D.G. Kaye's Blog, page 169

#Digital Woes for #Seniors

We all know how much the world has changed over the decades, but as many seniors have discovered, the digital era isn’t always so compatible with their abilities.

 

Life has certainly become a lot more complicated when it comes to digitally enhanced products and services for those beyond the boomer’s age. Simple correspondence is now done through emails and scanning documents and receipts, and then there’s the automated everything from bank machines, calling a place of business, to the every day transactions done in a store with charge or debit cards. I had to learn along with the masses how to do all these things, and it was a learning curve for me in the beginning. But what about all the seniors out there who are overwhelmed by all the changes that they didn’t adapt to along the way of the technology advancements? I can’t speak for everyone, but I know from my own husband’s inexperience with most things digital that if I weren’t around to do many things for him, he would be lost. And he has no qualms about admitting that himself. He is computer illiterate, and not at all interested in beginning to learn about it now. I can’t help but wonder where that leaves many people incapacitated by technological developments.

Let’s take the act of traveling for instance. Many of us realize that the joy of traveling is a thing of the past. It’s now become a tedious process we must adhere to before we even begin to board an airplane. Even I, who consider myself pretty well-versed in computerese, still get flustered over all the technological components of boarding a plane. No doubt it’s overwhelming for seniors.

 

We used to check-in, drop our bags, zip through security, and await our plane. Now we first have to enter our passports into a kiosk machine and hit a bunch of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ buttons to get a digital boarding pass just to check-in. Next, if we’re traveling to the U.S., we have to take our luggage with us to go through customs, but not without first having to place our passports in yet another kiosk machine to security check and verify who we are. Then we get to proceed to a customs agent so that we can verify the same information all over again that we just fed a machine. We then get to drop our bags off and prepare for airport security check. There we empty our pockets, take off our shoes and jewelry, sweaters and hats, pull apart laptops, present our miniature liquids and gels, and then to top it off, we get a dose of radiation and get to bare our naked bodies to an x-ray machine for anyone behind those cameras to peruse. I’m sure it’s only a matter of time until we will be standing in our underwear for all the other passengers to view too. Now, this is a lot of preparation for a trip, and for those who aren’t computer savvy, it’s a very intimidating process.

This past month, I have taken on a new responsibility for my husband; and shall I say for the Toronto Blue Jays. We are season ticket holders. Every year in the past, we were sent a package with tickets for all the games. This year, they decided that tickets would no longer be sent out, but rather we would have a digital account with all of our tickets listed in them. All the games were also on a card they sent to be scanned at the gates with a bar code so we could enter.

 

The account gives us the ability to also print off tickets, email them to people we choose to give, sell off, or donate to. There are 81 games, which equals 162 seats that I had to manage. I had to take a little tutorial course on all the procedures, and let me say how daunting it was. I was flabbergasted by the work involved to distribute these tickets. Sure it’s convenient for the association to fluff off the work onto us and avoid it themselves, along with printing and postage costs. But I can’t help but wonder, aren’t we paying enough already?

It was a tedious and very time-consuming process, and naturally I encountered a few glitches along the way. I called my ticket agent when it got too confusing, and left him a message. He usually responds within an hour, but he returned my call two days later. He apologized for the delay because he was inundated with calls for help. “NO KIDDING!” I responded. I told him I could only imagine how flustered and lost the many seniors were that now had to deal with this procedure. He concurred. Once again, my husband thanked me for doing all that work for him and he added, “If I didn’t have you, I’d have cancelled the damn tickets.” It left me wondering about just how many did cancel their subscription.

My husband has been a car salesman for almost 53 years. He’s old school, well respected and well known in the industry for his sales and service. He retired a few years ago after being with one dealership for 48 years. After a few months, he realized he missed working, so he went back to work for a friend who manages another dealership. He’s always been a top salesman and still provides service to his customers; long after the car is driven off the lot. He has repeat clients that have come to him, some with three generations from a family. I’m pretty sure that my husband is one of the only guys in the industry without a computer on his desk.

