Howdy! I’m so glad you found your way to my site. I'm Maddie McDowell,* but you can call me Mad. I used to be a dutiful daughter, a steadfast spouse, a proficient parent, a supportive sister, a faithful friend, and a dedicated director of training.
Then, one day, I had an epiphany. All of that niceness and responsibility made me as dull as dirt. I looked around and saw my creativity heaped in a corner and covered with dust. When I walked over and poked it, I was relieved to discover that it was only mostly-dead.
So I quit my corporate job, started this blog, outlined a speculative fiction novel, and began singing karaoke at a moment's notice — without the benefit of adult beverages. My goal is to be less well-mannered-golden-retriever and more tap-dancing-yodeling-unicorn.
I know quite a few kindred unicorn-wannabes, so I organized this blog site around some pretty common conversations I have with my friends. Those categories are outlined below. I hope you enjoy the blog … and even more, I hope you participate in the discussion.
Making a life
“Make the most of yourself....for that is all there is of you.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
The care and feeding of self.
Making a home
If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance. ~ George Bernard Shaw
The care and feeding of family and friends.
Making a living
“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." ~ Confucius
How to pay for all that care and feeding (i.e., emoluments.)
*Maddie McDowell isn't my real name. It's my pen name. My nom de plume. I created it when I was a romantic 9-year old, knowing someday, I would be a famous author. It's a mash-up of my grandmothers' names. It makes me happy every time I say or write it, because it helps me remember them.
Why am I so fancy that I feel like I need a pen name? You'll see in some of the blogs that I'm still doing some consulting work. Although it's not exactly a crisis if a professional colleague stumbles across this blog, I suspect that most of them aren't really all that interested in my thoughts about marriage, obesity, kids, sex, etc. And if they are, well, they can find me if they look hard enough.
Dear colleagues ... Shhhhh! Please don't let me know you read this blog. When I'm in front of the room giving a presentation, *I* don't want to know that *you* know that I'm worrying about the jiggle under my arms as I'm gesticulating while emphasizing a point.