Isis the Scientist
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Activism
PTSD? That’s Something Soldiers Have. Not Mothers: An Ode to My Dad
I started this post back on the 20th of May, my dad’s birthday. It took me this long to be able to come back to it. I have always prided myself on being the epitome of stability. A rock that people could rely on when they were falling apart. I’m cool in an emergency. I’m thoughtful. I’m deliberate. I don’t…
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Activism
What Does it Mean to Lead?
There’s really only one person in the world that I hope will read this. Earlier today, a dear friend asked, “What makes a leader?” I have to be honest, I have no idea. But, I know the qualities of the leaders I have respected. They stand up when others don’t. Even at great personal peril. They teach and shepherd the…
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Activism
What Does It Mean For The Show To Go On?
Earlier today a rag-tag group of people gathered in Northridge Park in Coralville, Iowa. I walked over to a table and saw some little children drawing on pennants with puffy paint. They were creating dedications to my son. One looked up at me and asked, as she would have any nearby grown-up, “How do you spell Charlie?” I spelled it…
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Activism
A Time to Re-Open…
I started tweeting about this a little bit ago, but I now realize it might be enough thinking to be its own post. On Monday I was invited to give a talk, hosted by some old friends and new collaborators. On the way there, I was thinking about what I would talk about and looking through my slides. So many…
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How Many Children Do You Have?
So many people have sent me books on how to grieve. I have so many. I’ll tell you in the future about that. Tonight I want to tell you a story of love. When I met one of my stepchildren, we were not close. When I married their father, we were not close. The only promise I made on the…
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Skepticism
Two Kids, Time Off, and the Prison of Condolences
I’m an academic mom. I’m on my menace hours. What do I mean by menace hours? It’s a term I used to use with my son for the time in the middle of the night when it’s quiet and you get your real things done. This weekend made me completely re-evaluate what this time means. Last weekend I went back…
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Skepticism
Trans Children and the 8th Corporal Act of Mercy
I am about to write about religion on the Skepchick site. Seriously, the other redhead in this joint should kick me out while she still can. I am a Catholic. On the Skepchicks. If you keep reading, it’s at your own spiritual peril. You have been warned. I have come to call this time of night my “ghost hours.” Everyone…
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Skepticism
An Update on Sanity, Ukraine, and the Loss of a Child…
It has been one month since Little I died. If you feel compelled, you can donate to the things he loved in life. What follows, is heartache. On Friday at 1:50 pm I sat in my office looking at my calendar and realized I physically could not move from my chair. I wanted to go to seminar. I felt obligated…
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