Moving to a new city is like walking into a party where you don’t know anyone. You’re secretly hoping everyone’s going to fight each other for dibs on being your new best friend, and when that doesn’t happen (because does that ever happen?) you end up hovering near the metaphorical hors d’oeuvres table, wishing someone would please acknowledge your existence. … Read More
Issue 8: It’s Hard to Love Your City When It’s Cold Out
On Wednesday it was 62 degrees here in Blacksburg, and it felt like the earth had been reborn, and all of us right along with it. A teacher at my daughter’s school said, “This weather is tricking me into being happy.” After the bell rang, families lingered. Kids swarmed the monkey bars while their parents peeled off the layers of … Read More
Issue 7: The Good Kind of Resolution
People tend to feel passionately about New Year’s resolutions one way or the other. I’m quite in favor of them myself, spending the days around January 1 plotting how this year I’m actually going to do my resolutions, not just think about them. I bought this habit calendar from Kickstarter because I’d read that Jerry Seinfeld created an ironclad daily … Read More
The Joys of Going Off the Map
In a heroic act of altruism, my mom, who lives on the other side of the country, offered to watch our two daughters so my husband and I could go on a cruise to Alaska. Her one antiquated request beforehand: a paper map of our town. “I like being able to get a sense of the big picture when I’m … Read More
Issue 6: Have Yourself a Merry Local Christmas
I learned the scuttlebutt at the elementary school. “Did you hear about Paula?” another mom asked. “She slipped in her kitchen and broke her pelvis.” Oh no, I thought. No no no. There is never a good time to break one’s pelvis. If you’re the owner of a toy store, however, the week before Thanksgiving may claim top prize as … Read More