My folks had been married fifteen years before I burst onto the scene. As they so often pointed out, I was quite an unexpected surprise. (Not unlike a clearance sale… Read more

Two things prompted this blog: It’s Father’s Day. My friend used the word “perseverate” in a sentence. When my non-writer friends casually pepper words like perseverate into a conversation, it… Read more

(Dateline: Des Moines, 5:55 a.m.) Just so we’re all clear, I could easily sleep 12 – 14 hours at a stretch back in my 20s and 30s. The mere thought… Read more

Real talk—I kicked off 2023 heavier than I’d ever been before. My feet were perpetually killing me. I was also cranky and bloated. And don’t even get me started on… Read more

Humor writer Jen Mann is my spirit animal. In the words of Bananarama, she’s a goddess on the mountain top, burning like a silver flame. And in honor of her… Read more

If truth be told, I became mesmerized by Debora Iyall the first time I spied Romeo Void on MTV. It was well, well after midnight and well, well after my… Read more

Right before I scored my killer new job in September, a woman I didn’t know sent me a snarky message on social media. “Question—how can you afford to be a… Read more

The absurdity of it all was astounding to me. I’m talking about being unceremoniously dumped by Lifetime Fitness recently. And because timing—it was one day after celebrating my 16th anniversary… Read more

This week I stumbled across an archaic 12-year-old blog I wrote. The subject? How to properly shop for me for Christmas. At the top of the list was—shocker!—several bottles of… Read more

Fatma Konyalioglu says you’re more than welcome to attempt saying her last name, but she’d rather be known simply as Fatma. For nearly three decades, the one-named wonder has run… Read more