Deal breakers. Relationship requirements. That which you won’t tolerate.

I see them on OKCupid member profiles all the time, and rightfully so. While lots of folks are open-minded, the reality is most have at least a few necessary or unacceptable conditions for a long-term relationship.

For instance:

• “Must love dogs.”
• “I don’t serial date.”
• “Liars need not apply!”
• “I’m a sucker for science and empathy.”
• “Please move on if you voted for [insert politician name].”

Your results may vary.

Call me naïve, but when I see statements like these, I take the authors at their word. They’ve drawn their lines…

You’re zooming with friends or coworkers. While making a point, saying something significant, or just chatting away, you look directly at someone. They’re paying attention and probably looking back at you on their screen, but you can’t be sure.

Laptop webcams are built into the top of the monitor, not in the center where your eyes spend most of their time. We all know making eye contact is important, but how can you when technology won’t let you?

Pretend it’s a TV camera — your friends or coworkers are the live audiences.

Whether you speak to one person or a…

Most writers have a natural publishing “comfort level” they’re drawn to, whether that’s once a month or twice a day. Everyone’s level is different. For me, it varies, depending on how busy the rest of my life is.

Part of the prep includes not just the writing, but the research, editing, maybe getting feedback, and yeah, actually living those all-important life experiences! Much more work than intermittently jabbing your keyboard.

This means most writers probably won’t publish each day, but it depends on a gazillion other factors. For instance, do you have:

• A family?
• A non-writing day job?
• A list…

It was our first and last kiss.

When I see one of her Facebook or Instagram updates, that warm kiss pops into my head now and then, that amazing moment almost three decades ago. And my boyish efforts that, in part, led up to it.

Looking back now, it must’ve been sometime during college when my heart began to see her as more than my buddy’s girlfriend. Thou shalt not covet, I know. But her openness, her frequent smiles and laughter, and her stunning looks caught me off guard. …

Being a childfree single looking for a mate is, in a way, like Indiana Jones or Lara Croft searching for a rare artifact — challenging.

Yes, Lara and Indy constantly found themselves in life-threatening situations, but then again, they never had to create an online dating profile! Obvious jokes aside, for all their frustrations, dating websites are more popular than ever, according to an October 2019 survey of almost 5,000 Americans.

Three-in-ten Americans have used a dating site or app; 12% have married or been in a committed relationship with someone they met through online dating.

— Pew Research Center

…

Bzzzzt.

When I was in grade school, bees fascinated me. I don’t remember why. I just know I used to read books and watch shows about them. Then one summer that all changed.

A few years later (my early teens?), my family was holding our own private version of the summer Olympics using household items — high jumps with chairs, a pole, and a mattress, and sprints from one end of the back porch to the other. Fun times.

After going inside for a break, I heard a slight buzzing, but didn’t think much of it until I got halfway…

In a Dungeons & Dragons game, an effective Dungeon Master (DM) is multi-talented. You’re a prepared organizer, entertaining storyteller, omniscient guru, and tolerant improviser.

Your players want to immerse themselves in a fantasy world for a few hours. It’s your job not only to create the world’s people, surroundings, creatures, magic, traps, and treasures, but also to supervise and enhance the players’ time there.

You’re responsible for ensuring their enjoyment. If you provide opportunities for the characters to fight battles, solve puzzles, make friends and enemies, discover fortune and glory, and experience romance and enchantment, you’ll have the players clamoring…

Music is my religion.

Whether I’m listening or performing, my favorite pieces provoke strong emotions and fill my soul more often and more completely than any other solo activity. Yeah, it’s that powerful!

Recorded or live, slow or fast, often with others or sometimes alone: the right chords, rhythms, and lyrics can transcend this crude matter called a body. The right music heightens your senses and elevates your emotions to a place that, for some, just can’t be reached via visual art or prose alone. I believe for most musicians, to some degree, this is true.

The visions, emotions, and…