I Told Two Different Lies and Now They’re Colliding
MENACE BY TESSA PRESENTS DEAR TESSA CHAOS, CHOICES & CONSEQUENCES LETTER NO. 021 | THE COLLIDING COVER STORIES She told her family she’d received a major promotion so they’d stop worrying about her career. She told her coworkers she had a serious boyfriend so they’d stop asking about her dating life....
Stop Living Beneath Your Potential
There comes a point when you have to ask yourself an uncomfortable question: Am I living the life I’m capable of, or just the life I’ve become comfortable accepting? That’s not meant to create guilt. It’s meant to create awareness. So many people aren’t limited by talent, intelligence, or...
Being Mysterious Is Not the Same as Having No Personality
MENACE BY TESSA PRESENTS UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS OBSERVATION NO. 007 | COMPLETELY UNREQUESTED An unsolicited examination of manufactured intrigue, emotionally unavailable aesthetics, and the increasingly popular belief that refusing to reveal anything about yourself automatically makes you fascinating. 01. The Observation...
Consistency Speaks
People often think the biggest moments define a relationship. The romantic gestures, the heartfelt conversations, the vacations, the anniversaries, or the emotional declarations that make everything feel certain. While those moments are meaningful, they aren’t what determine the strength of a connection. Relationships are built in...
My Friend Only Calls When She Needs Something
MENACE BY TESSA PRESENTS DEAR TESSA BLOOD, BESTIES & BETRAYAL LETTER NO. 020 | THE ONE-SIDED FRIENDSHIP She’s been the dependable friend for years: the emergency ride, the listening ear, the last-minute babysitter, and the person who always answers. But when she needs someone to show up for her, her friend’s...
Stop Carrying Other People’s Problems
For a long time, I believed being a good person meant carrying as much as I possibly could. If someone was hurting, I felt responsible for fixing it. If someone was struggling, I wanted to solve it. If someone was disappointed, I somehow found a way to make it my problem too. I confused compassion …...
Stop Having Family Reunions in the Middle of Costco
MENACE BY TESSA PRESENTS PUBLIC NUISANCES PUBLIC NOTICE NO. 007 | STATUS: ON NOTICE An ongoing examination of spontaneous warehouse reunions, unauthorized family conferences, and the alarming belief that a Costco membership includes exclusive rights to conduct extended social gatherings beside the rotisserie chickens. 01....
You Keep Looking for Proof
If you’ve ever caught yourself rereading old text messages, checking whether someone viewed your story, analyzing the tone of a single sentence, or searching for hidden meaning in every interaction, you’re not alone. When attachment anxiety is running the show, your mind becomes a detective. You’re constantly looking...
He Proposed an Open Relationship After I Caught Him Cheating
MENACE BY TESSA PRESENTS DEAR TESSA LOVE, LIES & RED FLAGS LETTER NO. 019 | LOVE IS COMPLICATED She discovered her boyfriend had been seeing someone else. Instead of asking how to rebuild trust, he suggested opening the relationship. Now she’s wondering whether he’s offering a genuine conversation about...
The Problem Is Not a Mystery
Some of us spend years trying to solve problems that stopped being mysteries a long time ago. We analyze every conversation, replay every decision, and search for hidden meanings that don’t actually exist. We convince ourselves there’s one missing piece of information that will suddenly make everything make sense. But...
