I just spent the last 12 hours sitting with a man who is dying of cancer. When I walked into his room this morning he showed all the signs of being minutes away from death. 12 hours later when I finally acquiesed and went home, he was still exhibiting the same signs. I watched as his priest came in and gave him absolution from his sins. I held his hand and we talked - about any and everything. His body doesn't want to give up; it's still fighting what the cancer has done to hi...

I had my first taste of Coca-Cola Blak today. It tastes like what it says it is - a mix of cola and coffee.  It's like drinking a carbonated frappucino that's had a squirt of Coke syrup in it.  It's okay; I'd be happy to drink it every so often - but it's not going to be replacing the Coca-Cola Classic in my refrigerator. I think it's a gimmick; a product that will sell well at first because people are curious about it.  But, I can't see it being a long-term success. Then...

Yesterday Momma and The Big Guy came home with some other dawg.  I could hardly believe it.  I'M the only dog around here, I thought that they knew that.  So, I had to make sure that this other dawg knew that me, Henry, was the king of this house.  She had the audacity to get too close to MY toy, so I growled at her and showed her my teeth so that she'd know I wasn't messing around.  Anyway, we went outside and I was surprised to find out that she knew how to play. ...

Oh, why you look so sad? The tears are in you eyes, Come on and come to me now... Don't be ashamed to cry Let me see you through Because I've seen the dark side too When the night falls on you And you don't know what to do Nothing you confess Could make me love you less I'll stand by you I'll stand by you Won't let nobody hurt you I'll stand by you So, if you're mad get mad Don't hold it all inside Come on and talk to me now Hey, what you got to hide, I get an...

(by Henry, dharma's daschshund) Today was pretty boring.  My momma stayed in bed for a really long time - she was in there when The Big Guy told me to gopotty and she was there when the Little Guy and the Littlest Guy and Tall Girl and The Big Guy all went out and it scared me because usually my momma is in the room where they cook at and she wasn't there today, she was in her bed still.  I got really worried about her and so I went and jumped up and down by the side of her bed unti...

(In case anyone doesn't know, Henry is my daschshund - aka weiner dog) Ok, so like this is what I did today.... First The Big Guy came and knocked on the Little Guy's room and I was sleeping and it scared me and I didn't know who it was so I barked and The Big Guy told me shaddup dawg it's only me.  So then the Little Guy got up and told me to go outside and so I did and I took care of my business and then barked to let them know I was done and The Big Guy said shaddup Henry but he op...

Like many mothers and wives, I'm always on the lookout for new recipes and different meal ideas to feed my family for supper.  I have a rotating menu of things - tacos, spaghetti, lasagne, pork chops, stir fry chicken, different varieties of Hamburger Helper (Cheesy Hashbrowns are our favorite), shepherd's pie, steak and onion pie, roast beef....those are but a few of the things that are served for dinner chez Dharma. But they're old.  We've had them over and over and over again for...

I've going to start bellydancing.  I've been doing yoga for ages, but to be honest my heart's simply not in it anymore.  The on base classes have changed and I don't care for the new ones. The surgery has made it hard for me to attain and hold some of the poses, and some of them are simply not physically possible for me to do anymore.  I've been trying to find some way to reignite my passion for yoga, but I've been failing miserably.  Ever since I wrote the...

This was originally about Ashley Grace's baby blanket, but there's another thing going on right now that falls under the title 'a work in progress' too. This baddest of bad-ass baby blankets is really coming along well:   The stitch that I'm using has a right side and a wrong side to it, much like a piece of printed fabric.  In the photo the wrong side is facing the camera - the right side is much nicer to look at.  Also, the colors don't show well; the lilac ...

...so I can be ready to go. I'm not leaving home, I'm making a 'vigilance' bag so that next time I get asked to go sit with someone who's dying I can simply pick it up and be out the door - instead of having to run from room to room trying to find things I need to take with me.  The hospice requires that we be there within 2 hours of being notified, but I think that I should get there as soon as possible - the other day I was there within half an hour, but had I dawdled....I'd have been ...

Yesterday I was asked to go to a party at an assisted living community.  They needed some volunteers to go dance with the elderly residents. So today I've put on my best frock and my dancing shoes, applied some pretty pink lipstick and styled my hair, and I'm going to go waltz and two step with some nice 'young' ladies and gentlemen. It's at the other end of the spectrum compared to what I did yesterday as a hospice volunteer....but it's all part of the experience. I'm really looki...

Today I held the hand of a woman as she took her last breath.  Death came into the room, and when he left he took her with him. There was no fanfare, no drum rolls or flashes of lightning.  She simply stopped breathing. I was holding her hand when she left.  I think - no, I'm SURE - she knew I was there. About 20 minutes after she had left, Brahms lullaby came over the loud speakers, indicating that a baby had been born. As one leaves, so another comes, and the circle...

During my husband's long ongoing military career I have come to realize how important scent can be during a separation. When he was gone for a year, he packaged up one of his T-shirts that he slept in for 4 days and sent it to me.  Opening that baggie and smelling him was like a punch in the gut for me.  It was so...potent.  It didn't smell bad, it just smelt like him, and it made me cry.  I ended up putting that shirt on a spare pillow and sleeping with it alongside me in...

I had an appointment with the pain management doc yesterday.  We reviewed my pain level (yesterday was about a 3; it was a really good day, painwise) and after he did some poking and prodding and a little tweaking of my medications he said I didn't have to come back for three months. I'm happy.  I'm happy with my meds, I'm happy with the amount of pain I'm experiencing (apart from today; I'm always sore after he pokes around and prods me), I'm happy that I don't have to go back f...

The Big Bad Baby Blanket project is underway. I've revised it slightly. Originally I wanted to produce and exact replica of this one: I was having a hard time finding yarn in the exact colors, so I was going to substitute some, but the yarns I was going to substitute had a different texture than the original ones and I didn't like that.  So, I tried to find some yarn in a similar color and texture and couldn't find it so I decided to go ahead with what I had.....but balked at it...