November 19th is International Men’s Day (IMD). Feminists, don’t quip, “isn’t every day men’s day”? We accept IMD in part because feminism advocates social, economic, and political equality of the sexes. When we remember International Women’s Day (IWD) has been observed since the early 1900’s, celebrating the two different days a century later seems fair. […]
FOOD MATTERS
We often hear or read “we are what we eat” in discussions about nutrition. Recently I had the opportunity to put this adage to a test: instead of filling a prescription for a statin to address a new diagnosis of high cholesterol, I took six months to try and lower it through my diet. I […]
HEAD OR HEART?
In this post, guest writer Barbara Richardson discusses her bold and brave decision to introduce a puppy to her life. I love dogs. I bought a Labrador puppy when my son was nine as a companion for us when we moved to Kenya more than 20 years ago. We loved Rafiki (‘friend’ in Swahili) for […]
MIND THE BRAIN
Watching Christopher Nolan’s magnificent Oppenheimer twice and then reading articles about the “father of the atomic bomb” led me to contemplate the mind and the brain. Although the words differ in meaning, we tend to use them interchangeably. That’s okay for my musings. I admit to being in utter awe of Oppenheimer’s mind, about which […]
DATE YOURSELF
Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) Given my title, you may think this post will be about conversations in which you date yourself by revealing, intentionally or not, your age or generation. No. It’s about inviting yourself on a solo date and then doing what’s necessary to ensure a fine time. […]
WORLD MEDITATION DAY
In 1972 I took up transcendental meditation (TM) to combat severe insomnia. And it worked! Repeating my mantra silently (no, Tim, I won’t divulge it to you or anyone else) for twenty minutes once or twice daily enabled me to go from three hours of sleep a night to a healthy seven. This cure — […]
HOW OLD AM I?
I reached a milestone birthday in 2022 and, coincidentally, attended a high school reunion of friends and acquaintances, many of whom also turned 7-0 last year. The lead-in to the occasion didn’t trouble me — until I noticed birthday greetings mentioned a new descriptor: septuagenarian. No one called me a quinquagenarian (aged between 50 and […]
FEET FIRST
The title of my article is not an idiom. I’m not going to advise jumping feet first into an activity with little or no hesitation. I will discuss the imperative to make our feet a priority when we walk or run for exercise or as a pastime. I learned the sore way that a fitting […]
SOBER CURIOUS
Sober curious is an odd coupling of words, almost an oxymoron when we think of the denotations “quiet or sedate” paired with “eager to learn or know.” The phrase has gained notoriety since Ruby Warrington coined it in the title of her 2018 book on questioning or changing our alcohol consumption habits for reasons of […]
THE CONTAGION OF KINDNESS
Be kind. Be calm. Be safe.” Dr. Bonnie Henry, Provincial Health Officer for British Columbia Most BC residents can recite the three-pronged mantra that Dr. Henry introduced in March 2020 during her daily updates on Covid-19 to assuage our fears and anxiety about the pandemic. Her words combined science and compassion. Acts of kindness release […]