There is an almost magical feeling to seeing an empty venue hours before the main event. I walked through Preservation Park, the gorgeous morning light streaming through the trees and gracing the charming Victorian houses. The space was quiet, the rows of white chairs already set in anticipation of the event to come. A few…
I came out of my building and saw the spotted concrete… it rained? There are only two main seasons in the Bay Area– rainy and not rainy. Just this past week, it was still 85 and sunny. Perhaps I’ve just lost track of days and months, but I wasn’t expecting the rain quite yet. Undeterred,…
I’ve been reading a lot more in recent months. It’s one of the perks of self-employment. And I’ve been reading a lot of Dave Eggers recently. Tonight, I headed to the main library to meet him at an event. Unfortunately, I was a tad bit late. By the time I arrived, the talk had already…
All of the chairs with their matching white covers and navy blue sashes were placed in perfect rows. It was a simple, elegant arrangement set in the shade of the brick building, just slightly tucked aside from the chaos of Fisherman’s Wharf– tourist central, San Francisco. Throughout the day, Margaret and Eric were the calm…
Everything had been going so smoothly. At 6am, I was headed out for my last trip on JetBlue’s All You Can Jet. All my flights had been great far, and I just had this one last destination to Texas to visit my boyfriend who’s been in army training since May. Of course, we totally jinxed…
I was blown away the first time I heard her play. It was freshman year at Duke, just your typical chamber music concert– a little bit of Brahms, Schubert, Mendelssohn perhaps. But the Beethoven flowing out from her fingers was captivating, nuanced, effortless. Talya is nothing if not talented and passionate. She has an artist’s…
She has a bright, bold spirit and the vision and determination to make things happen. Christine is a teacher and a vocalist, and also a voice teacher. You might also remember her from the absolutely wonderful family session we did in Michigan back in August. This time, we met up in the suburbs of Indianapolis…
I lean back, elbows propped up on my chair. Isn’t this ridiculous? I mean it in the best way possible. It’s Thursday afternoon. The weather is impeccable. To the right, we’re surrounded by the sparkling blue waters of Boston Harbor. Ahead, the Boston skyline looms large. And we’re just having a casual conversation on this…
Amanda grabbed the top handle and I grabbed the side handle as we walked up the staircase, my suitcase dangling diagonally between us. Awaiting us at the top of the stairs was her very adorable, very cozy house. Inside, a mix of old and new. Shelves of medical books and rows of old records. I…
Six states in five days. I had my reservations about the whole undertaking. What if it turned out to be exhausting? Would I end up wasting all my time in airports and on airplanes? Maybe i’d just get tired of trying to pack too many people and places into such a short amount of time….
If you’re expecting a small deserted Midwestern town with a lifeless city center, you’ll be pleasantly surprised with what you find instead. Indianapolis is discovering a whole new life with a bustling downtown that’s filled with all the new buildings and old buildings in a constantly developing mix. Of course, downtown only spans about four…
It felt a little bit like Brooklyn or Queens, smack dab in the middle of the Midwest. It was a row of brick houses, some laced with ivy, all with charming, quirky character, and the streets were lined with trees and fences of infinite variations. The neighborhood, tucked away at the edge of Wicker Park,…