New Release: The Ultimate Makeup Journal
Do you use makeup? I bet you have more than you technically need (I know I do). Maybe several of one particular kind — say lipstick, eyeshadow — plus a few rattling around in a drawer that you just can’t let go of. Maybe because of the way one brings out the light in your…
Sisters, Friends, and Sister-Friends
I used to think that friendship was built in person. The internet taught me differently when it gifted me my tribe of a chronic illness community. In my tribe the, the wise woman is Cathy Kramer. Cathy and I met ten or so years ago, when she started writing for HealthCentral, and we kept being…
In Which I Regain A Part of Me That Had Been Lost
I watched The Meg yesterday and it was life-changing. But I should start at the beginning. I love film — I mean, who doesn’t? — and used to go to the movies all the time. Especially after I moved downtown to an area that has a discount movie theatre. Once a week or so, I’d…
Based in Joy
Last Thursday, The Boy and I went to Chris Hadfield’s Generator in Toronto. David had asked me whether I wanted to stay home, given the news about my dear friend Laurie, but I said no, let’s go. If anything, she taught me about saying yes as much is possible and living with a capital L….
Bookend Fandom: A Letter of Gratitude to Johnny Clegg
It was Scatterlings that hooked me. I was in first year university at the U of T Scarborough campus, moving from one class to another, when I first heard the unmistakable joyful beat of a Johnny Clegg song, this one from his first group Juluka. Fairly soon after that, I bought the album Campus radio…
One Year Later
I’m so glad to be here. I wanted to write something for today. One year ago, on March 30, 2016, things went south after I was extubated, I flatlined, but through some highly skilled intervention, I survived. That is one hell of a miraculous gift. Although I am normally full of words about the experience,…
Walking in A Cloud
It was a fairly dismal March day — cloudy, with tiny pellets of snow pelting my face as we walked west. We were in need of adventure, but uncertain what kind, so decided to pick a direction and see what happened. Union Station loomed ahead and since neither The Boy or I could remember when…
In Which a Zombie Is Conceived
Some people call it their re-birthday. This is more fun. A year ago today the seeds of my becoming a zombie were sown. Well, truth be told they were probably sown a few days to a week before that. If we are going to stay in this metaphor, a year ago today was the moment…
2016: One Hell of a Year
Well, that;s been quite something, hasn’t it? 2016 was a year that had opinions about what should happen, made it so, and many of us didn’t like it. For one, it was, in the words of the Toronto Star, “the year the music died.” David Bowie left us in early January and I’m still not…
Santa and Lucia Converge
The two most important events that herald the beginning of the Christmas seasons are — to me at least — the Santa Claus Parade and the Swedish Christmas Fair. They happen to be on the same weekend, and the parade is much closer, so it wasn’t until a couple of years ago that I started…
I Survived the ICU
Trigger warning: Medical trauma So, where was I? The last time I posted, I had the flu and was pretty miserable. It was the precursor to a roller coaster ride into a very dark place. The flu turned into pneumonia, which sent me to the hospital in the middle of March. There was a trip…
How Do You Live Well with Rheumatoid Arthritis when it has a Mortality Risk?
RA has a mortality risk. When it hit the news that Glenn Frey of The Eagles had died from complications of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and other conditions, it was an uncomfortable reminder that this disease with which we live doesn’t just make life pretty challenging, but that it can actually kill us. How do you…