I am at my internship, in the juvenile literature department, and I am supposed to be reading this manuscript called "Hayley As Always". But I am dicking around and I cannot stop obsessing over the cover story from the NY Times magazine. It is really amazing-- I am so amazed.

I have been drunk for four days. A lot has been going on! Four weeks ago, I left my internship and headed down to Canal Street. I stood in the rain with a cup of coffee, and eventually Alex pulled up in her car. We were driving home for the weekend, she to see Nelson and me to see Abby, who had flown in from Miami. The driving was pretty dicey ( Read more... )

Once I tied up all the ends left loose from the summer-namely, my last session at Dr. Hassett’s, my last run at Lake Scranton, my last drive to the cottage, my last family dinner at Don Pablo’s, buying a sleeping bag to use until my futon arrived at the apartment, and getting my hair cut with Grace-I felt ready to move back to New York. It was ( Read more... )

Where do I even begin? August was just such a funny month. On Monday, the 14th, I had to work at a Super-Sweet 16 birthday party at The Radisson. I was blown away when I walked in, because there was a slushie machine, a caricaturist, and a million palm trees to convey a luau theme of some sort. My sister got invited, so I was excited for her to ( Read more... )

Oh, Canada! I finally made it to Montreal. And made it back home safely. However, it was very touch and go for a while leading up to our departure. I was worried about getting across the border because Becky could not find her birth certificate. Priya told me she made it across with just student loan documents and her driver's license, but I ( Read more... )

July! July, July. It was kind of weird. There were moments when I'd think to myself, "Hey it's July 11th and one year ago I was spending this moment in Madrid." But this year, I waited around to be called in to work, and felt like a loser when I never really was. My boss, Mary, said July is a slow month, but that she'd rather "be getting killed ( Read more... )

Edith, my dental hygenist
scrapes at the biscuspids
with silver instruments
and asks about my studies.
Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful"
plays on the soft rock station
and Edith says she, too, writes.
Typing one-page articles
for local hunting magazines
with hopes and dreams
of "Field & Stream".
Mouth pried wide open,
I say "Cool".
As she polishes incisors,
I ( Read more... )

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Strut up St. Paul's aisles
Pastel polos matching--
Arrive in a car so large
it needs two spaces
in the little lot outside--
Sister Eileen at the pulpit
speaks of service trips
and a Tanzanian orphanage--
A collection basket
then is passed around
but we give nothing--
And leave the church
right after Communion.

"The Parking Lot of Big Lots in Dunmore"

Fat white people
Driving fat white cars
Having fat white babies