Living Proof

There are times when I absolutely lose it and go off the wall due to whatever and say things I don’t necessarily mean. I’ve had my 17th nervous breakdown about 100 times and understand those who are at their wits' end. Even in my book I published back in 2005 explains that I am a work in progress; that I’m not perfect and that I’m still trying to grasp life’s lessons as much as I can. With that being said, I am also very opinionated and hold strong to my beliefs on certain issues or topics. There are things I highly disagree with, but it certainly does not mean I am not forgiving nor “mean-spirited” due to the way I express myself. I say it like it is without any apologies, and at times, maybe a few apologies pop out if the person is hurt over my jagged edged words. My sisters sometimes describe it as "Deb's poison pen". I do sometimes go overboard, but never leaning back thinking otherwise. I will lessen the blow, but hold on to what I believe in, unless of course...

Realizing that the economy is shrinking faster than my pants on a Sunday afternoon, I can’t believe how quickly word spreads throughout the “press”. I had to cancel my subscription to my local newspaper. I couldn’t do it anymore. This paper used to be well written and captured some of the best stories. Their reporters were on top of their game and there was no room for b/s. Pure news. When I moved into my condo a couple of years ago, I subscribed to the weekender. I loved it. As time went on, I noticed that their stories weren’t as interesting and if anything - they weren’t getting enough stories. There were stories out there on the local news channel on cable TV that weren’t trickling over into the newspaper. The paper’s biggest news was the happenings at your local winery or flea market. I thought they were going through a lull, until it just got worse. Their writing was suffering as well. They would try to spruce up a story by making it sound like a fictional tale. I...

There is an abundance of news and tons of discovered findings that leave us hanging with the question: why hasn’t anyone told us sooner? Of course, the answer always remains, “We didn’t know until now.” Many years ago, I was afraid to turn on the news, because I didn’t want to “catch” whatever they were speaking about if it had to do with medical situations. If Madelene turned on the Discovery Channel and they were talking about rare illnesses, I would go get a check up because I would develop symptoms of whatever it was they were speaking of. God forbid someone described in full detail of their panic attack symptoms - I would then get it immediately upon hearing it. I turned into a full-fledged hypochondriac. It was at the age of twenty when I first started seeing alarming signs of it. As I grew older and more confident in myself, the hypochondria seemed to have subsided somewhat. With extensive therapy as well as cognitive behavioral techniques, I knew that this was all in m...