Category: Life's Lessons

Dear Gamestop: Take Pity On Us Clueless Parents

My 14 year old son has coveted an xBox system since he was 8. The way he tells it, every other kid in the entire Universe has an xBox, except for him. Boo hoo! I’m playing violins for him. I have refused to buy him one because he watches too many screens already and the... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
December 1, 2014 at 12:16 pm • 

My Junior Year Abroad Adventure

South Shore Country Club I am convinced that the path that my life would take was altered, radically, by the most life changing event of my young life; the “white diaspora” of South Shore in the late 1960s. I was born and raised in South Shore. To say that it was a predominantly white neighborhood... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
October 1, 2014 at 2:27 pm • 

What Ever Happened To Personal Integrity?

The Portage Park 5k Run takes place every year on the last Sunday in September. It’s a lovely event, the weather is typically really cool and sunny and it is sponsored by Presence Health. As part of the festivities, there is a massage tent where participants can receive a 5 minute post run massage. I... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
September 20, 2014 at 10:19 am • 
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Just When I Thought All My Problems Were Over

We lost our dental insurance 2 years ago when my husband didn’t qualify for insurance through his union, Screen Actors Guild, because he didn’t earn enough money. Don’t get me started on how wrong that picture is. I am pretty scrupulous about getting my teeth cleaned every 6 months. I look on Yelp for dentists... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
September 18, 2014 at 9:44 am • 

And I Want It On Another Plate

I have been on both sides of the coin, (pun intended) in the great “tipping debate” as a tipper and a tippee (don’t know if this is a legitimate word, but if it isn’t, it should be). My first waitressing job was back in 1975 when I was a student at the University of Illinois... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
September 16, 2014 at 9:58 am • 

I Really Hate To Shvitz

Shvitz is the Yiddish word for sweat. I really hate to shvitz. I prefer to be too cold to too hot. You can always put on more clothes, but if you are naked and shvitzing, there’s not much you can do about it. I don’t like hot baths or jacuzzis and you won’t ever get... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
September 5, 2014 at 9:22 am • 
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The Co-Worker From Heck

I have done all manner of things in my 60 years on the planet. I lived on a hippie commune, well actually, an organic farming community, in W Wales in the UK where we “knitted our own yogurt,” I worked for an educational paperback books company, I fundraised for the environmental group, Greenpeace, and I... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
September 3, 2014 at 8:36 am • 

Seeing The Other Side...Of The Pond

It’s funny… weird, not haha,… how one major event in one’s young life can chart a path that is completely life changing. For me, that was the upheaval of my life from South Shore to Highland Park at age 14. It was 1968 and by that time, “white flight” had completely changed the neighborhood from... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
August 20, 2014 at 1:43 pm • 

What If Michael Brown's Parents Were White?

In light of the horrific things going down in Ferguson, MO, on both sides; demonstrators and the keepers of order, I wondered what would have happened if Michael Brown’s parents were white. Well, actually, as a white woman and mother of a now teenaged black son, I started to wonder if my color would make... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
August 18, 2014 at 3:27 pm • 
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I Took An Unwanted Break When I Broke My Ankle

I took a helluva break in 2009. It wasn’t exactly planned. I took a 3 1/2 month break because I broke my ankle in 2 places…just walking down the sidewalk. It was October, 2009 and it was a wet day. My son had just been unsuspended from school after being suspended the previous day. So,... Read more »
By Soapbox Momma,
August 15, 2014 at 11:28 am •