Intriguing Tales of a Face In the Crowd

Every year that passes, I've noticed that, culturally, it becomes easier and easier to point out all that was negative over the last 365 days. I am exceedingly guilty of this. "This year was horrible! I'm ready for a new year," or something to that effect is heard nearly as often as "Good morning!" or "How are you?" this time of year. The stretch from Christmas Eve to today, December 31st, 2023, has been what I've repeatedly referred to as a 'slog' for me, emotionally. Slog is defined as a spell of difficult or tiring work or traveling, and that's what this last week has felt like. Swaying like a clock pendulum back and forth between bouts of hyper-sadness to a lack of anything existing inside my chest aside from tissue, blood, and organs, I slogged through the week. I struggled between not wanting to see the face of another human being, and being so desperate for company. I was moody and erratic in my disposition around those I con...

  The Best And Worst Of Who I Am.   I'm the small one in the photo. I am my father's son, and my mother's child. I was sweet and adorable at my best, burdensome and irreverent at my worst. A 7lb 13 1/2 oz. mass of humanity that by no real plan or intention fell into the world on April 15th, 1983. I'm LeRoy, nice to meet you.  My first memories are from the crib. I remember darkness and fear. There were shadows on the wall casting through the window of what my mom now uses as a computer room. I remember screaming and crying in terror, but that's really all I remember. I'm sure my mom or dad sleepily shuffled into the room and soothed the crying toddler after being awoken by the sound-sensitive flashing light that notified them that I was in distress.         Most of my childhood was as ordinary as one would expect for the only child of two deaf parents being raised as a 4th generation Montanan in a bygone copper smelting town. CODAs is what we are ...