Review: Hoard a new play at off the WALL Productions in Carnegie

This is the sort of play that I would prefer to contemplate for a few days before I write a review. However, the importance and impact of this creation is so significant that I’m pushing through my own process to urge you – strongly – to Carnegie to see this show running for three weekends. March […]

Fish Fry Friday: Riverview Presbyterian Church on Pittsburgh’s Northside

Fish Fry Reviews Grand Jury Report

Welcome to Fish Fry Fridays, 2020 Edition! Click here to learn more about this project, now in its 7th year of providing you absolutely biased reviews of fish fries throughout Pittsburgh. Name: Riverview Presbyterian Church Date: February 28, 2020 Time We Ate: 5:26 PM Random review of #fishburgh adventures during Lent. Find a fish fry on this […]

The Time a Lesbian Democrat Shamed Me for Being a Disabled Person With Cats

Kittens Instagram

A few days ago, a person whom I know only through social media and a few mutual friends decided to leave a comment on an Instagram post I had shared – a photo of some of our resident cats and foster kittens eating dinner together. Her comment was a disproportionate reaction to  few cat hashtags. […]

Proof that Allegheny County Democratic Committee Members Support Trump

Allegheny County Democrats

Content Note: racism, misogyny, misogynoir, ableism, sexism, homophobia, pro-Trump content, xenophobia, sexualizing young girls, Democrats, politicians Recently, several local media outlets have disclosed social media content posted, mainly on Facebook, by a ward chair of the Allegheny County Democrat Committee, Jeff ‘Bean’ Anesin. While a few of the posts suggest that Anesin is a Trump […]

Behind the essay: How writing about SSDI took a toll on my mental health

Sue Kerr trauma

Content Note: trauma, neglect, disability, Social Security Administration, mental health On October 28, I sent a draft essay to PublicSource to inquire about their interest in the topic. The final version was published on February 10, 2020. That’s over 100 days. I share this because I want to emphasize how much energy and time goes […]

How are the cats?

Adopt a Kitten

Far too much time has gone by since I posted an update on our foster/feral cats and kittens, or our resident critters as a matter of fact. These are tails I weave daily via my social media feeds if you have a craving for critter pics and updates.   Our foster kittens – Susie Myerson, […]

Minute by minute with anxiety

Content Note: anxiety, trauma I have this stubborn belief that I can somehow untangle the strands of my anxiety from the strands of my trauma responses, that there is a clear line of delineation I can find if I just keep trying to feel my way through the fibers wrapped tightly around my chest. My […]

316 Reasons to Add Your LGBTQ Story to the #AMPLIFY Archive

Since 2015, we have been collecting stories from LGBTQ folks with ties to Western Pennsylvania. Some live here now, others grew up in this region. Others still attended college or had a job that brought them here or spent summers with their grandparents in an outlying community. Here includes 26 counties in Western Pennsylvania, from […]

City Theatre’s ‘Downstairs’ Relies on Strong Performances to Explore Family Violence Themes

City Theatre is staging Theresa Rebeck’s Downstairs this month. Originally written for actor siblings Tyne and Tim Daly, the plot focuses on adult siblings Irene and Teddy. Teddy has taken up residency in the basement of the house Irene shares with her husband. Teddy pokes at an old computer that Irene claims is broken, they […]

Review: Grist From the Mill Delivers a Good Storytelling Experience

On Friday we were at Carnegie Stage for the debut of Grist From the Mill, the first piece of a storytelling trilogy from local playwright and creator, Lissa Brennan. The trilogy boasted infusing Irish murder ballads with the steel industry. This piece was set in 1902 Pittsburgh. This performance was not what I expected, but […]