The archive

All stories

Stories and observations, published weekly. Search by word or narrow by series and category.

9 stories

What Homes Hold

The House Is Rarely the Whole Story

Real estate has a vocabulary for the parts of a house that can be counted, and almost none for the parts that can't. This is an attempt at the second vocabulary.

August 24, 2026Home & Life7 min read

What Homes Hold

What the Junk Drawer Knows About Us

Nobody curates a junk drawer. That is precisely why it tells the truth about a household — and why it is the hardest thing to sort.

August 17, 2026Home & Life6 min read

The Next Chapter

When the Family Home Becomes a Family Conversation

Adult children, aging parents, and three completely sincere definitions of help — a story about timing, love and the conversations families postpone.

August 10, 2026Family & Transitions8 min read

Selling HB

The Particular Light of Huntington Harbour

An observational walk through a neighborhood where the water sets the schedule and familiarity is the actual amenity.

August 3, 2026Sense of Place6 min read

The Next Chapter

A Smaller Home Is Not a Smaller Life

Downsizing is described as subtraction. For a lot of people it is closer to editing — and editing is what makes a thing readable.

July 27, 2026The Next Chapter6 min read

The Next Chapter

The Kitchen Table Test

A simple test for any major housing choice, built on the observation that good decisions rarely require urgency to survive.

July 20, 2026On Practice5 min read

The Next Chapter

The Right Home for the Life You Have Now

Stay put, rightsize, a 55+ community, a single-level house, a condo, a move closer to family — six honest options, and the questions that tell you which one is yours.

July 6, 2026The Next Chapter8 min read

What Homes Hold

Before the Boxes: The Emotional Work of Moving

Packing is the visible part. The real work happens earlier, quietly, in the form of a person slowly changing their mind about who they are.

June 29, 2026Home & Life7 min read