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Please stop with the excuses: Racism is real

White privilege is absurd. That the color of one’s skin should influence his or her advantage in life is ridiculous. That does not, however, mean white privilege isn’t real. It is. I know it, you know it, and your racist uncle knows it, whether he’s willing to admit it or not. Non-white people sure as hell have no doubt. What I don’t get is some white people’s desperation to deny it. As though to acknowledge it takes something away from them. As though to simply say, “Yes, you are right, I do not understand your struggle, because I have not walked even a ...

New coworkers make home office even stranger

Like many of you, I have been working from home for the past few weeks. And while the whole pajama-pants-as-uniform thing is nice, there are other aspects I enjoy much less. This tiny laptop screen is just one of them. (I really shouldn’t have procrastinated on that eye exam.) I also admit to appreciating the break from having to fix my bangs every morning, instead allowing my coif to do whatever the H it wants to every day. That part’s pretty good. The exponential increase in emails to answer, due to no more face-to-face contact: Not so good. But perhaps one of the ...

What is there to say in times like these, except ‘Stay home!

During the years I’ve been writing this column — far more than I care to count — I’ve covered a litany of topics. Shoes. Dressing room mirrors. Feeling fat. Motivational memes. Chocolate commercials. Movies and TV. Feeling fat. Break-ups. Breakdowns. Going out. Staying in. Feeling fat. Cocktail hour. The end to cocktail hour. Dogs. Feeling fat. I’ve shared stories from my social life and the demise of my social life. Advice offered by my therapist and gleaned from bathroom walls. Thoughts on trends, women’s rights, animal issues, awards shows, Facebook quizzes, ...

Hermit dog mom’s hobbies don’t match up

It has become increasingly obvious to me lately that my passions and my lifestyle do not exactly — how should I put it? —mesh. In fact, they seem to be diametrically opposed. On all sorts of mildly ridiculous levels. Take, as one of the more obvious examples, my obsession with rare, hard-to-find vintage stuff. My tastes on the decor end tend to lean toward an eclectic mid-century modern-meets-boho-meets maxilimalist aeshetic — which I promise looks better than it sounds. As a result, nearly every stick of furniture and every decoration in my home has been ...

No time for movies makes Oscars no fun

There was a time when I got excited for the Oscars. That was back in the salad days, when I actually made it to the movies more than, say, twice in a year. Sadly, for the past couple go-’rounds, I’ve seen maybe two or three of the buzz-makers, max — a far cry from that past life, when I’d have watched them all. It’s a bummer for a couple of reasons. A). I like films and miss having the time and energy to go to the theater to see them. And B). It makes being righteously indignant over the Academy’s choices much more difficult. This year, though I have seen ...

The Girl Scouts of Black Diamond Council is kicking off cookie season across the state, and beyond, Friday. Samoas, Thin Mints, Trefoils and the remainder of the 2020 cookie lineup — including one brand new cookie — will be available to purchase from Girl Scouts and online at GirlScouts.org. The Cookie Program began in 1917 as a way for troops to finance activities. Today, the program encourages girls to discover their inner leadership potential and use their earnings to create experiences for themselves and their troop — including travel, outdoor adventure, and ...