IWSG: Reflections On A to Z

                                                             

   

My first A to Z Challenge was in 2011, shortly after I began blogging. I couldn't believe how friendly everyone was. Not only did they willingly read my stories, but non-family members actually began to follow me. I signed on again for the next two challenges, and decided to take a break in 2014, as we were leaving on vacation toward the end of April. During the first few weeks before we left, it felt strange not participating in the challenge. As difficult as the challenges had been in the past, I missed the camaraderie of moaning and groaning with all of my blogging friends.This year it had an opposite effect, as it proved to be therapeutic in an unexpected way.

During the last few months my mom has groan progressively weaker. Though she has been using a walker for years, her legs have become more wobbly, and she has been relying more and more on her wheelchair. I took her to the doctor in March who in turn, referred her to three other doctors: a cardiologist, a rheumatologist, and a hematologist. I told my mom she didn't need to waste time visiting all of these specialists, but she insisted on seeing them anyway.

In early April she was scheduled for a lying down stress test with her cardiologist. By this time, she was so weak, that it was very difficult for her caregiver and me to get her in  and out of the car. After the results came back fine, I asked the cardiologist to test her legs for blood clots, check her for a urinary tract infection, and to also see if she was dehydrated. Though these are normally jobs for an internist, I thought he could send some orders down to the lab, since we were already at the hospital anyway. After he declined, we wheeled her over to her internist's office, but as my mom expected, it was her day off. After I dropped my mom off at home, I paged her doctor who made arrangements to have these tests taken by a visiting nurse the following day. For reasons unknown, all of the tests came back negative.

Over the next few weeks we went to the other doctors on her list. One of the offices was so filthy, that I refused to take my mom in. This building was so rundown that it only had a one person elevator that looked like it was on the verge of collapse. It was getting to the point where every time I saw my mom, I wanted to check her in to the hospital. My brother, and her friends in the retirement community were also quite concerned.

On April 17th, I picked my mom up to take her to the beauty shop. She had grown considerably weaker, and her doctor had ordered some follow up tests to be administered by her visiting nurse. During the ride home, I told her that this would be a great time to check herself in to the hospital. She refused again. I knew my brother would be visiting shortly, and mentioned that she would  probably be going at some point that day. Several hours later, my brother phoned me at 9 PM, to tell me they were heading over to the ER.

My mom spent a few days in the hospital, before she was sent to a nursing home for rehab. It turns out that she was suffering from dehydration, a urinary tract infection, and blood clots in each of her legs. She still likes her doctor, and plans on continuing to use her. Fortunately, she hasn't lost her charm, and has deservedly so mouthed the words, "You are dumber than dirt," to both my brother and me while the nurses weren't looking.

                                                                         

Being called "dumber than dirt," has unleashed a whole bag of insecurities for the Insecure Writer's Support Group.  I can't tell you how helpful it was to read through the encouraging comments during A to Z. It really was such a welcome diversion. I'd like to blame these events on getting so far behind in following up on the comments, but truth be told I still would've fallen behind. In any event, I hope to get back to everyone this week. Not only did your comments cheer me up, but my mom got a kick out of reading them too.

Thanks to Arlee Bird for another successful A to Z Challenge. I'd also like to thank Alex,  Rhonda,  Hilary,  Delores,  Joanne,  Robyn,  Yvonne.  Lee,   Chrys,  Cherdo,  Dixie,   Birgit,  Sue,  Jo,  Julie, and Al  for all of your support.

I'm also thankful for having this wonderful group cheering from the sidelines: Arleen,  Stephen,  Robin,  Gorilla,  Debra, and  Shady.  I also appreciate everyone else who took the time to pop in and say hello. I'm sorry if I left anyone out. Thanks for making my fourth A to Z truly memorable, and for keeping me sane in the process.

Reflections On A to Z Part III

                                       

                                                                             

The nice thing about participating in A to Z is that you never knew what would happen as you wrote through the alphabet. This was my third Challenge, and I was constantly met with surprises along the way. It was almost like attending a virtual class reunion. Bloggers that I lost touch with welcomed me with open arms, and we just picked up where we left off last year. New friendships were formed, and faithful followers continued to tune in.

Some posts garnered more responses than others. Everyone was a good sport whether they were laughing at  Frequent Flatulence,  or contemplating  Ridiculous Rules of Religion.  I thought I might have stirred up a little controversy, but the audience seemed to be in on the joke.

With over 1700 participants, it was difficult to even get through a quarter of the list. Fortunately, the Blogging From A to Z Challenge  site highlighted many bloggers who were just starting out. This helped narrow down the list for me, and I enjoyed connecting with some terrific new blogs.

Alex J. Cavanaugh  also was key in spotlighting interesting bloggers each day. These direct links helped save time sifting through people who had multiple blogs, or little information on Google+.

I would like to thank  Arlee Bird,  the co-hosts, and all of the A to Z ambassadors and minions for another extraordinary April. You all worked 'round the clock to make sure that everyone had a meaningful experience, complete with a road map, and a cheering squad.

My only regrets were that I couldn't read or type faster. I hope that I've finally gotten caught up with comments, and I apologize to anyone I've left out. I really appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read and comment on my posts, and I will continue to try to reciprocate.

Next weekend our older son will be graduating from law school, and we're heading out to see him in a few days. Wishing all the mom's an early Happy Mother's Day, and happy blogging to all!

Reflections On Another A to Z

                                                                                    

                                                           
I was hoping to enter the challenge more prepared, but had only written through the letter "G."  I received a lot of encouraging feedback, and before I knew it, the first week had flown by. It was so easy to fall behind, which forced me to work overtime to catch up. Arlee Bird along with all of the co-hosts continually advised the participants to write all of their posts months ahead of time, so I had no one to blame but myself. However, this self-inflicted chaos combined with all of the friendly new followers, only added to the excitement of my second A to Z.

What made this year even more meaningful was that I had a larger support system going into the challenge. Special thanks to  Al,  Alex,  C. Lee,  Delores,  Julie ,  L.G.,  Nancy,  Rosalind, Susan, Tonja, and Yvonne.  These dedicated, and affable alphabet savants made a constant effort to make sense of my daily ramblings. We laughed, groaned, and soldiered on together.

In addition to my loyal supporters, I was also fortunate enough to meet a new group of faithful followers: Gossip Girl,  Jen,  Jessica,   Libby,   Lynn,  Michelle,   Susanne,  Tracy,  Youmna, and Yvonne S.  I don't know how they found the time to drop in so often, but the camaraderie made the experience all the more worthwhile.

Even bloggers who weren't participating in A to Z caught the fever, and were kind enough to show their support. Carol,  Mary,  Robyn, and  Talli  were wonderful about cheering me on.

I would also like to thank Arlee Bird for organizing another eventful challenge, along with all of the co-hosts. As previously mentioned, co-host  Alex went out of his way to drop in, and miraculously grew more charming with sleep deprivation.  Stephen also made several visits, though I'm not sure if he thought that I was from another galaxy. Overall, I was thrilled to increase my followers, and I appreciate everyone who took the time to comment. I'm sorry if I missed anyone, as I just included the most frequent visitors.

 I'm so grateful that I was a part of another wildly successful A to Z that helped me stretch my boundaries. Though I often write about events in my family, I've never really written about my dad. He died almost 34 years ago, and I finally decided to share some of our experiences in "Yearning For Yesteryear" last Saturday. One week later, a dear family friend phoned my mom to tell her how much she enjoyed the story. Memories of my dad came flooding back to her, and she felt like we were all together again. This was my greatest A to Z achievement.