A whole almost year?
Strange to think I used to update this blog almost daily. And now, I’m hard-pressed to upload even an annual post. Looking back at my last entry in November 2020, it’s tough to believe that just a few days past that, my dad entered the hospital and a whirlwind many months followed, ending with his passing in May 2021. During the time my dad was ill, I wished I had this blog to turn to for processing my feelings, but it seemed weird (and unreadable) that my only posts would be about dealing with his sickness and death. I come to this today because I’m still grieving big and was moved to express. You know how that can be. There’s so much that happens internally when a beloved one falls ill and you’re a primary caregiver. It was so important to me that my dad had someone to watch over…
Well, well, well.
Fancy this. It’s been well over five years since I’ve written in this space. From then to now, I’ve put my words elsewhere – in ads, in marketing copy, in corporate blogs. That’s because sometime around 2014 I decided it was in my best financial interest to get a full-time job with benefits. That realization came sometime after I resolved to extend myself beyond the unpredictability of freelance work. I looked for a “real” job for months after. Age seemed to factor into hiring decisions, and as much as human resources “thought leaders” tell you age isn’t a thing, it’s a thing. Especially if you’ve been freelancing for seven years and are in your 40s. Still. Thanks to my blogging relationships, a friend I’d met in this space hooked me up with a recruiter who forwarded a job my way, which I ended up taking. How I got that job…
On The Edge
Confronting fear and overcoming it…
It’s November 10 Again
{My mom died 18 years ago today. Forgive the maudlin?} I enter the muted waiting room as I’ve done year after year: nervous, winded after trying to find parking, praying. I take a seat at the desk as an empathetic female volunteer takes my ID and health history. Any breast cancer in the family? Yes. Who? My mom. How old was she when diagnosed? 48. After, everything remains still and quiet and I take my purse to the other waiting room, the one where women are called one by one into the dressing area to prepare for their mammograms. I open a magazine and block out the voices: you have it, you have it, you have it. The nagging thought raises to a roar as my own name is announced and I’m led to change into a threadbare cheery gown and brought to a third and final waiting room,…
New York: A Rambling Recap
About 47 months ago in blog years (last June), the kids and I and The Rock took a trip to New York to visit with my siblings. My brother, Marky, and other brother, Dane, recently bought and remodeled a house on Long Island and they, my sister, and I, along with our respective families, convened on the home in typical fashion – loudly and with much exuberance. But first things first. We’re scattered all over the world. Marky lives in Brooklyn, Dane’s in Singapore, and my sister parks it in North Dakota. No we don’t know why. Yes we tried to talked her out of it. Because we live far from each other, we don’t visit as often as we’d like. There’s a Christmas here, a dad’s open heart surgery there, and random trips everywhere. To have us all in one place is a special treat, until we revert…
My Netflixes of the Month
I’ve been all over the Netflix this past month. I mean, ALL OVER. No genre has been safe. Documentary? I’m coming for you. Lifetime movie from 2011? Lock your doors. Teeny-bopper spookfest? Ding dong! I don’t know what July was all about for me. Schizophrenia, maybe. Or inability to make decisions. Or super-ability to make many decisions. Whatever the reason, much Netflixes (Netflixi?) were had by my eyeballs. Here’s what I watched: 1) An Honest Liar Does anyone remember James Randi? A former magician, he used to debunk paranormal phenomena, so-called miracle workers, and psychics profiting off others’ naiveté. I used to watch him on “Johnny Carson”, and “That’s Incredible.” (Why don’t I just call myself San Diego Grandma?). At any rate, I loved to hear how Randi exposed those guys who claimed to heal the sick, or read people’s minds, or bend spoons. Full of…
I’m a mom to two sassafras teenage daughters, Toots and Booger. I’m married to The Rock, my stabilizing, calming counterpart (most of the time) …read more
