My Dizzy Dizzy Life, Part 1

 

My dizziness has been going on for twenty years now. The good news is it's not inherently fatal. It sure feels like it is when you wake up spinning, or just start spinning. In the early years I spent a fortune on out-of-pocket medical costs. I was determined that this wasn't going to be my life now. 

It was.

With everything I had I went from doctor to doctor looking for a cure. Hell, a diagnosis even. Somewhere I still have calendars and notes. I kept records of every migraine, every spin, every med, determined to find a pattern, a clue that would help. Eventually, after a few years in which all I did was see doctors and have tests, I gave up. 

Determined to "Keep Myself Alive" as the late great Freddy Mercury sang, I decided that every day, every second, that I wasn't actively spinning, was going to be the best day of my life. That motto kept me going. I wrote novels, I traveled, I hiked, I even went skydiving. And some days I sat very still, not moving my head, while the world spun furiously around me. 

I swore a lot.

Sometimes, mostly since the pandemic, I cried. Early on I trained myself not to cry. That sounds repressive but it was because I try not to move my head. Crying involves entirely too much dangerous head motion. The thing is, over the years, this shit has worn me down. Over time I stopped hiking. I stopped eating vegan, I stopped exercising much at all. I've never been a suicidal woman, I have a happy heart and I love life but I have little interest in spending my elder years spinning in a nursing home, so sometimes my decisions have been based heavily on, oh what the hell have I got to lose?

That may have been part of the reason I got on a plane to Greece late this year, pandemic or no. I definitely take risks my chicken-shit soul isn't entirely comfortable with. Vertigo has made me very now or never minded. 

Then this happened.

Getting back and forth to my happy island in Greece is a freaking challenge in the best of times. During COVID it's a four day journey each way. Upon arrival I tacked on three days of vertigo. Returning home I had another three days of it. Bad days. My husband had to help me get to the bathroom to pee. Normally I'm pretty good at walking blind and knowing which way is up and down. Not this round of spinning. That's when I cried. 

Shortly after that I went for my annual physical and I admitted I was having trouble handling my chronic vertigo. I've just used up my coping skills. My doctor suggested I see a doctor who specializes in vertigo. She's had great success rate helping people, my doctor said. I agreed to see her. I had a couple weeks of anxiety over that. It's because one thing I've learned is that fooling with my vertigo can make it way worse. 

But I've read and re-read Dr. Beh's book Victory Over Vestibular Migraine. One thing he said in the book was not to assume that you have only one type of vertigo, that it's often more than one problem when it's chronic. 

Just between you and me, the first thing that impressed me about my local vertigo specialist was that she called me herself to set up on the appointment. It was a strange appointment. The doctor dropped me into positions, turning my head to and fro, her eyes inches from mine so she could see my eyes. Nystagmus is what she watches for. I'm going to resist going off on how many times I've had doctors do this to me. Suffice to say it wasn't my first rodeo, but it was the first time I was expertly taken through the Epley Maneuver and given immediate feedback. 

It was the first time it worked.

to be continued in my next blog post...

My Dizzy Dizzy Life, Part II

Taking Time to Enjoy Moments not Things

 

A Great Christmas Pumpkin

On Sunday I painted with a four-year-old. I'd caved and bought a Christmas rock painting kit ($10 Barnes & Noble). It came with instructions on how to paint Santa and Christmas Trees. I put brown paper down, opened the jars of paint, and handed the paintbrush to Four and let her have at it. We had paint everywhere. It spreads like glitter and you wonder later as you scrub it off a little face, chairs, the floor, and the inside of your arm how it got there! 

When Four visits me I encourage messes, too much screen time, and few rules. So she loves to visit, but the truth is I enjoy it even more. I love kid art, not when it's a classroom full of like work—but when it's haphazard splashes of color and enthusiastic scribbling. 

On Saturday I went to a friend's. Right in the middle of prime holiday shopping we watched movies, grazed on a charcuterie board, took the dog for a walk, and sat in her hot tub in the cold night talking about nothing and everything.

