So much has happened since Roberto passed on December 8. It was sudden and unexpected, to me anyway. Even though he’d been fighting COPD this past year and it had been consistently kicking his butt. He’d been in the hospital more than he’d been home and was almost always on a ventilator a good part of that time. He was sent home on 24 hour oxygen in September. And yet this man, who had weathered all of life’s hard knocks, including devastating paralysis in September 2003, couldn’t be beaten down. Not yet anyway. At least that’s what I thought. My hero simply could not fall. I wasn’t ready.

Right after that, I ended up flat on my back in the hospital for a week with a wicked toe infection, the result of long ignored diabetes. Had I not succumbed to the doctors’ request, I might be sitting here with a body part missing, that’s how serious THAT condition was (and still is).

So it’s all been a whirlwind of activity and family members and hospitalizations and nurses and many things to do and take care of. And now the dust is settling somewhat. And I might want to write a bit about this new life situation I find myself in. Alone and without the love of my life at my side. Hence a new blog category, the “Widda Hood.”

Won’t you be my neighbor?

• Admitted for "a couple of days." timing couldn't be worse. (@ St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital) http://t.co/0T0QCfhZ #
• Back again. Foot worse. I'm kinda scared. (@ St. Lukes Emergency Room) http://t.co/8M3sMblc #

• Foot infection. They are running an IV. (@ St. Lukes Emergency Room) http://t.co/iNGTXyQz #
• ACTION ALERT! Send an emergency call to #Brazil Help stop a global catasrophe in the Brazilian rainforest! http://t.co/Ej8kG8lZ #DT @WWF #
• Huge #newtwitter #fail cant use select/copy unless you go thru to quote tweet; WTF? #
• Duncan's got the right idea! http://t.co/SKWh66f8 #
• 2011 Recap: RT @copyblogger: The Top 10 Everything of 2011 – http://t.co/dCe8hTLr #
• Nice! RT @Belgrade: The USA writings of Mika Oklop, cult Yugoslav writer http://t.co/gGHpdpFu #
• http://t.co/4of22fKz bling, personally delivered all the way from Belgrade! Miss you, Ivan! http://t.co/h3PHHHDl #
• And you know this because … ? (Found in my email inbox.) http://t.co/L2Iv2B4B #
• "The dumber people think you are, the more surprised they’re going to be when you kill them." ~ Wm. Clayton #quotes #
• "Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion." ~ Jack Kerouac #quotes #
• Them's fighting words, boy! RT @mckrack: #b2s2011 I dalje tvrdim da je tenis uzrok svog zla na planeti. #
• Diamonds are created by subjecting them to tremendous pressure. Here's to my favorite diamond man. @burek #
• Knock 'em dead, hoss! @burek #b2s2011 #
• Blagojevich gets 14-year federal prison sentence. http://t.co/Wbuf7bsQ #
• Typography lesson here! RT @ernieattorney: [...] #SignageFail http://t.co/DPcAf2AQ #
• Kick butt tonight, "victorious warrior"! (inspired by Sun Tzu) cc: @burek #
• Twitter tantrums much? How to cope. http://t.co/Wi4hfbDF #
• Life lesson! RT @burek: Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things. – George Carlin #
• Any ideas why my #iPhone is showing low memory errors under Diagnostics? http://t.co/Bhk35bBK #
• “@burek: Can you imagine what I would do if I could do all I can? – Sun Tzu” I can. #
• “@SadClown: Ancient Geeks” Too damn funny! #
• I really can relate to this: http://t.co/dY6jRcUL via @seanhackbarth #
• First automated word processor I ever worked on. http://t.co/nps0aohH #
• Photo: The first automated word processor I ever used. Smokin hot in its day. http://t.co/eRdeEjju #
• On a mission to find Christmas ribbon candy, preferably sugar-free. First stop, Washburn… #
• I remember this from my childhood. Would love to find it in sugar-free format. http://t.co/7GGtcBzH #
• Dobro jutro to my precious friends across the sea: @burek and company (you know who you are!) http://t.co/oCpAzYZk #
• "Those who have suffered much become very bitter or very gentle." ~ Will Durant #
• "There is no such thing as a lousy job – only lousy men who don’t care to do it." – Ayn Rand http://t.co/pcHRsZJV #
• "There love enough in this world for everybody, if people will just look." ~ Kurt Vonnegut #
• Test tweet. #test #
• "Looking good, dawg." @burek #
• Me want coffee. Me too damn lazy to get up and make it. But Robo just rolled in with a fresh cup; he made it … And my day! #
• Holiday theme now up at http://t.co/S68SaxcL. http://t.co/MMCOIzrk #
• Too funny, but actually useful advice! RT @JesseNewhart Talking about this thread bit.ly/sou3i0 Informative and funny. #
• "Out of sight, out of mind" isn't working. I operate under "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." Woe is me. #freakshow #
• "I don't have pet peeves – I have major psychotic fucking hatreds."~ George Carlin #quotes #
• "You don't have to fear that you're now dependent on me. It's I who will depend on any whim of yours." ~ Ayn Rand #quotes #
• "The question isn't who is going to let me; it's who is going to stop me." ~ Ayn Rand #quotes #
• "My life is nothing but room for you. It could never be filled by anyone but you." ~ Kurt Vonnegut #
• I am sick and tired of social media trying to "force my head down" like a drunk on a bad date. I know what I want to see/read better than U. #
• I swear to all that is holy, if I hear one more person use the words GURU or ROCKSTAR in connection with a web designer, I'm gonna lose it! #
• Might be able to keep a "No more tardiness" resolution this year: http://t.co/rcoXFPGa. Brilliantly simple, as most good ideas are. #
• Not much is cuter that a seal face. #natgeo #

