Leisure The Land of Patchouli Whenever the boy and I go out, we meet the smell of patchouli. I had smelled it on previous occasions, but have never been met with it on such frequency as when him and I attend concerts, gatherings and events across the East. We frequent many concerts, fitting since we
Life U.S. Immigration as Flawed as Ever Word spread quickly of a Marine's widow and their child's (1) inability to legally immigrate to the US because of an old U.S. immigration law requiring their marriage to be consummated. Having faced my own immigration battles, I knew the system had its' faults,
Life Long Distance Relationships Warn torn lovers used to write letters daily by pen, and wait anxiously for weeks at a time until letters arrived. They longed and wondered and dreamt of the day they would be together. Today, the long distance relationship has been boldly transformed thanks to the Internet and other technological
Life How to Survive Office Gossip Nothing is worse for your work environment, then nasty office gossip. Whether you see a co-worker in public with someone who is not their girlfriend, you hear through the grapevine that the head of accounting slept with his receptionist, or whatever the case may be, office gossip can be detrimental
Leisure Pocomoke River State Park in Snow Hill, Maryland - A Great Alternative to OCMD Campgrounds Pocomoke River State Park - Shad's Landing 3461 Worcester Highway Snow Hill, MD 21863 Camping is by far one of my favorite past times. Camping near the beach certainly tops my list of great things to do outdoors. If you enjoy Maryland beaches, such as Ocean City, and
Life Gut and Gumption I am constantly surprised when I go to therapy and I find out that I'm doing pretty well considering everything. Rather than letting my issues compound, like I used to do when every new upset arose, now I get through one or two or ten things and move
Leisure Cutting through the Mountain Cutting through the Mountain While driving across I-76 to Johnstown, PA for Polkafest today, I had some realizations about road travel, faith, and life; how they all intertwine (in my book). I recorded these thoughts (handsfree, don't worry), so take a listen when you have about 20 minutes
Leisure Preparing for the Trip of Any Lifetime Whenever I go away, there's typically a ritual I follow of preparing for a trip. It doesn't matter if it's a weekend trip, like the one I leave for tomorrow morning (Polkafest here I come!) or like last year's venture to Costa
Life Underlying Pressure Under pressure. Underlying pressure. Two very different things. I have felt a lot of underlying pressure lately. Ok, my entire life. The pressure to live up to some hidden and righteous expectation. The pressure that things should go exactly as I see them. But that's just not how
Life Merging of Family It had been 2 years since I last saw my in laws - Kevin's brother and mother came to visit me and my family this week. The merging of new and old worlds. They met my boy, his family, and to me, it all felt just right. It
Life Committing to This I feel like I am in a constant state of transition. If it's not something new, it's something new I want. I seek it out. I thought this Summer would be filled with possibilities, and it is, just not what I expected. I'm booked,
Life Top 70+ SPF Sunscreens For those of us blessed with pale, milky skin, going outside can be absolute torture. I have grown up with very pale skin, and my family and I have tried everything under the sun to get proper, safe skin protection from the sun. One of the first products I found
Life Just Be I should have become an anthropologist. I love people - being involved with them, interacting with them, watching their mannerisms, and of course, judging them. A friend said to me tonight that she wasn't worried about cleaning before I came over because I wouldn't judge her.
Local My Love/Hate Relationship with Lancaster City Having lived in Lancaster City for most of the past 5 years (plus an additional 1.5 before a brief stint in Montana and living with my parents) I feel I can truly call myself a city gal. That being typed, though, I love nature, the woods, camping, and not
Life From Camp Widow & Beyond Camp Widow East: Amazing, connective, refreshing. Below is the blog I wrote while still at Camp Widow in Myrtle Beach, SC. I look forward to sharing more about Camp Widow soon! __ Hello and greetings from CrazyWidow & CampWidow CWx2. I realized, on my second year here at Camp Widow, that
Life Part Two: Widowed with No Children This Friday I will be leading a discussion on being Widowed with No Children at Camp Widow. Last year at Camp Widow I realized the amazing bond that nearly all widows have with one another. Being able to share our aches with one another was helpful and healing. I also
Life Part One: Widowed with No Children If you are able to attend Camp Widow in just over a week, you are in for a treat, because I'll be leading the round-table discussion on being Widowed with No Children. No, that's not really the treat - the treat is getting to connect with
Life CBS Dating Show I typically don't endorse anything unless I believe in it. But sometimes, you are presented something that is worthwhile passing along to others who might be interested. For my widow friends who are ready to date and a bit outgoing/adventurous, please click here to read information on
Life Choosing Me I can feel the surge of the wave of grief. The tide pulling me out, under, sucking the breathe out of me and causing my heart to race. This is what happens when the past overwhelms me. It has become even more difficult to deal with as my brain tries
Life He Would Be 40 When I see these pictures of Kevin, just about a month after his 36th Birthday, his last birthday on earth, I see such life. Kevin would be 40 on Saturday, April 7, 2012. It's a moment I know I, probably more than him, would have looked forward to.
Life Spring Cleaning for Home, Body and Mind It is the time of year when things come alive in the United States. The winter slowly begins its thaw. Random days of sunshine and rain usher in thoughts of picnics, beach vacations, and sunshine. With it, the sun shines into our homes, bodies, and minds reminding us of the
Life Why "Camping" with Widows is Important & How You Can Help Update: $20 into my goal of $375 - can you help me get to $100 today? Click HERE to donate. Last August I attended my first Camp Widow with the Soaring Spirits Loss Foundation in San Diego, CA. Not only was it my first Camp Widow, but I was presenting
Life I Almost Ran Over My Neighbor Today I almost ran over my former neighbor. I was driving to work, down one of 3 roads I take to get to the highway, and the one I drove on this morning was past our old address. The apartment that we first called home after living for a couple
Local Building a Life out of Words You have probably heard me mention Shawn Smucker a time or two before...the reason why is because he's a cool dude who happens have dedicated his career to writing - full time. To me, this says a few things: 1 - he's nuts. 2- he&
Life He's Been Dead Too Long... That day will be tomorrow. The day I've been dreading. The day Kevin will have been dead longer than I knew him. Why should this day matter so much? It really only matters as much as I focus on it, and, well, I'm focusing on it.
