Sara Dobie Bauer's Blog, page 19
March 30, 2015
YOU WERE HERE: My family’s story, without shame, in Under the Gum Tree
I hadn’t intended to write about my grandparents’ house on Walnut Street. Not really. Not until I found out it was being sold and then wandered from room to room, documenting every damn thing that happened there.
A couple friends read my lengthy non-fiction essay. They cried and told me it was beautiful. When I told those few readers “You Were Here” was beingpublished by Under the Gum Tree, they seemed surprised. One woman said, “But it’s so personal.”
So why not share it?
On the cover of th...
March 25, 2015
You’re not pretty enough to be a model
“Dark Beauty” by Scott Miller.
I used to be the chubby girl. Not in the obvious way but in a way that made me think, No matter how much you work out, you’re just big-boned.Not to mention large-breasted. In college, I never felt like the “pretty one,” probably because my close knit group of gal pals were all absolutely stunning. I was the wild one. I was the funny one. Pretty? My roommates were pretty; I wooed via wit.
Guys didn’t seem to mind my fuller figure. I didn’t mind it … most of the t...
March 17, 2015
Norwegian Sherlock parodies: Not to be missed
It’s no surprise to all of you that I love the BBC’s reincarnation of Sherlock Holmes. This is due in part to my obsession with British actor Benedict Cumberbatch, but the show really is brilliant. I’m shite at writing mysteries, but I love (love) watching them, so the brilliance of writers Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss is beyond me. It doesn’t hurt the show’s appeal when both leading men, Benedict and Martin Freeman, garner Emmys for their performances as the immortal Sherlock and Dr. Watso...
March 12, 2015
What’s your vice? Akashic Books presents Thursdaze
Every Thursday, Akashic Books presents Thursdaze: a writers fictional experience with marijuana, speed, heroin, cocaine, or any other drug, real or imagined, controlled or prescribed, illegal or soon-to-be legalized.
There are rules. Stories in this series must adhere to a 750-word limit. Plus, there’s an emphasis placed on stories that stylistically emulate the drug of choice, allowing readers to indulge risk-free.
It’s pretty easy to spot my vice: cigarettes. Today,Thursdaze presents my rh...
March 5, 2015
Skin: A poem about cutting
Your skin is the only thing keeping you together.
You like to poke holes to see if it might suddenly give way.
Sometimes, you feel like a balloon with a small leak.
He likes to pick your scabs while you lay in bed together. He asks you questions:
Why do you cut yourself?
Does it feel good to cut yourself?
Would you stop cutting if I loved you?
You tell him you���ve been cutting since the eighth grade. Now, well into your twenties, you don���t remember how to do anything else.
Except sex, he says. Yo...
February 27, 2015
9 Best shows on Netflix right now
Funny: when you fall ill with some mystery virus that keeps you restrained to the couch (or even the floor, depending on how far I have to walk), you find time to watch some TV. When I say TV, I mean Netflix. I’m not suggesting the following nine programs are critically acclaimed or that they’ll soon be winning Golden Globes, but shut up, these are my favorites and NEVER QUESTION A SICK PERSON.
1. Salem
Witches! Sexy witches!! Takes place in the heat of the Salem witch trials, and it’s one of t...
February 17, 2015
Benedict Cumberbatch gets married: What do I deserve?
When news broke Saturday morning that my “boyfriend” Benedict Cumberbatch was having a secret wedding on the Isle of Wight in England, I texted people as if I was the one getting married. Then, I scoured the internet and waited for some sneak peaks of the ceremony.
Imagine my disappointment when there were none.
Believe me when I say I quite literally know what’s happening in this man’s life before he does. I have never, ever delved so deeply into celebrity worship in my life. This is due to th...
February 9, 2015
The Art of Love
Saturday, I MC���ed an event for Gina���s Team called ���The Art of Love��� at Cup O��� Karma in Mesa. It was a fundraiser where we featured musicians, spoken word poets, roses, hand-painted coffee mugs, and inmate art. Even I sang a couple sets.
Needless to say, I was terrified. Let���s face it: generalized anxiety disorder feels like heartburn in your brain. I���d already give myself permission to consume a vodka martini post-event, but first, I had to make it through the event.
Once things g...
January 26, 2015
On subjectivity in art (or why being an artist can suck)
Last Monday, I received five rejection letters for five different short stories. Did that hurt? Worse than a bikini wax. Last Monday was the kind of day where all I felt capable of doing was banging my head against my desk until, thankfully, I lost consciousness and woke up Tuesday.
Thursday, I got two different emails. The first came at 10:02 AM from the Maricopa Community Colleges District Writing Competition to inform me: ���We received the judges��� results, and we are proud to share that...
January 22, 2015
Little girl, you are my light
Yesterday, I participated in the Gina’s Team monthly road trip to Mingus Mountain Academy in Prescott, a safe haven for troubled girls. The girls know me by now. I’m the depressed poet who sings. I didn’t do much speaking yesterday, but apparently, it was enough, as I admitted to over a hundred girls that I almost didn’t make the trip��because my depression had me slugging through the mud of early morning life.
Before I left, a small, spindly girl with pink hair came up and handed me a note. S...
