BREAKING EGGS

Do you know where your food has been, who touched it, who breathed or sneezed on it, how it was prepared? Annia Ciezadio insists in The Washington Post "The safety problem for restaurants isn’t the dining room. It’s the kitchen." Restaurant employees work in close quarters and are too rushed to take proper safety precautions, …

PHISH

My final offer for lower credit card interest rates came via a phone call just the other day. That's not the last time I will receive it because despite the sincerity of the young woman's tone and message and her assurance that they have been trying to contact me several times and this is my …

ADVENTURES IN SHIPPING

The most frightening shipping experience I've ever had was when I flew from Portland to Sacramento and the airline lost my dog. (Don't fret, this story ends okay.) I was delivering Cutter to his new home. He was entered in a dog show the next day, so he was impeccably washed and groomed and a …

WHAT NOW?

There are the things we are not doing just now, but more interesting are the things we may never do again, the things we might do less often, and what we might do instead. But first, confession. Yes, it's true I ordered yarn. The colors at left are close to how they will look when …

RETURNING TO THE RACE

Memorial Day weekend and the sky is dangerously clearing. We might have wished that rain we woke to at dawn had gone right on. Our state is opening up next Tuesday, and the official word is: please stay home this weekend. That means that all the most aware and considerate people will stay home, but …

GRADUATION

The Atlantic's advice for the class of 2020 This year’s college graduates are having a very different graduation season than they probably imagined. At The Atlantic, we’ve been trying to help the class of 2020 retain at least one ritual: the commencement speech. Here are a few words of wisdom for the graduate in your …

SPROUTS

My tomato seedlings are growing their second set of true leaves, a sprouted mango pit needs to be put into soil, and the other night I dreamt about a former student, the only student I've ever had who I would still have said I disliked. Despite some unpleasantness with those who wanted grades rather than …

VOTE BY MAIL

"Five states currently conduct all elections entirely by mail: Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Utah. At least 21 other states have laws that allow certain smaller elections, such as school board contests, to be conducted by mail. For these elections, all registered voters receive a ballot in the mail. The voter marks the ballot, puts it in …

BEAUTY

The students in the high school where I taught are taking classes remotely. It seems like most people are doing things remotely these days, attending poetry readings, visiting with family, working. Some businesses have already announced permanent changes. They are closing, or intend to allow employees to continue working at a distance if they prefer. …

TWO EAGLES

There are eagles in the sky most days. All that beauty in the air. I pulled out my weaving: merino baby blankets, shawls, and lap-robes out of the tansu chest and stacked them up in a chair. Twenty-three—I turned the photo sideways so they would fit my screen. More than half these soft things have …