I barge through my apartment door after a long and exhausting day of teaching. I indulge in an overload of carbs that have taken the form of a crisp and salty substance. Maybe I'll go for a run, I tell myself in between bites of my binging. The thought and motivation goes as quickly as it … Continue reading Why Running Can Be One of the Best Forms of Therapy →

On Valentine's Day of my senior year of college, I went and saw the movie "How to be Single" with one of my best girl pals from childhood. We were both single and down on love and figured it would be the kind of strong, independent female "chick flick" pick-me-up that we needed. On the … Continue reading Why Knowing How to be Single is More Important Than Knowing How to be in a Relationship →

I've always felt like the black sheep in my family, and I don't mean that in a bad way. Or should I say "baaaa-d" way. Okay, I get it. My puns are terrible. Moving on. Since I was five and started obsessively drawing unicorns after watching The Last Unicorn dozens of times, I have always … Continue reading Why Black Sheep Know How to Fight the Wolves of the World →

Time and time again, I've heard people describe individuals with anxiety as being "dramatic" or "just wanting attention." I've heard and I've had to endure the perception that because I am an anxious being, it must be because I want everyone to pay attention to me and my problems and, hence, I need to just … Continue reading Why Anxiety is Like a Hypothetical, Mind Wrangling Ghost →

I used to think I would never get a tattoo. I never thought I would love something so much that I would want to permanently ink it on my body. I had also seen plenty of episodes of Bad Ink and would witness and observe all of the nightmarish tattoos etched onto people when they … Continue reading Why I Don’t Listen to Older People When They Lecture Me About Tattoos →

I am a woman of many emotions. Not in the volatile sense, but I can often let my emotions get the best of me and the best of others. I don't intend to let this happen - it just happens. My mom has always known this is the creative soul speaking through me since I … Continue reading How to Love and Be Loved By an Artist →

"Hey mom, can we get a dog?" cried my sixth grade self. My mom turned to me with a life lesson in her eyes. All my life, I had grown increasingly aware of my mom's ability to slip life lessons into simple questions like, "How much does a can of Campbell soup cost?" You can … Continue reading Why Caring for a Dog Has Made Me a Better Person →