The Myth In Latin households, men who have not swept a floor since the Obama administration use the word 'mantenida' like it means something. Mantenida comes from "mantener," to maintain or to support, and it carries a social charge that the English phrase "kept woman" never quite captures. On the surface it describes an economic arrangement. Underneath, it functions as a verdict. A mantenida is not simply financially dependent, she is presumed to be exploiting that dependenc

There may be no greater prank nature has ever played on humanity than the orgasm. Think about it. Entire civilizations have been built around the pursuit of power, wealth, status, and meaning. Philosophers have spent centuries asking why we exist. Religions have wrestled with the nature of the soul. Poets have sacrificed their sanity trying to describe love. And then there is the orgasm, a fleeting event that lasts only seconds, yet somehow convinces otherwise rational adults

The Other Woman

I married Frankie on a Tuesday, because that’s when the courthouse has less people. We got our marriage license a week before, and on Tuesday we both showed up on our lunch hour and said our awkward I dos. It was all very administrative. After we got married, I went back to work. I’m a teacher. He’s a mechanic at a Ford dealership. That day, we ate Jack in the Box, because that’s his favorite. He got some sweet bread from La Reynera. There was no party. No guests. No invitati