My Pet Head-Rock

I found this tiny skull made of howlite on a recent trip to Door County, WI. Notice the gray streak -- right where my surgical scar was! At this time last year, my head was pinned in place, my scalp cut open, and a section of my skull temporarily removed. That sounds a lot more dramatic than it turned out to be. A year later, I look back on that time with some fondness, partly because it was such an odd, fascinating experience to go through and partly because as stressful as my pre-surgical days were last year, my current level of stress is much higher. The hazy-dazy respite of relatively pain-free brain surgery would be a relief compared to watching my mother go through the long, drawn-out process of dying. Last year, my husband and my older sister were in attendance at the hospital as I went under the knife. My other sister left that day for a work trip to Uganda (lucky bitch). Notably absent were my parents. I completely understood their absence and didn't mi...

I hope everybody had a tasty Thanksgiving. I definitely did, though I had to absent myself at one point when my circuits got overloaded. I’ve just returned from a surprisingly illuminating Black Friday shopping venture, and I’m excited to pass along that experience in an upcoming post, but first I want to present this topic, which relates to the idea of Thanksgiving or gratitude in general. This was actually one of the earlier blog entries I wrote, but I waited to post it, as it seemed there was other, more timely information that needed to get out first. I would also like to make an addition to my Thanksgiving gratitude list: I am thankful for the other people who have blogged about their craniotomy experiences. My family had many questions for me yesterday about my recovery, and one person asked whether I was worried about any of the ongoing cognitive issues. I am not worried because I know that eventually these things will improve, though it does take time. How do I know that? ...