No one gets out alive. So it’s a particularly rich irony that so many people insist on denying death, planning for it, or even mentioning it. But that’s a topic for another time — and another website. The reality of death hits many people hardest when they lose a beloved pet. And try as they […]

It was a very long day yesterday. Daddy had been sick for a few days and even though I wanted to take him to the doctor days earlier, he and Mama had resisted. I should have put on my big girl pants and insisted but I’m still “the child.” Day 1 – Late evening… “Your […]

The day of Thanksgiving I came down with a bad head cold and a queasy stomach. It was a long bout with that bug and I’m still getting over some of the symptoms. I started drinking ginger ale for my stomach ailments along with a multi-purpose cold pill. After a few days I noticed my […]

Many of the nation’s 40 million family caregivers are caught in a bind made worse by state policies requiring them to work a number of hours in paid jobs every month to retain the insurance coverage provided by Medicaid, called Medi-Cal in California. They simply cannot take time away from their caregiving duties to do […]

My mama often complains that my daddy spends too much time watching television. He loves sports and those crazy judge shows along with James Garner in Rockford Files. He tries to ignore her but in the end, she does make a difference. Too much time watching the “boob tube” will indeed turn your brain to […]

The stories of your family and the people you come from are locked away in your elders’ minds. The holiday season is the perfect time to ask them, “Who am I and who did I come from?” If you don’t think the answers will be very interesting, just hold on to your hat! There’s a […]

Yesterday my BFF and I started out for town to do the last of our Christmas Shopping. I got a little more than I bargained for. Lesson learned — watch out for those cement car stoppers. After a successful trip to the Tractor Store and the Dollar Tree, Linda and I headed on over to […]

When the sun fails to shine through the clouds and the weather turns cold a lot of us get a little blue. My daddy is one who hates the winter. He’s like an old bear who decides it’s time to hibernate. He turns up the heat, gets in his recliner and chooses to snooze — […]

The fervor sets in around the middle of October, when pumpkins appear, seeming to beg to be carved into jack-o-lanterns and homeowners give in to the newish tradition of putting up ornate and ghoulish yard decorations. Then comes the demand to focus on being thankful, with gatherings of family members and the hand-wringing over serving […]