The Shrieking Cactus

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Our cat can talk. Turns out he's pretty funny.
Why every family could use a chubby rescue cat that sounds like Homer Simpson
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Joy V.
10
Mother's Day special: Ambiguous loss and trauma now 1/2 off
Oh man I can't wait for this week to be over
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Joy V.
5
NYT's big article on vaccine side effects is a long time coming
I developed a weird type of severe hives after my COVID-19 booster shot, yet I felt like no one believed me.
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Joy V.
14
Still processing a very wild weekend
'Life is prickly. Bloom anyway.' A weekend at the Cactus Creek Ranch in deep South Texas.
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Joy V.
8

April 2024

This is my garden? This is MY garden!
How I (over)compensate for lingering regret about giving up my dream of becoming a biologist.
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Joy V.
18
Learning to thrive in the Bog of Eternal Stench
How the arrival fallacy can make achievement a big letdown
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Joy V.
13
When your grief is due to a global medical scandal
Author and photographer Kathy MacKay on making meaning from the loss of her husband when he was just 34.
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Joy V.
15
In 1945, a steel bridge was rebuilt in six days
Last Tuesday, I saw a collapsed bridge in Baltimore. I also saw my grandfather.
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Joy V.
1

March 2024

On slaying existential depression (for now)
Takeaways from the book 'The Van Gogh Blues: The Creative Person's Path Through Depression'
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Joy V.
12
Facing the ocean's fury
A micro-essay on riding the waves of maternal anxiety.
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Joy V.
3
How a 3-day 'wilderness fast' reset my soul
An ER doctor and author shares her story of reconnecting to her spiritual side after COVID left her searching for more
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Amy Walsh
Did I win? Did I win? Did I win?
As the wise sage Tom Petty once said, the waiting is the hardest part. Especially with writing success.
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Joy V.
13
© 2024 Joy Victory
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