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Salem Weekly Articles (by me…to date)

This post includes links to my articles published in the Salem Weekly newspaper. (For those of you who are able to snatch a physical copy from one of our 700+ drop sites in the Willamette Valley, awesome. For those who are sadly out of the area, online will have to do. However, if any of you really like one of the articles online–mine or not mine–I would be more than happy to mail you a physical copy of the newspaper. We have extras at the office.) Thanks for reading! Articles are listed in reverse chronological order: “Poetry Has a New Name” (An interview with local…

The Rogue Ovary Chronicles: A Tale of Two Cysts

Note: This blog post includes a lot of biological/sexual/medical descriptions that may be considered graphic for some readers…this is a post about my lady-anatomy, after all. I do not spare any details; read with caution if you’re prone to discomfort when reading such content.

Monday, August 3rd, 2015 – 8:30 pm

Irony has a funny way of jumping in to my life to yell, “Surprise!” while my pants are still down.

Steve and I just had a lovely round of marital relations and were looking forward to a nice relaxing evening, probably involving a movie and going to bed early. (Don’t squirm–intercourse is kind of a thing that happens in marriage, people. And I include this snippet because it single-handedly initiated the following story.)

I stood upright to go to the bathroom and was greeted by severe cramping in my lower abdomen. Curious, as I have never, ever experienced cramping before (lucky me, I know…sympathies to my not-so-lucky fellow females out there). True, I was due to start my cycle any day now, but this was something quite different than the usual pangs of discomfort.

Cramping was soon accompanied by extreme bloating in my upper abdomen, and the pain only continued to increase as an hour passed by. I lay in bed with a heat pad on my stomach in hopes the cramping would pass. But I found myself sitting on the throne of my misery, cramping at a full roar with my abdomen refusing any form of calm as nausea and fatigue and light-headedness took over.

I couldn’t even call out to Steve, barely getting out, “Babe…something’s wrong…”

He called an advice nurse through our insurance company, who asked me a laundry list of questions and concluded with, “You need to be seen at the ER. Immediately.”

Great.

Steve was a superhero—dashing around the house to pack a small bag of necessities for the hospital as I attempted to confidently leave the bathroom behind without concern of needing it again soon.

This was bad. Let me be clear—I have a high pain tolerance. Like, stupidly high. I know when my body is just dealing with something minor, which is most of the time. But this was unlike anything I’d ever felt, and everything in my body and brain screamed wrong wrong wrong. The pain was so bad I seriously considered telling Steve to drive me to Salem Hospital (which is a desperate move…everyone knows how bad the local hospital is when it comes to ER care…or any care for that matter). The proximity was that tempting. Steve reasoned me out of my insanity, though, reminding me that I would be seen and likely diagnosed at Silverton Hospital in the same amount of time it would take Salem Hospital to simply call me into triage.

Good point. To Silverton…

Pop Up Poetry Event: Artists’ Reception at Broadway Coffeehouse

I had the pleasure of being invited to do #PopUpPoetry this Thursday for Broadway Coffeehouse‘s Artists’ Reception, featuring the Friday Artists (showing off their paintings and artwork currently displayed at Broadway) and Branches Company (a local acoustic musician).

This was my first live gig, and can I just say how how humbled and awed I am by how my city is welcoming me with open arms?! Thank you, Salem! It was incredible; the evening had a slow, laid-back pace (rather than the rapid pace I’m used to), but I was grateful for it–I had the opportunity to engage in deeper conversations with the people asking me for custom poetry. We laughed and networked and exchanged stories and business cards. Now this…this is what life should be about–being intentional and authentic with the people around you. Busking is hard, SO hard, but now that I know what I know…I don’t think I can stop. Thank you to everyone who made Thursday night such a wonderful evening for me and for supporting your local artists. Thank you to my dear, dear husband for being the best personal assistant! You made this night seamless for me! See y’all on the streets! (And a special thank you to Eddie Cabbage. I’m the luckiest jedi-in-training in the world!)

Images of Pop Up Poetry pieces are below!

I Dream of Archery

Just woke up from a dream:I disobeyed an order on the battlefield and, as punishment, my commander was to take my pointer finger. I convinced him to take my pinky instead…my reasoning–I still wanted to be able to draw my bow, and I would be a useless warrior without it. ❤ (Proud to say I didn’t make a sound when it was done.) #recurvebow #want #idreamofarchery  

The Proposal

Just a snapshot of a true story. 😉

Love Letter 2

Modern Love Letter #1

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