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How once woman went from being a SAHM of four to a published freelance science journalist |
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I'm revising this intro after more than 15 years to better reflect my intention When I started this blog in 2004, I was a stay at home mom to two small children, a college graduate with a degree in English and Astrophysics. By 2007, I had four small children, ages newborn, 2, 4, and 6. For several years, Writing.com was how I kept my sanity. This blog began, first as a way of staying connected. Later, when I worked on a novel, I used it to stoke the writing fires as I plotted out short stories and the next step of my novel. Ultimately, I moved my writing preparation to "Invalid Item"  In 2010, I became a single mom who had homeschooled her children for several years. I had a 2, 4, 6 and 8 year old and had never had a "real" full time job, since I was married while in college. Everyone told me that I would have to buckle down and take on a "real" job. Instead, I decided to attempt to live my dream: to make it as a writer. I knew that if I didn't try then, I would never really dive in. I counted my money and set a deadline. If I hadn't began making a decent (defined) amount of money after so many months, I would suck it up and get a J-O-B. After some thought, I decided to play to my strengths. I served an internship at Sky & Telescope magazine while in college and enjoyed writing about space and astronomy. With an astrophysics degree, I thought I would be able to sell myself more easily, and a small niche should be easier to penetrate. It's been about ten years since I was first paid for an article on Space.com. In that time, writing - journalism - has been my primary moneymaker. I've often thought about setting up a blog on my website - www.astrowriter.com - but just haven't gotten around to it. There are a few things I would like to share for those who are interested in scientific journalism in general. Now that I'm back on WDC, there's no reason not to combine the two and use the site blog for that sort of interaction. There are certainly plenty of folks on this site interested in the publication process. So while I'll probably meander around some, that's the intention of of this blog: to share some of my struggles as a published journalist and to help answer oft-asked questions. |
| What is something you like to do that other people might think is “weird?” Everything I do, someone thinks is weird. My sense of humor is off, and I often get a lot of strange looks. I like wordplay, and few people seem to get my jokes. My boyfriend says he has the same problem, few people understand his humor or think he's funny. I love his jokes and get the bulk of them, and he also gets me. I love to read, which everyone thinks is weird sort of. There are two camps on this, it seems. On the one hand, there's a collection of people who just don't think of reading as fun. The other hand is the "I wish I had time to read" group, which seems like a subtle jab at me, as though I'm not busy as a single homeschooling self-employed mom of four. Loads of free time. The difference, I think, is that I rarely watch TV, not at the rate most people consume it. Other than a random movie or two, at most I watch 45 minutes (one commercial-free show) a day, but I don't actually do that every day. I don't think I watched anything yesterday. I won't lie; I occasionally binge watch with the best of them. But those are few and far between. I can't stand to sit there and just passively watch something; I'd rather be reading. Since the lockdown, I've been playing more Twilight Imperium, a board game. This is a game that, in truth, works best with six players, though it can be played with as few as three. (I suppose it could technically be played with only two, but it's hard to imagine that going well.) My bf enjoys it, and, to my surprise, my 17 yo son does, as well. This is a game that most people only get the chance to play maybe once every month at best, and often less frequently; prior to purchasing it, I think I played two or three times. The gap between games was long enough that I tended to forget the rules between playing. Okay, you're saying, so you like board games; that's not weird. Well, this particular board game at best lasts 6 hours. With six players, even if everyone knows how to play, it can run two days of six hours each. That's kind of weird. I'm also a geek. I took up Dungeons & Dragons a few years ago. Even with the growth of popularity that came with Stranger Things, it's still considered weird. Oh here's a good one. I talk about sex with my kids. I don't think that one sex talk is enough to have with your kids, so I've addressed the subject with all four - including the two boys - multiple times. Sometimes one on one, sometimes in a group. And I also make inappropriate jokes with my kids. Just yesterday, my younger son (15) made an "ooh, 69!" comment. I was like, oh you want to talk about oral sex? And then I did. But in a jokey sort of way, not serious at that point. Initially, this made them uncomfortable but now all of them, even my youngest, who thinks kissing is gross, is more relaxed about it. I want them to have some level of comfort so that they can talk to me if they have a problem or a question. This is especially 'weird' since I'm a conservative Christian. I teach