Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Friend day Yesterday was my get-together-with-a-friend day. I started with lunch at First Watch with Vicki, whom I have known since around 1988. We worked together at a local hospital that had hired me to update their Psychiatric services. The goal was to introduce a range of treatments and therapeutic …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark The week between Christmas 2022 is mostly in the rear view mirror. Now comes that long week between holidays when days off are still being granted and “normal” will not return until another Big Day has come and gone. My office was closed yesterday and will be closed after a …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark NORAD Santa Tracker Yesterday, Christmas Eve, it was possible to follow Santa’s trajectory around the world – every continent, every archipelago, every island with people, all got touched by Santa. By the end of his nocturnal voyage, Santa had delivered over 7.5 BILLION gifts. The trip is tracked by NORAD, …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark They came from the East There is a new family seeking help from Legal Services’ Immigration Law Program. It all started with a call from a gentleman who is an Arabic interpreter and has gotten to know this family because he translates for them when they seek help from the …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark The Fruits of Labor Some days ago I wrote a blog about the graduate students’ strike at the University of California’s 10 campuses. Some of the group, around 12.000 Post Doctoral student researchers, signed off on an agreement that raised salaries quite a bit and added a few benefits. That …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark The Frozen Tundra As often happens with St. Louis weather forecasting, we prepare for an onslaught of cold and snow that may or may not happen. Last night the scroll at the bottom of the television showed all the places that will be closed today in anticipation of a “snowmaggedon.” …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Writing “What I try to do is write. I may write for two weeks ‘the cat sat on the mat, that is that, not a rat.’ And it might be just the most boring and awful stuff. But I try. When I’m writing, I write. And then it’s as if …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Once a mother… I have lived over half my life without my mother’s physical presence on this earth. She died when I was 32 and I am now 73. She died before I became a mother myself. We never had time to bond as companions in the art of raising …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark This Season Lights are strung everywhere. Lamp posts in towns everywhere are wearing wreaths and garlands. Churches celebrate Advent. Trees are in living rooms glowing through the night. Muzak is playing songs of this time of year in stores and offices. Streaming services are charging money to watch Christmas movies that …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Till Last night we decided to splurge and watch a movie that is also out in the theaters. We debated over which one to watch and finally settled on the true story of Emmett Till and his mother Mamie Till-Mobley. We knew going in that this would not be a …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark A Feast Day Today is the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. She represents Mary, the mother of Jesus, and is said to have appeared four times to Juan Diego in Mexico in 1531. That’s a long time ago and a long time for a legend to keep going …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Advent Often by the last month of pregnancy, waiting is the watchword. Waiting for that time when a baby is ready to make its way into the light may be met with a bit of impatience. I know when my first grandson was expected, he made us wait an extra …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Moving Day There is one thing I dread something awful. That thing is about to be imposed on me soon after 2023 gets its start. It’s one of those life events that, in the very long run, is usually worth the effort. I have to keep reminding myself to see …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Outcomes Last night was a busy one on my couch. I was hopping back and forth between MSNBC and regular NBC. From the sublime to the ridiculous and it was hard to tell which was which. One station was reporting on the election in Georgia. All of my favorite talking …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark A few tears Last night I was moved to tears by a particularly beautiful performance of Handel’s Messiah. Not through the whole two plus hours, but at certain sections tears slid down my cheeks. The first time was when a young man, a soloist, sang the Alto’s solos. He is …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Pride and the falls I was at work yesterday and a co-worker was packing some things to send to her mom in Atlanta. She was on her lunch hour, if that matters. One of the things she was sending was a big gingerbread house kit. She says her mom is …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Strike three This title is a baseball reference, but it has nothing to do with baseball. Rather it refers to an untenable situation that has developed in California. My son, Ted, is a PhD candidate at the University of California, Irvine. This system of public universities has 10 campuses scattered …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Choices Yesterday I spoke to a friend about Hospice services. That’s something I did for a living, and a calling, for 15 years of my nursing career. It was my job to respond to a hospice referral by spending as much time as it took to explain the benefits of …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark A dry spell Coffee’s made. Mollie Dog has been fed and taken outside. Christmas music is coming through my apple air pods. My fingers rest on the keyboard but no energy is flowing through them, so far, anyway. Usually I get this far and the writing happens pretty quickly. Not …
Today’s blog Lynn Murphy Mark Let the music begin! Christmas is exactly one month from today. It will be another quiet holiday for us. We will be home with ourselves on the day of this anniversary of a humble baby’s birth. I know by now that this date was arbitrarily chosen, and that we do …
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