• How did a (very loud) cricket get into my upstairs office? #
• Grooving to NAXI Radio while I code. Only one thing missing. #
• "You have to believe. It’s all about stepping in and taking your chances." ~ Novak Djokovic #quotes #winners #
• "['Liberal' and 'conservative'] are words rich people on television use to divide and conquer.” ~ Charles Barkley #quotes #politics #
• "There is nothing in the world more difficult than candor, and nothing easier than flattery." ~ Fyodor Dostoyevsky #quotes #
• "I'm not afraid to compete. It's just the opposite. Don't you see that? I'm afraid I will compete — that's what scares me." ~ J.D. Salinger #
• "All great and precious things are lonely." ~ John Steinbeck #quotes #
• "The world breaks everyone, and afterward many are strong at the broken places." ~ Ernest Hemingway #quotes #
• "'Mother Nature' isn't loving and all-embracing. She's selective, cruel and unyielding." ~ Blanche Barton #
• My husband is so disgusted with the #coogs that he deleted the Tivo'd game. "The game's over," he said. #
• Heading upstairs to get some real work done! (@ Pixelita Designs) http://t.co/B2yMv8b2 #
• "Smoking is the only honorable form of suicide." ~ Kurt Vonnegut #quotes cc @iamtalcoyote @mckrack #
• Cain is suspending his campaign the way he's been suspending belief (and asking us to) all these months. #cainwreck #
• "True terror is to wake up one morning and discover that your high school class is running the country." ~ Kurt Vonnegut #quotes #
• Words are magical and potent–use them effectively. ~ Blanche Barton #quotes #
• I've had my Denny Floyd fix for the night, so it's off to dreamland with me. See you on the other side! <3 #
• "No one should be protected from the effects of his own stupidity." ~ Anton LaVey #
• I am #oneluckybitch … I have the best friend anyone could ever hope for, and he knows it too. #
• American Airlines files for Chapter 11 (reorganization) protection. Just in time for the holidays. Whee! #
• 2800 followers, @NikiBGD! I like nice round numbers. #
• I can't believe I just spent half an hour untangling a necklace. #
• #ff Designers @caradotcom @NaomiNiles @FayeC @beautifulweb @cheth @AndyMarkle @ginabad @blogdesignblog #
• #ff Legal Eagles: @RickHorowitz @dhowell @ernieattorney @dtoddsmith @MarkWBennett @PaulBKennedy @justiacom #
• #ff Favorites & Friends @sashakane @burek @kymberlie @TheJenATX @iva_tanackovic @arronlock @ceesco #
• #ff Serbian Internet: @burek @eniac @milojesekulic @flylord @ivanbrezakbrkan @ivancosic @nikiBGD @draganbabic #
• Happy birthday, @ActionBronson … May the day be all that you want it to be. #MyFavoriteRapper #
