Taos is not how I remembered it. Granted, the last time I was here was the fall of 1991, a few months after I finished high school in Houston and moved to Austin. I had this cool roommate, Cate, who was into world music, being vegetarian, saving the environment, not shaving and wearing Birkenstock clogs with every outfit. Cate was tall, smart and confident. She was an open-minded, curious person who made friends easily and could start up conversations with all kinds of people

It's gone on for four long weeks now. The boys used to like coming home from school. They would throw open the back door, drop their backpacks on the floor and head straight to the pantry for first dibs on snacks. Now they kick around outside in the driveway and in the backyard with the dogs until they can't hold out any longer and come inside what used to be our comfy home. Over the last month it's turned into a dusty and disarrayed house full of cardboard boxes, piles of

When I tell anyone that I have started a blog, the next question is, 'What's it about?" I was not prepared the first time someone asked me this question and immediately regretted not having an elevator answer ready. "Me," I sheepishly replied and instantly recognizing how egocentric I must sound. "And my family,"I quickly added. I began trying to describe to her in a few simple words why I suddenly felt compelled to start writing. For starters I knew that this was a year tha