Skating Away

When Christmas morning arrived and there were two shiny new pairs of ice skates under the tree—one for me and one for my big sister, Carrie—I was in heaven. I tied the laces together, carried them on my shoulder, and waited for the temperature to drop. I sang, “Please don’t let this feeling end, it’s everything I am, everything I want to be…” over and over again until my sister finally told me to give it a rest and poked me with the spit-sharpened end of a Jolly Rancher stick.

From the “H” Word to the “C” Word

Dear Diary, After I had my fourth baby in 2002, my OB/GYN looked at me and said, “Katrina, you should not have any more babies. Your uterus is very, very tired.” But she had this adorable speech impediment, so imagine all her r’s sounding like w’s. It’s one of my favorite stories—my tired uterus. When […]

At Odds with Myself

Dear Diary, Since coming out, I have downsized my physical life in numerous ways. From a 5-bedroom house with a full basement to a 3-bedroom cottage rental to a 2-bedroom apartment to a studio space to a 20-foot travel trailer to a 35-foot fifth wheel. (Okay, the fifth wheel was a space upgrade, but we […]

HuffPo Said Yes!

Dear Diary, Remember when I said I got an essay rejection on the first full business day of 2024? On January 5, I submitted a second essay to HuffPost Personal—per editor, Noah Michelson’s encouragement—and on January 10, he said yes to essay #2. It was a quick but emotional ride, and I think the lessons […]

Moving into 2024

Dear Diary, The beginning of a new year is traditionally a time to think about how to become a better person, how much weight to lose, how much alcohol to give up, what kind of parenting to engage in, what career changes to make, how to be a better friend, a better human, a better […]

Happy Holidays. (Or Not.)

Society says we should be jolly and happy and thankful and joy-filled during these days. Commercials tell us to feel the magic and the wonder. But we don’t all feel it. Some of us feel hollowed out. Some of us feel lonely. Some of us feel the weight of having a double-digit bank account or mounting credit card bills. Some of us watch cheesy holiday movies and feel that we’re not enough, that we don’t measure up.

Some of those people are me. Some might be you.

Love and Gratitude

When I was younger, I believed a family was easy to define: A mother, a father, the children, a pet or two. I spent most of my life building that kind of family—the kind that had been modeled to me, the kind that I read about in my beloved books.

Poor As a Church Mouse

In this forced season of unemployment (300+ applications and not one interview. Seriously.), I have finally learned to slow down a bit. I spend long days writing my memoir and working on my next book. It is a luxury I’ve never had.

Family Matters

Dear Diary, As most of you know, I lost my beloved mom two years ago. A year after that, I lost my only sister. And three months after saying goodbye to my sister, I lost the job I loved—the one I thought would be mine until I retired. Loss is funny, and so is grief. […]

A Tiny Hurricane Lesson

No one filled, challenged, invigorated, exasperated, and illuminated me like Claudia did. She was breath and life and death rolled up in a beautiful package of gentle skin and kaleidoscope eyes. ~ Hurricane Lessons, Chapter 5