 

He still uses pen and paper to juggle numbers, and he can tell you about any particular car he sold to someone from a half a century ago. He remembers their names, the color and make of the car, and sometimes how many kilometres were registered on it. Many dealerships tried to get him over to theirs through the years, and his lack of computer skills has always been overlooked because of his great salesmanship. He does the selling, and management enters what needs be into the computer for him after. This system has been working for him, although he realizes he is missing opportunities to sell more by not being able to use the computer to search information for himself. The dealership has also implemented a system where cold calls and leads that come in are shared amongst salesman by an alert system, either by text or email. Sadly, he is missing out on these extra leads because of his computer handicap. His sales haven’t lagged, but he notices that some of the weaker salesmen are selling more now, and that bothers him because he knows he’s missing out, and he’s all about being top salesman.

As some of you know, my husband is just over two decades older than me. And rightly so, at age 77, he’s certainly entitled to retire. He says the computer world is hindering his abilities to keep up, and perhaps this may be his last year of working before we set out for his dream of becoming a snowbird next year in Arizona.

Do any of you have someone close to you who is feeling the clamps of technology coming down on them?

Book Review — Getting To Mr. Right

Carol Balawyder is a versatile genre writer. She writes in memoir, women’s fiction, and crime mysteries. Carol likes to blog about life: justice, mid-life dating, grief, as well, she shares some great introductions to other writers and workshops.

Today I am sharing my review of Carol’s latest book, Getting To Mr. Right. I love reading Carol’s books because of the messages she leaves in her writing of strength and empowerment. Her flair for detail in her writing, and for developing her characters and storylines, invites the readers in to indulge in her captivating stories.

REVIEW:

 

Five Stars

Does Prince Charming really exist?

A great women’s fiction read but really not far from the reality of many women entering mid-life. Do the relationships daughters have with their fathers lead to their choices in, or their beliefs about the men they later form relationships with? It would seem that this group of women all carry some sort of baggage from their past relationships as so many of us do in real life.

Campbell’s questioning of the existence of Prince Charming being a myth is the topic for the little women’s group formed by the four women in the book. Missi has been duped by a philandering husband, Suzy exhausted with unsuccessful online dating, and Felicity is ruled by her father’s dominance and the initial abandoning of her real dreams for the sake of keeping her father happy. Campbell herself, feels as though there is no such thing as Prince Charming until she is faced with the potential of one which makes her question her initial belief, why she formed the group in the first place, and if her belief could be altered. As the women forge friendships amongst themselves, we learn about some of the damage in their pasts, which has hindered their happiness in seeking relationships from having trust issues and low expectations. Throughout this well told story, these women begin to learn from one another and help restore one another’s esteem and beliefs that there really can be happy endings.

 

D.G. Kaye ©2015

Are You Really Following my #Blog? – WordPress vs. Self Hosting

I thought I’d give a shout out here to my wonderful reader and blogger friends about following this blog.

 

As we all know, it’s an honour to have people come visit and read our words on our pages. We all know it takes time to build a readership and a following.

I am blessed to have you all spend your valuable time reading my posts, and I’d like to keep it that way by clearing up some confusion about following my blog.

It’s come to my attention in these past few months, that gratefully, I’ve accumulated several more followers. The strange part about this is that they aren’t signing up (right side bar) to ‘follow this blog’. They are somehow still finding my old page ‘Cubby’s Corner’ on WordPress and being redirected to this new self hosted blog of mine.

I have tried several times to rectify this issue with WordPress so that they would close off that page on wordpress.com, which will eventually stop the redirect to here. When they finally stop redirecting my readers here (and they will), unless followers have signed up to receive my posts, or have to type in the link www.dgkayewriter.com, to specifically get here, they won’t be fed my posts through WordPress reader any longer. It will seem as though I’ve vanished, BUT I’M NOT GOING ANYWHERE!

