I entered the Christmas season in denial, hoping that if I did nothing about it, that maybe it wouldn’t come. I shopped reluctantly, grumpy to be once again adding to the consumption problem we all face, knowing that the things I bought now would be stuffed into a green...
...continue readingArchive
It’s the little things, like snow tires and puppies
Life as a Dog? An Odyssey
Ok, let’s just say for a minute that you got an email one day from an anonymous woman telling you that your dead husband had been reincarnated into the form of a pedigreed, German Shepherd puppy, born on what would have been your twentieth wedding anniversary. Would you, a) Laugh and...
...continue readingDogless One Year Later
Harley on Vashon Ever since Harley died almost a year ago, Olivia has begged for a replacement and our circular conversation goes something like this: Me: Liv, I really don’t want another dog. It will be me who takes care of it. I will be the one who winds up walking...
...continue readingHarley: Feb 8, 1994 – June 16, 2009
Her last act was sniffing the vet’s pocket and then happily gobbling 3 cookies before the sedative took hold and her head slowly nodded down until she laid her chin on the floor between her front legs, which is how she remained until the end, which was very peaceful...
...continue readingThe Loss of a Furry Best Friend
I remember riding home on the tube over 15 years ago, Harley, a tiny bundle of cuteness tucked first in Arron’s lap and then mine as we argued like two year olds over who got to hold her. “How about Dolby?” Arron asked me, trying on a name as he...
...continue readingMagical Moments
I had dinner alone with my daughter last night. She has decided she needs to try new things, so she asked to go to a Thai restaurant. She ordered a yellow curry and I got a Pad Thai and we both enjoyed it all. What’s not to love? We...
...continue readingBarrel O Laughs
A few updates: 1. I have not killed the dog. She lumbers along and I follow picking up either her or her poop. 2. Still trying to figure out the new washer/dryer. I keep putting the duvet into the dryer, but can’t seem to make it go for more than 54...
...continue readingDeath with Dignity
It might be ironic that today begins the new Death with Dignity act in the State of Washington, just now, when I am up to my eyeballs in dogginess. We have an old Golden named Harley. She is 15 now and I am usually awakened two or three times a...
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Learning to live again after the sudden death of my husband Arron on 9/11. I wrote my book, The Alchemy of Loss, as a testament to finding the silver lining of grief and loss, to discovering the defibrillator effect of trauma and its power to awaken us into really living. I now live in Seattle with my two teenaged kids.
