Side-By-Side Effects — Annie Dixon

Whenever my husband, Ronald, sees me portioning out the pills for the week, he apologizes. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for you to have to do all this,” he says. It’s the same thing he says when he finds…

It’s that time of year when we resolve to improve ourselves and our lives. Ubiquitous articles and television segments offer advice to the masses as we embark on an annual fresh start. Everyone is encouraged to strive for…

Receiving a rare disease diagnosis is not only a life-changing event, it is a life-dividing moment. Suddenly, all the details of life fall into one of two categories: before and after. Every memory and dream, all the old…

When I first became my husband’s caregiver on his release from a three-week critical care hospitalization, it was a full-time commitment. Still, I thought I would be able to manage some of my job responsibilities part time while…

The truth is, my husband is a motorhead. Like most of the rest of the world, I think Ronald is a great artist, divinely inspired to create delicate images of profound beauty. But he and my mechanic brother…

We think our lives tend to follow a natural trajectory. Starting as totally dependent infants, we progress slowly toward independence as we mature. As adults, we discover and develop our skills and talents, then find our market or audience.

A four-day weekend, long-distance travel, large family gatherings, and too much food. After a season of solitude, many Americans celebrated Thanksgiving again this year. My husband was not raised with the holiday, having grown up in Northern Ireland.

My jewelry stash is rather small, and most of it is costume. I can’t be trusted with the real stuff, as I have a tendency to lose or break it. It’s not that I don’t appreciate or value it,…

I came downstairs last Monday morning, feeling better rested than usual. The end of daylight saving time that weekend had given us an extra hour, and I woke up at 6 a.m. more easily than usual — naturally,…

We, the columnists at BioNews, have good editors. They catch typos and grammar mistakes that slip through the computer spell checks and syntax filters. Then they read with a critical eye for clarity of meaning and consistency of…

My sister got the worst haircut last week. It’s actually a good cut, just not the one she asked for. She showed the stylist a selfie taken on a good hair day, and said she only wanted a trim.

Every fall, our religious arts studio exhibits along with half a dozen other specialized vendors at a regional gathering of clergy. In flush times, we distributed gift bags, raffled off prizes, and sponsored happy hour, complete with a…