I swear if I hear this one more time, the earrings are coming out. — At my local Fred Meyer, it’s a relatively quiet day. I scramble to pack my own grocery bags — it appears that there are no courtesy clerks on shift—and the middle-aged cashier, who wears a button touting his 15 years of service, looks at me with an apologetic smile and…

Not once. Not twice. Thrice. — This is an excerpt from my Substack, which is called Crazy/Old. I started it because I wanted a different site (sorry Medium) to explore topics of mental health and the history of care. …

My elementary school teacher had a novel approach to discipline. He was a big soccer fan — which was weird in my working-class neighborhood, where the only Real Sports were football and baseball. And he used a card system, not unlike soccer referees do, to help us learn about boundaries…

I’m not a heavy user of TikTok for many reasons, but mostly because I’m in my 30s and too far gone to learn a new social media platform. …

Content note: This piece explores eating disorders in detail and with candor, which may be difficult or disturbing to some readers. Take care of yourself and do what you feel is right. The best piece of licorice I ever ate was in the supply closet of a commercial printing warehouse…

Last month, I took my car in to get it serviced. When I handed my keys over to the man behind the counter, he chuckled and held up my keychain. It’s one of those kitschy plastic ones that looks like it came from an old roadside motel. …

Or: I wrote a whole book about a famous sex worker and of course no one wants to publish it — First, here’s a story. Almost four years ago, I was approached by an academic press who wanted me to write something. I pitched a book and then signed a contract to write a book about a woman who lived in Seattle around the turn of the 20th century. …