The Hellish Handbasket

Multiple times a day I suddenly enter my body and imagine how I would react if the retirement facility called to tell me she's gone. Fir...

Back in 2014, I knew something was wrong with my mother when she stopped folding her towels correctly. The proper way to fold a towel (any t...

I try not to think too much. It's my defense against cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance occurs when my body does one thing while...

As I scrubbed my bathroom floor (a once-in-a-lifetime event), I contemplated the impending end of another year. Everyday, I wonder if I will...

During the holidays, people like the idea of connecting more than they like the reality of connecting. A friend sent me a nice email to expr...

My mother lives in an assisted living facility that can handle most levels of care. Unless she punches the daylights out of her annoying tab...

Do you think about death a lot? I do. Could be the season (tomorrow is Halloween), could be the weather, could be the events happening in th...

Bless me, Blogbots, it's been weeks since my last post. I've been busy. I put fleastop on the cat. I went to the bank multiple times...

When times get tough, I queue up the songs that keep me going as I slog through my ongoing pity party. This week my soundtrack is mostly New...

I'm bone-dog weary, but I keep slogging through the days. On the bright side, sunshine! On the dark side, dementia! Life is a balance sh...

Two old ladies sit side-by-side in the smoking area. Sounds like the beginning of a joke, doesn't it? Last night the air was clear, the ...

Last week I realized my mother and I are both in a kind of limbo. We are waiting for the same event to occur: her death. She wants an end. I...

Today I went for a walk around the reservoir before the heat ramped up and the smoky air moved in. The air was warm, the sky was still blue....

A good day is when I get everything done on my list. A great day is when I get everything done plus one. Despite 97°F heat today, I got two ...

I pay attention to current events. Today the world avidly watches the Thai boys' rescue and the World Cup soccer matches. I don't ca...

My mother and her smoking buddy (I forget what name I've given her before ... today, let's call her Jane) are typically desperate to...

Today was a day of glorious sunshine. Tomorrow we return to clouds and rain. It is summer in Portland. We don't tan in Oregon, we rust....

 As I grind my teeth and wait for a chat rep from the phone company to magically fix my billing issue, I thought I could use the time to cat...