I Think, Therefore I Write

"How do people do this professionally?!?" That's the question I asked my brother as I stepped onto the ice at Seven Peaks Ar...

Back in September or October, I had this dream a couple of times: it was December 15 and I hadn't listened to any Christmas music yet. T...

Unlucky birthdays I've always liked the number 13. Being born on the 13th of the month has endeared me to this unluckiest of numbers—i...

It's well documented that I think Valentine's Day is dumb. That it causes unnecessary stress and depression, that it does nothing th...

Can we just agree that the week after New Year's is the absolute worst? For a while there I was seriously concerned about the lack of re...

Once upon a time, I accompanied my mom to the grocery store. She grumbled something about only having 10 dollars, and then quickly went into...

I am amazed every year at the lengths people will go to for Halloween. The creativity and the planning that goes into every costume. The hum...

Easter is kind of a strange holiday for me. Probably because I rely on the calendar to tell me when it's supposed to happen. When the da...

I've been looking forward to this day for quite some time. I haven't had a Friday-the-13th birthday since 2002, when I turned the we...

Holidays refuse to be ignored, even if you're too busy to notice them. Even if you don't celebrate them. And even if you have to go ...

I'm usually a big fan of Monday holidays, primarily because they make Sundays so much more enjoyable. They also demonstrate that the wor...

I think March 1 should be a holiday. Every year I mark it on my calendar with stars, smiley faces, and squiggly lings--the best I can muster...

Holidays are great because they usually come with traditions that you're only allowed to enjoy on that particular day (or span of days)....

I know, I know. I said I wasn't going to rant about the insane stupidness of Valentine's Day this year. But there are a few things t...

The date was October 31, 1992. A young, mysterious family of six pulled up to the new house on Cortez Drive in their white station wagon. No...

To whom it may concern: Many of you have your Halloween costumes picked out by now. You've gathered the costume "ingredients...

The colorful mountain scenery that greeted me when I turned onto Elk Ridge Drive. The epic thunderstorm at 5:30 a.m. Seeing more than thr...

I like having an 8-5 job. I like the stability and predictability (try saying that five times fast) that comes with it. I like waking up at ...

After I hit the snooze button six times this morning, my exasperated alarm clock greeted me with this statement: "Punxsutawney Phil has...

All awesome things have a dark side, most especially Christmas music. While I love Christmas music as much as the next person, there are som...