Comments for So Shiny

Comment on Eight Healthy Non-Dieting Resolutions for the New Year by M.A.

M.A. — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 21:39:42 +0000

Sugar’s much harder to give up than booze, for me. I’ll have a glass of wine occasionally, but show me a box of cookies/candy and I will eat it. All. So why aren’t there 12-step programs for sugarholics?

Comment on Give the Gift of Life, Be a Bone Marrow Donor! by Corrie @ Blurb Column

Corrie @ Blurb Column — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 17:06:32 +0000

Wanted to let you know that I registered and my testing kit should be here in a couple weeks. Also, I have been highlighting a charity on my blog every day for the month of December for my “month of giving”, but I think that this is valuable and am going to highlight the NBMD as well. I will link to this post when I do. Thanks for getting the word out. My grandpa died of melanoma 13 years ago and I know they were using stem cell treatments to try and treat him prior to his passing.

Comment on On “Losing” and NaNoWriMo by Corrie @ Blurb Column

Corrie @ Blurb Column — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 16:27:45 +0000

“Adults don’t need to be told they are “winners” in order not to spiral into suicidal depression.” Love this thought! This idea that there is no “losing” in life, and that if one just shows up they, too, are a winner tweaks me in a big way! I see this with my classmates every day.

Comment on A Year Without Dieting by Renee S (@pinkypie)

Renee S (@pinkypie) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 19:57:15 +0000

I realise you wrote this post a while ago, but how refreshing to find it! I’ve recently made the decision after two years of a net zero KG weight loss that I’m not longer going to live like this. In fact, it’s NOT living. I don’t need to be a particular number to be happy, to appreciate all my very healthy and fit body does for me, and so what if my BMI says that technically I’m overweight. The time to start living is now, without dieting. There’s no reason to not eat and behave in a way that reflects the respect I feel for myself ; so “not dieting” doesn’t equal “stuff face daily until bursting out of clothes – it just means I’m free to love and appreciate who I am RIGHT NOW.

Thank you for this

Comment on Should Doctors Send Sympathy Cards? by Catherine

Catherine — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:42:02 +0000

I agree. The reason that the rituals and words (I’m sorry for your loss) feel cliche is that they are very effective and powerful. We did receive a beautiful potted chrysanthemum from the group home organization. I really love it, and am looking forward to planting it in the yard.

Comment on Should Doctors Send Sympathy Cards? by jenbusick

jenbusick — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:00:42 +0000

When I bought my house in Kentucky, the realtor gave us a lovely and appropriate housewarming gift (bookends. She had heard us talk about our books, and about needing space for them, when looking at houses). She also sent a card.

When we bought our house in Alabama, I believe we also received a housewarming gift, albeit a less memorable one.

Every single person in our household gets a birthday card with a gift certificate for a free slice of cake at a local bakery from my financial advisor. He does this for all of his clients.

When my husband’s grandmother died, the nursing home where she had lived at the end (another place where many people die) sent flowers to the funeral home, IIRC.

You could argue that in some cases, the motive is to encourage repeat business, but the simple fact is that I also felt that we had developed a good rapport with those realtors, and the financial advisor’s secretary has in fact become a personal friend who babysits my kids and has lunch with me when I’m in town. I did not and do not feel like those gestures are entirely motivated out of selfish interest. IIRC, my mother-in-law was touched by the flowers from the nursing home. Done properly — signed, for example, by the actual caregivers — these gestures carry real meaning, and real comfort.

There’s a value in that that cannot be calculated in dollars. But too many hospitals and caregiving institutions are run by people who count only in dollars.

Comment on Give me a sign by Catherine

Catherine — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 19:51:31 +0000

Thank you, Sandra. Because I’m a science writer who has been accused of being a creationist in the past, it feels a bit insecure to share this, but at the same time I think it’s something many people have experienced.

Comment on Give me a sign by Sandra Tayler

Sandra Tayler — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 19:37:44 +0000

Thank you for sharing this. I love how you break out the experiences and describe them as separate from your interpretations of them. I’m trying to let experiences exist without always lashing them to stories, so I found your descriptive process beautiful. The interpretations you have applied are also lovely and ring of truth to me.
Be well and carry on.

Comment on My Understandings About Death, Let Me Show You Them by Ken Garber

Ken Garber — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 22:10:45 +0000

Dear Catherine,
I’m so sorry for your loss. But I appreciate your thoughtful reflections on death, and your willingness to share them. Best, Ken

Comment on Moving On by Corrie @ Blurb Column

Corrie @ Blurb Column — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 04:26:40 +0000

Catherine-my heart feels for you. Our stories are so similar. My mom has bi-polar 1, with many other facets to her mood/anxiety disorder. I, too, have been her caretaker and “parent” beginning in my early childhood. I can SO empathize with ALL of your feelings: relief, regret, sadness….While I am thankful everyday that my mother survived her illness last fall, I hold no illusion that we are not bound for those waters again in our future. I fear for her death. Not only because I fear being without a mother, but like your mom, I fear that my mother will not pass peacefully. I fear that her life of struggle, torture and pain will hang on to the bitter end.
In any case, I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your story. I’m so sorry for the loss of your mom. I pray the universe will give you strength and peace. Corrie