Dr. Larry Pittman Goddard Blog

I woke this morning early angry at myself for the inability to sleep late.  Outside it was rainy—just enough to be a mess—and probably freezing.  Immediate thoughts went to my grandparents who had a dairy about 60 miles from my childhood home.  Those of you who know dairy folks understand their lives are not easy but dedicated.  I thought of my gra ndparents this early Christmas morning—they would milk their cows, pack their car, and drive the hour to our home on Christmas mornings and arrive long before we woke for Santa.  They loved Christmas, especially Granddad, who was as excited as we were about “Santy Claus” coming.  He was loud when he laughed and clapped at a good joke.  In the late afternoon of Christmas day, the melancholy of their leaving was heavy—even though they had left presents galore in pretty paper along with fresh eggs, milk, cream, preserves and home canned garden vegetables which made all year a bountiful plenty. The...

Summary of a trip to Morocco. Dates, names, facts all changed. Perhaps one of the last pleasure trips to that country. The "Funky Fido Butt Smell" of the Medina (Bazaar Bizarro World...) is still with me!  Saadia Haider  Raf....(Ralph) and children T and Z...my wonderful one friends--can you believe it has been SIX years? Morocco Trip Friday, 1 December 2006 Getting to Morocco Leaving DFW Airport during an ice storm involved begging and pleading; cancelled flights; de-icing the plane twice and finally getting a flight to Atlanta; then to New York and an overnight flight to Casablanca: All a long but adventuresome journey. Got booted to first class since the many changes to the original schedule…free drinks…sat with a mega wealthy mega drunk Brit who cussed like no one I had every heard....it was the filthiest conversation but because of his accent it seemed quite proper.... He told me that the Brits drown all the children who have good teeth.....Raucous flight conversa...

And, so this happened.  About a month ago, a friend gave me a birthday present--one of those 23andMe Ancestry DNA kits.   It was a hectic time, so I just glanced at the instructions while not wearing my cheater readers....I was shocked and appalled...never in my life had I thought THAT was the specimen....figured it was just a Q tip and I'd rub inside of my mouth....so it went to the bottom of the 'to do' stack.. The other day, now that things have calmed down....I picked up my cheater readers and re-read the instructions which said to "SPIT" in the glass tube.  Not the other 'S' word I thought I had sworn to have read with my nekkid eyes. So, I started SPITTING in the test tube and it took about an hour...have you ever tried to spit so much....seemed like a quart....my mouth was so dry I was spitting cotton...(old saying by an old man).... Then I mailed the ginormous bottle of SPIT off to the lab and am awaiting my DNA results. It...

Never take the advice from someone who won't be there to suffer the consequences with you.   Never take the advice of someone who has not had your kind of trouble. Never take advice too seriously from those who have not been severely tested. Never take advice from someone you wouldn’t trade places with. Never take advice from people who have never done what they’re writing (or talking) about. Never take advice from someone who is not generally happy. Never take advice from someone who has never been in love. Never take advice from someone who profits (real or imaginary) from your decision. (Take notes on this one.) Never take advice from people who succeeded, but did so with dishonest means or by luck or a gift.   Never take advice from the people who live lives you do not fully respect. Never take advice from someone you want to impress or someone you are afraid of. OK...that's my advice....for now...

The best things in life are those who you love, the places you have been, and the memories you have created along the way.... Do not get burned twice by the same flame. I have learned that it is the weak who are cruel and that kindness is to be expected only from the strong.  I am glad to know many strong friends. No lie.  I met someone today and he said his occupation was "part time DJ"... But, now.... really.... aren't all of us part time DJ's? When I drive, I really just scan playlists for about 11 seconds each song... then I arrive at destination  Sort of a traveling Disc Jockey When somebody tells you nothing is impossible, ask him to dribble a football. Yeah I used to be a people person but then people went and messed that all up. I want to be a comedian so bad but I am afraid they will all laugh at me! Just because someone talks a lot doesn't mean they say anything. I'm old but I'm not stand-out-in-fron...

·          Before I get completely wasted, make a fool of myself, stumble my way home and pass out, let me wish you a very happy New Year. ·   My New Year’s resolution is to be a little less perfect so I can stop making everyone else look so bad. ·   This coming year may you have happiness, good health, prosperity and finally realize how awesome I really am! ·   May you grow old enough that you struggle to stay up until midnight, prefer to stay home on New Year’s Eve and are unable to remember what a New Year celebration was like when you were young. ·   To all of my Facebook friends, may your Facebook page be full of New Year wishes from people you barely know. ·   May your New Year’s resolution be high definition. And may you be too drunk to understand that joke! ·   New Year’s resolutions are a to-do list for the first week of January. ·   May the New Year hurry up and come so we can final...

The man asked if I wanted a cup of coffee.  He looked like a miniature Frankenstein, casually dressed, smelled like a Mexican Food Restaurant, and was chomping ice from a take away cup.  It was 1:30 p.m. and he was grinning--like a spider in his web.... It took him a long time to get the coffee. I noticed the collection of college yearbooks that I had personally donated to the University--searching estate sales for years until we had these valuable historical references.   No one remembers what anyone has done in the past.  The thought is that 'it' all began when they started working here... For some reason, that 'fight or flee' instinct hit me...was sitting here to 'help' this 'no small talk for you' administrator going to be the  biggest mistake of my life.  Here I was, at this man’s invitation—he’s an interim vice president at a large regional University and the big shot mayor in a little shot town—the town is quaint; the mayor...

While there is no one perfect way to respond or to support someone you care about, here are some good ground rules.  #1 Grief belongs to the griever. You have a supporting role, not the central role, in your friend's grief. This may seem like a strange thing to say. So many of the suggestions, advice and "help" given to the griever tells them they should be doing this differently, or feeling differently than they do. Grief is a very personal experience, and belongs entirely to the person experiencing it. You may believe you would do things differently if it had happened to you. We hope you do not get the chance to find out. This grief belongs to your friend: follow his or her lead.  #2 Stay present and state the truth. It's tempting to make statements about the past or the future when your friend's present life holds so much pain. You cannot know what the future will be, for yourself or your friend -- it may or may not be better "later." That yo...