Writing poems isn’t easy. Getting them published is ridiculous. You look for places that publish poetry, send them out, remembering to include a self-addressed, stamped envelope, even if you don’t want them back, and then wait. Sometimes you wait six months to find out their…

There is a gigantic billboard on Highway 151 between Dubuque and Madison that kills me every time I see it. Its message is simple: “Call Your Parents.” My response, though unspoken, is always the same: Oh, how I wish I could. I still remember the…

Some illnesses are dramatically visible, and they can embarrass us. “Don’t stare,” we’re taught. Others are less visible. There are good things about having an invisible illness. If you try really hard you can fake it, and other people may think you’re just fine. Take…

At long last, I am back from the hospital. I was away for twenty-three days, eighteen of them as an inpatient. People who entered the Head Pain Unit the same time as me left before I did, making me feel like the train was leaving…

This column comes to you from my bed. People are talking quietly in the hallway. Some overcast light comes in my window, whose sill is stacked with books, DVDs, and chocolates. If I want anything, all I have to do is press a button and…

I love cloudy days. The greyer the better, and if those clouds began disbursing their rain or snow, all the more cause for rejoicing. I know there is an actual mental health disorder that makes many people depressed when deprived of sunlight – such as…