This morning I’m sitting with the windows open, listening to distant city sounds of traffic and construction, mixed with bird calls and the wind in the treetops. It’s October 5, and Austin has just now begun to cool down after yet another unbearable summer. The sounds coming in have been a literal wakeup call for...
Austin’s favorite justice and joy rock trio, Parker Woodland, is back with their new EP, Police On My Back: Singles Collection Vol. 1, available July 24, 2026 on Flak Records. The album is available as a digital download on Bandcamp with sales of the single “Police on My Back” benefiting the Texas Civil Rights...
Last year I announced that I’d been accepted to a fellowship program housed at The Institute for Diversity & Civic Culture where I’d be doing an oral history project featuring the lived experiences of Texas Buddhists. I named it “84000 Doors” after the Buddhist concept that there are infinite entry points to...
Summer is officially here. The solstice occurred this past weekend, and right on cue, things are heating up outdoors. To be fair, we’ve had unusually mild weather and lots of rain this year, so I can’t complain. The lawn has been resurrected and we still have plenty of wildflowers blooming on the side of the road....
According to the astrologers of the internet, Saturn – that stern planet whose job it is to teach us hard lessons – is leaving my sun sign this week, having been camped out here since 2023. Saturn is a hardass teacher, and whether you believe in astrology or not, I can confirm that the last three years have been...
January, the bleakest of months. A hazy, gray letdown after the holiday season. I’m coming to you today with a raging case of cedar fever (what the hell kind of plant has sex in the winter???) and a headache the size of Texas. And yet! My spirits remain as high as the pollen count. January may not be all that, but...
~ Inna Lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un ~ Yesterday, while I was out running errands, I took a moment in the car to check in on my social media where I was met with news I’m still not sure I can wrap my head around: Umar Hakim-Dey is gone. In...
Super, SUPER stoked to be part of this program for the next year! The Institute for Diversity and Civic Life is a nonprofit organization dedicated to telling stories and documenting experiences of the endlessly diverse people living in Texas. I’m joining a group of multimedia storytellers, each of us working on our...
Read my review of The Bright Light Social Hour’s epic summer solstice show on June 21, 2025 on The Cosmic Clash…
It’s a beautiful afternoon in Austin, Texas. I just returned from a six-mile walk through our neighborhood. The sky is a cloudless, fathomless blue that hurts your eyes when you look at it for too long. Riots of wildflowers have crowded the empty lots and undeveloped fields. I paused momentarily to refill my water...
Psssst. White girls, over here. *waves* Today is International Women’s Day, so come sit with me and let us talk about how we can stop centering ourselves in movements and spaces that are supposed to be progressive and inclusive. Let’s start by acknowledging that we live in a society where, as white women, our voices...
Let me start by saying that over the years, I’ve repeatedly (and publicly) shared, without much elaboration, that I have radical politics and disagree with most of the people I know. The only change is that I decided staying quiet and letting the status quo go unchecked is no longer beneficial. In the past, I’ve...
