So, it’s been awhile since I blogged last and the only thing I’m going to say about that is that I’ve missed it. Also, a lot has happened in the world. The Amazon is burning. Today, in advance of his trip to the G7 this weekend, the Orange Nightmare threw the stock market into free-fall … Continue reading Betty, Who Ran Out of Lives Too Soon: A Cat Tale, with Claws
Tag: death
Mom died on February 25th. Her funeral was in Utica, New York; yesterday was her memorial service. This is the eulogy I wrote and read yesterday. Eulogy II The first Tuesday after Mom’s funeral, I woke up and, because it has been part of my waking-up ritual for what seems like forever (even though it … Continue reading Death: the most unlikely of happy endings or ‘Bossiest Eulogy Ever’
So many other things I’d rather be writing about today (eg: my new puppy or Argo, the coolest road-worthy amphibious Canadian export ever). Instead, I'm writing a cautionary tale about the hazards of being good at other peoples’ lives. There’s hardly anything easier. After all, who doesn’t know better than someone who hasn't dealt directly with an issue … Continue reading Suicide as clickbait is stigma in action, starring XO Jane & Amanda Lauren Kass
Donald J. Trump is a man his supporters would avoid like gay pride parades if he were saying the things he says while unshaven and pushing all his worldly possessions in a shopping cart. But he wears bespoke suits and lives and works in buildings with his name on them. So instead of being called … Continue reading Up from the grave to denounce a naked emperor
The house is so quiet. No one needs to go outside before we go to bed. There are no clacking feet in the middle of the night, the prelude to a trip down the stairs and outside into the dark. No one needs to go outside first thing in the morning. And no … Continue reading A bottle of wine and a cat: Surviving the first dogless days
I’m writing this with a view. Tuki is lying with her head on my outstretched leg. In two hours, she will be gone and I will be bereft. I’ve never had to put a dog down before. In between writing, I put my hand on her head and stroke the space from just above her … Continue reading Goodbye, Tuki, and thank you for 15 amazing years.
July 12, 2015 Dear United: It’s a beautiful day here at Buffalo Niagara International Airport. Your white planes, with their gray/green logo-festooned tails look particularly striking against the blue-wash sky and gray tarmac. I’m sitting here at Gate 10, surrounded by what is rapidly becoming a small community of marooned souls, and in that group … Continue reading An Open letter to United Airlines, with a Postscript to Southwest: The skies were friendly, the ground – not so much.
Four Februarys ago, I attended two funerals in the same week. It was the first time that had happened. A month later I was in New York hanging out with my niece and nephew. My sister had decided to fly down from Edmonton during their spring break, and New York is always a great place … Continue reading Ruth Goldbas & Ernie Banks, who died old, and Baki, who died young
Like most working people in the US, where Christian culture is majority culture, I’d been looking forward to a couple of days off at Christmas. It’s not my holiday. But I get to partake of its best parts because Sweetheart’s family is a mashup of Lutherans, atheists who grew up as Lutherans & Catholics-by-choice. Sweetheart … Continue reading ‘I’m not big on long goodbyes’ or Death at Christmas
Spoiler alert: I’m going to talk about the picture at the top of this blog. If you don’t want to know what’s going on, stop reading. I didn’t know Kit was taking the picture. I was busy scattering our friend Julie’s ashes. I'd never done anything like that before and was apprehensive. Then I got my handful. They … Continue reading How to become part of a musical instrument
the sentence factory 