Category Archives: Occupying

Lessons From My Mother

Posted on January 21, 2026 by Jennie Spotila

Eleven years ago today, my mother died. I can’t believe it’s been that long. Ten years ago, I wrote a list in my journal of some of the things she taught me. It was a brain dump, an attempt to … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Getting Through the Holidays with ME

Posted on December 15, 2025 by Jennie Spotila

My dad saw me addressing holiday cards a few days after Thanksgiving. “You’re SO organized!” he said, half admiringly and half chidingly. Law school accentuated my natural tendency to be organized, but ME made it more intense. “I HAVE to … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Getting a Normal Result

Posted on October 25, 2024 by Jennie Spotila

It’s been a year since my breast cancer diagnosis. While I feel like I have finally recovered from treatment, that doesn’t mean my cancer experience is over. I am on medication to prevent a recurrence, and of course, I still … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Waylaid

Posted on October 10, 2024 by Jennie Spotila

Almost five years after the first cases of COVID-19 in China, I finally got it. Honestly, I expected this test to be positive for flu. My husband and I had been testing COVID negative on rapid antigen tests for days. … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Hello, Stranger

Posted on September 27, 2024 by Jennie Spotila

When I was diagnosed with breast cancer last October, I had grand plans: I would blog through my surgery and whatever treatment followed. I was hungry for examples of other people with ME who had been through cancer treatment, especially … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 31 Comments

Enough

Posted on December 22, 2023 by Jennie Spotila

I’ve been waiting until I felt well enough to post about my breast cancer surgery and recovery, about the treatment I will begin in January. I have words to say about experiencing the healthcare system as a person with cancer … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

“I have cancer”

Posted on November 20, 2023 by Jennie Spotila

I told my husband last week, “It’s just as hard to tell people you have cancer as it is to find out you have cancer in the first place.” So, let me take a deep breath and say: I have … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 56 Comments

29

Posted on October 7, 2023 by Jennie Spotila

I got sick on October 6, 1994. Writing a memoir that spans almost three decades requires a lot of self-reflection, not only about what I’ve been through but about the choices I made, what I got wrong, and what I … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

How to Avoid Covid

Posted on October 9, 2022 by Jennie Spotila

For the first time in three weeks, I live in a Covid-free house. Day 0: My husband was the first to get sick. He woke up with severe congestion and a headache, but tested negative for Covid on an antigen … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

In The World

Posted on August 23, 2022 by Jennie Spotila

I have spent more time in public in the last month than I have in two-and-a-half years. We were having some work done on the house, and I could not stay there in the midst of the noise, dust, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , | 18 Comments