Lessons From a Dollhouse: Longing For a Smaller Life

Lessons From a Dollhouse: Longing For a Smaller Life

My grandfather gave me the dollhouse right about the time my brain began to form lasting memories. He'd built the entire thing himself, with his own two hands. My mother, the oldest of four children, was the first to give her parents a grandchild, so I was a big deal. My grandparents spoiled me in the usual ways, but the dollhouse held the most meaning. Within each piece of tiny furniture there existed a universe of adoration. Every small human figure and carefully cut piece of fabric, another echo of love from my grandfather to me.A few years later, my mother and I moved halfway across the country. I could only take with me a few things that would fit in the car. The dollhouse, with most of our other possessions, remained in my grandparents' garage."We'll come back for that stuff later," my mother said. "We'll rent a U-haul and move it all into our new house when we find...
Read More

…& Now For Something Completely Different

1. I once had a pet spider named Cowboy Otis. He lived in a salsa jar and he ate a moth every Friday. I took him everywhere: to work, to restaurants, to the movies, and anywhere else. He sat in the passenger side of my car when we went places. His favorite band was Nine Inch Nails. 2. I'm a Highlander geek. There can be only one!3. Unless I'm drinking it or showering in it, I hate water. I do not take baths, I do not go swimming or sit in hot tubs. I detest being out in the rain and the ocean scares the shit out of me.4. I went to a BBQ this summer that ended when a neighbor began hurling his own feces at the partygoers.5. I'm a stalker magnet.6. I survived an attempted murder.7. If I had a party and all of the guests were fictional characters, the guest list would include: Duncan MacLeod, Connor MacLeod, Orry...
Read More