If you enjoy my blog and wish to keep up with my posts, please join my blog on the right hand sidebar here, so you won’t miss any posts. I usually post only twice a week, unless I have an announcement, and the posts come through Mailchimp every Tuesday morning to your inbox. Don’t forget, you are always free to unsubscribe at any time.

 

P.S. My book Menowhat? A Memoir is on #FREE promo at Amazon Today, Thursday May 14 to 19th. Help yourself to a download here www.smarturl.it/bookMenowhatAMemoir and don’t forget to leave me a review!

On #The Writing Process

 

 

I was recently invited to create a post on the craft of writing for The Ladders, an online company which networks with potential jobseekers.As a comprehensive career resource, they take pride in being able to assist any demographic with their job search no matter the field.
As we all know, every writer has his/her own methods of writing which they are most familiar and comfortable with, but the elements involved for good writing, remain a standard.

 

Writing styles differ amongst all writers. The reasons we write can be for personal or business. Some write blogs, some are freelance writers, and others are published authors. Regardless of our preferences, we have to develop good content and a voice. But how do we get to that point?

We get there by dedicating ourselves to the craft. If we intend to share and showcase our work, we should be writing daily to hone our craft.

I seem to be the type of writer who writes on her blog, and is working on two books at one time. When I’m working in revisions I like to do creative writing exercises. My favorite book to use for writing prompts is Old Friend From Far Away, by Natalie Goldberg. Writing exercises are particularly good for breaking writer’s block. By committing to our writing, we should set goals either by setting daily word counts or by time allotment.

It should go without saying that to be good writers, we should be avid readers. Reading also gives us a sense of the writer’s voice. As good writers, we eventually find our own voice — how our words are projected on paper to the reader’s eyes and ears. Why do we gravitate to our favorite authors? Because we enjoy their writing style, the manner in which they tell their stories. If we wrote books and changed the style of narration in each one of them, people aren’t likely to gain a familiar feel for the author’s work collectively.

To simplify this, if each book written by a particular author in same genre read as though it were being told by someone other than that author, the reader may enjoy one of their books but may not go past reading another if they find that the reason they followed that author’s writing keeps changing with every book. Exception would be if the author wrote in more than one genre. But many authors tend to write in one genre.

Blogging is a wonderful avenue for writers because it helps to establish our presence in the writing world, and to connect with other writers and readers. We have so much to learn from other writers whether from reading their work, following links from their posts, or by getting introduced to new writers. There is so much ongoing information about the writing world we can obtain from others.

Many people who wish to blog sometimes wonder what they should blog about. But the universe is our oyster when it comes to topics. We can start our writing about random things until we actually find our niche. Eventually, after becoming a faithful blogger who posts regularly, we will find our own topics of interest through our own writing and we will notice by our growing followers who our writing becomes geared towards. This is how we begin to find our audience.

Some of the best advice we hear from seasoned writers is “Write what you know.” If we want to become a good writer, we have to write about things that interest us, and have value in sharing. Write about the things we ourselves like to read. Eventually, we acquire like-minded readers to our blogs and our books. Be authentic. Engage in our reader’s questions and comments, for without their eyes on our work, who would we be writing for? But remember, we will never be able to please everyone, not all writing appeals to everyone. And that’s okay, the people who share our interest will slowly become our tribe of readers.

I’ve had many discussions with other writers comparing our writing preferences. Some like to write in longhand, and some prefer creating at the keyboard. It doesn’t matter, either way we prefer, as long as we write.

Are you a plotter or a pantser? Some are a little of both, like myself. Although I’m mostly a pantser, I still use my own structured system. I outline my story’s theme, chapters, and points I want to cover when writing a book or an article. I then let the story begin to flow from my pen. Yes, I said pen. I prefer writing longhand. I find my pen follows my thoughts very quickly, whereas, if I click a wrong key on the board, it hinders my train of thought because I can’t stop myself from correcting. And a good writer should never go back and stop to edit until the first draft is complete. Remember the words of Hemingway, ” The first draft is shit.” Besides that, I don’t feel creative in front of the computer. Spiral notepads and ballpoint pens are my tools of the trade.