My grand plan this month is to shop little, spend my weekends doing things with family and friends, and cherish people not things. 

Why Didn't They Leave, an Immigration Story by Eva Hnizdo

 

The Blurb

You can’t ask for asylum in another country just because your mother drives you nuts, so when 19-year-old Zuzana flees from communist Czechoslovakia to England in 1972, she says she just wants freedom. Her relationship with her mother, Magda—a Holocaust survivor who lost most of her family in the concentration camps—is toxic and Zuzana finds happiness in London with a loving husband and beautiful son.

 But when her mother dies, Zuzana is crushed by guilt and feels an overwhelming urge to discover more about her family’s tragic history. So, she embarks on a life-changing journey, discovers some incredible stories and tries to answer the question which haunts her: Why didn’t they leave?

My Summary

Why Didn't They Leave? by Eva Hnizdo tells the epic story of a Czech family from the point of view of Magda and her daughter Zuzana, moving between the two women and covering most of their lives.

Magda in the 1930’s is a willful somewhat spoiled child living in a beautiful home in Prague. Her mother Franzi is a cultured woman and her grandmother Olga is a steel-willed Matriarch used to getting her own way.

They’re wealthy and the family is educated, close, and enjoys a privileged lifestyle. They’re Jewish but agnostic and celebrate Christmas with roast pork and have no discernible religious beliefs.

There are rumblings of trouble in Europe but family matriarch Olga dismisses it and even though the opportunity to leave and emigrate to the United States comes their way—enough so that much of the family could go—only a few go against grandmother Olga’s command and leave.

Though the family barely considers themselves Jewish, in fact some are married to Christians and even a German, it’s enough Jewishness for the Nazi’s. They’re sent to camps, most of the men die, in fact most of the family dies. (I heard the author speak in an interview with the BBC about this book and her family history upon which this story is based. She made an intriguing statement that how we see ourselves is important, but how others see us too is also important. That really stayed with me.)

Those that survive in this story are changed forever. Magda at age eighteen returns from a camp determined to put it behind her, she finishes school quickly and becomes a pharmacist. She trusts no one and is damaged by what she endured. Her mother Franzi too survives but decides the worst in life is behind her and focuses on the good. Olga too managed to survive but with the knowledge that her family died because of her demands.

The Nazis confiscated much of their wealth but some things were saved by non-Jewish friends.

Magda marries and has a daughter Zuzana. Zuzana doesn’t even know her family is Jewish because Magda like many survivors of the Holocaust decides the safest way to ensure future survival is to leave every last hint of their Jewishness behind them so she hides everything from her daughter.

Zuzana knows only that her mother is demanding and impossible. Prague and Czechoslovakia are then invaded by Russia and becomes communist. So the surviving family goes from Nazis to Communism.

Zuzana slowly learns her family’s truth though her mother shares nothing. When grandmother Franzi dies, Magda has the funeral behind Zuzana’s back.

Magda manages to secure state permission for a trip to Paris and Zuzana takes her first opportunity to escape to London and never return, determined not to make the same mistakes as her family.

Zuzana is pragmatic and open to new cultures and races, surprisingly unlike her mother Magda who is still living in survival mode. Zuzana escapes communism to the west. She marries a black man whose family immigrated from Grenada. Slowly over the years Zuzana pieces together her family story. It’s a fascinating tale and an education for many Americans whose own families escaped many of the horrors of the Second World War—and the ensuing political problems of the decades following even to now.

This book is important and worth your time and effort. It’s amazing how much of this history is repeating itself even today.

The Author

Eva Hnizdo

Eva Hnizdo escaped communism when Russia had taken control of what is now the Czech Republic. She says that whenever her Jewish family had thought about immigrating from a place and hadn't, it had been a grave mistake. Many of her relatives didn't survive the Holocaust. Most of those that did wound up spending their lives under an oppressive communist regime when the country then known as Czechoslovakia fell under Russian rule. 

