearing perfectly flat sandals. I was taking my time and not rushing. Close to the bottom, my left ankle rolled - I don't know why. As I fell, I dropped my book and...
Taking Risks Is Just Fine
In the fall of 2007 I decided I'd had it with my job. I didn't feel like waiting tables anymore and wanted to return to sitting at a desk all day. People (including my husband) tried to dissuade me from trying to make a change just then. They said, "The job market's...
Back to the Dog Ebook
Last spring I created a first draft of my memoir with the working title "I Never Wanted a Dog." I found some readers to give me feedback on it, thinking I'd start revising at the end of June. Then I found myself facing divorce, my mother reached the final weeks of her...
Divorce Feels Pretty Good Right Now
My brand new love seat and ottoman! I love ottomans. I am totally enjoying furnishing my new apartment! I'm getting as much stuff as possible in my favorite color: pink (rugs, cups, kitchen towels, etc). If an item doesn't come in pink, then red is my second...
New Home, July 2013
One-bedroom apartment in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago, IL, USA My new apartment has the light I've been craving ever since I moved out of my spinster pad in 2007. The apartment I shared as a wife was perfect in many ways, but it didn't have a lot of natural...