JINGLE THIS . . .

The holidays are hard, on many levels, and this year seems harder than years past ... living and being alone magnifies the difficulty sometimes, even while my family and closest friends are all within a thirty-mile radius ...

And as The Season (I don't mean baseball season) approaches, I have much on my mind ... my health, Gran's health, my financial health, the health of my friendships, the health of NHF ... I carry much anger and resentment for things that I should have let go of months ago and wounds that keep being reopened by insensitive folks around me who call themselves my friends ... I am burdened with anxiety about my future job, my future personal life, my future at NHF ... I am made curious by mixed signals, questioning glances, and impossible possibilities ... and Lord, I wish I could just get ONE good night's sleep ...

Thankfully, there's always the baking to be done. I'm gonna go home and pound me out some pie crust dough tonight and let the pulsating sounds of my Empire Red KitchenAid Artisan mixer melt my troubles away ...