The year really began six weeks before the calendar turned over to 2016. It began on Nov. 15, 2015, when an aneurysm ruptured in my brain. That event kicked off a long sequence of events that made 2016 one of the most memorable years of my life. Many days it seemed as though my life … read more The year in review
Tag: friends
How you doing?
I was getting annoyed. The two cars ahead of me at the parking lot exit were taking forever. Daily parking is free so exit usually takes 10 seconds, but not these two – after handing in their ticket, they just sat there. When I got to the booth, I did the same thing. The attendant … read more How you doing?
I apologize
It’s Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, which I think is among the greatest of religious holidays. As my friend Erika explains beautifully, Yom Kippur is a good time to call those who are important to you and tell them that you value their love and friendship over whatever differences you may have. Yom Kippur is also the time … read more I apologize
The distance I feel
I used to love to talk to my sisters on the phone. We’d talk for hours. There was never enough time to talk to my sisters as much as I wanted to. I’ve got old friends who I used to talk with that way, too. Hours. Today, I talked to one of them. I squeezed it in … read more The distance I feel
Making room
I woke up to this post from my friend Lee Howard that smacked me in the face: You’ve all been so amazing and compassionate with the massacres at Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook, Paris, and Belgium and places far afield. … Guess what, it’s generally crickets chirping when it comes to a gay massacre in this country. … read more Making room
Haunted
I checked in on LinkedIn today and found it was haunted. Among the “People You May Know” LinkedIn suggests that I connect with: My father, who died six years ago My cousin, who died in January A neighbor, who four years ago killed his wife and then himself Two colleagues who have been dead for at least three … read more Haunted
Like that
Some ladies in my community wear makeup to water aerobics class. They don’t like to get their coiffed hair wet either. If I were still in my 30s I might make fun of them for that … but we’re all getting older, aren’t we? They look nice when they leave the fitness center – unlike me, with … read more Like that
The secret to happiness and health
For 75 years, Harvard has been tracking a group of ordinary American men and their families. From the thousands of pages of research that this study entailed, they found out the secret of happiness and health. You can hear all the details in a TED talk, below, or … … you can read my summary here. … read more The secret to happiness and health
Curves and ice
I was standing at the stove cooking, and suddenly it hit me again: the ax in the head. I wasn’t having another aneurysm rupture. Just for a moment, I was re-living it. The fear that gripped me. Being alone. The pain and dizziness out of nowhere – no warning at all. One minute I was … read more Curves and ice
Watch over me
It’s only this week, now that I feel almost fully recovered from the brain surgery, that I realize what a big deal it was. Eleven weeks today, almost to the minute, since that aneurysm ruptured and I collapsed on the floor. I really did almost die. And the surgeons really did dig through my brain. … read more Watch over me