Second post of the day, but not for a very good reason. It's been six months since we lost my cousin, Logan. It's funny that we use that word. Lost. Like finding the person is an option or possibility at some point. "Lost" conjures up a temporary condition. Maybe that's why we use it. We [...]
Yesterday was my dog's first birthday. We actually thought it was this coming Monday (based on our best estimates), but our friend* who got a puppy from the same litter posted her dog's picture on Facebook and, well, oops. I'm guessing most people don't celebrate their dogs' birthdays. We're a little odd**. On the one [...]
Logan finally came home yesterday. For those of you not following the story, my 24-year-old cousin drowned about a month ago at Lake Almanor, California. They didn't find his body for about three-and-a-half weeks. My aunt finally got his ashes yesterday. To say this was an arduous process would be an understatement. I don't want [...]
The Plumas County Search and Rescue called today. Logan was found. He'd floated to the surface and was spotted by a fisherman near the Pennisula, much farther away than we ever thought he'd be. Now it's just a matter of waiting for them to bring him home. Well, bring his ashes home, really. We're all [...]
So I'm back in the saddle. At least that's the plan. Research shows that if a person smiles, it actually causes her brain to think she's happy. So in keeping with that theory, I'm just concentrating on doing what I do best -- writing, complaining, yelling at the kids -- in an attempt to start [...]
So after more than three weeks of mini-hell, we walked the kids back into their old school today. They were greeted like heroes coming back from the war. The only thing missing was the swell of orchestral music in the background. We're picky when it comes to school. Like, super, uber picky. If I weren't [...]
When I was a kid, my mom's side of the family -- all the crazy Polacks -- would get together for Thanksgiving every year. We'd switch off venues. Sometimes our place in Nevada, sometimes southern California or the Bay Area. Any way you cut it, it was pure chaos. Forty-plus people stuffed into a house [...]
My mom died a year ago today. I've heard people say this sort of thing a bunch of times, but it still feels like she's just on vacation in Asia or something. It's like we haven't seen her and she hasn't called for a while, but surely she'll be home soon.Today was actually fine. We [...]
I cleaned my house today. It was my birthday, and I cleaned my house.Now, some people may think this sounds like the absolute worst possible birthday they can imagine. I say "some" because I already know that there are plenty of other people (mostly friends of mine with kids, big houses, and busy lives) who [...]
Yes. Christmas. If you've lost a loved one, you have to "make it" through two big things: the funeral and the holidays. The former is like a party you've worked really hard to plan at a church you don't attend with all of your best friends who are crying their eyes out. This is all [...]
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