I awake to notice the slide show on one of my screens. I greet the first image with “Good morning, Burton.” The next with “I miss having you around, darling.” As the pictures go by, I tell Burt how I feel in his absence; that I miss holding his hand and kissing him. It’s aContinue reading “On this dreary morning”
Author Archives: TheRealTamara
Rules are rules
There was a fierce snow storm many winters past, and Burt and I, restless with cabin fever, went to 65th Street for dinner. Mind you, Burt had a no-go-snow policy but I guess the exception proves the rule. This outing was memorable for the high greying icy mounds at each corner. On this corner, weContinue reading “Rules are rules”
The journey
You and your spouse are on this journey together, and apart. You stand by his side, but his path is not the same as yours. Lewy Body Dementia is a disease built for two, as I had often observed over the years. When your spouse is stricken, you and s/he are both in it forContinue reading “The journey”
Pictures
The Burt Blog
When I started this blog, I was “working” other sites, sharing my thoughts on a variety of topics. I was reluctant to breach our privacy in such a blatantly public way. Burt would be more exposed than I and I had some concern for his dignity. My decision was cemented by two facts. Lewy BodyContinue reading “The Burt Blog”
Things change
New York is a dynamic town. I discovered today that it’s Deutsche Bank [not Constantinople, er not Time Warner] Center. Shocking, these changes. Burt and I spent a lot of time at the Time Warner Center enjoying dinner or a jazz performance or both. For our anniversary or Valentine’s or a birthday one year weContinue reading “Things change”
Where our paths didn’t cross
This was a part of Burt’s work history that I shared with you recently. The Sherry Netherlands was home to Kim Novak, a celeb he did not get to meet on his delivery route. Burt’s delivery job at the camera shop on 58th Street in the 1950s brought him to the Kodak plant on theContinue reading “Where our paths didn’t cross”
A jog to my memory
When I passed a firehouse on W 19th where a fire truck was going on a call, I had a recollection. Long ago. Burt and I were passing a firehouse; one truck had just left and a fireman remained in the doorway. Burt engaged him in conversation and in minutes, we were looking at theContinue reading “A jog to my memory”
Burt’s stories
Burt always loved talking. Thanks to this gift of gab, I had heard all his recollections before he retold them to me after he got dementia. I knew about his teen loves, the two Marcias, and his guy friends Paul and Eddie. I heard about his after-school jobs at the camera shop and a grocery.Continue reading “Burt’s stories”
Near the end
During what proved to be Burt’s final decline, he welcomed the company of some hallucinatory friends. His first experience with hallucinations had been of little people occupying our studio apartment; that had occurred at the beginning of our run-in with Lewy and those little occupants annoyed him. Now, he was having serious, intense conversations withContinue reading “Near the end”
this is our life 