Author Archives: sara

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About sara

i live in michigan with my teenage daughter, my partner, and our three cats. i am a paralegal, legal manager and corporate governance specialist, and when i'm not reading contracts or maintaining the dusty archives of our arcane corporate history like some weirdly specific librarian, i enjoy knitting, books, running slowly, making candles, and bird-watching. i started blogging way back when I was an expat living in australia and in recent years have tried to be more diligent about keeping this space up to date and as a creative outlet for the things in my life that inspire me and balance my 9-5.

reflections on my recent return to trail running.

As the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness descends on southeast Michigan, I am returning to an old love – trail running.

As a person with generalized anxiety, as I move through the golden woods, I find myself reflecting that my experience with trail running has a lot of parallels to my daily experience living life.

I have to go about it with a measure of control. If I approach it with too much abandon, there’s a good chance I’ll end up hurt.

I am constantly scanning several feet in front of me, looking for hidden dangers and obstacles.

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I am usually worried that if I take my eyes off the terrain, or get tired or lazy, that I’m going to take a nasty spill.

I meet all kinds of different souls on the trail. Some are friendly and want to exchange a moment. Some are wary, and some are baleful. It doesn’t matter. As long as they aren’t an escaped homicidal axe murderer, it’s all good.

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If I’m in the right frame of mind, I can get into a meditative flow state where nothing really matters except what is right in front of me, my feet on the trail, my breath in my ears, and the world moving past me.

This state never lasts as long as I would like it to.

Every now and then I see a glimpse of amazing pure beauty, and it takes my breath away.

I’ve learned that my pace doesn’t matter. I take as much time as I need to get through it. It’s not about the end result, it’s about the journey.

kamala, obviously

If you’ve known me for awhile, relative to who I will be voting for in 17 days – it’s pretty clear already – Kamala. Obviously.

Kamala Harris is – simply put – the more qualified candidate, by leaps and bounds. She is highly educated, a former prosecutor, has served as Vice President. She has clear, coherent plans and actions to address key issues. That’s all there is to say about her.

Unfortunately, I have many more personal opinions and thus much more to say about her opponent.

I do not think Trump is fit to hold any office. I don’t think he’s even fit to be a manager in a midrate corporation, frankly. As far back in his checkered past as you want to look (from the Roy Cohn days to the Central Park Five to his media circus marriages, bankruptcies, reality television, pageants) – he has never been anything except out for his own best interests. He is a felon. He is a sexual abuser. He has made sexually suggestive statements about underage women including his own daughter.

He has stated that we will never vote again if he becomes president. He has blatantly said he will be dictator on day one. He has said terribly disrespectful things about our military and our veterans and has shown to me that his use of patriotism, Christianity and the Bible are cheap and exceptionally crass gambits for legitimacy without a shred of honesty.

I think he’s every bit as addle-brained and affected by issues of competency and coherence as anything that was ever said about Joe Biden.

I despise his racially biased rhetoric, his unwillingness to disavow white supremacy, his contempt for women, the shambles he has made of SCOTUS, and how he has stripped away healthcare for women and their right to bodily autonomy. He has inspired a clown car of stupid, crude, and hateful followers who now feel it’s acceptable to voice their hatred of anything not male and white. They demonize women and immigrants and think school shootings are false flags (to the point that they will harass, verbally abuse and threaten survivors and follow them around during visits to Washington DC – hello, Marjorie Taylor-Greene). He’s given a voice to ignorant and dishonest politicians who are equally selfishly motivated (Vance, Taylor-Greene, Gaetz, Boebert, Lake, Abbott, Cruz – I’m looking at you).

He inspired, fomented, and encouraged an armed insurrection, despite his current claims that it was an unarmed ‘day of love’. He encouraged his supporters to do violence against elected politicians of his party and those across the aisle. He watched them trample our capital, deface it, assault police officers, loot, steal, rob, all the while sitting in the White House eating fast food. He has shown that he does not respect the fundamentals of our democracy, he does not support a peaceful transition of power, and he will sow discontent and undermine our country’s democracy to stay in power. After January 6, which I watched live on multiple channels, as it happened, I cannot believe we are having any conversation that involves his political viability.

I believe Donald Trump was unfit to be president the first time around. The only thing that has changed is that he’s gotten worse. He is unfit to be president (or hold any office) ever again.

a few good things

  1. I bought a cinnamon broom for the den and it smells sooo autumnal.
  2. It has been a very hot and dry month in Michigan yet this evening we are sitting here with the windows open listening to a gentle cool rain.
  3. I just finished a fantastic creepy book – one of the best books I’ve read this year, I think – highly recommend “Mexican Gothic” by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. It was EXCELLENT. So atmospheric with a heroine you immediately are staunchly behind and the most chilling and fascinating setting. I’ve just picked up another by her (“Gods of Jade and Shadow”).
  4. We spent all day yesterday at the first marching band competition of the year. Unfortunately it was 85 degrees with a blazing sun on a high school football field with zero shadow (and zero parking which meant street parking blocks away). Wool uniforms are still de rigueur and if we parents in the stands were red faced and running with sweat then the kids were truly suffering. But I love a good marching band and so I was deeply satisfied and even more so when our kids won second place in Class A competition, best percussion, best color guard, and best in music!
  5. Next week is Homecoming. Insert happy face emoji surrounded by hearts.

I need a few good things today because I have a case of the Sunday Scaries. My beloved boss has moved up and out of Widget Central and I am left with a mass of complex tasks, exponentially increasing workload, and instability. I keep telling myself it isn’t my first time at this rodeo but – let me bury my nose in a gothic horror novel and a delicious cinnamon broom for a bit longer, okay?