Forgotten November and the COPE Reboot
December 8, 2025
Get this: I have been writing blog posts for eight years. For those who have been tempted to hit “unsubscribe” at least once, thank you for staying with me.
One of my 2026 initiatives is to upcycle content I have already developed from guesting on podcasts or writing blogs, short stories, articles, and other unpublished ramblings.
What in heaven’s name is “upcycle?” Yeah, I better clarify that.
Here’s how my Copilot AI bot explains the word:
For example, let’s travel back to February 2019 when my blog that month was Thank You, Mom. And You Too, President Lincoln. The title was unintentionally vague. And lame! A more appropriate title would have been, “The One Where I Dish About How Much I Admire My Mother and President Lincoln.”
In that blog I introduced this question: What four people, living or deceased, do I wish I could meet with and have a conversation?
Here’s how my list of four people has evolved over time:
As far as my late brother and mother, I don’t have regrets about things left unsaid. Rather, I simply miss their company, especially our talks. Mom knew my high anxiety resulted in ridiculously high expectations, but she always encouraged me to keep pushing hard on my aspirations.
And Lee, well, he and I shared a unique bond based on years of his incessant teasing when we were kids that prompted me to stand firm and persevere. Lee pushed the boundaries. He was a jokester—an instigator who seemed to enjoy not playing by society’s rules. It seemed he woke up fueled by the question, “How much can I get away with today?” His everlasting spirit reminds me not to take myself or anyone else too seriously.
Dr. Jimmie C. Holland (1928–2017) was a pioneering psychiatrist who founded the field of psycho‑oncology, transforming how the world understands the emotional and psychological experience of cancer. She is the reason the intersection of mental health and cancer currently serves as my foundational platform.
Speaking of visionaries, I have written extensively about my kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Fernley, and how she helped me understand that being different often means being unforgettable in the impactful sense.
Poor President Lincoln no longer makes the cut, not because I don’t respect him, but because I’m not fascinated by the traits of effective leaders like I was in years past.
Instead, my current upcycling obsession finds me spending time in ways that feed my brain and pedometer, invite creativity, or generate what I call “beer money.” I thoroughly enjoy hanging out with and asking questions of friends way smarter than me, trying new recipes and intentionally not adhering to the instructions, and finding new value in old stuff.
To steal(?) a line from something I wrote that might turn into a book someday:
It’s time for me to mine gold.
