Originally published by the Hamtramck Review 7/1/22 I will be moving from Hamtramck soon. This is a move with a reason, this is a move on purpose, this is a move toward the life my husband Jeff and I are trying to build. But for all the reasons my head understands, the thought of it […]
I met Marija twice. The first time when I was working as a property surveyor around Hamtramck. I took pictures of properties and recorded data from the sidewalk. I saw this eager woman with a strong accent standing on her porch and, before I knew it, she was dragging me by my upper arm into […]
Reflections on my journey to stay in one place I never imagined I would be washing his dishes: the remains of some crusty casserole, six or eight months old; a mystery Tupperware; a rimmed teacup. I’m sure that if he had could have known that I, a woman he met only once, would be cleaning […]
“The battle has just begun. I will stand to protect the water, the land. I am asking each of you to come stand with us.” -LaDonna Brave Bull Allard what it was like I came to Standing Rock in answer to this call. I wanted to lend my energy to the beautiful movement that is […]
As a multigenerational caucasian-American, I have lived my life in a position of privilege relative to many other Americans. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, most of mine have been met, and I enjoy the luxury of being able to quibble and complain about relatively minor offenses. It’s always been hard for me to […]
Originally published by ModelD Media In the early morning light, a line of people slowly builds at the front doors of the 36th District Court. A bail bondsman in parachute pants stands patiently beside the line, waiting for the grinding gears of justice inside the building to churn out some clients for him. The 36th District […]
I love to read. There are many books that have changed my life through inspiration or escapism or a new way of seeing the world. I love to write. Poems and songs and essays and stories fill my computer and many journals. And yet. I never take the time to write to my favorite authors. In some ways, this […]
one I lived in a gleaming sterile 42-story complex in midtown Manhattan. It was one of the biggest buildings I’ve ever been in, but it still sat in the shadow of the Empire State Building just behind. New York has a way of offering a ready reminder that you can always have more. I never […]
Somewhere between the meetings and the writing and the car rides, I learn something that surprises me– I don’t actually want to shave my head. I want to want to do it, but I don’t actually want to. I know that if I do it, it won’t be free– it will take some sort of […]
I leave the solitude of my cabin and spend some time in Nashville for New Years Eve. I’m not quite sure how to properly honor the occasion but I do know that I want to see more of what this city has to offer. I’m self-conscious with my haircut and half-wishing I had already shaved my […]
OberDoIt 