While I’m on the subject of revisions, I’d like to defend my thoughts about writing in longhand. In some discussions about my preference, I’ve been asked, “Isn’t that twice the work to have to write on paper and then have to enter the work into the computer?” I actually find this process very helpful. It becomes a part of first round revisions. By entering my draft into the computer, it automatically goes through the first round as I’m entering. It gives me a chance to reread my thoughts as I am translating them and fixing up an initially crappy draft. It really is a matter of preference and a matter of comfort which manner we choose to write in.

When revising, it’s always good practice to print out a copy and read our work on paper, after a few prior rounds, and particularly for the last round of revisions. It’s surprising to find errors missed when reading on the screen. The human eye tends to miss common errors on the computer screen. The more polished our work is before it goes to the editor, the less it will cost.

In summation, I’d like to include some helpful tips for writing:

– Journaling will give us a lot of thoughts to look back on and write about.

– Blogging is also great writing exercise, and gives us a chance to find our captive

audience.

– Write something everyday.

– Work on developing your voice.

– Don’t stop and revise along the way of creating.

–  Join writing groups and/or online writing forums.

– Subscribe to newsletters and publications of influencers in the industry.

– Become a part of social media to establish a presence, by connecting with other

writers, groups, and readers.

Keep feeding your passion for writing. There is always something new to learn.

Happy Writing!

 

D.G. Kaye. ©2015 www.dgkayewriter.com

 

 

Book Review — Desprite Measures by Deborah Jay

  Deborah Jay is a fantasy author. When she’s not busy writing books, or reviewing other’s books, Deborah is busy in her ‘real life’ being a professional horse rider, trainer, and judge of competitions. I honestly don’t know how she keeps up and manages to write fabulous books. I just finished reading one of her books, Desprite Measures, which is an urban fantasy novel. I have to admit, it was different for me to jump into this genre as I usually read nonfiction, and chick-lit for my great escape moments, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It had me turning pages (or should I say clicking pages on my kindle), quickly, as I became concerned for the main character’s demise and mission.

FIVE STAR REVIEW:

An Entertaining Fantasy with Heart and Compassion     Meet Cassie Lake, the loveable water sprite. She’s an elemental who has the ability to transform herself to human form. Cassie is often caught between two worlds; experiencing the emotions of love and compassion as a human, while out of her water form. In the beginning, Cassie meets Gloria, her polar opposite. Gloria is a fire element. They both are trapped by the magician Liam who wants to experiment with their elements, which would have detrimental consequences if he succeeded by having the two elementals touch. In a clever ploy, the two escape and the story continues with Cassie’s quest to stop the mad magician with the help of Gloria and some other wonderful characters such as witches, vampires, and Euan the silkie, from seeking them out to carry out his plans.

One can’t help but to cheer Cassie on after encountering so many predicaments in her quest to save the Loch in Scotland from exploding by the hands of Liam. This was a well-written story and a delight to read.

What I did Yesterday — Besides Having a #Colonoscopy

Colonoscopy – An ugly word, with fearful connotations.

 

Yesterday I went for my overdue colonoscopy appointment. When I say overdue, I mean that it’s been three and a half years since my last one, and consequently, that was my first one.

After having my first one and enduring the awful, but not most awful of all the preps, I was lectured then by the gastroenterologist because I didn’t take the prep she instructed me to take, and my colon wasn’t 100% clear. Although, she had told me it was clear enough to see, and that I was fine. I was elated to hear the good news. But she also informed me that because I have Crohn’s disease, I should be having an annual colonoscopy.

I pleaded my case to her that my Crohn’s is holistically under control, I eat a healthy diet, and being that I had a clean bill of health from her, could she please let me do it every three years. Thankfully I won my plea, and she conceded.

So last fall, I was to have my three-year scope, but life was happening for me in full force, one crisis led to another, and the winter had passed in 2015. My doctor’s referral for this scope was to end by May, so I booked the appointment, and yesterday was the day.

