" 'Hey Laura,' " I said, leaving the bathroom at my parents' house and holding an imaginary conversation out loud for the benefit of my sister. " 'Use up the last of the vanilla-scented soap so we can open up one of the nine million others Mom's students got her for Christmas.' 'Why certainly, family,... Continue Reading →
I've always hated that question that crops up in college essays and interviews: who is your hero? It's been especially troublesome for the last dozen years or so, because my hero isn't easy to explain. There are no monuments or awards named after her, no holidays in her honor. And she doesn't have one of... Continue Reading →
I fully recognize that in many ways I don't seem to have learned to human as well as some of the other humans. My car is usually a cluttered mess, for example. I never picked up the hair/makeup skill that most women seem to have, nor the inclination to go through all those extra steps... Continue Reading →
Today I ventured across the street for lunch, which means braving the Corner of Doom... Continue Reading →
I pulled up to the polling place, slightly bewildered. Dozens of people were milling about aimlessly. Slightly uncertain, I stepped out of my car and tried to make my way through the crowd, which wasn't easy. "Excuse me," I said politely, but I was getting less and less genteel as I elbowed my way through.... Continue Reading →
My Grandpa passed away on October 4, 1988. My Opa passed away on December 9, 2011. My Papa John passed away on September 24, 2016. I realize how incredibly lucky I am to have had three grandfathers: three honorable, courageous, enterprising, selfless, principled men. My cousins and I have been able to watch these men... Continue Reading →
"Hi, I'm on the editorial team for a journal you publish, and a customer just called me saying you haven't been sending them journals and you couldn't find their subscription in the system." "Which journal?" Search ensues. Seconds pass. "Oh. No, we don't publish that one." "...Yes, you do." "No, it's published by some other... Continue Reading →
The power of creativity... Continue Reading →
Originally written circa 2004. Continue Reading →
My car's name is Zippy. He's ten. Zippy has developed some quirks in his old age: He's intensely paranoid, for one thing, and can only be unlocked via remote. I mean, ONLY the remote. If you try to unlock him any other way, he will start yelling, and that includes using the key in the... Continue Reading →
Laura Writes 