Medium, I’m not leaving you yet. But I‘m cheating on you, just so you know. — Much like “wash curtains” and “organize digital photos,” I’ve had a lingering item on my to-do list to “get on Substack.” I even took a precious PTO day back in October to get all set up on the platform. I changed the name of the publication about five times. Then…

White fragility and interracial coupling do not go hand in hand — On our third date, the man who would become my husband told me, “You get it.” The “it” he was referring to was racism. At the time, I was flattered to have a Black person acknowledge my wokeness. But I’ve since realized that three dates in, I didn’t really get…

I will dog-ownersplain all — Gosh, it’s so hard to be a dog- or kid-owner these days, isn’t it? Where are we supposed to find the time? I hear you telling me in no uncertain terms that parenting a child is absolutely nothing like parenting a dog, and that I need to stop making this…

More cars, more subdivisions, more strip malls… but we know there are better ways to live — In the Salt Lake Valley, the world is humming merrily along. The belches and clatters of machines fill the air — the sounds of Inevitable Progress. Housing developments bloom, seemingly overnight, springing from expanses of rock and dirt and tumbleweed. My partner grew up in the Avenues of Salt Lake…

And why yours should, too — In high school, I had a computer teacher who just didn’t think I was all that. The rest of my teachers did, to varying degrees, but he was nonplussed by my contributions to his class. He gave me a 3 out of 5 on my final project — a HyperCard…

Gender fluidity is the future of feminism. Let’s also hold space for the tensions. — “You’re a nice big brother,” the child at the playground said. I was pushing my younger sister on a swing, doing the “underdog,” while she repeatedly squealed, “Again! Again!” “I’m a big sister,” I clarified. In my head, I added, And I’m not usually all that nice. I had been…

As long as we continue to devalue caregivers, the pay gap will endure — A CEO I know recently proclaimed on LinkedIn that at his company, “there is no gender wage gap.” He went on to outline the process his company used to close the gap, which is very similar to the process we’ve followed at my own company. The intention is to ensure…

Erotica for hetero moms — I watch him from the doorway as he rifles through our son’s backpack in search of Things That Must Be Signed. His arms are toned, his chest sculpted from years of baby-wearing. He pauses over a sheet of paper — the weekly note home, I’m guessing from its blinding orange…

It begins with the past tense — It was my 16-year-old stepson who initially introduced me to “woke.” I remember the moment quite distinctly because it was the first time I felt like an uncool parent. “Bruh,” he said, “you don’t know what woke means?” I said that unless it was followed by “up” and used as…