There has always been a big nature element in my life. Where I grew was not too far from San Diego, but in the 70,s it might as well have been the Outback because the average San Diegan considered it very rural. My parents hailed from Western PA, outside of Pittsburgh in small towns. My […]
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Reflections on Being Married
Despite an undeserved hard guy reputation in some quarters, the truth is I am a sensitive, occasionally sentimental, fellow at heart. However, I’m not feeling particularly sentimental at the moment. As I have mentioned, for me June is easily the funkiest month. To paraphrase Charles Dickens, it represents both the best of times and the […]
Anatomy of a Problem.
I am raccoon-less, feeling grateful, and wondering about problems and solutions. Picture this. The Indian Ocean is splashing fiercely at the edge of a home during a storm. It quickly fills the bottom floor with sea water. Clearly a problem, right? Or not. Today, I googled “what are the problems people have?” with this […]
Stuff, Stuff and More Stuff
When Erik passed the twins and I packed our entire house into a storage unit and moved. We only took with us what fit into the already full trucks of our two cars; one carry-on luggage that was stuffed for me by my cousin with random clothes and a few hampers filled with the twins’ […]
Grief Is
Emily is on vacation this week enjoying some time with family. I love this post from her titled Grief Is, a poem Emily wrote near the first anniversary of Tony’s death. ~ Mary Moore Hughes Grief Is… When the sound of someone’s laugh can make you smile and cry. The heaviness your heart holds on the hardest […]
I Already Miss Him
So, a couple years ago, my parents moved to an over 55 condo complex near the beach on Cape Cod. Its a wonderful place they live in, they have made many friends, and other than the fact that they are now a 2-hour drive away and I dont get to see them as much due […]
Writing On
This past week my plans took me to another rural community about an hour from here. There, I happened to have a conversation with a young man who was just trying to get by. As he spoke I sat in my car and listened to his story. Sometimes that is all someone needs – […]
Nowadays, I Feel Ambivalent About the Beautiful Month of June
According to one poll of adult Americans (https://today..ougov.com/society/articles/45312-americans-favorite-and-least-favorite-months-year), thirty-nine percent love the month of June and an additional forty-one percent like June. Nine percent of American adults dislike June, only three percent hate it. I do not know how the results should be interpreted, except it further demonstrates that Americans cannot agree about anything nowadays. […]
Watching and Waiting
The Raccoon Saga Continues I think they’re gone. As I examine the clues of how they arrived, it seems they are gone. The urgency I felt (fear?) and signs of their presence brought a low level panic in my psyche. Why? Because I love animals and even though I know their presence could be […]
Approach of Father’s Day
As we enter June, my mind starts to think about all things surrounding Father’s Day. It will be our third Father’s Day without Erik. Each year seems to get harder as the twins get older. They have always asked for daddy since Erik passed but they are now looking for more of an answer. The […]
My LA Ambush
A group of widows is called an Ambush. I learned that at one of the three Camp Widow events I’ve attended. Greater than that fun fact, are the friendships I’ve built from those Camps. My home base Camp Widow has been San Diego. My first year in attendance, I almost instantly connected with three other […]
Coffee, Support, and Friendship
Yesterday was our most recent Soaring Spirits Regional Group meetup, held at a local coffee shop that we frequent. The place has a nice open concept for seating, the coffee is local and delicious, plus lots of yummy menu choices offering everything from bagels to quiche to muffins to cookies to scones. Its a comfy […]