• No brag, just fact: http://t.co/gbx3sPlA cc: @burek #
• http://t.co/QAziygMA. Love the color palette and clean lines of the layout. http://t.co/fZfVZKlG #
• http://t.co/MKb98G2l An Apple a Day … Perfect for Apple and Mac fans out there. Apple speakers! #gifts #
• An Apple a Day … Perfect for Apple and Mac fans out there. Apple speakers! http://t.co/Y7KT7QHg #
• Houston, Texas. Downtown along Smith Street. http://t.co/KuhDJGBP #
• Houston, Texas. Downtown, from the SE, near the old Maxwell House Coffee Plant on Harrisburg. http://t.co/M3Sag8Hb #
• Houston, Texas. Downtown, corner McKinney and Austin. "Concrete jungle." http://t.co/Zjtx49Pm #
• Houston, Texas. Downtown, looking from the SE, near Minutemaid Stadium. http://t.co/U7zsXiEs #
• Houston, Texas, metal sculpture, corner Pierce and Dowling, near downtown. http://t.co/MbfdYPlq #
• Shabby chic, vintage. I'd LOVE these in my 1930s bungalow. Photo by Selina Lake http://t.co/c0RtvObD #
• You're one in a million, babe // You're a shooting star… ~ Axl Rose #quotes #lyrics #GnR cc: @burek #
• "Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love." ~ Song of Solomon 2:5 #quotes #love #
• Success! http://t.co/I6PBnw1Z #
• What is it with this cat and television? He's been spending too much time with Robo methinks! http://t.co/BtJK3vYn #
• Duncan is fascinated by a PBS documentary on humming birds. http://t.co/7qKbuqIK #
• “But to believe that getting stuff is the purpose and aim of life is madness. ” ~ Hubert Selby Jr. #
• "You have to be brave and let the other person know who you are and what you feel.” ~ Helen Fielding #quotes #love #
• Cataplasm … #cats #humor http://t.co/rFiAcgVR #
• Made a batch of sun dried tomato/cornmeal muffins to go with supper. This is a good day to have the oven on. http://t.co/HyH66bK3 #
• $800+ for an i-Pad? Get the fuck outta here! #
• The answer to a question no one asked. RT @Minervity: iPhone Home Button Stickers: Trippy iPhone Customization – http://t.co/plGzYSni #
• RIP John O'Sullivan | http://t.co/qSMh9yUv http://t.co/WqXgmnH4 #obit #attorney #erratum #
• RIP John O'Sullivan ://bit.ly/rZOGOW #obit #attorney #
• Iraqi rap? RT @KTRKHouston: US military 'hip-hop' legacy rubs off on Iraqi youth: http://t.co/hIr4UHui #iraq cc @ActionBronson @KILLAKYLEON #
• http://t.co/B4hTY0OI cc @burek @mckrack Swear away, boys! #
• There is way too much turkey in this house. Guess I'll make turkey quesadillas for breakfast. #
• Diabetic neuropathy kicking my ass. Need to control this disease better in 2012. #diabetes http://t.co/ReW2NefS #
• Head in the clouds. Thanks, @Burek. http://t.co/aJRbkywf #