Eva studied medicine at Charles University and became a doctor. She was a refugee and obtained political asylum in the UK in 1986. She worked in the same surgery in Watford for twenty-three years before retiring. She says during the almost forty years she worked as a doctor, she had the privilege of seeing into her patients' lives, their problems, and their solutions to those problems. She feels it isn't a coincidence that many writers are medical doctors, saying they have many stories to tell and spends her retirement writing.  

Rhetoric, The Art of Persuasive Writing and Public Speaking—HarvardX

When lockdown started last year I decided to take online classes as a way to keep my mind off current events. I tried random classes that interested me, Archaeology & Egyptology, The Science of Happiness, Screenwriting, Amherst Writers and Artists, and others. I saved Rhetoric for last, worried it was like those Russian novels I'm forever moving to the bottom of my To Be Read pile, and something I was in no mood to tackle. It was work, and I'm kind of proud of myself for sticking with it. It's a worthy and worthwhile topic and class.

I took it through HarvardX and edX classes. If you like to learn (or just want useful escapism), I recommend checking out edX. The selection is large and they have both free and certified versions of their classes, so don't let cost sway you. None of the classes I've taken were easy, but they were all worth my time and effort, including Rhetoric.

Rhetoric includes both written essays and public speaking. It's a way to consider right/wrong, guilt/innocence, knowing/ignorance. It's about clear communication. One of the things the class tackles is how to get solid facts through legitimate sources (something all of these classes were strict about, no Wikipedia, no whacky Uncle's Facebook posts). We studied political speeches and documents as we learned a variety of rhetorical devices. To me Rhetoric is kind of like the Geometry of words.

Reading early versions of the Declaration of Independence as it went through edits and changes was an incredible learning experience. As a writer I know that magic happens in the edits, yet a part of me imagined that Thomas Jefferson sat down and penned this miracle of a manuscript in its famous perfection as we now know it. That is not how it happened, and history has the edits. I loved it, it was a group effort, and thank goodness for editors. 

As for speeches, we analyzed Martin Luther King's I Have a Dream speech, Presidential speeches, political speeches, and watched how they all have bits and pieces of other historical catch phrases and quotes in them (from biblical to mythology to a candidate who ran twenty years ago). It's a beautiful thing and reminded me so much of Austin Kleon's Steal Like an Artist book and spirit. We all use what we've learned to create new things. 

Now would probably be a good time to head back to Toastmasters to practice my newfound skills, but I have a few novels to finish writing first. 

 

Ten Ways Travel Has Changed Since Covid

Hey, I'm back from my long trip to Greece. It was great. How can it be anything but great? I went to Greece for almost a month, but it was tough. It took me four days to get to my destination and on the return trip it took another four days to get home.

On top of that my wimpy constitution reacted to all the travel stress with several days of vestibular migraine. Upon my arrival on Alonissos, my migraine brain celebrated with three days of vertigo. And the same thing happened once I finally got home. So I spent almost a week out of the month trying not to move my head. 

In fact, when vertigo hit again after arriving home I actually thought maybe I shouldn't take this trip. Maybe it's just too much for my wienie body. Then, about two seconds after my vestibular migraine ended I did what I always do. I started booking next year's trip because if I let my big baby body dictate what I do and don't do then I've given up. So maybe that means I'm an optimist. Or maybe that means I'm just stupid. 

Whatever. I do want to weigh in on travel changes I noticed. 

