“The head comes up with options, the heart knows what it loves, and the gut makes decisions.” I was at a workshop in Big Sur, California, when I heard these words of distilled wisdom from another student. The magnificent cliffs above the Pacific Ocean punctuated the sentence with the crashing waves. Relaxed from the morning …Read More
Category: Journal
The Day That Broke Me
Admit or send home. The emergency room doctors have one basic decision. Is this person sick enough that they need to be admitted to the hospital? Or can they be treated and sent home to follow-up in the clinic? If you need hospital care, you are admitted under the care of your doctor. But if …Read More
Mondays and Holy Thursdays
I wish I could say that I was less confused. The garbage collection people sent me a notice to change the dates of collection from Wednesday and Saturday to Monday and Thursday. I’d like to set the record straight. In the age of euphemism starting sometime in the 1980’s, I understand that I might refer …Read More
Slip Sliding Away ~ Down the Grand Canyon
“you know the nearer your destination, the more you’re slip sliding away.” Paul Simon was slip sliding away in my head as I made my way down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Shorts, T-shirt, hiking boots, sunglasses, hat, suntan lotion… backpack with water, trail mix, snack bars. The group of four of us …Read More
AI generated images
Open AI’s DALL-E is a major upheaval in the world of photography. If you’ve been hiding in a cave, you might not know that AI stands for “Artificial Intelligence.” You also might not know that major advances have been happening and the world of AI is now in beta testing by different companies releasing the …Read More
When Breath Becomes Air ~ Paul Kalanithi
“In that first year, I would glimpse my share of death. I sometimes saw it while peeking around corners, other times while feeling embarrassed to be caught in the same room.” ~ excerpt from Paul Kalanithi’s When Breath Becomes Air In his last year of training to become a neurosurgeon, Dr. Paul Kalanithi is diagnosed …Read More
Fabry Disease ~ Slow Down
I shook the officer’s hand, and he let me go with a warning. Almost 20 years ago, I was driving through the beautiful state of Idaho. I was working there temporarily and exploring the parks and cities within several hours by car. I spent many weekends at Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. …Read More
Gossip at The Moth
“I think you got the lowest score,” said my dad. I went to The Moth StorySlam event in Miami on May 31st, 2023, where the theme was “GOSSIP.” As you would expect, the stories were juicy. In a city that is about 70% Hispanic, the Venezuelan emcee was the first to tell you that here …Read More
Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park ~ Lighthouse Keeper
“I’ve always wanted to be a lighthouse keeper,” said the vibrant volunteer tour guide, “It’s not quite the same, but this job has perks. I have keys to the lighthouse.” This past weekend, I visited Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park in Key Biscayne, Florida. They have daily tours of the lighthouse at 10am and …Read More
Fish School
Mornings at the beach in Southwest Florida are calm and serene. The Gulf of Mexico has fewer waves before the sun wakes up, and more importantly there are fewer people. Unless there is a storm coming, the air and the water are calm and almost still. Many years ago, I walked the beach as my …Read More