This is the genius of vaccines. We’re not that good at making drugs against viruses. But you know what’s really good at fighting them? Our immune system. If you can just show it the right piece of the virus, it often figures out how to fight it off. It’s like the answer we all have inside us. David Kestenbaum in This American Life
Although COVID-19 has not been the top story in the last week, the numbers continue to worsen. The Pfizer-BioNtech and Moderna vaccines' recent approval is the most hopeful information we’ve had since the start of the pandemic. …
I used to have passwords written down on pieces of paper. I confess that there was probably a time I wrote them on post-it notes on my computer. I had to stop that habit since I worked for a large company that took security seriously.
Over the years, I developed tricks that helped me deal with all of the passwords I need in my life. I've come to realize that there are people who still struggle with this daily.
I’m not going to mention any names, but I dedicate this article to the people in my life who are password-challenged. You know who you are. I won’t post an actual conversation, but I have had variations of the discussion below on numerous occasions. …
“We don’t get harmony when everybody sings the same note. Only notes that are different can harmonize. The same is true with people.”
― Steve Goodier
On January 6, 2021, I posted about my sadness seeing Trump supporters storming the Capitol while carrying the stars and stripes. A relative who is a Trump supporter seemed to feel I was questioning her patriotism. I was glad that she let me know rather than just being upset about it. We need to communicate if we are ever going to repair relationships.
As a counselor in training, I work on relationships and communication issues every day. I feel that anyone can use the same principles I discuss with my clients to help repair relationships that have been damaged during the Trump presidency. Since most of our current interactions are occurring online due to the pandemic, I focus on online responses. …
My honeymoon in 1992 marked the first time I was out of the country on the 4th of July. Something was unsettling about not being home to celebrate our country. When we were pulling out of our port in Curacao, I was very excited to look through our porthole and see the stars and stripes flying on a ship we were passing.
The flag has always been a source of pride to me. And the 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays. I usually make sure I am wearing some flag-themed apparel. I love my country!
As I watched news coverage at the Capitol today, I didn’t initially focus on the flags. Trump supporters have carried flags at all of the Trump rallies, so I’m used to seeing them alongside the Trump flags. Although I disagreed with the Trump supporters, I knew they were also American citizens and had just as much right to carry the flag. …
“I realized that there was a way to get help and to find people that you trust. I got on the right medication, and my life has been completely changed.” Selena Gomez — January 2020 — WSJ Magazine
On New Year’s Eve, an acquaintance, Marianne Miller, made an end of year post. She talked about things happening in her life and how she was affected by the pandemic. Marianne also spoke about a group of friends who helped her realize it was okay to ask for help. …
I love doing writing prompts. They are helpful when I have writer’s block and they usually give me ideas for other writing. Thank you Tree Langdon for tagging me in your random fact story!
No matter how much love and effort you put into it, every marriage is destined to end. If you are happily married, you may disagree with me. You may think your marriage will last forever. Sadly, it will not. This knowledge should not keep you from having a great marriage. You can use the inevitability of the end to ensure you enjoy every day of your marriage.
During the nearly 24 years of my first marriage, I rarely thought about the possibility of my marriage ending. I didn’t think it would ever end. Then, the unthinkable happened, and I was suddenly widowed. …
I’ve heard the warnings. Avoid screen time an hour before bed. Only use your bed for sleeping and love making. I have a lot of sleep issues and I should listen, but I don’t.
I started blogging after my husband Patrick died. I wrote when I was feeling down. The hardest time of the day was at night, when I was trying to go to sleep. So that’s when I wrote.
Since I wrote in bed, I used my phone. I started on Tumblr and then switched to Wordpress. …
There’s just one catch.
Like many other writers, I have been a little frustrated with all of Medium's recent changes. I’ve been hoping that we would continue to see changes that are writer-friendly. I was pleasantly surprised to see a much-anticipated new feature recently—more details on that in a minute.
I am still relatively new to writing on Medium, and my only other experience is writing on my WordPress blog. So I am not an expert on algorithms and how to gain followers. I measure my success by the number of reads I get and the number of followers I have. The possibility of earning money is nice but not my main incentive. …
Random, meaningless junk. Or is it a time capsule? I choose to call it a time capsule. The children and grandchildren of the original owner can assign their own meaning…
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