1. People talk less when they wear masks. That's okay because most of the time when they do talk, you can't tell what the heck they are saying anyway. I never realized how much communication is facial or watching someone's mouth. With half of everyone's face covered by a mask forget about it. Especially if there is a big plastic shield at the check-in counter. Now, we all know what it's like to be hard of hearing. Anyone who does have to talk ends up repeating their muffled, garbled words several times. It doesn't help, but they try. You know how when there are announcements on a flight and they finish, people used to ask each other, "What did they say?" Nobody even bothered. I couldn't even tell if they were speaking English or Greek. 
2. For the most part nothing was on time. I had three connections to Athens. Flying has always been hurry up and wait but with the employee shortage, bring a book. You'll be waiting at the gate for the crew or for technicians to check something. In the airplane you'll be waiting for a gate to open up or for the person who drives the gate to the plane to show up. I have to say that on my flights nobody complained. We're resigned. Pack your patience and a book. At least we can go somewhere! My tip would be not to book short layovers, and save yourself some stress.
3. Covid paperwork. Every country requires different paperwork. And if you're flying to say Greece via Amsterdam, you have to follow Amsterdam's Covid restrictions and do their paperwork too. It's probably best to check the embassy's website for the countries you're passing through/going to to find their requirements, rather than say some chick's YouTube channel. But I actually checked both. Requirements change constantly. Do your best. Read through all of the requirements before you react. For instance I started reading the Greek Embassy's rules for incoming travelers. The first part was all about what kind of testing was MANDATORY FOR ALL TRAVELERS. It was long. Part of my brain was already planning how to get this testing done so it wouldn't be older than 72 hours even though it's taking me four days to get there! But the next paragraph read something along the lines of this, IF YOU ARE VACCINATED THAT PARAGRAPH DOESN'T APPLY TO YOU. Sheesh. 
4. You have to wear your mask from the time you arrive at the airport of your departure and you will continue to have to wear that mask through every connecting flight and airport. On the way to Athens I wore an N95 (I can breathe better in them and they don't fog your glasses like most masks). I left here on August 25th and arrived in Athens on August 26th. I had to keep wearing my mask until I checked into my hotel and got to my room. It was almost thirty hours. My nose burned badly. It also bled off and on for days, but then I had to continue to wear it on the next day's flight and then ferries until the 28th of August. My tip would be to bring a lot of masks and change it every four hours. It makes a huge difference. I did that on my return trip and it was much less painful. You will also be asked if you're willing to wear your mask the entire trip before you're allowed to board the flight. 
5. Eating on the flight. We were allowed to pull our masks down to eat on the international flights row by row, but were told to pull them up after every bite. 
6. In the airports that I passed through in the US I'd guesstimate that half of the shops/restaurants/coffee shops were closed. It's probably not a bad time to finagle a way to spend your long layovers in a sky lounge or such.
7. For Greece I took paper copies for my proof of vaccination, their locator forms, all travel info, and pre-registered and pre-paid for Covid testing I'd need to have done within Greece for my return trip. But I also had all that paperwork in my phone. In August there were so many people arriving in Athens and lines to stand in going through Customs, that it's simpler to have a few papers in your hand than being able to pull up whatever paperwork is requested from your phone. Otherwise I'm trying to wake my phone up, make sure it's not losing the charge, and it's downloading so many messages since my arrival that it tends to stroke out. Factor in how fast your phone will figure out where you're at and if you set up a compatible international plan. 
8. Everyone is over-worked and under-staffed. People are trying to do multiple jobs. Travelers are stressed too. They probably paid more for their trip than ever before and likely nothing has gone according to plan. Being kind will go a long way rather than demanding special treatment. Losing your temper should not be an option. Absolutely everyone is tired and stressed. Be kind. Be kind. Be kind. 
9. Hand sanitizer is available everywhere. In airports and in Greece I saw it on every table and there were free-standing dispensers in every spot imaginable. Many times there were free masks too. On planes one of the first things they do is pass out anti-bacterial wipes. In many restaurants half the tables can't be used in order to space people out. It was like that on ferries too. There are also markings on the floors reminding everyone to keep their distance from others and announcements reminding you to do so. 
10. When I finally got to the jet bridge for my flight to Athens, and saw that big plane outside I wanted to dance. I was so thrilled to be able to go somewhere again. I'm one of those people who wanted to travel even as a little kid. I had a mental list of all the places I wanted to go and write about. Why everyone on that plane wasn't cheering was a mystery to me. We were the luckiest. Sure, it's tough to travel right now. It's scary and frustrating and expensive. You have to ask yourself if you really want it and if it's worth it to you. It's okay not to travel. You can have an exciting and thrilling life without traveling. Don't take risks if your gut is telling you not to! But if your gut is telling you to go, that the need outweighs the risk, pack your patience and a good book.

