So Sallie Says

If you’re reading here, it’s probably because you know me. You may even like me, but if not: welcome, hater. 

If you don’t know me, introductions are in order, which is a hard thing to not overthink. Despite more than three decades of summer camps, corporate events, and reacquainting with people I’ve already met but who don’t remember me, I still struggle with those initial conversations when you’re trying to decide which part of you to convey to a particular stranger.

I don’t think I’m alone here. Small talk is hard for almost everyone, which is why the other day I panicked and asked someone if they were familiar with Toyota Camrys, desperately trying to find some common ground. And speaking of panic, we have to address icebreakers. “Everybody share a fun fact” is the worst combination of words for someone who has lived the most normal life imaginable (me). There’s no fun part of my facts. Also, I really think we’ve misconstrued what a fun fact should be. I want to hear that the word “mortgage” comes from a French word that means death pledge or that a single strand of spaghetti is, yes, called a “spaghetto” — not that your high school volleyball team won states.

The point is, I’m extremely normal. I realize that sounds like what a very un-normal person would say, but I promise there’s nothing to see here. I grew up in middle class America, went to college, met my husband, made a career and two children, and now you’re caught up with what I’ve been doing the last 33 years. I’m working with just a tick above or below average, depending on the day. Perhaps the only thing extraordinary about me is my outsized opinion of my writing abilities, which brings us to here.

Writing has been a passion that has followed me my whole life, one that I’ve pursued as both an amateur and a professional at various points. Every year, I tell myself this is the year I no-kidding write my book, pursue that creative project, journal every day, start a blog. (My Notes app is a depressingly full trove of nebulous novel ideas and lists that at one time felt like the start of something funny to write about but now just read like a lunatic’s manifesto: “Sides are more important than the main dish!” “Pilots that make jokes in-flight = ANNOYING!!!”)

But as is customary, with each passing year I’ve grown more jaded, more busy, more tired, more in my own head.  I’m now a full-time working mother of two small children with a house, a husband, and two cats with questionable litterbox etiquette. My life is fuller, harder, and happier than ever, and without a doubt too short to ignore what pulls me. I’ve decided to stop caring if I have anything worthwhile to say, or if anyone will read it, or if I even am a good writer and just do it because I want to.

I envision this project to be a collection of writings, with whatever topics, cadence, and format I want. It may take a different shape, it may be abandoned in a few short months, it may lead to fulfilling my life dream of working tirelessly on a manuscript while living whimsically by the New England coast. Either way, this is entirely self-serving and I am making no plans, promises, or pleas. I may hate introductions but I really like putting my thoughts into writing, so let’s see where it goes.