the afternoon nap society

I'm in a hole. I'm in a hole, and I've been in a hole.

A hole is dark. A hole is deep. And given enough time spent in a hole, one begins to find the hole comfortable or, at least, comfortably familiar, which makes crawling out of the hole less appealing. Eyes adjust to the dimness; skin adapts to the dankness. To crawl out of the hole is to be blinded by the light, it is to be overwhelmed.

Living outside the hole is less difficult than crawling out of the hole; yet no part of living in proximity to a hole is easy. One is constantly aware of the hole's holeness. The hole is always there. What varies is how much energy one must expend on not falling in the hole. At times one may simply know that the hole exists. At other times one may walk directly to the rim and say, "Look there's a hole; I will not fall into it." Yet again, one may stumble, crashing in up to one's shoulders, clawing handfuls of dirt and sticks and stones for traction and still be able t…

On Monday, July 23, fibromuscular dysplasia patients and those who are family members, friends, and healthcare providers to FMD patients are asked to join in a global awareness event to raise the disease's profile and contribute to rare disease research.

Fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD) is a noninflammatory, nonatherosclerotic arterial disease that is most commonly seen in women. It may present at any age, but is more commonly discovered when the patient is between the ages of 20 and 60 years old. Patients may be asymptomatic and remain undiagnosed; however, the disease may cause arterial stenosis, occlusion, aneurysm, and/or dissection. FMD most commonly impacts the renal and carotid arteries, though it has been identified in almost every arterial bed. FMD is considered a rare disease. In the U.S., a disease is defined as rare if it is believed to affect fewer than 200,000 Americans, according to the National Organization of Rare Disorders. A disease or disorder is defined as rare …

It is so wonderfully weird to be written about rather than to be the one doing the writing...

I've been in the news lately.

It's a matter of split personality—there's AfternoonNapper, and then there's me. Is she me? Am I her? Can a me be a we?

So many of us are dueling our dichotomy. Our halves are split and split and split again. I am a patient. I am a leader. I am a writer. I am a reader. I am a wife. I am a persona. Regardless, I am continually happy to be able to say — I am — and these two words increasingly become a so much more powerful battle cry compared to the projections of I will or the impermanence of I was.

There is a woman who graduated in the top 10 percent of her high school class and was accepted into the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While still in college, she began her journalism career as a state employee in the public relations department of one of the University of North Carolina's 16 public institutions. Her early duties included writing press releases and assisting in annual report development for one of the university's partner institutions, which was charged with improving teachers' skills across the state.

As a junior in college, the woman joined her university's award-winning newspaper, quickly rising through the ranks from a staff reporter to desk editor. She partnered with other journalism students to facilitate a program in the local middle school, teaching children writing and technology skills to produce a student newspaper. When chosen to serve as the college newspaper's managing editor, the woman elected to stay on an extra summer…