Here I am Sneaking Off to Greece (I hope) —Travel 2021

 

By the time this blog posts, I should be well on my way to New York-Detroit-Athens-Skiathos-Alonissos, Greece. Should. If you've so much as tried to buy plywood or gone out to eat, you probably know that things aren't running smoothly yet. 

The first week after I booked my flight I received two cancellation notices as flights were cancelled and everything needed rescheduled. That's a sticky game when you have connections. So my expectations are modest.

If I get there sometime in August, everything's good!

It'll take me four planes, one ferry, and three entire days before I step off the ferry in Patatiri on the island of Alonissos in the Northern Sporades. It should be an adventure and like with anything we do this year, patience is required. It's never an easy trip, but it's always worth it. I'll sleep in Athens on my way, and Skiathos, and when I hit Alonissos, I'll likely sleep for an entire day. 

Hopefully some of that sleep will be on a beach covered in salty white stones with a monk seal stealing a nap nearby.

The domino effect of this virus and the lockdowns hasn't been easy on any of us. We've lost so many people and so many are hurting. I hope that all of you can find a place that feeds your soul and where you can rest. That's why I decided to pack up and head out into the wild world again. I had to weigh the risk. I've been vaccinated. I've been on lockdown for a good part of all of this. In the end I decided it's better, healthier, for me to go. 

It's a risk. There are no guarantees. But when have there ever been?

Kristin Hannah's The Four Winds—A Book Review

 

Reading a book about the Dust Bowl during this summer of rain-rain-rain didn't interest me at first. I kept moving it down my TBR pile for lightweight summer reads. The farmers in my neck of the country are battling drowned crops, COVID is ever-circling like a shark, and I wanted to ingest easy uplifting reads. Finally, at the urging of other readers, I took it with me to the beach. I could hardly put it down. I loved The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah. I had no trouble empathizing with the people whose lives were forever changed when the climate turned against an entire section of the country. 

The book starts in 1921 when life is bountiful for most in the Texas Panhandle. Not for Elsa Wolcott, she's an old-maid at twenty-five, a pitiable condition in her wealthy family. Elsa's love of reading and desperation to really live despite her old age lead her to make choices that wind up changing her life forever. Then the drought comes, and The Depression.

What worked for me most with this book was Elsa's inner strength, and the inner strength of some people when life throws only obstacles at them. Some people are survivors. Some are not. I'd not realized just how awful times were for people living in certain parts of the country. Almost every step of this book mirrors things happening in our world right now. It's a masterful novel. 

I've heard readers pooh-pooh reading this because they've already read Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. Don't be deceived by the setting. This is a woman's story about family and survival. It's a story about love, not the overdone romantic kind. There's a far more important fierce familial love when life is at it's desperate worst. 

This story reminded me that it's a lucky luxury to have water, shelter, and food. It reminded me that not everybody is that lucky through absolutely no fault of their own. It's a good reminder. I highly recommend this book. I'd give it all the stars. 

The Chemist by Stephenie Myer—A Book Review

 

The Chemist by Stephenie Myer reminded me that I once wrote a book about an assassin. I enjoy action adventure reads when I get to know the character and there's more to the story than chasing and shooting. I enjoy a deep plot. Those kinds of stories can be hard to find. 

When someone offered to loan me this hardcover book for a read, I quickly took them up on it. Many of the books I read come about in that way, serendipitous. Strangely I've never belonged to a book club but as long as I can remember I've been part of informal circles of readers who exchange books or sometimes buy each other books to send. For me that means they come vetted and recommended. Later we'll sometimes discuss them, but not always. 

The Chemist didn't really come vetted. The giver said she hadn't been able to "get into it" and gave up on reading it. I had no problem, this book had me at the synopsis. In fact I read it in a day, walking around with it, staying up late and waking up early to continue. 

