Even artichokes have hearts

In an attempt to outrun the emotional onslaught of too many goodbyes too soon, I came back to Mississippi on Tuesday under the pretenses of celebrating a friend's birthday then attending a wedding this weekend. Well, I guess those aren't total pretenses, because they are true. I celebrated a friend's birthday on Tuesday night, and I'm attending a wedding tomorrow. But I sure as hell haven't outrun the heartache.

With so much going for me, so much in the works for my future, I should be plumb ashamed that I pine over the dissolution of my favorite Grad School Group, that I can't help but feel like things Will Never Be The Same. I know things won't be the same, but they'll get better. They always get better, and I always find myself somehow the happiest I've ever been. It's really the best place to find oneself.

But still, for now, I'm sulky that my friends are gone, and I'm doing something about it: calling and texting too much, spending too much time out on the town with other friends, not returning emails. These are my coping mechanisms, y'all. What are yours?

In other news, my poem "When Boys Discovered Flowers Would Get Them Into Girls' Pants" has been selected for publication in the upcoming anthology, Splinter Generation. Check it out, and many thanks to Steph for sending me along the call for submissions.