Now, let me preface this by saying, the procedure itself is really no big deal, honestly! I mean, I go to this lovely digestive clinic where everyone is treated so well by lovely nurses, they put you in what looks like a small hospital ward, each with his own private curtain and gurney, and eventually you are wheeled into the small operating room, asked to verify some questions we previously filled out on the forms, and wham, we’re put under with anaesthetic. Just the way I like it!

But heaven help us all, that preparation the day before to cleanse the colon is the most vile, disgusting, nauseating, ass-burning day to endure. (I probably could have used more adverbs here!)

Getting back to the prep, after my first colonoscopy, I was reprimanded for taking something other than what was prescribed. The doctor didn’t feel that the prep I used (Citromag), was effective enough to empty the colon. I had researched something easier than what she had prescribed to ingest. All the preps are disgusting enough as is, and I am the sort of person who gags from a teaspoon of cough medicine. I also have a very slow digestive transit time, thus I get full very quickly, food and liquids hang around my upper stomach much longer than the average person’s.

The difference between taking Citromag and the many other formulas, is that you only have to drink two – 300 ml. bottles of gross stuff, chased down intermittently with 64 ounces of water throughout the day. This is a cakewalk compared to drinking 4 LITRES of other gross stuff mixed in with the water!

Now I cannot even conceive the thought of drinking 16 GLASSES of  liquid in a few hours span, even if it were my favourite drink, let alone with the vile taste and consistency. So, once again, I drank the Citromag and gagged from the briney/sugary mixture of fake lemonade, but held it down.

It took almost 5 HOURS until anything started to happen, other than the huge hard feeling and distention of my stomach, and nausea. Even after the rumbling urges came, they weren’t of much substance other than many Niagara Falls- like liquid showers. I was bloated, tired, starving — I was sure this prep was not going to be effective. I wasn’t wrong!

 

After I had the procedure done, and the doctor called me in for consult, I was informed that I wasn’t properly cleaned out, and I had to admit my crime of not taking her prescribed method of choice. The doctor then added that from the parts she could see through, she had found, removed, and sent for biopsy, two polyps. Just as I was processing the fears that came attached to this news, she then added that I was to come back in 2 MONTHS to do it all over again to be sure there was nothing else she missed. I immediately froze in fear. I knew my charade of switching preps was no longer effective for my lazy colon, and I didn’t have three years to put it on the back burner.

I began to panic with worry about my biopsy results, and what on earth was I going to have to drink, worse than what I had already ingested.

 

I returned home around noon and made myself a piece of toast and an egg. Surprisingly, after 36 hours without food and starving, I no longer felt hungry. My husband went back to work and I got on the computer to catch up with emails and intentions of doing revisions on my next book. But the looming fear within me about having another colonoscopy wouldn’t allow me to concentrate on anything other than searching for a potion that I could possibly tolerate for ROUND 2.

I checked my emails then went directly to Google. I typed in numerous search words with the names of each prep available here in Canada and the U.S. And then I went on forums to read about other people’s experiences with different potions, and read about their stories and success rates. I was obsessed and engulfed in the stories and blogs I read. There were moments I laughed so hard at some descriptions, and I could barely breathe as I pictured them.

Many offered tips and tricks about how to get through the dreaded prep process. The most repetitive information I read was to stay close to the loo, (I know that) have baby wipes handy to ease the soreness down below from the acidic explosions, and to use baby zinc cream to comfort and protect the delicate area below from the sting. But when I read about some various methods used to ingest the vile and copious amounts of liquid, I couldn’t stop laughing.

One girl advised to cover your nose with a Bounce dryer sheet as you gulped, to avoid the smell, which enhances the flavour. Many advised to drink from a straw and to make sure it’s placed at the back of the tongue to avoid the front palate where most of the taste buds are located. Others had their own rendition of avoiding to taste, admitting there was no way to fully mask it. But the most hysterical description I read was from a boy who was trying to describe what his prep tasted like. He said, “Imagine a hockey team’s socks soaking in a tub overnight, and then drinking the water.” I gagged at reading it, as well as doubled over in laughter. Another said that he sat on the throne so long that his foot fell asleep and he didn’t know it until he got up and his foot turned over and he sprained his ankle.

