As part of Black History Month, I thought I would call attention to a writer I’ve “discovered” in the last two years. I’ve long been a fan of science-fiction literature, but had not read any for at least a decade or more except for the writings of Portland’s Ursula K. Le Guin. Then a close [...]
© Dmae Roberts
The holidays are over. The world didn’t end as predicted by the Mayan calendar and there is still abundant life on earth. For many around the country, however, there have been difficult times. Last month there was horrific news of two shootings — one close to home and another on the other side [...]
© Dmae Roberts 2012
I didn’t realize the last Thanksgiving I spent with my mom would actually be the very last. We never know about “the last time” until it’s no more.
Ma’s been gone 10 years now. When she had a recurrence of breast cancer, I spent three years commuting back and forth from Portland to [...]
© Dmae Roberts
I’ve been to the emergency room only a few time for myself or family members. Usually we had fast response and care. But nationally E.R. wait times have increased since the recent economic downturn. A 2010 Press Ganey Pulse Report revealed that the average length of stay in a U.S. emergency department increased [...]
Join Dmae Roberts for a special radio memorial on the 10th anniversary of her mom’s death. Remembrance: On Time And Distance is part memoir and a collection of radio pieces she’s produced about the complex ties that bind a mother and daughter. Airs Tues 5/1 11am on KBOO 90.7FM. This special will also air Sat 11am [...]
If you’ve never been to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Oregon, this is the year for you to go. OSF’s The White Snake offers a magical and gently compelling love story that both moves and captivates the very heart of what makes us human. While it’s a love story between a supernatural spirit and [...]
My friend Eliza drives up from Eugene to Portland every Oscar night. It’s become an annual ritual for us to get dressed up and watch the Academy Awards while eating pizza and drinking champagne. We mark our ballots, keep tab on winners, make fun of the dance numbers and tear up at the emotional acceptance [...]
© Dmae Roberts 2011
Thanksgiving meal with my brother went well till my husband and I noticed the duct tape wrapped around Jack’s fingers.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“I cut myself,” he replied.
I asked “how?” and there was a long pause, a pause that’s been indicative of the thing we don’t talk about if we can avoid it: [...]
When my mom died after three years of battling breast cancer, I decided to work on a project with women who survived the illness. To me it was a way to create more awareness about how devastating this disease can be on the woman (some men get breast cancer too) as well their family and [...]
© Dmae Roberts 2011
Daddy passed away in his sleep one afternoon, alone and without causing us any trouble. He had been sick for a week with one of his frequent colds that turned into bronchitis during which he continued the two pack a day smoking habit he could never kick.
“Alive and kickin’.”
That was his motto [...]
