The Pain Machine
I ignored her pain. This was not difficult to do; her pain was rarely justified. To wear special seamless socks was to stick her feet in an iron smelter. To wear a soft acrylic scarf was to be garroted by a scroll of razor wire.
Heidi Julavits is the editor, with Sheila Heti and Leanne Shapton, of Women in Clothes (Blue Rider 2014). Her most recent novel is The Vanishers. She is also the author of The Uses of Enchantment and The Effect of Living Backwards, both New York Times Notable Books, and The Mineral Palace, a finalist for the Young Lions Literary Award. Her short fiction and essays have appeared in Harper's, Esquire, McSweeney's, New York Magazine, the New York Times, Vogue, Bookforum and other places. Her work has been anthologized in The Best American Short Stories and The Best American Travel Essays. She's a recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and a founding editor of The Believer magazine.