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What it Really Meant to Grow Up
When I was born, it was about ten years after my parents had been in a house fire that very nearly destroyed my entire family. My parents, who had both come from large families, had envisioned having five or six children themselves, but until this point, had the one-- my older brother. I can’t imagine it was easy for him, nearly 12 years old, to suddenly go from hitting all his developmental milestones as an only child, but, there you go, it was September, 1984, and I made my debut, into a weird little family that had been waiting for another baby for a long, long time.
By Rachel Collins2 years ago in Families
Why I Am Not Called Grace
I think my mom had genuine insight. When she was pregnant with me, she and my dad tossed quite a few names around, trying to decide which ones they like the best. Back in 1947, ultrasound had not yet been invented to determine the sex of the child. Names were guess-work. You decided on two: one boy and one girl. Then you would use the one for that baby once it was born.
By Margaret Brennan2 years ago in Confessions
Lemon Drop
So, there is the story of the Tweety Bird-yellow Cannondale CAAD4 that came into, out of and back into my life in serendipitous ways. I raced on that bike as a CAT IV and then III on the Green Mountain Bicycle Cycling team from 1997 - 2002. I named that bike Lemon Drop. Yellow, yes, but I thought I could reverse jinx myself and my racing career if I had “drop” in its name, a measure of karmic control so I wouldn’t “get dropped” from the peloton in any race, and the bike would perform perfectly, never showing signs that it was a “lemon.” That didn’t work though. Karmic control is an oxymoron afterall.
By Jessica Amber Barnum2 years ago in Wheel
Ten of the Best Books for Writers
1. Stephen King: On Writing Now I happen to think that Stephen King is one of the best storytellers alive. No matter how absurd his initial premise – A car is alive! A clown in the drains! Phones turn you into zombies! – he does it with such conviction and imagination that you suspend all disbelief.
By Sheryl Garratt2 years ago in Journal
Ranking the Mutants that Could Be Part of the MCU's X-Men
Marvel have made it clear, both the Fantastic Four and the Mutants will be coming to the MCU. The mutant centred film has not officially been named yet, but many suspect it will be the MCU's version of the X-Men arriving. So, this article is written with the assumption it will be the X-Men and this then obviously brings the opportunity for the MCU to introduce both the heroic villainous mutants to go against. So here, we will look at the likely candidate to appear in the upcoming film mutant project at the MCU.
By Craig Arnott2 years ago in Geeks
Q's That'll Never Get A's
People come and go. I get that. Really, I do. The people that come into your life don't necessarily have to give you the reasons as to why they'd want to leave... but I can't help but wonder. I'm sure most people can't help to wonder why a person would want to leave them.
By Mel2 years ago in Confessions
How I've Failed At Literally Everything I've Tried
I used to have a hamster when I was younger; I saved up all my money over a few months and spent it all on a cage, sawdust, an igloo shaped house, a water bottle, hamster food and what I would later find out to be a very obnoxious and aggressive hamster. This seems an odd place to start for an article that has absolutely nothing to do with hamsters, but it feels fitting as while I write this I feel as though I’m caught in an endless cycle. Running from absolutely everything and getting absolutely nowhere. Chocolate, my somewhat disappointing hamster came to mind as I recall endless nights lying awake disturbed by the sound of him running endlessly on the wheel in his cage. That’s exactly how I feel. I remember the day I bought him, I felt drawn to him because he was pressing up against the glass looking for a way out. Perhaps I saw myself in him, me – very much not a hamster trapped in a life I didn’t know how to navigate and constantly – fruitlessly searching for an exit. Not an exit to life itself I’d like to point out, rather an exit to the cycle I’d wound up in.
By Stacey Vella2 years ago in Motivation
TRACKS
Chapter One Rapping. Tapping. Rhythmic beats between steel and wood slowly stir me from my slumber. I open my eyes to find my face planted against a window. I look to the table to reassure myself that my bag is where I left it. It is. My cellphone has no service, though. Perfect. I’m immediately greeted by a piercing headache and wince in pain. My left hand reaches around my head, in search for the source. I feel something brittle and pull it from my matted scalp. Dried Blood.
By Sarah Faith Ethridge2 years ago in Fiction
My First Diva Cup Just Brought Me Closer to My Period
As a genderfluid individual, who often ignores their female body, I never thought I’d form a relationship with my period. But there I was, at 26 years old, reaching my fingers deep inside to pull out the bloody diva cup- and surprisingly, I felt relief.
By Oneg In The Arctic2 years ago in Viva
A Clockwork Memoir
1. In 1981, Limeridge Mall opened in my hometown not too far from my aunt’s house. There was a Cineplex that played the big films of the day (Porky’s, Raiders of the Lost Ark, etc.) and my family took me to see Disney’s cartoon version of Robin Hood. I was eight years old and what I remember most about the day was the walk down the ramp to the theatres. There were separate lanes marked off with bars and on the right-hand side were the posters for each film. That was when I was struck by a huge white poster with a triangle framing the face of Alex, an eyeball and what seemed to be a naked statue of a fertility goddess.
By Kendall Defoe 2 years ago in Geeks
Making A Speciality Kit
For some, rain can be quite relaxing. Nothing is more soothing than sitting on the porch, watching it come down like buckets while sipping your favorite hot beverage. Every year, 6.6 billion tons of precipitation fall from the sky every year. Nearly 1,800 storms are occurring at any moment around the world. The average size of a storm is a 15-mile radius, at the most, making it small and isolated. Storms often lead to multiple other disasters such as blackouts, flooding, mudslides, tornadoes, etc. Making a Rainy Day Box is a fun project to do with the family, so if, and when, you find yourself stuck at home because of the rain you’ll have something to do.
By M.L. Lewis2 years ago in Lifehack