I processed so much information, that before I knew it, I had been sitting at the computer for 6 HOURS! It was 8PM and I had yet to eat dinner. My work day had vanished while it was spent investigating ways I could get through the next scope.

It really is a procedure feared by the masses. The actual procedure is nothing, like I mentioned, but that prep day is the horrific part that keeps people from having the procedure done.

Yes I’m nerved out about doing a repeat and then having scopes annually after, but I have to do it. These polyps they find are a precursor to colon cancer. And after losing a grandfather to colon cancer, an aunt to pancreatic cancer, a cousin to colon cancer (from Crohn’s disease), and another aunt on her way now to the next world from stomach cancer, I have no choice.

I know I had a hard enough time taking the Citromag and litres of fresh water. I don’t know how I’ll be able to chug 4 LITRES of mixed prep with my gag reflex, but I know I have to start summoning up my courage NOW.

If any of you have any handy tricks or tips to help, I’d sure like to hear about them.

SPECIAL EDITION — #Empowered #Divorce #Summit

 

I am thrilled to be sharing the news here about the Empowered Divorce Summit.

 

 

A few weeks ago, Divorce Coach, Heather Debreceni sought me out through social media, and contacted me. She asked me if I’d like to participate in an interview with her on the topic of Children Of Divorce. I was touched and pleasantly surprised that my book Conflicted Hearts, had captured Heather’s interest for her summit.

Heather was interested in hearing my perspective on being a child of divorce, and my feelings about the emotions that stir through children who become victims of the emotional turmoil that often occurs when children feel pulled between their two parents. Heather interviewed me, along with 23 other experts — doctors, lawyers, in the field of divorce.

Heather has put together a summit on How To Protect Your Children from the pain of divorce.

 

 

I am honored to be part of the Empowerment Divorce Summit, which starts May 18th, hosted by Heather Debreceni.

This remarkable online summit features 24 experts on topics such as parenting, relationships, and divorce. They will candidly be sharing their tips and strategies on how to:

– Respectfully date after divorce

– Move through your guilt

– Support your children as they grieve

– Recognize the signs of alienation

– Create balance in your life

– Take your power back

And so much more . . .

Imagine being a fly on the wall as these top experts share the secrets that will allow you to protect your children, and embrace your new beginnings, so that you can start living the life that you’ve always dreamed possible.

I’m truly blown away at the integrity of this movement. As you listen to the experts, you will understand that this summit has the capacity to not only shake stubborn negative thoughts right out of your head, but it will also replace them with a wealth of tools and strategies to change your life. . .

If this resonates with you, keep reading.

Knowing that people have a solid support network, helps them find peace they crave after divorce. I’m happy to have been invited to participate in this growing support network.

Wouldn’t it be amazing to be part of a national movement that empowers women as they move through the divorce process?

Here is your opportunity. And it’s completely free!

Space is limited, so RESERVE YOUR SPOT NOW!

If you have a friend, sister, mother, or know any other women who you think would benefit from such a movement, please share this information.

The change has begun. Let’s inspire the change in the way our nation views divorce, and give rise to empowered mothers across the nation.

If you’re ready to embrace real change, we invite you and the women in your life to join us in the Empowered Divorce Summit. Don’t miss your chance to be part of this amazing event, so reserve your spot today!

www.EmpoweredDivorceSummit.com

 

Just Give it Away: Does Free Work? | Nicholas C. Rossis

Authors are often caught in a quandary about how to promote their books. There is much discussion about the value of promoting our books for free to gain readership.

My author friend Nicholas Rossis writes a lot about the writing process and offers up some wonderful marketing advice based on his own findings.

In the article below, you can read Nicholas’ take on the ‘giving our books away for free’ option.

