personal essay
A Eulogy for the Mix CD, the Best Way to Tell Someone 'I Like You'
Mix CDs have been innovated out of existence—but nothing has managed to replace how meaningful it was to make and receive them.
The Pain and Sorrow of Learning Your Beloved Childhood Pizza Is Trash
Quad Cities-style pizza rises to the level of legendarily terrible—like 'The Room' or the 'Troll 2' of bad pizza.
Getting 'California Sober' Showed Me a Kinder, Gentler Way to Do Drugs
When I quit every substance except weed and psychedelics, I could still party and expand my mind, but without the selfishness and addiction.
For Gay Men in Indonesia, There's No Place Safer Than Twitter
It's the only place where we can feel like we belong to a community—but without the pressure of revealing everything about ourselves.
I Was One of the Most Famous People Online in 1998—Then I Disappeared
Know as "anacam," seven million people a day watched me livestream my life around the clock. Looking back now, I have a new understanding of why I did it.
Meghan Markle's Relationship With Her Dad Makes Me Feel Better About My Own
My father wasn’t at my wedding, either.
- Advertisement
My Friend Was a Rising Comic. Then He Was Charged with Child Pornography
On betrayal, rage, and searching for answers.
Chicken Wings Are My Culture
With every saucy, saturated, ranch-dipped bite, I embrace an act that in the past was used to stereotype and demean Black people such as myself.
Running Away From Drinking Myself to Death
On grief, morning runs, and not getting drunk to late-night news broadcasts alone anymore.
I Drank 150 Margaritas in 3 Days and It Wasn't a Great Decision
But also it kind of was?
I Was a Jealous Partner Until I Went on a Swingers Vacation
If you told me a year ago that I'd watch my husband get a blowjob from a stranger and not feel jealous, I'd have laughed in your face.
When I Met the Now-Arrested Leader of a 'Feminist' Cult and His 'Kittens'
After the recent news of Turkish televangelist Adnan Oktar's arrest for fraud, sexual assault, and espionage, I look back on what it was like to meet him and the women of his "Islamic Creationist" cult.
