There used to be a radio station in Detroit called WJOI back in the day when I was in grade school. My father would turn the stereo on to that station when he’d be working at home at night, and I was doing homework. I remember making fun of it, often calling it WDEAD for […]
You Can Go Home Again
I recently finished watching Star Trek: Picard Season 3 and went back to rewatch Season 1. I remember when the first season came out, and my curiosity about what the overall story might be. Patrick Stewart didn’t necessarily want to revisit The Next Generation, and I understood that. The show had run its course and, […]
Terri Nunn and Taylor Dayne Didn’t Betray Us
I sometimes forget I’m not a 15-year-old-boy, mostly when I’m listening to music from the years when I was that age. Or, perhaps, I feel like I’m that age even when I’m listening to an artist from those years who’s continued to release new music. Their voice always takes me back. Fondly. And I have […]
Welcome To Luxury Hospital! (Tales From A Frontline Worker)
Might you be one of those folks who walks into a McDonald’s, expects to order a succulent lobster sandwich and glass of vintage wine to wash it down with? I’m hoping you mumbled “Uh, no.” Why? Because you know what you go to a restaurant like that for. And might you be the kind of […]
Connections To The Curse Of Loss
One thing the holiday season isn’t short of is memories. My brain does this funny little thing of leaping and bounding from one topic to the next, all while somehow making connections that probably shouldn’t be there. I was thinking recently of some of the people no longer here who I greatly miss in this […]
The Little Unholy Terror Known As…Snowflake
I grew up with dogs. My first one was a Siberian Husky named Tashka. She had two blue eyes, was incredibly loving, and had a very playful personality, perfect for little 5-year-old me. Our second dog was another Siberian Husky, this one named Kira. Unlike Taskha, Kira was hell on four paws, prompting us to […]
The Signal And The Noise
November 9th marked the 5th year of my father’s passing. I don’t know if it’s a blessing things have been so absolutely ridiculous at the hospital that I glossed over it until today, or if I feel guilty about it. Regardless, I didn’t want it to go unmarked. It would perhaps have been impossible to […]
The Day I Was Called A Racist: A Front Line Healthcare Worker Perspective
My childhood was rooted in the 1970s, though my teen years, taste in music, and horror movies clearly took place and developed in the 1980s. I can’t say I grew up in a particularly diverse population in our small city. I remember a single African American student in my graduating class, and one Asian. Not […]
A Physical Manifestation Of Pain
Is it me, or do things hurt worse and cut much deeper as an adult than they did when we were children? I wonder if it has to do with our years of experience. The longer we’re alive, the more change messes with us, and we therefore feel losses so much more than if we […]
Don’t Put Me At Risk: A Front Line Healthcare Worker Perspective
A friend and co-worker approached someone a couple weeks ago who walked in the entrance of the hospital. It was early, probably before 5:30a.m., and this particular individual wasn’t wearing a mask. My co-worker walked up and politely told this person, as we are required to do, “Excuse me, but you need to wear a […]
