Pod Squad | Mixed Metaphors

Jun 27 2023

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Fractured, Not Broken!

Fractured Definition: having a crack or break: having suffered a fracture

Broken Definition: (of a person) having given up all hope; despairing

Resilient Definition: (of a person) able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions

On Wednesday, May 17^th, I accidentally fell forward while attending the Opioid, Stimulants, and Trauma Conference sponsored by the State of Wisconsin Department of Health Services at the Kalahari Resort and Conference Center in Wisconsin Dells and fractured the humerus of my right, dominant arm. Ouch! Continue reading →

Tagged Accidental Fall, Chosen Family, Family, Finding Our Way, Fractured-Not Broken!, Friends, Funny...Not Funny!, Gratitude, Harm Reduction, Hip Replacement, It Takes a Village, LGBTQ, OutReach Community Center, Pod Squad, Recovery, Resilience

Mar 04 2023

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Dispatch from the Hideout: Endemic Edition

“When the physical threat of coronavirus subsides, as it surely will, we must address the impact to our mental health” — Luciana Berger

Endemic Definition: “…a disease or a condition, regularly found and very common among a particular group or in a particular area” — Cambridge Dictionary

Three years into the COVID-19 pandemic and we are the next stage of its evolution as the virus becomes endemic. It’s now living with us, and for some of you, living in you as Long COVID. To the best of my knowledge, I’m a Never COVID, COVID Virgin, or COVID Target. Yes, I’m still vulnerable, however, I’m grateful. It required three years of isolation including, social distancing, healthy practices, sacrificing time with friends and family, avoiding indoor restaurants, stores, and events, many of which gave my life meaning and pleasure. For some of the past three years, I worked remotely, and when in the office, masked. Continue reading →

Tagged COVID-19, COVID-19 Journal Project, Daylight Saving Time, Dispatch from the Hideout, Endemic, Family, Father, Films, Friends, Gratitude, Isolation, Pandemic, Pod Squad, Return to Life, Seasons, Spring Fever, Wisconsin Film Festival

Jan 22 2023

Posts

It Takes a Village: Lessons Learned

“We are all in this together.” ― Hillary Rodham Clinton, It Takes a Village

“Accepting help is its own kind of strength.” ― Kiera Cass

February will be the 10^th Anniversary of my blog, Mixed Metaphors, Oh My! When I began designing it, I first needed to determine why I write. I saw it first as an extension of my journals, except I would invite others to read what I wrote. From the About section of the blog, Why I Write:

First, I consider myself a journalist, not the fact-checking, who, what, where, and when kind of reporter – but the gut-checking – why did this, or why is this happening to me or others and what can I learn from the experience – activist-essayist and memoirist. I keep journals, write memoirs and personal narratives as a record of my journey and exploration inward, allowing me to excavate and externalize aspects of my essence and experience, bringing them out of the shadows and into the light. Journaling and writing personal narratives is the process of first becoming aware, accepting and embracing what I have uncovered, followed by the charting of a new course. Continue reading →

Tagged Bio Family, Blog, Chosen Family, COVID-19, Friends, Gratitude, Hip Replacement, Holidays, It Takes a Village, Lessons Learned, Love, Pod Squad, Recliner, Recovery, Relationships, Sisters, Stories

Oct 16 2022

Posts

Dispatch from the Hideout: Hip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah!

“Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay
My, oh, my, what a wonderful day
Plenty of sunshine headin’ my way
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay!”

[Song composed by Allie Wrubel with lyrics by Ray Gilbert for the Disney 1946 live action and animated movie Song of the South, sung by James Baskett.]

First, I took some liberty with the happy song from my childhood for the title of this installment of the Dispatch from the Hideout series, to express optimism about the relief and restoration I hope to experience from my upcoming hip-replacement surgery.

A note about the movie that featured the song: It was considered by the NAACP as racist and released this statement, “…in an effort neither to offend audiences in the North or South, the production helps to perpetuate a dangerously glorified picture of slavery … [the film] unfortunately gives the impression of an idyllic master-slave relationship, which is a distortion of the facts.” To read more about the film and the controversy it caused, Song of the South: 12 Things to Know About Disney’s Most Controversial Movie.

Continue reading →

Tagged Chosen Family, COVID-19, Dispatch from the Hideout, Family, Friends, Hip Replacement, Osteoarthritis, Pandemic, Pod Squad, Wisconsin Historical Society Journal Project

Feb 14 2022

Posts

Dispatch from the Hideout: Love in a Pandemic 2.0

Heard today: “I finally fell in love with my person.”

My realization: “My person, is me!”

Though the title of this Valentine’s Day holiday musing is Dispatch from the Hideout: Love in a Pandemic 2.0 it is actually the eve of the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Let that sink in for a moment.

