My grandmother would always tell my mother, Bridget, “If you ever have a baby, I’ll kill you!” That came from a woman who was strict about the rules of her home and the expectations of our current society’s vision of what a “young lady”should be. These values rang true in everything my mother did. She […]
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How to be a Loving Daughter to Hard to Love People
My parents refused to let me be at the hospital when my mother was scheduled to have extensive surgery on her spine. “You’re busy,” my mother said. “I don’t need you there,” my dad told me, almost annoyed that I would even ask. Though I’m in my forties, they see me as just a kid, […]
Shouldn’t We Respect Pregnant Women & Their Fragile State?
Society has a problem. A major problem. Anytime news outlets and pop culture fans deem it okay to talk about pregnant women and their children in a negative way, there’s a definite issue. While perusing the internet I stumbled upon this article on the DailyMail.com. In the article the author calls out Kim Kardashian for […]
Why Detroit and YOU Are so Much Alike
In Pune, India where I was living just a few short months ago, every well-to-do neighborhood is surrounded by a ring of slums that provides the labor to make upper-class life possible. A walk of any distance brought me into contact with children living on the streets and rag collectors going through trash piles, […]
How Roger Ebert’s Clarity & Courage Helped Me Redefine My Son’s Disability
I distinctly remember the moment Roger Ebert became much more than just “my favorite movie reviewer.” I was listening to the radio when the reporter announced that Roger had agreed to grace the cover of the March 2010 Esquire magazine. But this would be no ordinary photo. It would be a full-on shot of his […]
What to do When the Monster Comes Roaring Out
Let me start with admitting that I recently lost my mind on a parking lot attendant … you know, the gatekeeper at a parking garage. It’s not a proud moment by any means, especially since the guy was just doing his job. In my hurry to get out of the house that morning, I had […]
How to be Poised and Smiling While Getting Creamed on Jeopardy!
Yep, that’s me on the set of Jeopardy! And I was getting beaten. Creamed actually. If you’re a Jeopardy! fan, let me tell you it was the buzzer that tormented me. I just couldn’t get the hang of it. It’s not simply a matter of being the first to answer. You can’t be too quick […]
“It Doesn’t Matter What You Wear,” he said, “You Can’t Cover Yourself Up.”
When it comes to fashion I consider myself somewhat of a rebel … Not a rebel in the sense of being a fashion daredevil or pushing the envelope by wearing shocking items. For the most part I play it safe but from time to time I like to walk on the wild side. And at […]
On Chanukah and Being Jewish in a Gentile World
It was the beginning of Chanukah, the eight-day festival that commemorates the victory of the Jews in the second century BCE over the Assyrian Greeks who had invaded the country. My family was not at all observant, but we always lit candles in the eight-branched menorah – one on the first day, two on the […]
Detroit – Getting Rid of that Nagging Doubt Once and for All
Why would you go there? The question nagged me as I prepared for the University of Michigan’s “Semester in Detroit Program” – where 25 of us would travel to Detroit, immersing ourselves in hands-on urban studies classes and community internships over the summer. And ever since I completed my two-month term in the city, I’m […]