Just Give it Away: Does Free Work? | Nicholas C. Rossis.

The Demise of Derek Shepherd of #Grey’s Anatomy

 

 

I don’t often get attached to TV shows, but if there’s one show I have been a faithful fan of since its inception eleven seasons ago, it’s Grey’s Anatomy. I’ve never missed a single episode and have often watched many episodes over and over again.

Grey’s is a medical series based on, not only the ailments and trauma of incoming patients, but mostly about the lives and relationships of the doctors in the show. The series depicts some of the real emotions that doctors experience, and sheds a lot of light on compassion and true friendships. As an avid fan of Grey’s, I am one of the millions of viewers who empathizes with these characters. I feel as though they have been my Thursday night friends for over a decade. I’ve watched them grow and suffer many things that life can throw at all of us. There is barely an episode where I haven’t gone through many tissues.

Throughout the series, the show has lost some key characters by being written out of the show. These decisions, of course, are based on the writer’s decisions and sometimes, the characters themselves choose to move on to new projects in their lives. These are very sad times for all dedicated Grey’s fans. Many of us viewers take these losses as almost personal, as though we’ve lost a good friend.

Some of the exits in the show were written out as a character moving to another location, who we could expect to still at least make guest appearances. Others were killed off, leaving a sad taste behind for the fans. In the latest episode, one of the lead, main characters, Dr. Derek Shepherd, was killed off, UNEXPECTEDLY. He is affectionately known as Dr. McDreamy because of his handsome looks and for his boundless compassion.

During that episode, Derek was helping victims of a car crash that happened in front of him while on his way back home to Seattle to be with his family, after an absence out of town on medical business. The whole episode was very emotional and heartwarming with Derek helping the injured victims. But the last ten minutes, after rescuing the injured and sending them off into an ambulance, then getting back into his car, rocked the world of Grey’s fans. This was the part us Grey’s fans all hated. . .an unexpected moment when Derek was at death’s door.

I found the incident leading to Derek’s death, a little unbelievable. Besides the enormous sadness that came over me, I found the decision to write Derek off by having him do a stupid thing, a little cheesy for all he stood for, and to be his exit. Derek wanted to call his wife, Dr. Meredith Grey, and tell her what had transpired. He first got in the car which was parked on the desolate highway the accident took place on, made a semi-Uturn, leaving his car perched between his lane and the oncoming lane, and he stayed there for a moment — only a moment, while he reached down between the seats to search for his phone that had fallen during his sudden stop to avoid the accident.

Do I really need to tell you what happened next? Well, of course, an oncoming truck appeared in that moment, and in a split second, Derek was as good as dead. That’s what he got for helping strangers, then for doing something so stupid that unfortunately, too many people are doing these days — paying too much attention to their cell phones while driving. An expensive lesson, and Lord knows, a doctor should have known better.

Sure, there was a message there, but regardless, I think it was a cheap way to knock of one of the main characters of MY SHOW. Derek deserved better than that. And, I’m so very sad that another member of my Grey’s family has passed. I have only the sadness to watch future episodes now, watching Meredith and all others grieve for the loss of Derek Shepherd.

It seems the creator of the show, Shonda Rhimes, is taking a lot of public heat for killing off Derek. At this point in time I feel angry at her too. But as a writer, I can understand that there can be underlying circumstances for their decisions, and in that capacity, I have to accept those decisions. But it doesn’t mean I have to like them.

Some may say, “It’s only a show,” but isn’t the whole point of creating a show and keeping its longevity because we learn to identify with the characters and consider them friends?

R.I.P. Derek Shepherd

 

Are any of you Grey’s fans?

 

D.G. Kaye©April 2015

The Versatile #Blogger Award – Thanks and nominees – | Carol Balawyder

The Versatile #Blogger Award

 

Thank you for carrying this award forward Carol.

Please read Carol Balawyder’s blog and find out seven interesting facts about her and who her nominees are:

 

The Versatile #Blogger Award – Thanks and nominees – | Carol Balawyder.