Like most things in life, we can look at life from both sides now (cue the amazing Joni Mitchell). There’s pre-pandemic romantic love and our relationships with friends and family — compared to the past two years of love in a pandemic. It was a challenge and we each made an assessment — weighing the risks versus benefits — every time we made a decision of when, where, and how we’d get together in-person with friends, family, and loved ones with whom we didn’t live. When you live alone, the question became more powerful. How much isolation can my physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being tolerate? Continue reading →

Tagged Chosen Family, Conversations with My Next Girlfriend, COVID-19, COVID-19 Journal Project, Crushes, Dating, Dispatch from the Hideout, Ex-Partners, Family, Friends, Holidays, Love, Pandemic, Pod Squad, Relationships, Romantic Love, Valentine's Day

Sep 06 2021

Posts

Pandemic Staycation Redux: Safer-at-Home

Staycation: A vacation spent at home or near home, doing enjoyable activities or visiting local attractions. — Dictionary.com

Labor Day weekend has historically been the beginning of my annual Staycation, usually 7-10 days which I take off of work and remain close to home. It’s also what I can afford to do as I make choices with my discretionary income and travel often falls off the list. It sounds a little mundane, yet it serves me. This time is a vacation from my routines and allows me to practice spontaneity and rather than check off things on my to-do list — which I regularly make for the week ahead — instead I make a “to-do only if I want to list,” which I add and subtract to as I wish. Yes, I’m a little OCD. Continue reading →

Tagged COVID-19, Dispatch from the Hideout, Family, Friends, Labor Day, Memories, Pandemic, Pod Squad, Post-Pandemic, Pre-Pandemic, Safer-at-Home, Seasons, Staycation

May 31 2021

Posts

Dispatch from the Hideout: My Post-Pandemic Life

“As a writer, I like words, their origin and meanings. Memory: Something remembered from the past; a recollection. Memorial: Something designed to preserve the memory of a person, event, as a monument or a holiday.” — from Mixed Metaphors, Oh My! With a Little Help from My Friends

First, the Memorial Day Holiday is a time to acknowledge and honor the men and women who have served our country in war and peace, and more importantly to work for peace in the world. It’s also a time I remember loved ones, friends, and colleagues who have died.

This year it’s also a return to some version of our pre-pandemic lives — a new normal — a post- pandemic life for those of us who’ve been fully vaccinated. Continue reading →

Tagged COVID-19, COVID-19 Journal, Dispatch from the Hideout, Family, Fathers, Friends, Gratitude, Grief, Home, Loss, Love, Memorial Day, Memories, Mother, My Pandemic Year, My Post-Pandemic Life, Pod Squad, Post-Pandemic, Pre-Pandemic, Racine, Vaccination

May 02 2021

Posts

Dispatch from the Hideout: Exit Strategy

“In the rush to return to normal, use this time to consider which parts of normal are worth rushing back to.” — Dave Hollis

As I write, it’s the day after May Day, this year the first Saturday in May, the traditional running of The Kentucky Derby. Attendance was, according to the Courier-Journal, “51,838 — a far cry from the usual 150,000-plus fans the race draws in a normal year, but one of the largest crowds at any event since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.” Many people who attended did not wear their required face masks, except around their neck, though they dressed up for the occasion donning their derby hats and costumes while sipping mint juleps and placing their bets. Continue reading →

Tagged 2021 Kentucky Derby, 2021 Wisconsin Film Festival, Back to Life, COVID-19, COVID-19 Journal Project, Dispatch from the Hideout, Exit Strategy, Family, Friends, Gratitude, Home, Madison, Next Steps, Pod Squad, Post-Pandemic, Racine, Relationships, The New Normal, The Road Forward

Oct 19 2020

Posts

Random Topics V

Sealioning, Chukars, Pandemic Fatigue

As I write, it’s Sunday morning. The temperature is 40 degrees (feels like 34) — raining with the possibility of snow today — the first of the season — as we prepare for the l-o-n-g, dark, and cold Midwestern fall and winter ahead. COVID-19 cases in my home state of Wisconsin are surging; we are hot spot, logging an infection rate just under 25%. Trump campaigned here Saturday in Janesville, risking the lives of the citizens he was elected to protect. It’s an increasingly dystopian time, 15 days away from the election. Will our lives be mentally, physically, and spiritually restored, or how many more of us die? Continue reading →

Tagged Autumn, Chukars, COVID-19, Dispatch from the Hideout, Pandemic Fatigue, Pod Squad, Quarantine Bubble, Random Topics, SASY, Sealioning, Shelter-in-Place, Social Distancing, Winter, Wisconsin

Jul 18 2020

3 Comments

Posts

Dispatch from the Hideout: Quarantine Bubble Edition

Definition: Quarantine Bubble – “A quarantine bubble is a group of individuals or families whose members have been safely quarantining and who can now start hanging out with other observant groups, so long as the families observe safety guidelines and agree to be exclusive.”

The social trend is called by many names as people seek safe, in-person interactions outside of the home in response to the isolation of coronavirus lockdowns — quarantine bubbles, pandemic pods, COVID-19 bubbles, or quaranteams.

Melissa Hawkins, Director, Public Health Scholars Program Health Studies at American University in Washington D.C. writes, “When done carefully, the research shows that quarantine bubbles can effectively limit the risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2 while allowing people to have much needed social interactions with their friends and family.” Continue reading →

Tagged Coronacoaster, COVID-19, COVID-19 Bubbles, COVID-19 Journal, Dispatch from the Hideout, Facemasks, Lockdown, Lockdown Lingo, Pandemic, Pandemic Pods, Physical Isolation, Pod Squad, Quaranteams, Quarantine Bubble, Safer-at-Home, Social Distancing

Mixed Metaphors

Mixed Metaphors, Oh My! – A place where words, this writer, and readers play together.

Tag Archives: Pod Squad

Fractured, Not Broken!

Dispatch from the Hideout: Endemic Edition

It Takes a Village: Lessons Learned

Dispatch from the Hideout: Hip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah!

Dispatch from the Hideout: Love in a Pandemic 2.0

Pandemic Staycation Redux: Safer-at-Home

Dispatch from the Hideout: My Post-Pandemic Life

Dispatch from the Hideout: Exit Strategy