A Mindful Life

I grew up with the proverb, “A cat is always on the wrong side of the door.” It’s often true, and in particular of one of my cats, Stella. If we could get inside her walnut-sized brain, the inner dialogue would probably sound like: FeedmeFeedmeFeedmePetmePetmeLemeeoutLemeeoutLemmout!

©Kathryn Petro

I came across the Shakespearian monologue below, [...]

If you’re taking an antidepressant, especially an SSRI, and you want to discontinue, do not stop taking medication abruptly. Some ten to twenty percent of those who quit experience significant discomfort, which is known as “discontinuation syndrome.”
Stopping cold turkey can cause an array of troublesome symptoms, the most common being dizziness, which can last [...]

My beloved boyfriend occasionally teases me that I read too many boot-to-the-head books. It’s true that I read a great deal of non-fiction; my thirst for learning is constant. I do enjoy a good novel, but I tend to focus on “quality” novels rather than mass market or serials. I made a [...]

I steel myself as
calamity approaches
on a feral wind.

“My First Tornado” by Karen Bell ©2003 / ephotograph

Having worked at Austin Travis County MHMR for several years, I know firsthand the distress caused to clients and the community by funding cutbacks. When I saw the article below in Sunday’s news, I was compelled to reprint it here for my future reference. My hope is that someday I’ll be able to [...]

This is brilliant!!!
How To Bathe The Cat

Clean toilet thoroughly.
Lift both lids and add shampoo.
Find and soothe cat as you carry him to bathroom.
In one swift move, place cat in toilet and close both lids, standing on top so cat cannot escape.
Cat will self-agitate, producing ample suds (ignore ruckus from inside toilet — cat is enjoying [...]

Becoming a mother is a complicated thing. Not only am I trying to negotiate a relationship with my child, a relationship that defines itself as it becomes defined, I am trying to negotiate a relationship with myself as I attempt to determine how I mother, how I feel about mothering, how I want to [...]

You know, I’ve often wondered about people when they say they pulled a back muscle by doing something simple, like getting up off a chair. Really now, I would think, aren’t you exaggerating just a bit? My back has been a bit tetchy of late. It aches and feels stiff in the [...]

©Kathryn Petro – USPS food drive collection at my mailbox on 5/8/04

Some kids don’t get enough to eat, no matter what people want to tell themselves. Do the math: during the rest of the year 15 million students get free or cut-rate lunches at school, and many of them get breakfast, too. [...]

Now here’s a thought to consider. Every twenty minutes on the Appalachian Trail, Katz and I walked farther than the average American walks in a week. For 93 percent of all trips outside the home, for whatever distance or whatever purpose, Americans now get in a car. On average the total walking [...]