What Keeps me Here

I’ve been thinking about the processes of starting and stopping, sliding and progressing, and even completely falling off the path. While the desire to move forward in a positive direction seems to have been planted somewhere deep inside, motivation is at best a flakey companion. I’ve had periods of time, okay decades, where I felt Read More

At least…

I know it’s been awhile since I posted; all my new year’s intentions about every other day have fallen away. Drifted into the land of “I Should” like a lot of other intentions and habits I’ve cultivated over the last few years. If you’re reading today and searching for inspiration…you may want to look elsewhere. Read More

See You Soon

There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children. One of these is roots, the other, wings. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe I started to subtract blocks of time. To quantify my reality so I could digest it. To justify why I personally, as a mom of divorce and shared custody, am Read More

Musings from a sober anniversary

Last weekend, we spent our 12th wedding anniversary in San Francisco. We stayed at the Mark Hopkins, and took in a Giants game and the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibition. In between the two, we had appetizers and drinks at the Top of the Mark, the place where my husband proposed. This venue, with its panoramic Read More

Stops and Starts

You stop: Waiting for next time to be different. Waiting for five o’clock Waiting to feel better. Waiting not to feel. Waiting for “good times” Waiting for “me time” Waiting to celebrate Waiting to live And you realize that: It is different Every hour is significant You do feel better Feeling is part of life Read More

Alcohol Alternatives that will Make You Glad You Don’t Drink

One of the things about summer and hotter weather is that we tend to drink more. We’re thirsty and cool beverages taste good. As this is my third sober summer, my taste in alcohol free beverages has expanded to include more than just water, sparkling water, or diet soda. I want to share some of Read More

Nestled in the Center

Soul is a place, the innermost Russian nesting doll. Anne Lamott, Dusk, Night, Dawn This beautiful line by one of my favorite authors struck me with truth and sent my imagination on a journey. Through the stages and seasons of our lives, our souls remain nestled and protected in the center. Layers accumulate, not reliably Read More

Sobriety: Land of the Free, Life of the Brave

We spent my birthday, also the Fourth of July, at the beach. I grew up near the beach but now live about 2.5 hours away, so there are times I only visit the ocean once a year or so. Each time, I am transported to my happy place; a full sensory experience. The waves are Read More

Take Your Time

In my last post, I wrote about questioning societal norms and pastimes. About how the message that popular culture, the media and advertising feeds us is that we are incomplete without buying, consuming and accepting what is being peddled to us as members of society. The widely accepted view is that drinking is fun, solves Read More

Not Buying What They’re Selling

I celebrate another trip around the sun on the 4th of July; I’ll be 46. The process of me moving through my 40s, what I consider middle age, combined with the experience of me getting sober is causing a lot of reflecting and assessing. It invites me to think about the world I see around Read More