my kids not to have sex before they are married. But I also told them that they should always discuss things with their doctor. I told them that, if they chose not to listen to me, and do have sex, to make sure they use protection. We discuss STDs, or STVs, I think is what they're calling them now. I've told them if they are having sex and have any strange symptoms in their private regions, or if they think they are pregnant, that they should tell the doctor. That they can ask me to make an appointment and when I ask why, they can tell me that it's personal. I told them that I will try not to push them to tell me at that point, but that it is imperative that they discuss it with a doc. I also tell them that, sure, I would be disappointed if they had sex before marriage, but that I would of course love them, and of course be there for them to help with whatever problems they have. All of this seems to be different from how a lot of parents approach sex discussions with their kids. Which I suppose makes me weird. But if you only talk to your kids about sex once, the odds are they will be so embarrassed that one time they won't hear anything anyway. I think it's important to keep that door open, no matter what your religious beliefs. One of the things that really struck me - I know I'm veering off topic - was the Elizabeth Smart story. If you don't remember, Smart was abducted from her bedroom window when she was maybe 12 or 13, somewhere in that age. Her kidnappers sexually abused her. Eventually she was recognized and returned home. Like me and my family, Smart was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, what most people call "Mormons." What I remember her saying was that she felt that, having been abused and thus 'not chaste', even though it wasn't her fault, she was too 'dirty' to go home. I'm sure that's not what her parents meant. I never want me kids to feel that way, whether due to abuse or due to their choices. I want them to know they are always loved, no matter what happens or what they do. To me, the worst thing I can imagine one of my children doing is killing their sibling intentionally. I have told them that is the worst thing I can imagine, and that, though I would be sad, upset, and disappointed, I would still always love them. Nothing that they can do and nothing that can be done to them can ever change that. I think that's something every parent should make clear to their child, and something they should do repeatedly. And if that's weird, well, then I'm glad to be that weird. |
| Music often has the ability to remind us of old memories. In your entry today, be inspired by a specific piece of music or a musical instrument. What feelings/emotions does the music or instrument stir in you? Share a specific memory your chosen song or instrument reminds you of. I am just not a music person. My daughter is home for the weekend, hence this delayed/late piece. (When she is here, she sleeps in my office, so I wind up on my computer less.) She loves music. We put her in piano lessons when she was young and she is the only one who continued with them when the choice was given to stop. Now that she's home, I'm noticing that she is more apt to sing partial tunes under her breath. It drives me crazy, but I don't want to say anything. She's not as bad as her dad's grandfather, who doesn't even realize when he is whistling. Whistling, to me, is worse than fingernails on the chalkboard. My boyfriend also loves music. He used to sing and has a beautiful voice. Now he has a burr in his throat, or something, like a node, that is keeping him from singing. I can tell that he misses it. He is also always playing music in the background, and often humming or singing. Like me, his taste in music is widespread and covers multiple genres, though his is a bit wider than mine. All of this to say, I rarely listen to music. The best time for me is in the car, especially on long drives. When I drove home to North Carolina from college in Georgia - an 8 hour drive - I would often flip through my CDs. Once I had kids who were old enough to understand stuff, I tended to play more word games and such with them. Even toddlers can come up with rhyming words, when you ask, "what sounds like 'cat'?". It's a great way to encourage interest in reading. We also did addition and multiplication out loud. And, as they got older, used the time to talk. When I drive solo now, I tend to use the time to catch up on phone calls. There are a few songs that I listen to that bring back memories. Mostly because of associations either from the time I first heard it or when I listened to it. Like most people, I suspect, I predominantly listen to music I was listening to in high school and college. Most of that time was depressing, so it's not a good thing to listen to. Perhaps that's one reason I don't listen a lot of music nowadays. I found when I listened to some of it after my divorce, it helped to hurry the depression I was already struggling with due to biology and circumstances. I know this isn't a great response to the prompt. But I think it has led me to some self-awareness. I was just chatting with my bf the other day about why I don't listen to music a lot, and I think the connection to depression is key. I've mentioned before how high school was hell for me, and I see no reason to revisit that time in my memory. |
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