I like to think of myself as hair aware—which sounds infinitely better than, uh, shallow or vain. But when it comes to the mop of hair follicles on top of… Read more

When the fine folks at Visit Lake Charles called me in December about visiting their fair parish, I thought I’d won the travel writer lottery. Not only have I never… Read more

One time my physician flatly told me, “Mackie, it didn’t take you twelve weeks to gain sixty pounds, you’re not going to lose it in three months.” I looked at… Read more

I didn’t come out until my late 20s. A gay trailblazer, I most certainly was not. But I pretty much knew I had a potential preference for dudes in my… Read more

Don’t ask me how/when/why it happened, but I have this innate ability to sense when something is going sideways in my friends’ lives. I’m not sure if it’s a sixth… Read more

Nearly eight years ago, my physician lit into me at my annual physical. Like, finger-wagging-head-shaking laid into me. He was using a tone I’d never heard. And everything he said… Read more

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