Bonni Brodnick Blog

Memorial Day weekend is the start of summer. Amidst the fun activities, take a moment of gratitude for those men and women who currently serve our country, and for those who valiantly lost their lives while fighting for freedom. My Uncle Stanley died at the age of 18 in a foxhole in one of the last battles at Okinawa. I have visited his gravesite several times at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Hawaii. It's heartbreaking to think how this young man wasn't able to live his life to the fullest. He made the ultimate sacrifice and has made my family proud. We are grateful to my Uncle Stanley ...  and to all in the military for their courage and valor in the name of freedom.

Visual primers for summer:

                                                        Circa: 1995 (DHB: 7 years old. AB: 5 years old) As a writer, I am a chronicler.  In my office, I have shelves and shelves of journals that archive different chapters and adventures, including falling in love with my husband, our honeymoon, trips to St. Barth's, France, Hawaii and beyond.  I have journals that document Pregnancy #1 (David) and Pregnancy #2 (Annie). Of my most prized possessions are two baby journals that record phrases, sentences and perspectives of the children as they grew up. The journals are joyful remembrances of being a young mommy and continue to document the life-journeys of #1 and #2. (I just updated my son's journal with the news, "David H. got engaged!") While straightening up a shelf recently, this card slipped out. I can't figure out what the occas...

The other day I ran out of my office for a meeting AND ... left my glasses and cell phone on my desk and my wallet under my desk. The lucky thing is that I remembered my shoes. So what is the mind game when the only thing frontal-lobe is getting the heck out of somewhere? A mad dash can lead to brain blank-out. Of course, I was poised and focused at the meeting. When it was over though and I was back in my car, I searched my purse to find my reading glasses (GONE) so that I could check my email messages on my phone (GONE.) A grande cafe latte expresso at Starbucks seemed in order until I noticed that my wallet, too, was GONE. There was a sense of freedom in not having glasses. I also didn't give a whistle if I wasn't receiving emails and, until I located my wallet, yo no tengo nada de dinero . As one of my favorite teachers at an independent school in Greenwich, Conn. used to say, "Check, please!"

all of the amazing, devoted, loving and awesome Mother's out there! As you can see from many of my Huffington Post blogs ... " List en to Your Mom: 15 Helpful Tips for my Kids" ( c l ick here ), "Elderly Mother Inspires with Active, Full Life" ( click here ),  " My Mother was Highjacked" ( click here )  or for all of them, click here , my mother continues to be a big influence in my life. Though she had a ( thankfully benign) brain tumor when she was 48, and experiences partial paralyzation on her right side, along with stone deafness and other difficulties, at 85, Mom continues to be forever appreciative for life, for each and every day, and for the simple things ... like when a long-time vendor hugs her every time she walks in the shop. (E,g., she's had the same mechanic, Hordy, working on her Mercedes for 40 years!!) People absolutely LOVE my Mom because she is kind, generous, loving, creative, fun, funny, sassy, sharp as a tack, en...

When I was checking out at the supermarket, I noticed the cashier had put a copy of National Enquirer in my bag. What the??  "I didn't purchase that," I said. "It was on the belt so I thought it was yours," said the cashier. "You can go to the service desk if you'd like a refund." I thought, "Why bother," and slipped N.E. back in the bag. "AIDS KILLED PRINCE!" screamed the cover headline in a high-volume font. Additional bullets read: "He Didn't Have to Die!" "Agonizing Final Days." "The REAL TRUTH About the Pop Legend's Tragic End," was another headline. A six-page spread of "his life in photos" ensued. Another musical superstar is gone .. and within such a short time of David Bowie's and Glenn Frye's passings. The rest of this issue of National Enquirer included all the skinny on Julia Robert's sister, Gwen and Blake, how to burn fat with some new biotrim p...

Do you have misophonia triggers? Does hearing about other people's triggers trigger more misophonia triggers? Listen up! Click here.   (But don't hit " click here " too hard or it will trigger my misophonia.)