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Marked
…by Fashion 6:30 am. Today I have a 2-hour drive to the nursing home where I am assigned. As I distractedly lock the front door and head to my car…
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Happy Birthday, Reese!
One Reese is 1. Happy first anniversary of her day of birth! Do you remember that age when everything is still a possibility, no mistakes have been made, and we…
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The Moment I Knew
Obsession I am 50 and I am obsessed with Taylor Swift. It is not just that I like her music, I *love* her music. It is not just that I…
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I Love You Too
Resident Stories As I leave Sister Margaret’s room, she asks if she can bless me and I say “Yes, of course.” She bows her habit-less head and extends her arms…
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Bark, the Herald Angels Sing
As a puppy with eyes as blue as cornflowers, Hank loved to sleep in my brother-in-law Mike’s flip flop. Hank grew to be huge, lanky, and lopey with a cowboy’s…
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California Dreamin’
Erin, Mike, and I converge on Sean’s house in Los Angeles in late October. After we three travelers settle in, we start to plan our California coastal drive from LA…
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Mask it.
Welcome back. It’s my first week back after three months when the nursing homes locked their doors to everyone but truly essential personnel. I unload my car — foldable cart…
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Vipassana (3/3)
“Begin again!” booms the resonant voice from the wall speakers that surround us. The voice combines James Earl Jones, a vampire, Michel from Gilmore Girls, and a belching bullfrog. It…
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Vipassana (2/3)
Slowly and apprehensively, I drive down Green Street in the quiet Delaware neighborhood of Claymont. On my left is a six-foot privacy fence that runs the length of the block.…
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Vipassana (1/3)
Lazily, I surf the internet, snuggled in the corner of my couch, wearing fuzzy socks, and a cuddly sweatshirt. “Meditation retreats near me.” Fancy, expensive ones are listed. These are…
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Worried
I am worried. I am not a worrier, not usually worried. My mantra is “I-am-sure-everything-will-work-out-just-fine”. I like to think I am the epitome of anti-drama and anti-anxiety. But yet… I…
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Swipe Right
While contemplating this chapter, I struggle with what to write about dating. I am very clear on what I did NOT want to write. First, I thought I would write…
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8 Bells
As I depress the turn signal to make the last turn into the West River Sailing Club parking lot, my heartbeat quickens and matches the tick, tick, tick. Daily, I keep my…
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Financial Fitness
Maria’s 2019 Goals: Get my financial world in order. See number 1. What better time to address your financial health than with the approach of Tax Day, April 15th. This…
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Happy Birthday, Cora!
These tributes begin with the eldest members of the family and will end with the youngest. Cora is the last accolade, but first in our hearts. (Edit: Reese was born in 2022…
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Her Story Made History
The man in line beside me smirks at my answer to the cashier’s question “What movie?” Then, he stares at my breasts. I don’t know the reason for his mirth, disdain,…
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Happy Birthday, Erin!
I remember when my parents told Sean and me that they were pregnant with Erin. They called us to come inside from playing in the snow. “You are going to…
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Happy Birthday, Dad!
My Dad’s birthday is one day after my Mom’s. They are the same age for exactly one day. My Dad didn’t have the same request for writing down special memories…
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Happy Birthday, Mom!
Whenever I release a new blog post, my mom is the first one to read it, always sending me inspirational emails. “Wonderful post again. You are so special.” or “This…
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Airbnb
The podcast How I Built This interviewed Joe Gebbia, founder of Airbnb. There was a convention in Joe’s town that sold out of hotel rooms. Quickly, he made a website to auction off…
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Pot
Everyone: “You’re in Colorado? Wink. Wink.” I was curious about how the legalized marijuana shops worked. I googled one near where I was staying in Fort Collins and visited. The…
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Lessons Learned, Part Two
29. Nothing will make you feel more alive than standing alone, on the top of a mountain, at 11,000 feet, in three feet of snow, without a single noise or…
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The Grand Tetons
Yes, they were named for exactly what you are thinking, you with the dirty mind. French trappers said that they looked like boobs and it stuck. “Tetons” is “breasts” in…
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Yellowstone
We wake to bright light pouring in the two large bedroom windows that meet at the corner of the room. I stretch, displacing Abby, who gets up and shakes. I…
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Sturgis
The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is an American motorcycle rally held annually in Sturgis, South Dakota. It lasts ten days and is usually during the first full week of August. In 1938, a group…
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In the Driver’s Seat
You may wonder about the logistics of traveling for an extended time, spending hours in my car. Generally, I store the necessities on the passenger side, within easy reach. My Yeti with my Chai…
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Pittsburgh
“Road trip!!!!” One month. One car. One woman. One dog. One spreadsheet of AirBnB reservations and destinations. Five hours to our first stop. I want Pittsburgh to be my first…
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OCNJ
After skipping through the parking lot on my very last day working for the retail giant who bought my practice, my first destination is my family vacation. My immediate family…
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Six Words
Brevity is a virtue. Brevity is a virtue. According to literary legend, novelist Ernest Hemingway was challenged to write a short story in six words. Hemingway’s now-famous six word story read:…
Introspective optometrist seeks inspiration and adventure
