I had a very bad week. It began with taking our seventeen-year-old cat to the vet because she had stopped eating and started hiding in the closet. I hoped the vet would give her medication, and she would soon be back to herself. Instead, after the vet gave her a checkup and felt a “mass,” she recommended an ultrasound. We waited in the exam room for the results. When the vet returned, she spoke words, but all I heard was “cancer.” She showed us the X-rays and explained that our cat would not recover and would only continue to suffer.
Goodbye 2025 (don’t let the door hit you on the way out)
The year 2025 began–well, I can’t recall how the year began—it now seems too long ago. Let’s just say, the year began sometime in January. I remember almost nothing about the month except two things. A sad memorial for my brother, who brought so much joy to me during his life. And a day of celebrating Jerry’s birthday at Olive Garden. “Would you like more soup?” a server asked. Oh, no thank you, I say politely. “Oh, but it’s endless, I’ll bring you more, and more, and how about more breadsticks?” I recall not feeling well after we left.
Seven Marketing Tricks That Need To End
1. So Rich You Look Poor
Who thought to take a pair of jeans, rip gaping holes at the knees with lots of dangling threads and sell the jeans at ridiculous prices? Celebrities, the very rich ones, like to be seen wearing jeans with raggedy holes. I remember a time when people who wore jeans with holes carried tin cups and asked us if we could spare some change. Not anymore. You need to be quite wealthy to wear jeans with ripped holes in the knees. Don’t think you can gash holes in your Kirkland jeans from Costco. You have to have a designer label and have paid well over one-hundred dollars for your holey jeans to be authentic.
Words Have Power (for better or worse)
Don’t Say Words That Start With P
As a young child, I made a rule for my mom to follow.
Whenever I heard Mom say words beginning with the letter P, I clapped my hands over my ears. I then stated my rule in my best displeased voice, “Mom, don’t say words that start with the letter P.”
I made this rule due to the way Mom pronounced P-words. She didn’t just say “potato.” She said “PUH-tay-toe” with the PUH-sound having strong emphasis. She said other P-words with similar intensity like PIH-ckle and POHP-corn and PEE-aches. This didn’t settle well with my ears.
A River Runs Through It (on my birthday)
“Jerry! Don’t do it!”
“Why not? I can make it. It’s not a problem.”
Jerry stopped our GMC Terrain and we sat in our car watching the melting snow flood the road ahead like a raging river. The runoff raced over the road, obstructing our path, then disappearing into a precipitous drop toward the swelling creek below. We didn’t see shortcuts or detours. If we wanted to continue on, we had to drive through the river. I, for one, did not want to travel through the top of a waterfall. One misstep and our car would be tumbling downward.


