There is an inevitable end to our independence.  For women, independence is proclaimed first when we turn 16.  We cram all our friends with inferior birth dates into the back seat, forgetting about our parents’ rules, the sheriff’s laws, and any semblance of what soft music should sound like and we ride off into the…

I sat down for lunch at a plywood table with rough edges and a sticky surface.  My paper plate weighted down by two plain hotdogs.  This was a sight I had seen all week.  It had been the fifth straight day of hot dog du jour but strangely I was satisfied.  At least I knew…