I write things down so I don't have to say them out loud.

Most days that means essays about the parts of adult life nobody warns you about: the guilt that shows up on a good day, the strange arithmetic of loving people while still wanting a door to close, the arguments I win in the shower against people who will never know.

I'm not here to fix anything. I run my own small business, which I started so I could own my time. Then I made myself a timetable. I have kids who override my plans on a regular basis, and I read books I don't always understand just to see if they'll make me stranger instead of smarter. Several hundred books in, stranger is still winning.

If you're looking for life lessons, this probably isn't it. If you're looking for someone else who's also just muddling through and occasionally laughing about it, welcome.