Columns

When my kids were younger and still in school, I volunteered to be a driver for most of their field trips. One of the most memorable outings was when I took my youngest son and his classmates to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I had been there several…

“Oh, poor me. I have lost so much,” I moan, hanging my head down and shuffling my feet. My partner looks up from her book. “Did you say something, dear?” “Just another rough period,” I say with an affect as flat as the tarmac at LaGuardia Airport. It’s a personal…

As a Colorado resident, I often wonder about the healing power of plants. We live in a time when the pharmaceutical industry is booming. Pills exist to tame nearly any symptom, but they often can have unwanted side effects. The side effects of plants, however, may be less harsh, or…

I attend a Rock Steady Boxing class twice a week. Rock Steady Boxing is a program founded in 2006 by Scott Newman, who has Parkinson’s disease, along with his friend, Vince Perez, who does not have Parkinson’s.  The class is more than merely exercising or getting “Parkinson’s fit.”…

During one of my many moments spent pondering frivolous stuff, I recently was thinking about colors and the emotions they represent. Here is what I came up with. I love the color yellow. It reminds me of walking into spring, hoe in hand and clippers in tow. Then I waltz…

“What? You’re moving again? Are you insane?” Neo exclaims. (Neo is my brain’s neocortex, which I’ve mentioned in previous columns.) “I’ve been called many things, yet still retain my sanity. I hope to do so through this very stressful process of moving,” I respond. “How do you plan to…

Would you — a person with Parkinson’s — ever call yourself a dancer? An artist? Graceful? Well, it’s possible. Be open to the idea. You may be surprised. I certainly was. Recently, I met David Leventhal, the program director of Dance for PD. The program brings together trained dancers…

Last week I had surgery. Little did I know that it would be a great time to advocate for Parkinson’s disease (PD). It began with the registration process two days before my hospital check-in. The hospital’s admittance clerk called me with some last-minute instructions for my surgery, which took…

When I started writing this column, I was having a pity party and was in a bad place. Wanting to reflect positivity, I decided to stop writing until I had a better frame of mind. Why was I feeling sorry for myself? More than four years have passed since…

I have had several surgeries in my lifetime but have never fretted over them beforehand. I think that’s because the procedures were all to deal with my Parkinson’s disease, and I explicitly trusted the doctors in each situation. As I write this, I have another surgery tomorrow, and I must…