Acoustic Neuroma #2 Symptoms and Diagnosis I had surgery in 1994 to remove a benign brain tumor. The tumor was an acoustic neuroma, a noncancerous tumor leading from the inner ear to the brain. Acoustic neuromas, sometimes called acoustic schwannomas, grow from the eighth cranial nerve. As the tumor grows…

Acoustic Neuroma #1 Symptoms and Diagnosis In January 1994, I realized that my right ear couldn’t hear my alarm clock in the morning. Odd. I must have an ear infection of some sort. It didn’t hurt though so I didn’t go straight to the doctor. Then a few nights later…

November Six Word Story Challenge: “Collecting Smiles” — A symbol of Thanksgiving time together. The American Thanksgiving is the fourth Thursday in November. It is a national holiday. Many businesses close and students often get the entire week off school. It is traditional for American families to travel a long distance to get together for the holiday. …

Our recommendations Relatives will visit Japan in January and have asked for recommendations on places to visit. We lived in Japan for 6 years on an island in Osaka Bay when we taught at an international school there. The following are three of our favorite day trips in the region. …

Too much detail — I loved this photo I took of a market scene in Bali in 2017. There was so much going on and so much energy in the photo. Or, was there too much going on to really tell the story? Was the story of the fruit sales lost in the chaos…

November Six Word Photo Story: “Collecting Smiles” — Resting in the warm afternoon sunshine. We named him Sammy. Sammy was a gopher tortoise who appeared in our Florida garden one day. He wandered into the backyard garden area, bumped up against the backyard fence, and began to dig a tunnel. For several days he worked and worked on the tunnel making it longer and…

Another Florida neighborhood walk. — It gets pretty buggy down there in the wet grass and swampy water. It just itches. So much of the day is spent trying to get rid of the itching ants and other bugs. It involves fluffing out feathers and nibbling on each feather to get it clean. …

November Six Word Photo Story Challenge: “Collecting Smiles” — Could I wear that red saree? Who wouldn’t love to wear a saree? I’ve admired them and envied the women who wear them since I first saw them when I was a young Peace Corps Volunteer in Malaysia 50 years ago. However, I’ve never been brave enough to even get close to trying one on. How…

Time to Get Moving — My husband and I were happily retired together. We traveled, spent lots of time with our grandkids, and of course, we both continue to write on Medium. And then, he got another job. It is not a permanent job, but he is still working as an administrator at a school…