Author Archives: Kathy

Small World

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Kathy

My friend Katie sat across from me at our picnic table. She was dropping off some homemade lentil soup and a loaf of bread a couple weeks after the death of Grace, my husband’s stepmother. Grace was memorable—opinionated, funny, and … Continue reading →

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Finally

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Kathy

School’s out. A big perk of college teaching is the early end of the school year. We’ve had beautiful weather this week, and I’ve already planted tomatoes and flowers. I had a good school year with lots of wonderful students … Continue reading →

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The Stress Response

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Kathy

Various therapies preach that “feelings aren’t facts.” This is a useful admonishment inside or outside of therapy. Though our feelings are real, and therefore factual in a sense, the aphorism suggests that our perceptions may depart from objective reality. We … Continue reading →

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In Memoriam

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Kathy

I was rereading Bobbie Ann Mason’s lovely 1988 novel Spence + Lila today when I heard that my mother-in-law, Grace Ewing, had died this morning. I read this passage soon after the news. Sixty-six-year-old Spence is surveying his Kentucky farm. … Continue reading →

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Acts of Kindness

Posted on March 17, 2012 by Kathy

Last week I received an email from a New Yorker named Mark, who had stumbled across my essay about my dad’s acquaintance with Alger Hiss. (Short refresher: At the beginning of the Red Scare, Hiss was accused of committing espionage … Continue reading →

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Best Practices

Posted on March 13, 2012 by Kathy

  David Finch The Journal of Best Practices by David Finch purports to offer marriage advice to people with Asperger syndrome. Finch discovered he had the disorder when his beleagered wife administered an online personality test, on which he scored … Continue reading →

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Surprising Myself

Posted on March 3, 2012 by Kathy

I had no idea I would enjoy and even admire Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua. I had no intention of even reading it until a couple of friends, Robin and Bill, vouched for it on Facebook. Glad … Continue reading →

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Venting

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Kathy

To vent means to express a strong emotion. I am about to vent in the hopes of ending my perseverating. To perseverate, a psychological term, means to repeat a response after the cessation of the stimulus. In my case, right … Continue reading →

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Crazy Mommies, Once Again

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Kathy

Darrell Hammond, formerly of “Saturday Night Live” (where he perfected his smarmy Bill Clinton impression), has been promoting his memoir on lots of media outlets. God, If You’re Not Up There, I’m F*ed  recounts his story of depression and drug … Continue reading →

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Sharing Information

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Kathy

Tonight I stopped into Presti’s, a comfortable café in Cleveland’s Little Italy with good food, to pick up some takeout after my late-afternoon class. A bunch of older men were sitting together at a big table, hanging out and talking. … Continue reading →

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