à la carte spirit by ilona fried
Identity
New Diagnosis: Post Traumatic Stuff Disorder
Post Traumatic Stuff Disorder: When Cluttered Environments Trigger Anxiety and Dread Each night along the Camino de Santiago, I sorted and organized the contents of my backpack, leaving behind what I no longer needed. Sometimes all I threw away were cheese rinds and Band-Aid wrappers, essentially weightless, taking up little space. Other times I left … Continue reading
Facing Fear, One Flip Turn at a Time
“Question your thoughts. Question your stories. Question your assumptions. Question your opinions. Question your conclusions…” – Adyashanti For years I had a story that I wasn’t a good swimmer. I had another story that I was afraid of swimming in open water. I assumed that to be a decent swimmer, one had to have to … Continue reading
I Love “You”, I Hate “U”
When I first heard about texting, I shuddered. I didn’t understand the appeal of shooting short messages via cell phone when one could use that same device to speak to a human. Why send an electronic burp when one could compose a more thoughtful and thorough e-mail? But consideration takes time, and in a culture … Continue reading
The Vagina Monologues and My Narrow Escape from the Age Silo
A few weeks ago I saw an announcement about auditions for “The Vagina Monologues” to be staged at Naropa University in Boulder, CO. Anyone with a vagina was welcome to try out. My normally still, small voice within shouted “Yes!”. My heart pounded, so I knew I was on the right track even if I … Continue reading
Budapest: Beauty or Beast?
It’s Halloween, a chance to contemplate what is more creepy: a truly beautiful person masquerading as a hideous beast, or an attractive costume that camouflages beastly hate? Two very different news items on Hungary, one on beauty, the other on beastliness, grabbed my attention in the last week. The first, the results of a Conde … Continue reading
à la carte spirit by ilona fried 
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