Relearning Humanity

Following “the Vid” (as the kids like to call it) the world has gotten meaner. Meaner may not be the best word, but at least more anti-social. Had I been called on to place a wager at the beginning of lockdowns about how survivors would feel after, I’d have lost. I expected the world to

Before, During, And After The Storm

For those of you who don’t know me personally, a tornado hit my small rural hamlet on July 6, 2022. Riding the heels of Ohio’s first Independence Day where fireworks were actually legal, it caused quite a shock to our senses. Granted, there’s no “good” time for disaster to strike, but this definitely qualifies as

Grief Doesn’t Stop When People Stop Wanting to Listen

It’s been nine revolutions of the Earth since you left the mortal plane. I don’t talk about you as openly as I once did. People seem to have an understanding that I was never taught, that there is an amount of time that passes where I’m supposed to be over the loss. Quite frankly, I

Faceless Stigma

When I first decided to share my diagnosis of depression and acute anxiety, my motives were somewhat fueled by self interest. I knew nothing about either condition aside from preconceptions I had gleaned from experiencing it through tangential relationships. Generally people don’t deep dive into a topic that doesn’t affect them personally, or affect someone

For the Love of Humanity

It is said that one’s true character is revealed in crisis, not in calm. Over the last two years, the world has been in crisis, and the revelations have shocked me to my core. It doesn’t matter which side of the vaccine debate you are on, as both sides have become complicit in the erosion

In Remembrance of My Fairy

Eighteen years ago chance and a penchant for reality television brought an amazing woman into my life. It was back when message boards were all of the rage and being a shy introvert I didn’t even use my real name. Back then I was OpenHeart. I mostly lurked. Being raised on “stranger danger” I had

Self Interest Is Not Selfish

One of the biggest hurdles I have had to overcome in my struggle with anxiety and depression is choosing to focus on self-care. While growing up, I was taught in Sunday School that the key to joy was to prioritize J-esus, O-thers then Y-ou. (Being raised in a Christian household, I can only speak from

Depression Is A Mood Disorder Not A Mood

For those of you unfamiliar with me or my journey, let me state up front that I am not a doctor. The truth of the matter is, I’m relatively new to the community of depression and anxiety sufferers. This blog is an outlet for me to process the emotions and thoughts I experience as I

Two Pair of Normal Investigators (Plus One)

It will take us a while to go through our recordings to see if we have anything noteworthy that could perhaps convince a skeptic to be open to the possibility of a realm beyond. In the meantime, I am jotting down some of our experiences on the ride home and the following day while they

When Unity Unties

21 years ago a little movie called The Matrix came on scene. From my experience, people either love it or hate it, with very few on the spectrum in between. As a dyed-in-the-wool nerd, there’s some bylaw somewhere stating I have to love it, so thank goodness I did. While the premise is fiction, the