This morning I repeatedly checked the patient portal at my oncologist’s office for my ovarian cancer lab work. It has been eight weeks since my previous lab test and twelve years since my diagnosis. Although I’ve been able to keep a cool head living with cancer, I’m still really nervous when it’s time for lab work. My husband David, […]
Voices in My Head
Since my retirement in late 2018, I’ve developed a deep appreciation for the magic in writing. Since I don’t understand the complexities of thought that result in creative, spontaneous ideas, the word magic will need to suffice. Yesterday, I was writing a scene I’d planned for my historical novel. An older doctor in 1906 visits a dear friend, […]
There’s Something about my Garden
The news is ugly. The virus isn’t completely gone and my friends are still nervous – what’s the final say on the masks? World peace is like an acrobat balancing on a high wire. But, my garden, my earthy spot of joy, is on steroids cranking out berries, beans and tomatoes. My life-long fascination with gardening started when […]
What’s on Your Nightstand?
The year is 1906. Birth control and abortion are both illegal. What’s a girl to do?
My 20%
If I were to describe myself, I’d say I exist inside the proverbial box 80% of the time. I take comfort in my routines, particularly my morning coffee. I turn in early, write early and eat early. My habits help me stay productive, and typically I’m in bed at 9 or 9:30 when my eyes give out. I […]
“Poppy, are we there yet?”
Sitting at the kitchen table, scanning the ‘It’s a year later’ Sunday Times headline stories, I can’t help but think back to myself as a child, unbuckled (there were no seatbelts) in the rear seat of my father’s car, on our endless drives to visit our grandparents in Brooklyn. Those car rides felt interminable as our eyes bounced […]
Angry? Try Writing!
I’m not especially comfortable dealing with anger, my least favorite emotion. Gauging the ‘correct’ reaction to a slight has never come easily. As an avid observer of others, I look for good examples of anger management and occasionally try them on. Typically the fit feels awkward. Now, as a writer striving to amp up my work with tension, […]
Eliza Doolittle – Me….
I finished my last draft! Next, professional editing. Eighteen months – over 2,100 hours of research, writing, editing, classes and reworking the story. Still struggling with the title, but it’s ready to hand off to a real editor. I’m the Eliza Doolittle of the writing world, an unpolished fraud attempting to find my way in – to tell […]
Cancer Surgery In Times of Covid-19
I couldn’t have chosen a worse time, but for the third time in 20 years I needed a major abdominal surgery to right-size my disease. My wonderful oncologist could no longer tackle with job with pills and maintenance chemotherapy alone. With inpatient COVID-19 volumes rising, the hospital made a policy decision to ban visitors, including family, so it […]
Is This Really School?
Two neat computer work areas were arranged in my dining room. One at each end of the table. Both computers were surrounded by carefully arranged note books, pencils, crayons, markers, reading and math books, chapstick, hand cream, and computer glasses. All set for school to start at 8am sharp. Anticipating the lack of in-person stimulation, I ordered two […]