Articles

I have often mentioned that I am an ardent bike rider. I am a solid B- rider. On average, I ride about 150 miles a week. In warmer weather, the local bike club I belong sponsors a Tuesday night ride. It is rated an A ride. It leaves promptly at 6:00 pm. I…

A few weeks ago, I participated in a plant medicine ceremony. I took six grams of psilocybin, enough to be considered a heroic dose. I’ve written about my experience using hallucinogens in several of my blogs. It is something I’ve engaged in over the past…

I need to preface this blog with a disclaimer. I need to be categorical when I say I am not religious. I have absolutely no religious affiliation. I am, however, a deeply spiritual person. My blog posts share my observations based solely on my life experi…

What is a fulfilling life? A fulfilling life is a life that makes us feel happy, satisfied, comfortable and content. Beyond happiness, a fulfilling life is a life worth living. It is an exciting life full of purpose that we cannot wait to fulfil on daily…

It’s been almost one year since I underwent a colectomy to remove a cancerous tumor. The surgeon removed 14 inches of my colon and pronounced me “cured.” The initial diagnosis was stage one cancer. That diagnosis saved me from further treatment. No chemo.…

My friend texted me that he needed to talk. In his short text, he shared that our last conversation left him unsettled. I am always left uncomfortable when receiving an ambiguous message. My mind always defaults to, “So what did I do wrong?” I was soon to…

A lot of my time in Tucson is viewed from the perspective I get riding my bike. One of the reasons I spend the winter in Tucson is the accessibility of riding. The city of Tucson has made a considerable investment in cycling infrastructure. It has built w…

I am by no means religious. I was raised as a Reformed Jew in a middle-class town in New Jersey. My partner and I were invited to a Friday night Shabbat dinner at a friend’s house visiting Tucson. Shabbat is the Jewish Sabbath. It was an invitation for co…

I was hiking with a good friend in the foothills of the Sonoran Desert. It’s our Friday morning ritual. We decided to try a new trail called the Agua Caliente Hill Trail. It’s a pretty aggressive climb into the foothills of the Catalina Mountains. We meet…

Tucson, like most cities in this country, has its share of homeless people. The police are efficient at containing them to certain parts of the city. Many areas in Tucson create a naturally inviting space for a homeless person to find a relative degree o…

One of my good friends recently emailed a link to a documentary he found compelling. He shared that the content deeply resonated with him. Like most people we connect to, my friend and I have a common outlook and shared values. We engage our lives in a si…

Getting from tacos to Nazis was easier than I thought. I didn’t have to look too hard for that connection. It found me. Tucson has over 1200 restaurants. Half of them serve tacos, many of which are food trucks scattered around the city. Having spent seve…

Five Ways to Be Truly Happy- Earth Cheat Codes Pt. One Reaction is a Choice Unless you have a condition in which you are unable to regulate, the way you react to stimuli is a choice. The way we react when we spill coffee on our pants is a choice. The …

One of my all-time favorite movies recently made its way onto Amazon Prime. 2001 A Space Odyssey was released on April 2, 1968. Fifty-five years later, I still find it relevant. Having watched the movie at least 6 or 7 times, I was drawn to see it again. …

I’m in the process of getting ready to leave for Tucson. My girlfriend and I are spending the winter there. It is a 2000-mile journey, which takes us four days of driving. I get to leave the cold, damp, and snow-bound winter of Southeast Michigan for the …

Imagine having the unwavering determination to achieve your wildest dreams, the willpower to overcome any obstacle, and the discipline to turn your aspirations into reality. This is not just a fantasy; it’s a reality within your grasp. By harnessing the p…

It has been a bit over four months since my diagnosis and treatment for colon cancer. My physician has proclaimed that I am in complete remission. I have shared my journey of diagnosis and healing in the blogs I have posted. I still carry a profound sense…

I rarely shop at Kohl’s. It is not a store that I am drawn to. Being a snowbird, I am always on the lookout for clothes I can wear in Tucson. Kohl’s was having an end-of-season sale. Pushing through my procrastination, I drove the eight-and-a-half miles t…

It’s a 45-mile drive from where I live to my girlfriend’s house. There has been a lot of road construction this summer, forcing me to take a longer than usual route. Last Thursday, I took Interstate 96 to Telegraph Road. At that intersection, a large yell…

At one stage or another, everybody has to join this club. It’s not one that people enjoy at all, and every single person stays in the club for different lengths of time, depending on how they deal with the types of grief that they encounter. Grief takes …

When I was in my early twenties, I lived in a Yoga Ashram. We raised most of the food we ate. I was responsible for looking after a flock of chickens. As the number of people grew so did the number of chickens. It quickly became obvious that a new coop…

I am not my beautifully bronzed skin. I am not my dedicatedly trained body. I am not my laughters, nor my tears. I am not my pain, nor my relief. I am not my self-confidence, nor my worries. I am not my parents’ daughter. I am not that woman who has…

This morning, while reading, a voice gently whispered, “You are on the journey of leaving.” Then I recalled those times you worriedly asked me not to leave and anxiously anticipated that I would leave at some point. My dear, We are all on a journey of…

The surgery to remove a cancerous tumor in my large intestine was five weeks ago. The initial diagnosis was the best I could have hoped for. The tumor was located in splenic flexure, an anatomical term that defines a location near the descending colon tha…