Watch Out for that "Lung Flu" 12-18-25: discovering new friends--letting old ones go...

It started with a slight shortness of breath last Sat. and by Sun. I was on my ass in bed. Now four days later I'm well on the road to recovery. This was scary--almost E.R. material! You know the feeling when your mind goes there "Oh who's going to feed the cat, shall I call an ambulance? Is it that bad???!!!!! Ha ha. I recall when I had my heart incident back in 2009 (on 9-11) of course and I casually rode my bike over the ER of the old Mt. Sinai (now a condo) without a care (well except for the alien-like pain in my chest (all notated in my short story "My First Heart Attack."

That was then, this is now. Vulnerability shines through as we age and still (and still) we must be resilient. For self-maintenance is all.

I highly recommend everyone get the current flu vaccine so you don't have to go through this recent experience of illness.

On a more positive note I'm becoming an official member of "The Elements Clubhouse" The Clubhouse is a loosely organized non-profit association for people who have the courage to admit they have mental health issues (mine=social anxiety disorder, isolation, suicidal ideation) and have to courage to work on interacting with other folks, thus sharpening my social skills and perhaps even making new friends/and/or discovering new interests, creative and otherwise: in short, a place to go to hang out! Simple. I have finally realized that the few friends I have (I love them they are the best--some of them that is) and the complete and utter lack of any other social experiences in my life (well--there are the occasional clients--some of my regulars whom I adore) and then there's the Eagle on Sunday nights: hey--it's not enough LOL. So here's to new adventures.

Much thanks to Kiss at Miele's Respite (and Yvonne and Welleta) for turning me unto this new experience. As a senior (and a very queer one) there is nothing more isolating that being alone. SAGE never worked for me so I'm giving this a go. Wish me luck! Making art isn't enough--you need people, people who care enough to check in with you once a week. These are true friends: not those tired old things that respond to your heartfelt emails with a standard "I'll read all of this and respond at a later time." That isn't a friend, it's a nothing. Oh yeah and then there's the "the Ghosters" who send you a text every two weeks "You are amazing--thinking of you." Jesus, such bullshit. People need real people not cell phones and emails! So--out with the old and in with the new!