Now Stephenie Myer gets a bad rap for Twilight in our criticizing everyone culture, but if her name hadn't been on this cover I'd not have recognized the writing.  This is next level writing and story. 

 

It's about a woman who worked for a type of black ops program for the U.S. Government. She's running from them now and spends her nights sleeping in bathtubs wearing a gas mask, always prepared for an attack. Attacks come too, but she's thought through her defenses and escapes again and again. 

She's tired of running and about out of money when she gets an online message from her old boss with an offer she can't refuse. Taking a chance that could lead to her being forgiven, and getting the target off her back, she winds up in an even bigger mess. I don't want to give any spoilers, but it's a good read and hard to put down. 

Check it out. I'd love to know what you think about it.     

Amherst Writers & Artists—Finding Your Voice

 

Amherst Writers & Artists

At my first writing conference I heard well-established writers enthusing about the Amherst Writers & Artists method of writing. It intrigued me because they said that the secret to getting your best story onto the page was to dig deep and write fearlessly. Not worrying about what teachers or professors or other writers might think appealed to me but I had a few unpublished books under my belt and thought I'd figured out how to write. What I wanted to know was how to get someone to publish my book. 

Bet many writers go to conferences like I did, in a hurry to be published and fairly confident that the writing itself isn't an issue.

What I've learned over the ensuing years though is that getting a book published isn't the problem as much as writing the best stories I can. What I've learned is that while many of us may have this big fantasy of what a published book will mean, the fantasy isn't the reality. What I've learned is that if you really love to write your stories and focus on doing it to the best of your ability, absolutely wonderful things can follow.

There's something brilliant and empowering about finding your voice and using it.

Finding your Voice

A few years after I had my first books published I went to an Amherst Writers & Artists workshop on an island in Greece.

I told the facilitator of the workshop that I was currently working on another book and that I'd probably not attend all the daily classes. I wanted to hole up on my balcony alone and write. She responded encouragingly, asking only that I attend the first class to see how it worked. So I did. 

After that first class I went to every single class during the retreat, plus the extra ones they offered in the evenings. I was hooked. Not only that, but every book I wrote after I began to practice the Amherst Writers & Artists method became clearer and better. It was as if I'd once begun to sing with the hint of a frog in my throat, and someone encouraged me to stand taller, to clear my throat, take a deep breath and focus. Then when I sang, they sat in the first row and smiled, gave me a thumbs up, and encouraged me so that I began to sing in my true voice with real confidence.

Amherst Writers & Artists Method

This writing method has intrigued and given me so much back that for years now I've wanted to take their training class and learn whatever magic these workshop leaders impart. I applied for acceptance in their training program recently and was accepted. During the first day of training someone said it's somewhat difficult to explain to someone who hasn't taken an AWA class what it is without sounding like you're in a cult. That cracked me up. I've felt the same when I try to curb my enthusiasm and recommend the classes to other writers.

In fact, I think at least one other writer has asked if I prefer to work only with writers who've trained in the method. 

After completing the training and becoming certified I can answer that question. I prefer to work with supportive people. Amherst Writers & Artists helps writers to discover and share their stories in a safe and supportive environment. Everyone in the group is welcome and everyone is considered a writer of equal standing (published or not). There's no condemnation or criticism. It's not therapy, but it's therapeutic. If you share something close to the bone with someone and they rip it apart, it teaches you to hold back. 

If you share something close to the bone that you're writing and other writers tell you what works in the piece—it empowers your writing voice.

Writing to Prompts

How does this empowering writing method work? It seems incredibly simple but so do many of the moves you see in the Olympics. The facilitators of the workshops guide the writers through a series of writing prompts. Participants write for a specified amount of time, then read out loud in turn. That's the scary part for most writers. Feedback. If it sends you into a panic, or you don't want to share, you always have the option to pass. This is when the introverts in the group breathe a collective sigh of relief. (I know I did.)

