Public Ponder

A Must-read Book that Will Change How You Think about Being Wrong

I recently finished a book that blew me away: Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error, by journalist Kathryn Schulz.For starters, Being Wrong reminds us that the most mysterious object in the...Read More →

Fear of Flying: Irrational but Real

Dear pilot,Allow me to introduce myself. My name's Daniella and I'm a phobic passenger. What's my phobia? You guessed it: fear of flying.My fear's so intense I take a dose of clonazepam half an hour...Read More →

Mother’s Day Letter: You’ve Been a Good Mom and I Have Proof!

Hi there Dani!Thank goodness for the video cam your husband, Cesar, bought back when the kids were toddlers. There’s your proof you weren’t a bad mother. In fact, from what I can see, you were actually...Read More →

Planet Earth: It’s Still Not TOO Late to Save Our Home!

You could say I'm obsessed with Jane Goodall, the 87-year-old British lady known for her crusade to preserve the natural world, and, in the process, save humanity.Goodall is one of those rare humans...Read More →

Autistic Wisdom: ‘The Animals Are Having Sex’

Diego, my 27-year-old son, has posture issues. He tends to look down, which compounds the problem. So on our long hike in Grand Teton National Park, my husband (Cesar) kept trying to find ways to motivate...Read More →

10 Quotes that Will Give You a Cosmic Perspective

I'm addicted to MasterClass.You know how cooking shows can be entertaining even if you're a terrible cook and you're never going to prepare anything they're showing?MasterClass lessons are sort of like...Read More →

Bribery: I Bribed an Airport Official for All the Wrong Reasons

Back in 1998 when my sons were 4 and 2 years old, I bribed an airport official so I could escape. No, I wasn't escaping political persecution, war, death threats from the mafia, poverty, or marital...Read More →

Tinnitus: Dealing with a Wicked Form of Torture

"Tinnitus is the perception of sound when no actual external noise is present." American Tinnitus Association Doesn't sound all that bad, now does it? This, however, is what tinnitus actually felt like:...Read More →

You’d Better Be Kind When Giving Tech Support to Your Mom

Have you ever encouraged someone to embrace technology and then regretted it? Me, I’m starting to lament pushing my mom to up her game. Look, she’s 79, and as bright and energetic as anyone half her...Read More →

Autism and Valentine’s Day: An Exhausting Love Ritual

It’s no exaggeration to say my 27-year-old autistic son lives for holidays and birthdays. He’s already talking about turning 28 and he turned 27 less than a month ago.When Diego began nagging me to help...Read More →