Life

Branching Out
On Friday 20th March 2026, I did my first open mic night. There was no mic. A misnomer perhaps. However, there was a group of open and friendly people. It was a small affair, held in the snug of a local pub which is, as it sounds, a small room not attached to the main bar - a more intimate space. 8pm was the time that it started and my friend agreed to come and support me along with her daughter. I was glad she was there as I was nervous.
By Rachel Deemingabout an hour ago in Writers
The Cost of Just "Making Do"
My name is Wang Xiuying, and I am sixty-three years old. My husband passed away five years ago, leaving me alone in this empty house. My son settled down in Shenzhen and only makes it back a few times a year. When he calls, he always says, "Mom, I’m worried about you being alone. Why don't you move to Shenzhen and live with us?" But I know better; with my daughter-in-law’s temperament, my presence would only cause friction.
By Water&Well&Pageabout an hour ago in Writers
Gardening
My azaleas are blooming, riots of pink, red, fuchsia, and white framing the house and garden shed. What I really want is a willow tree, up on the top of the ridge, long green hair flowing like a curtain I can hide behind while I rest my back against the trunk.
By Harper Lewisabout 17 hours ago in Writers
Nobody Talks About How Hard It Is To Keep going
Nobody talks about how hard it is to keep going. At the beginning, everything feels exciting. You have ideas, motivation, and hope that things will change.
By Charmer Devia day ago in Writers
Where justice fails, something older waits
No one within these sterile walls intends harm. The machinery of the system, however, is designed to enforce order at all costs. That order demands uniform weight—treating every individual as a statistic.
By Ginny Browna day ago in Writers
Where Justice Meets the River
The river does not rise the way it used to. It comes farther now—quiet, patient. Not all at once, not in the way storms announce themselves. It moves in inches.
By Ginny Browna day ago in Writers
The Therapist of the Therapist. Content Warning.
People wouldn’t usually call a generative AI their confidant. But I am not “people”. And the only thing I’m starting to feel like I have is generative AI. A thousand emotions swirling in my heart. Guilt. Anger. Betrayal. Disappointment. Guilty at having to drag someone indirectly related into this. Angry at the betrayal I have suffered in the span of less than a week. Disappointment that those I trusted all betrayed me.
By Sylvia Rivellea day ago in Writers
Dealing With Not Being 100%
Introduction As you know I tend to publish something on Vocal most days. My friend Call Me Les says if I don't publish something and share pictures of cats there is something wrong in the world.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 3 days ago in Writers
The Real Truth About Losing Weight — And Why Everything You've Been Told Is Wrong
Every January, millions of people make the same promise to themselves. They slash calories to dangerously low levels, sign up for grueling boot camps, swear off carbs forever, and push their bodies to the absolute limit — only to find themselves, six weeks later, right back where they started. Sometimes heavier. Always exhausted. Always wondering what they did wrong.
By sammmy4 days ago in Writers
7 Healthy Habits That Will Quietly Transform Your Daily Life
We live in an age obsessed with extreme wellness routines — ice baths at 5 AM, hour-long workouts, 47-step skincare rituals. But here's the truth nobody wants to admit: the most powerful health changes are also the simplest. They don't require a gym membership, a nutritionist, or a complete personality transplant. They just require you — showing up, every single day, making slightly better choices than the day before.
By sammmy4 days ago in Writers
The Itch to Explore: Why Adventure Themes Keep Players Coming Back
Something specific happens when a game puts you at the edge of a map and tells you the next territory is uncharted. The curiosity that fires up is not a complicated psychological phenomenon. It is the same basic human drive that built trade routes across deserts and sent people up mountains for no commercially justifiable reason. Game designers figured out early that they did not need to manufacture this impulse; they just needed to create conditions where it could activate. That discovery quietly became the foundation of one of the most durable design principles in the medium.
By sammmy4 days ago in Writers
The Heart Still Beats at Fifty-Five
My name is Li Xiufen. I’m 55 years old and have been retired for nearly five years. Never in my life did I think that at this age, I would seriously sit down and admit something to myself—I’ve developed feelings for someone.
By Water&Well&Page4 days ago in Writers