It's fine if you don't want to read. Yet, if you do choose to share, or when you're ready to share and read (even if your voice shakes), the reward is great. The other writers in your group will listen closely and they'll tell you what works for them about the piece. They won't infringe on or criticize your work, they won't red line or comment on grammar, it's a first draft for pity's sake! They'll simply tell you what stood out, what they heard, and what works for them. That feedback is invaluable.

"So much depends upon..." is one of my favorite writing prompts. I think I've written to it in every class I've ever taken/taught. Not two answers have ever been the same. Another thing I've loved about this method is the privilege of listening to so much brilliant writing. I invite you to write to the prompt, for about four minutes. If you do, and want to share, leave it in the comments below or email it to me and I'll tell you what works for me. Below, I share what I wrote to it in my last class.

So much depends upon...time.

    How much do you get? A cup? Half a cup?

    How will you spend it? On yourself? On your people? Work? Kids? Family?

Science thrills me.

    I have big books about time.

    That Stephen Hawkings one.

    Or Julian Barbour who doesn't believe in time.

    He says everything happened at the same time.

    The Big Bang—the formation of the universes—humanity here on earth.

    Just whoosh here—then everything gone.

    No time. Could our concept of time simply be how our minds are capable of perceiving existence?

    Like dogs and color?

It doesn't really matter I figure.

Time. Perception. It's brief.

    It's a half a cup of whoosh.

    I'll take it.

Nutrition and the Digestive System, eCornell Class—Trying to Figure Out Why Gluten is The Enemy

 

Someone asked me recently for tips on going Gluten-Free. In some ways it's easy for me. I've not once cheated and eaten gluten on purpose. No matter how tempting the cupcake or bread might be to someone, I see it as poison. I find flaming pain to be quite inspirational. 

The reason I took eCornell's class on Nutrition and the Digestive System  is because I wondered how I could have such trouble with gluten when I'm not Celiac. It's an interesting class. We covered the following:

• Sympathetic/Parasympathetic Systems
• The Autonomic Nervous System
• The Physiology of the ANS
• Digestion and the Mouth
• Saliva Production
• How to Evaluate Studies
• Nutrition and the Digestive System
• Digestion and the Stomach
• Digestion and the Small Intestine

There's a lot to the class but Gluten and Celiac are covered along with Proteins, Gastric Emptying, Dietary Fiber, and the Geometry of the Small Intestine/and Structure. Inside the small intestine are structures called Villi that absorb nutrients. If you are Celiac, gluten causes intestinal collapse and your villi retracts (for lack of a better word). 

It's a fascinating class and I'd like to eventually take all the classes in this series. There was no real answer to why gluten causes me to develop Interstitial Cystitis. I had to assume gluten causes inflammation for me everywhere and maybe it's worse in certain systems. I have Sjogren's Syndrome which is why I'd decided to try giving up gluten in the first place. It took me some time to figure out what all had gluten in it, but within a week of figuring that out and quitting it I never had another bladder spasm. 

My Urologist was rather amazed and I may have been among the first to graduate from ever having to see her again. 

The difficulty in eating gluten-free is real. Gluten is hidden in most everything. Once I got "glutened" by chewing gum. Another time by mints. Cough drops. Dried fruit. Salad Dressing. Chocolate. Those were times when a gluten containing ingredient was hidden or overlooked. Apparently dried fruit can sometimes involve flour in processing. Malt and barley derivatives hide in ingredient lists and they're gluten. So quitting gluten is more of a process as you learn to avoid it and difficult to do perfectly from day one, or to do for only a few days to see if it makes you feel better. 

One thing I have learned even before this class, there's no bread or cupcake worth flaming pain. One thing I learned after this class? I'm not going to solve "gluten-sensitivity" as so many medical professionals call it (as though it'll cause a wee tummy ache or possibly a few hives), but I can avoid it and that really works beautifully for me. 

