Living in my Saraness
So I’ve been back in graduate school for one month. It is far more things than I could possibly tell you about right now, dear reader. It has been immense. But in finding my way around a new campus, a new office, a new teaching load, and a research community in which I intend to … Continue reading
Small Mercies
It’s been a tough fall. Tough schedule, tough travel, challenging projects (in mostly good ways), tough politics, tough times. But today I had such a rush of pleasure from the littlest things. That I needed the car and my loving spouse was willing to take the train (which he hates) and that we live in … Continue reading
The Almost Perfect Morning
Wake in the cool dawn. Snuggle-spoon for a few minutes, soft and sleepy. Pad out to the quiet house. Stretch while the kettle hums and hisses. Milky tea and a bite of a novel or perhaps a spot of writing. Breakfast and a chat, plan our day and put things to rights. Prepare for what’s … Continue reading
Wisdom of the Day
Life is too short for pens that don’t work and clothes that don’t fit right. Be gone, unreliable fiends.
Old Friends
As a Michigander in Chicago it is inevitable I run into people. This place is full of past. For me, my family, my friends. But the particular domestic pleasure of walking through Andersenville on a sunny morning is multiplied when you recognize an old friend in the dappled crosswalk. The gaunt gait and long jaw … Continue reading
Carpe Kareoke
Last week, a friend celebrated his birthday at a small Korean karaoke joint. The kind with private rooms and a songbook as thick as a brick. About three quarters of the book was in Korean; the sing-along lyrics had typos and accidental homonyms in every track; and the English-language pop songs were from 2003 or … Continue reading
White coat hypertension.
I recently went to the doctor for the first time since coming to America. It was, by and large, the same as going to the doctor in Britain: dated banquet hall chairs in the waiting room, bustling nurses, typing doctors, surprisingly old fashioned scales. But the dynamic of the thing felt different than I remember … Continue reading
Foot hangover
Have you ever had one of these? I have never heard of one, but I can think of no better description. Last night I was a ballroom dinner fundraiser: big city skyline, people dropping ten of thousands in donations, hotel wedding food. While my conversation stayed sparkling rather than slurred — I am much better … Continue reading
Thousands of characters everywhere and not a word to read!
Originally posted on liamaidan.com:
As everybody on the internet is undoubtedly aware, last month Twitter, a platform of which I am rather fond, announced that they are considering expanding their strict 140 character limit to a whopping 10,000 characters. Although the powers that be at Twitter HQ were quick to defend this change as…
Let there be light!
Be still, my heart: it is February 9th and I leave my office in very overcast yet decidedly daylight. How quickly it has come! I hardly think winter’s been at all in these parts. Apparently somewhere else is bearing the brunt of it this year, for in England there are daffodils and here there is … Continue reading
Que Sera Sara? 