M.C. Easton

Real Men Go for Real Women

A few weeks back, a guy was complaining to me about his girlfriend. Already earning a zero on the Classy Scale. “She’s just so dumb,” he said with a smirk. “Like, I can’t believe how dumb.” “She’s just young,” I said and ended the conversation soon after. I had no sympathy for the dude. InContinue reading “Real Men Go for Real Women”

Home Has Magnetic Pull

When I was living on my own, it didn’t matter what time I got home. Or whether I came home at all. I took bus rides just for the fun of it and hopped off when I felt like it, boots slapping against the pavement of some new street in an unfamiliar city. I wandered.Continue reading “Home Has Magnetic Pull”

How the LGBTQ Community Helped a Straight Girl Heal

I’m not saying that’s the point of the LGBTQ community. Hardly. But it’s a fact that throughout history, rights movements driven by one group inadvertently benefit others. The Civil Rights Movement empowered more than just blacks. The ADA improved accessibility for more than just the differently abled. So yes, even as a privileged straight whiteContinue reading “How the LGBTQ Community Helped a Straight Girl Heal”

Repetition Is the Mother of Knowledge

A Russian proverb for the day. Straight from me to you. We seem to live in a redundancy-phobic age. Everything is about upgrades, innovation, the next season. The day after Christmas, furry pink hearts and boxes of children’s Valentines packed shelves at my local drugstore. “Yeah,” a cashier told me. “We already have Easter inContinue reading “Repetition Is the Mother of Knowledge”

When a City Reminds You of Those You’ve Lost

I had a best friend a few years back. A straight guy. Which maybe should have tipped me off. But I’d known him since middle school. We’d been chummy for many years, and he had gradually become a second brother to me. Year after year, we ambled down Third Avenue in chilly November rain andContinue reading “When a City Reminds You of Those You’ve Lost”

Just Do What You Can

My first day back at grad school this quarter, and I’m feeling so much calmer. Even–dare I say–at peace. So what gives? I used to press myself into a corner and demand that I read 50 pages a day–even if it’s not assigned. Make all my deadlines and make them early. And ace them. InContinue reading “Just Do What You Can”

The Dangers of Negative Self-Talk

I like to think I’m a basically positive person. I can be annoyingly so when friends and loved ones bring problems and frustrations to me. “So what would help with that?” I’ll ask. I like to focus on actions–either physical or cognitive–that have a chance of improving the situation. So I was astonished this morningContinue reading “The Dangers of Negative Self-Talk”

A Year of What Matters Most

In 2014, I launched my new year on this blog with a set of goals that proved to be mighty powerful. I wanted to try something that scared me. So I took swimming lessons and joined Toastmasters to hone my public speaking. Check. I wanted to tackle major life goals. I’m now in grad schoolContinue reading “A Year of What Matters Most”

What Friends Are For

Despite what popular sitcoms and rom-coms would have us believe, friends are not resource bases for us to cull from. They are not a bottomless well of empathy and generosity for us to draw on in hard times. And when someone commits to being your friend, there is no clause in the contract that guaranteesContinue reading “What Friends Are For”

How Hatred Helped Me Heal

There’s been a lot of family talk lately about a relative of mine who left one abusive marriage only to recently end up in another. She has endured so much assault and abuse that what little of herself remains is embittered, territorial, and angry—even towards her own children. But how did her path turn out soContinue reading “How Hatred Helped Me Heal”