Highs in the Low Fifties

by Marion Winik

  The Brainiac: He thought he came off pretty well. He seemed to like being called the Brainiac.

  Crispin: He has firmly stated his intention never to read this book, and I support that decision. Not because I am worried about how I portray him, or our breakup, but because even after all that has happened, it would kill him (or at least make him very ill) to read these stories about me and other men. We remain friends and cordial co-­parents. As of this writing, he is still single . . . as far as I know.

  At this point, I have accepted the permanence of my tattoo of his initials. I think it’s better to live with the evidence of that mad love than to try to cover it up or remove it. Passion leaves marks.

  acknowledgments

  I would never have written this book without the incredible enthusiasm of Jessica Anya Blau, though I believe she was hoping there would be more sex. Also key were Betsy Boyd and Suzy Dunn, editor and publisher of my column at BaltimoreFishbowl.com, where some of these chapters first appeared. I thank heaven, appearing in the graceful form of Sue Resnick, for sending me Lara Asher of Globe Pequot Press.

  There are so many other friends and neighbors and writing buddies and colleagues I am grateful to; I hope you will accept a group hug. If you not only smiled on the writing of this book but were forced to appear in it, I might be able to offer you a Starbucks gift card as well. I must name the person who made every day of these mixed-up years a joy: my daughter, Jane Winik Sartwell.

  about the author

  Marion Winik is the author of six books of creative nonfiction—Telling, First Comes Love, The Lunch-Box Chronicles, Rules for the Unruly, Above Us Only Sky, and The Glen Rock Book of the Dead—as well as two volumes of poetry. Her essays and book reviews have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Sun, Salon.com, More, Newsday, and many other venues. Her commentaries for All Things Considered are collected at npr.org. She is a professor at the University of Baltimore. For more information, go to marionwinik.com.