Girl on the Brink: Surviving Desperate Times with Desperate Measures

Day 180 — The Four Seasons of Man

I can see the first of October on my calendar, so I’m starting to pack away my sundresses and sandals, and take out my sweaters and slacks. At my temp job, I’m not sure anyone cares what I wear. I feel sort of invisible there. I expect at least one or two men hanging out in [...]

Day 179 — Hobby Jobs

Our hobbies define us as much as our job histories. The closer they intersect, the happier and healthier we are. Personally, writing has been both my hobby and career. I appreciate the way words can combine to evoke an image as smoky as a film noir night scene, and I marvel that word combinations seem to [...]

Day 178 — Find Your Saddle

VH1 has created a trashy takeoff of ABC’s The Bachelor, called Real Chance of Love, Back in the Saddle. (Remember, I watch so you don’t have to.) Real and Chance are the names of two rap artists looking for love down grand canyons of cleavage. I swear the girls possess 90 percent of the world’s [...]

Day 176 — First Impressions

We, as a society, strive for perfection—an often unattainable goal that’s influenced by glamorous, brainy and athletic bodies reveled in movies, glossy check-out magazines and TV. Where does that leave everybody else—the millions of minions who are struggling to survive the double whammy of job and love losses? Ann’s Answer: Scrambling to perfect their resumes and free [...]

Day 174 — Ann’s Life as Rapunzel

Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your…. Dang! I knew I should have gotten those hair extensions at Bubbles. Shoulder-length hair just won’t do when you’re trying to escape an unfavorable living situation. I often feel I live the modern-day version of the classic Grimm fairy tail Rapunzel. But instead of being trapped in a tower, I live in [...]

Day 173 — Is Your Vision Binocular?

A new relationship. The loss of a job. The proposal of marriage. The birth of a child. Divorce. A promotion. Each life-changing event and transition fills us with expectations that are often marked by excitement and idealization. In essence, we check out of reality and romance the notion that our new path will reward us with a [...]

Day 172 — Life-Enhancing Keywords

When your love-career quests face stiff competition, optimizing them with keywords is often the Viagra that stimulates success. That’s because life has become a ginormous filter through which we make decisions. Employers use keyword filters to screen for the right job candidates. Online dating sites use them to pigeon hole members into likes and dislikes. Search [...]

Day 171 — Nosy Neighborly Bosses

Sometimes I don’t know how other people can work for some of my former bosses. I feel that way about my neighbor, too. But in a different context. I don’t know how she could be married to that guy—or vice versa. My neighbor is such a nudge, one of those women who won’t get out of your [...]

Day 170 — Security, Beware of Your Age

I had an interview in the suburbs of Washington, in one of the tall buildings that tower over the beltway. People do secret things in some of these buildings, including the one I had an interview in. Compared to the world of little nonprofits that I usually inhabit, this was positively surreal. First, the nearest Metro stop [...]

Day 169 — Famous Work Couples

ANN’S NOTE: Taking the day off—check back Sunday for a fresh post. Even Ann needs a mental health day! When God created man, he created Adam and Eve and commanded them to “be fruitful and multiply.” And, multiply they did. Whether you believe in Adam and Eve, you cannot deny their enduring popularity throughout the centuries. They [...]