Desert Magnolia

There comes a time in every semester when it's time to deliver. There are papers and presentations, prep for finals, registration for next clinic, then next semester, etc. It all seems to happen in a period of two weeks, and the pressure is palpable. This week so far I've attended a mandatory clinic competency training session, prepared for and taken an Herbs quiz, completed and presented a Nutrition paper on the Mediterranean Diet (which is super cool if you haven't already learned about it! www.oldwayspt.org has tons of info for inquiring minds), reviewed my schedule for next term, chosen three possible clinic slots (we do a lottery that gets super ugly super fast as clinic slots fill up and schedules get wonky), begun and am now prepared to complete a paper for Clinical Counseling due tomorrow (complete with presentation...) on Bipolar Disorder. Oh, and I cranked out an article, posted said article (and tailored social media posts as well) for one of my clients. N...

I just finished this book, by Jill A. Davis, and I loved it! Davis is a master character crafter, and doesn't hold punches when it comes to brutal self-awareness and exploration. She used to write for Letterman, and her style reflects a quick wit and very keen observation of human character which resonate throughout the book. It made me laugh, feel moderately to mostly uncomfortable at times, and also made me realize how intense and endless the road to ourselves really is. Oh, and it does a great job of portraying strange and wonderful friendships, a favorite topic of mine. I loved the characters, all of them, though the heroine was fabulous. This book will make you take a(nother) look at yourself, of course, but that's never bad anyway, and the story will hold you in its grip from beginning to end! Enjoy!

I spent years writing copy. Marketing copy. PR copy. Website content. Collateral copy. Social media copy. There were times when I had to dig deeply to produce words that did their jobs, granted, but mostly I could just remember my basic premise/goals/objectives and something would percolate up. Lately I've been stymied here. I've been waiting for my muse to sprinkle magic idea dust on me that will then compel me to rush to my laptop and share with you. The muse has been messin' with me, so I've decided to resort to plumbing my own depths and motivation and see what I can come up with. First, why am I doing this in the first place? When I began Desert Magnolia I desperately needed a venue for my own thoughts. Spending my career spinning and generating ideas for commercial purposes had exhausted me in some ways but offered no outlet for my creativity or my own voice. So, I started this blog. Second, once the initial euphoria of having an actual, dedicated venue o...

I grew up in a house with cats. We had boy cats and girl cats, silly cats, funny cats, serious cats, shy cats, and occasionally the mentally challenged cat because let's face it, all cats aren't Mensa level. Ahem. Anyway, their dynamics were always fun to watch, and their companionship was always just part of life. Our new kitties, Miss Liza and Mr. Jarvis, are the coolest pair of cats I've ever encountered, and they bring us great joy and many chuckles because their antics are endless and their personalities continue to develop in cool ways as they mature. Liza is the instigator of the two, the brains of the operation. She likes to shred things with her little teeth. She shreds the newspaper, anything paper that's left out and she happens to notice, small rubber soccer balls, wadded up notebook paper (that I throw for her while I'm studying), you name it..she loves shredding stuff. Her killer instinct is well-honed, and it never ceases to amaze me when I fin...

Two weeks ago I was wearing sweats around the house, which averaged 62 degrees, because my husband had turned on the air conditioner (which means no more heat for the summer, which usually works out just fine) so I would be comfortable while he was away on his annual backpacking trip. It had been in the 80s and edging its way up, so I completely supported his efforts to provide coolness in our casa. But then it did what it can do in this odd place, and a cold front blew in, dropping tons of snow on the Colorado mountains and dustings in our city as well. No kidding. But, as fronts do, it passed, wending its way across the midwest and wreaking havoc in the form of thunderstorms with hail, which is always ridiculous. And now we're in the high 90s and edging up. No, we don't have humidity to speak of, which is a plus. I think we were at 6% yesterday. But hot is hot, and we are now in that place where frying an egg on the top of a car (though why anyone would DO that is ...

Last weekend our baby girl graduated from college. She walked. She crossed the stage, gripped the hand of the President of the University, smiled, grabbed her diploma, and stepped down. Then she walked back to her seat, past us, where her very proud Daddy shot numerous pictures of her smiling face. During the 2.5 hour ceremony images from her childhood streamed through my thoughts like a precious chronology of her life to date. Her absolutely disarming smile. Her baby coos, and belly laughs. Her first steps, then words..so many words as they tumbled from her tiny mouth. Her love for her brother, and his care for her. He protected her fiercely from harm, but always did his best to conceal his efforts lest she actually know how much he loved her. Her soccer, her passion, her thoughts on ever more complex life issues. Her love for touch, for hugs, for head tickles and snuggling. Her passion for competition. Her academic development. Her deep compassion and natural nurturing instincts...

When it gets around to precipitating in the high desert, it can go a little overboard. We don't often get the gentle, soaking rains that last for hours and replenish the earth with fresh, clean, nourishing water. Instead we get the gully washers that prompt streams to overflow, streets to become rivers, and plants to hang on for dear life on any sloping ground-the ensuing runoff will threaten even the heartiest of root systems following one of these deluges. Yesterday afternoon marked one such event, and from what I can tell our roses were pummeled by hail, the ground is very wet, and GG's decision to wait one more week to plant the seedlings was a solid one. In the southern part of the state big flooding happened. The morning news showed main street in a small town completely flooded..and vehicles sitting up to their axles in water. Nothing gentle about these climes, yes? It's all or nothing, most days.