Emotions

Long ago, Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Who you are speaks so loudly, I can’t hear what you’re saying.” If you’re on the left, this might apply to Donald Trump. Or, on the right, Bernie Sanders. And, for Joe Biden, it might be, “Your age speaks so loudly, I can’t hear what you’re saying or see what you’re doing.”

Mark Twain didn’t dabble in psychological focus groups, but he certainly knew something about human nature when he wrote, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

"The world envies our ability to spin out long meals with eternal sobremesas (over the table conversations). Sobremesa is a custom that unites us with family and friends around that which we love doing most. Eating. This is because in Spain, happiness is pronounced 'sobremesa.'" - Alberto Piernas Medina

…”One is silver and the other, gold.” That’s as far as I knew the lyrics went, but it keeps going:

Sci-Fi is my least favorite film genre. But, there are some futuristic films that get better with age. I would argue that “2001: A Space Odyssey” or “The Fly” are more relevant today than when they came out in 1968 and 1986.

Bob Hope (100), George Burns (100), Phyllis Diller (95), Betty White (99), Carl Reiner (98), Milton Berle (93), and Jerry Lewis (91). These comedians lived long, funny lives. Norman Lear, Mel Brooks, and Dick Van Dyke are either 100 or just about to become a centenarian. Maybe “laughter is the best medicine.”

I was gushing with a college friend about the one-hit bands we used to love: Tommy Tutone, The Vapors, The Waitresses, Sylvester. My college music tastes stretched from 70s disco to the punk/new wave craziness of the early 80s. My friend's young adult son told us we were "dating ourselves."

In mid-February, I told y’all about my cancer spreading to my lymphs. I’ve been on hormone depletion therapy since that time which has all of the side effects of a woman’s menopause experience: hot flashes, night sweats, brain fog, testy emotions, fatigue, weight gain, and - for me - occasional anxiety attacks.

I met someone. I told my 80-year-old parents over dinner. They’ve been worried about me being alone since my divorce a few years ago. My mom perks up and leans in.

I was on a bender of speaking events, workshops, and media interviews a short while back. Reflecting, I had a micro-ah-ha that the act of putting oneself out there, up there, and on stage contains a paradox of both separation and intimacy.