I discuss the hidden epidemics now affecting those who seek out drug explorations. Nitazenes, Medetomidine, Kratom and smuggling novel drug combos into prison, sprayed on paper and then smoked.

During my days actively working for the NM DOH, I would sometimes encounter difficult people. My basic premise, developed early on, and honed through years of personal explorations, is that such folks can be great teachers—whether the lesson be patience, setting good boundaries or just avoiding them for mental health’s sake.

There is an Italian word that captures the much-preferred slowing down to the pace of life quite nicely: Spensierato. Translated as carefree, it implies a relaxed approach to absolutely everything. Which got me musing on the beginnings of my own auto-obituary, which will take some time to complete to my own satisfaction. I offer some excerpts. Photo by Zinkevych from Freepix.

To honor my ongoing survival and the recent passing of dear friends, I offer some Jewish blessings, and a bit of anonymous humor, in the form of edited excerpts from an obituary that I found to be hilarious.

On the 3rd anniversary of my cancer diagnosis, I muse about the journey of a thousand miles and the Willow to Nome Iditarod, which started this week with great ceremony.

My attention is one of the valuable resources I possess. It involves key areas of the brain that allow me to focus and concentrate on a given task, whether that is making dinner, composing a song, groking some new Italian phrases, or jotting down some notes for a podcast that is yet to emerge.

The hungry ghost realm is one of insatiable desperate desire and greed; one of the lower states of consciousness in the endless cycle of samsara, it represents addiction, the proverbial hole in the soul where no matter how hard one pursues it, the external things never quite fill that inner void.

I am trying out a new lens for my daily experiences. Whatever is occurring, I simply ask “do I feel put upon, fairly neutral, or does it bring me joy?”