Women's Issues Midlife And Beyond
Random Midlife Symptoms No, no, no. I am not old enough to be having these symptoms. Heck no. Just because I’m putting on weight for no apparent reason, and just because I’m not sleeping well, and, oh yeah, I’m sweating like a Lutheran who had no choice but to sit in the front pew at church, I’m not menopausal. I’m not…. Read More
The weather forecaster lied to me. Well, she lied to a bunch of viewers, but I took it personally. There was something about the way she faced the television camera that made me suspect she had her fingers crossed behind her back when she said, “Don’t worry! We will not have accumulating snow. The ground is still too warm.†Liar!… Read More
 “The tibetan word for mandala is kyilkhor. Kyil means ‘center’, khor means ‘fringe’, ‘gestalt’, ‘area around’. …Things exist interdependently, and that interdependent existence of things happens in the fashion of orderly chaos.” –Chogyam Trungpa  Ka-pow! Have you ever been hit by a moment of mental clarity so overwhelming, so powerful, it felt physical? It happened to me recently. I was… Read More
“It takes a lot of imagination to be a good photographer. You need less imagination to be a painter because you can invent things. But in photography everything is so ordinary; it takes a lot of looking before you learn to see the extraordinary.†—David Bailey A friend, who is part of a local art group I was considering joining,… Read More
Which defines your typical meal? A. Grab a plate out of the cabinet; dish up your food (hot dish? Skillet something or other?) in the kitchen, and then plop down somewhere convenient while watching television. B. Rip open the delivered box of pizza with your teeth because it smells Oh. So. Good. Pop the top off a bottle of beer,… Read More
Her vehicle pulled into the restaurant’s parking lot and I could barely make out her hand wildly waving at me. Nearly thirty years had passed since we’d last talked, and it was thirty years too long. Who was she now? Who was I? It’s hard to say why we lost track of each other. Tammy was a year behind me… Read More
I didn’t see it coming. That whole “how cute is he?†thing. A young boy wandered into my Aging Schmaging tent and looked around. I was a vender at Parley Lake Winery enjoying the last vestiges of a warm autumn day. He stared at my photographs, and then approached the table. “Does the candy cost anything?†he said. I had… Read More
Yep, I spread my um, wings, and took it all in. Me. Standing in front of a room of women delivering a message I believe in. Me. So shy that I avoid eye-contact most of the time, and yet there I was intentionally looking into the eyes of beautiful strangers as I encouraged creativity from their doubtful souls. Me. Tending… Read More
“Give me an example of how women struggle with self-esteem.†Our professor stood in front of the class, scanning the room, waiting for answers. At first the silence hung as thick as fog over a swamp, but then a young woman tentatively raised her hand. “Go,†said the professor. “Well, um, my sister is really pretty, but she feels she’s… Read More
Perhaps the sun needs a vacation. It’s been doing a stellar job of providing a summer to remember, but now it’s retiring earlier and earlier in the day.  Juuuuust before giving way to the cool night stars it inflames the horizon with glorious color.  This 8 x 72 habitoi silk scarf was created with the autumn night sky in mind.  Blues,… Read More
