Empathy in Action: Transform Your Perspective

A Unique Opportunity to Share My Story I just returned from Phoenix, where I attended a walkathon in support of brain tumor research. I didn’t go as a walker; I went as a bookseller. The event’s sponsors had read my book and graciously invited me to sell books during the event. My table was located near the silent auction (where I bid on—and lost—a chocolate basket). I expected this event to bring together 4,000 members of my target audience all in one place. To prepare, I in

I added a volunteer position to my life this week. I am the new News Administrator for the Stroke Network. The Stroke Network comprises a network of websites geared toward supporting stroke survivors, and loved ones of stroke survivors. The creator of the Stroke Network contacted me through Facebook and asked if I would be willing to take on this position. They needed someone with an academic background. Mostly what I do as News Administrator is choose articles to be shared

<p>Mirror, mirror on the wall: who&#8217;s the fairest one of all? Not me! And probably not you! Ok, maybe YOU! I started a new research project this week to further explore exercises that are beneficial to brain-injured people. In this study, participants put their weaker hand into a box that has a mirror on the [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Why do bad things happen to good people? Why do good people do bad things? Why does Radio Shack ask for your phone number when you buy batteries? These are some of life&#8217;s unanswerable questions. My daughter says that there are four types of people in the world: people who are nice, people who are smart, [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Someone recently asked me if I teach all these classes because I have to or because I want to. Isn&#8217;t that a question that plagues everyone as they get ready to go to work each morning? This semester I&#8217;m adding an online section of Marine Biology to my schedule, and soon, I&#8217;m planning to add [&hellip;]</p>

<p>My friend Paul, who hadn&#8217;t seen me in a while, approached me at the gym and told me he didn&#8217;t say &#8220;hi&#8221; at first because he didn&#8217;t recognize me! He said that I not only looked different, but I was moving differently as well. He made a point of telling me that it wasn&#8217;t a [&hellip;]</p>

<p>I am writing this on July 26, 2010. I can&#8217;t help but think about this day, four years ago. I woke up feeling hopeful that my pain would soon be over. I had been feeling sick for months, and I had every reason to believe that my surgery would be successful. My dad and step-mom, [&hellip;]</p>

<p>The boat capsized and we were all tossed into the ocean. Able-bodied people were, of course, able to don life-preservers, but I was unable to put one on myself. So, there I was-unable to swim, unable to tread water-nearly going under the cold, green water when a huge mass of muscle came from below and [&hellip;]</p>

<p>I refuse to write about the DMV again, so suffice it to say: I ended up retaking the road test, I passed, I&#8217;ll probably have to retake it every two years, and, yes, they&#8217;re still dementors! I&#8217;ve recently returned to San Francisco after an interesting week in Milwaukee. I had a chance to reconnect with [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Altruism. What is it and why is it a necessary part of animal societies? I have taught courses that included animal behavior during most of my teaching career. You’d be surprised at the altruism that takes place in non-human, animal societies. Vampire bats share food (yes, blood) with each other, vervet monkeys shriek alarm calls to warn other monkeys of danger, and honey bees [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Lady at Social Security Office: &#8220;Since it&#8217;s been more than two years since your divorce, you&#8217;ll need to provide additional identification to change your name. You need a document with your maiden name and your date of birth.&#8221; Cindy: &#8220;How about her birth certificate?&#8221; Lady: &#8220;No Ma&#8217;am, that only proves she was born, it can&#8217;t be used as identification.&#8221; [&hellip;]</p>

<p>Last week, I took Cindy to see Wicked for her birthday. We got the tickets a couple of months ago, and it was a surprise for Cindy. Keeping it a secret was difficult, but I just avoided any talk of the theatre, the City, musicals, or The Wizard of Oz! Our theatre-going group included my [&hellip;]</p>

<p>After last week&#8217;s &#8220;Karma&#8221; post, one of the comments (thanks Bryant!) said that I have great karma because I have persevered and that I am living my life, teaching, and raising kids. Everyone goes through tough times in life, and maybe it&#8217;s better not to think of &#8220;karma&#8221; as something that comes back to you, [&hellip;]</p>

<p>I don&#8217;t believe on karma, but I do believe in ghosts. If I believed in karma, I would wonder what the hell I did to deserve this. It is said that as long as you&#8217;ve got your health, you have got everything. Well, what if I don&#8217;t have my health, then what have I got? When I get really [&hellip;]</p>

<p>I went to the DMV today to try to get my driver&#8217;s license renewed. Simple, right? For me, it&#8217;s more complicated than brain surgery! My adventure with the DMV began last October (2009) when I misplaced my license and had to get a duplicate. The form asked if I had had any medical conditions occur in the past five years. Since my abnormalities [&hellip;]</p>

<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s not the years, honey, it&#8217;s the mileage.&#8221; This classic line by Indiana Jones is going through my mind a lot this week, as I have a birthday looming. I&#8217;m going to be, I dunno, forty-something. On paper, it&#8217;s really not that old, but, seriously, there isn&#8217;t a part of my body that doesn&#8217;t feel old. [&hellip;]</p>

<p>In honor of Mother&#8217;s Day, I am posting the dedication that appears in my book, When Life Throws You Lemons&#8230;Make Cranberry Juice! Dedication One evening, I had my son call a friend of mine to come over because I needed some TLC. He obliged, after asking me what TLC was.  Throughout my life, my mother, [&hellip;]</p>

<p>I went to the Mazda Dealer today to get my car fixed. Before you say, &#8220;WHY WOULD YOU GO TO THE DEALER TO GET YOUR CAR FIXED?&#8221;, the work in question was still covered under warranty. I went there because the mechanics at my local gas station (whom I trust) told me that my exhaust manifold was leaking. I [&hellip;]</p>

<p>&#8220;Most moms say they would die for their kids; my mom loves me enough to live.&#8221; I included this heart-wrenching quote from my daughter in two presentations I gave recently. I knew that some members of my audience were potential future health professionals, and I wanted them to get a glimpse of the emotional side [&hellip;]</p>

<p>The area known as the cove was filled with blood. It looked like a scene from The Ten Commandments! I just finished watching The Cove, the Academy-Award-winning documentary about a dolphin slaughter in a small fishing village in Japan. As a life-long dolphin lover, I was, of course, horrified by the images before me. One [&hellip;]</p>