Me and Microsoft Excel—The Fast Easy Way to Keep Track of Writing Finances

 

Using Excel

Udemy dot com offers a Microsoft Excel class for Beginners to Advanced. It has over 200,000 positive reviews. For years I've tried to avoid Excel simply because I never took the time to learn how to use it properly. The worst part is that I was business manager for an engineering company and used it in my job but when I was finally able to make writing my full-time job, I quit using Excel just because I could. I decided it'd be easier to keep track of everything in handwritten ledgers. It wasn't easier.

After years of accumulating piles of good old-fashioned paperwork, I had to admit to myself that everything would actually be simpler if I used Excel again. Step one, I decided, was to LEARN how to use it properly so I didn't dread it. That's how I found the Udemy class. 

The class I'm recommending is by Kyle Pew, Office Newb. Every single lesson is basic (my speed) and thorough. I keep a laptop open beside my computer through each lesson, so I can practice without split screens. 

Recently I mentioned this Excel class to a group of writers. There was a collective groan, EXCEL, NO! It was the old, "Don't make us do math" mentality. My mentality. Yet the fact is, keeping track of your finances via Excel is the easy way. Sorry to be a realist. You know I abhor reality. I have the soul of a fiction writer. Yet what I've learned is that it's an undeniable fact that the best way to deal with keeping track of writing expenses is succinctly. That way you get it over with as quickly as possible. 

Excel can help you with that.

When you write, or simply live, you have to keep track of income and expenses. You have to do the math. It's easier on everyone if you keep good track of expenses and income and know the bottom line in your writing life and in the real world. You'll see in plain old black and white and red what works and what doesn't. It helps you make smart decisions, like what to spend your time and energy on and what is a waste of resources. That's actually important in both worlds—Fiction and Non-Fiction. 

Arcadia's Images of America—your hometown in a book

 

My BFF gives the best gifts. Over the years she often includes something from my hometown. I moved away long ago and the memories are priceless. When the kids were little they knew that the Willoughby throw my BFF gave me was off-limits. No wrapping the dog in it, no wrapping a kid in it and eating chocolate ice-cream. It was special to me. It was woven with pictures of the local library, schools, and remembered 19th Century homes. I didn't think anything could top that gift until this year when my bestie sent me a little book about my hometown. 

Images of America, Willoughby

It's full of pictures from the founding of the town and through the decades. It even includes old stories and legends I remember obsessing over as a child growing up there. There's a picture of my elementary school that was torn down. I loved seeing the old trolleys I'd never known once existed, and all my favorite rivers, parks, bridges, and haunts. 

It's been ages since I lived in Willoughby, and I've lived in many towns since then. It surprised me to find most of them represented with their very own books in Images of America available through Arcadia Publishing and Barnes and Noble. There's nothing better to splurge on than books in my opinion, and I bought one from almost every town I've lived in. Some are more in-depth and interesting than others. All of them are worth the approximate twenty dollar cost. 

Images of America, Rockwall

Likely I'll never stop missing Texas. Reading through this book I once more got caught up in the great mystery about the Lone Star State's smallest county. There are portions of a prehistoric rock wall that is a matter of much debate—was it man made or is it a natural geological formation? There's good authority for both arguments and when I lived near that part of the wall I might have joined in the digging but for the formidable legion of fire ants guarding it. That's the only thing I don't miss about Texas, fire ants.

Images of America, Shrewsbury

Shrewsbury is a picturesque New England town, closer to Worcester than Boston. I used it in my book Bitch Witch. That entire story landed in my brain during a late night run to Target under a blue moon. The house I used to live in was a perfect setting for the formidable Archer women. That story wrote itself and I have Shrewsbury to thank for it. Though I didn't live there as long as other places in Massachusetts, it stayed with me. I got the Images of America books for most of my Massachusetts towns, including one for where I used to work. Surprisingly some companies are included in this series. 

There's More

To date I've collected ten of the Images of America books, not including the ones I've gifted. One thing I've learned from my bestie is to share good ideas. Browsing the Arcadia publishing website I realize that even some mountains have their own books. It makes sense, everyplace has a story. I've just added a couple more books to my wish list. 

If you want to know more about your favorite American towns and places, check them out. Let me know what you think.