The past few days have been a reminder of how grateful I am for the bountiful beauty and power of nature. Living in Wisconsin, our lives ebb and flow with the changing seasons, sometimes winter is unrelenting and it’s a struggle just to get out the door for our day-to-day lives. We are restored in the spring when the changing weather brings us hope and quells the itchiness of spring fever. Summer is our reward, a time for leisure and vacations. In the autumn we reap the harvest of the land and prepare for the long, cold nights again, the cycles of change repeated. Continue reading
Mixed Metaphors
Mixed Metaphors, Oh My! – A place where words, this writer, and readers play together.
Category Archives: Posts
Last Stop, Fruitvale Station
Like countless others this week all over America, I’ve been struggling with how to respond to the acquittal of George Zimmerman for the senseless, certainly preventable, and heartbreaking murder of Trayvon Martin, an innocent young man, who because of his death was unable to defend himself in front of the jury who found the man who was armed with a gun and pulled the trigger that killed him, innocent of any murder charges. George Zimmerman got his day in court, yet in the opinion of this writer, Trayvon Martin had his civil rights, his reputation, and his life stolen from him simply because of his race. Continue reading
The Lone Ranger, Annie Oakley and the Bride Doll
Today, I saw the premiere of “The Lone Ranger.” Critics have been ravaging the film for many reasons, but for this writer it was a nostalgic journey back to a time of childhood heroes and themes of good versus evil, white hats and black hats. Continue reading
The Skinny on Medicalized Obesity
On Tuesday, June 18, 2013, I learned I have another disease —obesity. The American Medical Association (A.M.A.) at their annual meeting in Chicago recognized obesity as a disease in hopes that the medical community could treat this issue that affects one in three adult Americans, nearly 75 million, and about 12 million (16.9%) U.S. children ages 2 to 19 with education, prevention and intervention. Advocates hope this declaration will help improve reimbursement for obesity drugs, counseling, and surgery. Continue reading
Three Fathers
Father’s Day is Sunday and I’ve been reflecting on my family history and the role of the men in my life. I hail from a matriarchal background, from both my paternal and maternal lineages. The families were headed by women, by default due to death and abandonment on my father’s side, and because of death on my mother’s. The women, my great grandmothers and grandmothers were loyal, hardworking and committed to their namesakes and either outlived or outlasted their male counterparts. Today, my mother carries on the tradition and is the head of my immediate family, she is the glue that holds us together and usually has the last word. Continue reading
A Moving Story III
Home Again
Home again; another journey ends. I’m home again and grateful. Yesterday, when I woke up in my new home after making coffee, followed by making my bed (old habits are hard to break), I sat at my desk, looked out my window on the world — or at least my neighborhood — and journaled. I immediately felt comforted by a familiar ritual as I reflected on the days that led to my arrival here. Continue reading
A Moving Story II
Everything is Up in the Air
It’s been two weeks since I’ve posted on my blog. It’s making me anxious, one more ticking clock, the others I’m unable to locate since my home is in chaos as I prepare for my move next weekend. My life is like the children’s game, or more precisely the prank, 52 Card Pickup. Everything is up in the air, in disarray, including the organization of my mind, a virtual house of cards, as I teeter on the brink of collapsing emotionally and physically. I’m reminded how much I depend upon my daily compulsive behaviors to keep me anchored and how they prevent me from metaphorically floating or wandering away. Continue reading
A Grateful Daughter
Every year when Mother’s Day approaches, I think about all the things I want to tell my mother, all the many ways I’m grateful to be her daughter. Most years I find one or two things to share with her, as I sit with her and hold her hand, I share a story about what it means to me to be her daughter. Continue reading
First Friend
Today is my sister Roz’s birthday. Every year, when we’d talk on the phone or see each other on her birthday, I’d comment that we could always count on a beautiful day. As I write, the grey clouds are receding, revealing blue sky and the promise of a pleasant spring day. Continue reading
My Butch Girlfriends
First, one of my ex-girlfriends is visiting Madison in a couple of weeks and we’re going to get together for dinner. We haven’t seen each other for probably over twenty years. I’m looking forward to her visit for a number of reasons, including seeing how time has changed us and how we might remain the same. My recent post, The Ties that Bind explored who in our lives help make up a family, and how friendships bind us together and to our personal history. Continue reading