By day, I’m a calm, mild-mannered middle school teacher who would do just about anything to motivate my students to do their best work and fall in love with learning. I praise their achievements and efforts, not just their high scores, and then watch those scores improve. When they stumble, I help them see how to pick themselves back up…
Once upon a time, when stationery was pastel and melon-scented, I closed all my correspondence with “love.” An unexpectedly fastidious gene prevented me from making the transition to “Luv ya!” a few years later—a failure that pretty much describes my entire middle school experience, socially if not academically. My pre-Internet-age education did ensure that I’d graduate knowing the proper way…
My teenager is home on break from college and my husband quit his job to freelance, so now we both work from home. I love having them around, so I couldn’t figure out why I’d been feeling stressed out. Then I went for a long walk alone and immediately understood what I’d been missing: talking to myself. I talk to…
When it comes to relationships, we hear a lot about how good communication is the key to a happy, healthy, and strong connection with your partner. When it comes to sex, however, many couples find it hard to discuss their needs and desires. Sex is an inherently intimate act, and it can be challenging to step back and find the…
From the infidelities of politicians, entertainers, religious leaders, and athletes to the exponential rise of cybersex and porn addictions, the news is filled with stories of male sexuality run amok. Sexuality is one of the most crucial and misunderstood human energies and activities. It makes us feel alive and connected and opens up new levels of intimacy. It can also…
Sam is having a great day. Springtime: The earth smells dank and robust with thaw. The sun shines like an orange neon bulb in an endless blue sky. A bird sings from the high branches of a fully leafed oak tree. Sam feels good, positive, and confident as the soles of his new sneakers hit the pavement with purpose. He…
In my previous post about how your brain codes information in neural pathways, you learned that you can change your brain. Through a process of severing negative neural pathways and creating new ones with more positive associations, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) can help reduce feelings of tension or disturbance. Getting ready for a job interview? Have to spend time with your…
Today’s dizzying pace of new technology is quickly leading people to question whether most tech headlines are science fiction or fact. The list of startling advances goes on and on. I’ve selected nine of them that will dramatically affect our daily lives: 1. Nanobots. The wind-up toy with flashing lights I had as a kid was primitive compared to the super-miniaturized robots…
In my childhood, I spent many afternoons at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. My father loved the exhibition pavilions there, and to keep me occupied and not bored when I was too small to understand intellectually what I was viewing, my parents gave me a sketchpad and crayons or colored pencils and I would sit and draw. At…
