therealtamara

Your story

Memory fades. Not just yours, my dear which was strangely altered and crippled by the dementia with which you suffered. Everyone’s. It, like the hearing of which couples complain, can be selective. Or just inaccurate. It was a gift to me when you recounted so much of your life story to me. Some of itContinue reading “Your story”

The d-word

It is more than mildly distressing to me to throw the p.w.d. label on djt. It also gives me pause when I hear my news sources or Rep. Madeleine Dean, say that trump is “losing it.” I feel it dishonors Burt. I also acknowledge that my stance on this is weird.

October 2013

Burt was so angry over the 2013 government shutdown that he refused to ever vote again. I disagreed with his conclusion, but understood the reasoning. He felt it was a huge disruption. The ACA prompted the Rs to stop work for those 16 days. We seem to have a similar excuse– health care– this timeContinue reading “October 2013”

Another trove of pix

Over troubling waters

via Photo Challenge: Bridge My local bridge always smelled of white bread baking when I was growing up and we came over it from Queens. In those days, it was just the 59th Street Bridge, now it’s named in honor of one of the city’s recent mayors, Ed Koch. The bakery on the Queens sideContinue reading “Over troubling waters”

Yes, dear, I do

Do I miss you, darling?You, of all people, know.You know I miss you, And, even, I’ll bet, howDeeply I miss you. It isIntense, this absence ofYours. Yes, I miss you,Dear. Yet, also, I live myLife, a life different fromThe one we shared, theOne I miss when I say I miss you, darling, so Much. IContinue reading “Yes, dear, I do”

I ran into…

Last week I ran into a friend who now owns a bar-restaurant that Burt and I frequented; we hug, she offering me condolences and saying now you’ll live your bestlife. Then she’s telling me that Burt was a character. Hearing her assessment is a blessing. That day, I also ran into a Social Worker IContinue reading “I ran into…”

Listening

I routinely go through my picture trove on the phone. The photos and videos of Burt are starred. This is what stopped me as I went through the cache today. Burt’s voice in these snippets is so sweet to hear. I am so grateful! This one above was the first one I uncovered. It still makesContinue reading “Listening”

Madeleines

This was the source of Burt’s favorite treat:

The past

Finnegan’s Wake is on my path to the senior center. I must have walked by dozens of times, but it’s only today that I ran into the woman who owns the place. We exchanged hellos and haven’t seen you in a long time. I explained about Burt’s dementia and told her he’d died. It’s recent,Continue reading “The past”