Yesterday marked the one-year anniversary of my mother’s passing. On February 21st last year, I was on my way up north to what I’d hoped would be some quiet final moments with her as her condition had worsened and she’d been released to the care of my brother John’s family in New York State. But, […]
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Snow Again
Another Valentines Day has come and gone, this time I am single, widowed, AND divorced! Its the trifecta of “ways to have a crappy V.Day!” However, a good widow friend and I had made plans to go to Maine and have a girls weekend where we pampered ourselves, sat by the indoor pool, and got […]
Halftime
Many years ago, in February of 2005, to be exact, on Superbowl Sunday; Don Shepherd packed up his entire life into a Penske truck attached to his car, and drove with his cat Isabelle in his lap from Florida to New Jersey, to begin a new life with me. Our friends came over to help […]
The Art of Being Nowhere
I thank the many who reached out last week to help me honor the birthday of my late husband, Rich. I won’t reveal his age because he will haunt me. When I met Rich he was just turning 50. He and I participated in a large and very popular art event and fundraiser each year […]
In the Land of the Lotus Eaters
Pickleball or pedicure? Reporting from the desert, it is today’s burning question. Meanwhile, earlier this morning Robyn mentioned an ice storm is a possibility back home. Nothing major as ice storms go, mind you, but even an icy veneer will cause fender benders, clog gutters, freeze exterior doors and gates. Walking to your train or […]
Interlocking Grief
Lately, Ive been thinking about all the strange ways that grief intersects and interlocks, and how our losses affect us in so many new and different ways as we keep living our lives. I have talked here before about my first love, my first kiss, my high school prom date, the boy I was friends […]
Moving Matters
Happy February First, and “Rabbit Rabbit” Day. It’s believed by some that by saying those words upon waking the first day of a new month (or before noon) you will experience good fortune throughout the month. It is said to be an Old English custom and I will leave you to your research. Hop to […]
Lunar New Year Eve Reflections
As I sit here finishing my preparations for the Lunar New Year tomorrow I can’t help but look back on this past year. Lunar New Year has always been one of the most important holidays to our family next to Christmas and 4th of July. It was one that I welcomed Erik to be a […]
If I Could Tell You
The life of a widow often makes very little sense. The thoughts inside my head often make very little sense. All the things I wish I could tell Don, 13 years later. Many of them would make no sense to tell him, A lot of these things wouldnt even be happening if he were alive, […]
We Just Keep Rolling Along
It’s been a “cold” few weeks here in Central Florida. But it’s all relative as they say. A friend that lives in Minnesota recently posted that it was minus 44 in her neck of the nation, but felt like minus 33. At the time it was 45 degrees in my area of Central Florida at […]
Let the Fun Begin!
If you see today’s post a little later than usual, kindly forgive me, I’m not quite yet into the groove of my winter quarters here in Tucson. For one thing, the time zone is different, and I am asleep and awake at off-hours. I do not enjoy being wide awake when it is still dark […]
A Write-ous Birthweek
The other day during a Zoom meeting, a colleague noted that most people stop reading at the third paragraph of articles and blog posts. I think about that as we adjust to a new year. I find myself reimagining ways to improve my writing approach and practice to increase focus and clarity. With so much […]