Entries by Sallie

Stormy Weather

It’s so strange.  I was going to write about our (mis) fortune and (dis) pleasure of living in places known for their susceptibility to damaging storm activity. Ohio, where we lived for many years, always gets more than its fair share of tornadoes. The South Carolina coast, our current home, is unnecessarily hurricane prone. Both […]

If Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beholder…

. Then what is in the Ear of the Listener? Joy?  Conflict?  Happiness?  Sadness? It’s all that and more. But it can be tough when the words aren’t ours.  When they’re expressed in languages we don’t know.  Or speak.  Or understand.  But does that mean those words, those expressions, those feelings have no value?  Simply […]

SUITS

No, not bathing. Not birthday. Not monkey. No, I’m referring to the SUITS television show of many years ago.  Starring, among others, the one and only Meghan Markle.  Who, BTW, is not a bad actress and has great legs.  But I digress. We never watched a single, solitary episode of SUITS in its prime time.  […]

Polarization.

We have never experienced more visual, more guttural, or more powerful statements of polarization as we did during our life in Ohio.   Everything since has paled in comparison. We could always see it building.  Friends and neighbors taking sides.  Hard lines being drawn and compromise a mere word in the dictionary.    Signs were everywhere.  […]

Nothing Ventured…..

Nothing Gained. Such was the case with our great Ketamine experiment/experience of last week.  Ketamine is known to occasionally cause a high blood pressure spike after the injection and during the “experience.”  Apparently, I was vulnerable to that.  It was a no-brainer to quickly grasp that dystonia is one thing; a stroke would be quite […]

Ketamine.

Ketamine is a drug that produces hallucinogenic responses.  It can distort reality and perception.  Frequently, the user is not in control and feels disconnected to his/her environment. Under normal circumstances, I couldn’t run fast enough to get away from such a thing. Why then, am I choosing to have a Ketamine injection on Monday?  With […]

Observational Journalism.

A recent article in the New York Times Magazine caught my eye.  Written by a journalist, he encourages each of us to look around ourselves, recording everything we notice, including the people, sounds, smells, noises and screens.   In other words: wake up, smell the roses, and write it down. On a recent trip to the […]

What A Lovely Week It’s Been!

Early last week, my old friend, Agatha, grabbed me by the hand said: “Let’s go.  Let’s hop on The Blue Train out of Paris and we’ll be at the Riviera in no time at all.” “Pack your bags,” she said.  “There’s no time to waste. I’ve reserved compartments for each of us.  We’ll sup in […]

Opposing Viewpoints.

No, not opposing political viewpoints.    The views I’m talking about come from three inanimate objects in our house.  They might not have voices but their messages are loud and clear.  How can that be?   The three objects are, respectively, an Apple Watch and two hearing aids.  Here’s the problem:  The Apple Watch suggests that […]

They’re Back.

Of course they are. They’re as reliable as the tide.  They always return right before Thanksgiving.  And they always set up camp in the same small spot.  Just a bit down the sound from us.  Year after year. They’re the mergansers, of course.  Those sweet-faced little ducklings.  As part of their daily lives, they go […]

Where, Oh Where, Did Soft Go?

Not to make “weather” of it but did soft melt into a puddle on a hot summer’s day?  Or turn to ice on a freezing winter’s eve? Either way, from my perspective, soft got up and went away. Everything feels transactional these days.  So very “quid pro quo.”  If I do for you,  then you […]

Trust.

Trust is big issue. And not always an easy one to manage. In whom do we put our trust?  The media?  Our family?  Our friends?  Our country? And do we trust any of those entities unconditionally and with our whole hearts? Or is it a matter of trust but verify?  The phrase not originated but […]

The Christmas Spirit.

(This is either a same/old same/old or a tradition, depending on your point of view. Either way, our family wishes the best for you and yours this Christmas and in the New Year.) The year was 1961.  I was working in Boston at the New England Conservatory of Music as a receptionist. It was, in […]

What To Do?

That’s the question and I know the answer.  But I can’t just toss it out.  He’d notice.  Just like he noticed the disappearance of the double boiler many, many years ago.  I don’t want to revisit that.  No one does.  The mere thought brings shivers.   Here’s the problem:  A thoughtful person recently gave The […]

The Tale of the Lost and Found Tissue.

That would be the tissue that was lost because it got tucked in a pocket or stuck in a  sleeve. That would also be the tissue that was found.  In the washing machine.  In a billion little white bits.  Yep.  We’ve all been there and done that. Most say: “Oh no, not again!” I say […]