Anyone in New Orleans last night that didn’t stand lay in awe of mother nature and her majesty, you must have been anesthetized. It was, in a word, gnarly. You wake and the storm is still raging and you feel as if all routine must be put on hold to accommodate an unprepared for event – namely flooding streets, an electric light orchestra, pounding drums of thunder claps, and all the while you realize if…
3 doctor’s visits later: Long and short, DIAGNOSIS: alopecia areata, some patients have said intense emotional stress preceded the occurrence. PROGNOSIS: There is no known path, some recover hair in less than a year, some recover then lose again, some never recover, etc. Accompanied by thyroidism. PRESCRIPTION: My blood work yields low thyroid levels – hypothyroidism – we need to replace your thyroid, that butterfly organ (how appropriate). So pills, we’ll start at low dosage…
I have relied on the kindness of my friends to get me through most of my bad patches and this one is no different. A friend writes from New York: First, and most important: remember, bald women are sexy. Second, why are wigs for just the Black women? Rock it Lil’ Kim. But how about Lil’ Danger? … My wise friend Rachel told me: boredom is good, leads to change. Shaving my head and starting…
Da Capo By Jane Hirshfield Take the used-up heart like a pebble and throw it far out. Soon there is nothing left. Soon the last ripple exhausts itself in the weeds. Returning home, slice carrots, onions, celery. Glaze them in oil before adding the lentils, water, and herbs. Then the roasted chestnuts, a little pepper, the salt. Finish with goat cheese and parsley. Eat. You may do this, I tell you, it is permitted. Begin…
We walked through the waterlogged park this morning stepping across broad puddles and breathing in the fresh, clean air. It’s supposed to storm two more days and as Tin likes to say, “It’s dropping rain outside.” Nonetheless, rain or shine, on the way home from the park we saw a rainbow and although the tests are not done on this and that to figure out that and this, what has been made clear is that…
So the other day I ran into an acquaintance who said, “Whoa, you were a wild thing.” And I said, “Back in the day.” At this point the idea of dancing on a table top, tripping the light fantastic sounds like anathema. Oh my. Oh my. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, in his poem “Nature,” compares the old to a child who must “leave his broken playthings on the floor” and go to bed: So Nature deals…
Tin sat in his room instead of napping and ripped up a book that he loves. How often do I want to do the same thing? Instead, I went to two doctor’s appointments and am being recalled to one tomorrow and have another one as well as a meeting with the City about the Bridge. I have a few books I’d like to rip up. While I was reading about Steve Job’s petulance and brilliance,…
We went to a formal party the other night held in this beautiful hall across from Loyola and were celebrating friends birthdays – milestone ones – 50 and 60 – and well the theme was dance while you can. I was sitting, unaccustomed to high heels these days, I had been going since early morning and was flat out done before I showed up at the party. But nevertheless I enjoyed myself thoroughly. Everyone loved…
Yesterday was a master cyclone of output and little input, today a full day of input with very little output – makes me realize that no must be part of the vocabulary. I need many more days like today – meditate, walk to the park and feed the ducks, read the New York Times, read a book (reading the Steve Jobs’ biography), nap, eat a delicious lunch of broccoli and zucchini soup with a quesadilla…