When I was in my 20s, I was confused about my path, like so many young adults. I was figuring out how to weave my skills, interests, and values into a life that felt good, meant something, and paid the bills. My reliably intuitive Aunt Patty gave me The Artist’s Way , Julia Cameron’s seminal book about how to move through the blocks that prevent us from enjoying and expressing our creative energy.  Cameron’s book lays out a 12-week program of creative recovery, which starts with 3 core...

The St. Johns Bridge , Portland, OR It's been a minute! My last blog post was back in October. 2025 has brought a lot of change to my life. Since January, I’ve been teaching psychology at Portland Community College. I love the job. And the job is difficult, in both predictable and surprising ways. My students come from all walks of life, each bringing a wide range of expectations, bandwidths, maturity levels, and academic skills to the classroom. And there's so much to squeeze into 10 short...

Why it's so hard to finish what we start. When people think about creativity, they usually think about ideas: the generation of lots of...