I’ve been thinking about Rare Disease Day on Feb. 29 for weeks. I’ve been trying to figure out how exactly I’m rare, and in what ways, and how I might address all the weird, rare, exhilaratingly absurd parts of me that make me…
The Wolf Finally Frees Itself - a column by Brianna Albers
I feel like it’s been forever since I last wrote one of these things. It may be because between the holidays, the start of a new month, year, and decade, and school (which is frankly turning out to be the semester from hell), I feel a little bit…
Like a decent percentage of the global population, I have part of the “Frozen II” soundtrack stuck in my head. The movie is about the unknown. Self-acceptance. Stepping into your power. Themes that are fitting for me, as the sun sets on the second decade of my…
I have this nagging feeling that I’m going to die in bed. My parents sleep in the basement, so when I need to be rolled at night, I scream at the top of my lungs until someone hears me. We have a baby monitor that works…
A few weeks ago, my mom and I went to Junk Bonanza, a vintage market that’s held twice a year at the local horse racing track. I feel twice my age while I’m there, but it’s a chance for Mom and…
As a kid, I assumed that happiness would be accompanied by a kiss in the rain, like the iconic scene between Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray in “A Cinderella Story.” Or that scene in “The Princess Diaries 2:…
In case you’re wondering, the miraculous acne medication, Accutane (isotretinoin), is as fun as it sounds. Accutane is a six-month program, which means I have three months left. The medication is definitely…
I was the kid with 50 different diaries. Usually pink with sparkles. Bonus points if they came with their own bejeweled pen, because what 9-year-old girl doesn’t like rhinestones? The issue is that I never used them. People would buy me diaries…
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this year’s Cure SMA Conference. I’d attended only once before, but I was too young to care about anything except for the service dog that I met and for which I subsequently longed. I knew there’d be…
Between the wheelchair, the pristine white Keds, and the pink baseball hat, I stand out. But I can’t say that I’m used to strangers stopping me in the middle of a reception hall so they can compliment my writing. “So you’re the famous columnist!” Am I?…
