Brenda's Brainstorm & Trevor, a T Man Production 2009 - 2022

Hello, it's Trevor with our last blog post of 2020. This year has been like no other, in the history of anything. We are currently in the midst of a global pandemic. All of our lives have been touched by this in one way or another. By now, I think nearly every person on the planet can say that they know of someone who has had COVID-19 or sadly has lost their battle to this beast.  Brenda also lost her sister in May of this year to another thief, Alzheimer's. She lost her father to this thief in 2007, which is truly "The Long Goodbye."  Even during all of this turmoil and sorrow, there has been HOPE. There are those who have stepped up to the plate and are out in the front lines every day. Those are the doctors and nurses and anyone in the hospitals or long term care facilities, who have been helping in saving lives and keeping others safe as possible. The North Dakota National Guard deserves our gratitude. Right from the beginning of this pandemic, they have been ther...

Trevor here with our November tale. This month marks 10 years that I came into Brenda's life. You all know by now, that I'm not real but Brenda has done a fabulous job of bringing me to life. I became her storyteller in February of 2011 about the time that her mother was hospitalized with her lingering illness. She ultimately lost her battle on May 31, 2011, but before all of that occurred, I actually lived in her mother's apartment for several months. Brenda was recovering from her 1st carpal tunnel surgery and was camping out at her mother's apartment. It was decided that I would arrive there as opposed to being delivered at Brenda's since she was staying there anyway. Brenda had received some bad news the day of my arrival. Not only was she going to be losing her present rheumy, but she was also diagnosed with tendonitis in her ankle.  They both ended up being involved, with torn tendons in the right, but that is another story. She was being referred to a podia...

Hello my fellow readers! It's Trevor here, with our October tale. By now, most of you are back to school or at least performing with distance learning, which is a new concept, during this time of navigating during a pandemic. For that reason, we ask that you consider this blog post, our back to school addition. BOL It's going to be covering education.  This all started when Brenda read an article that considered rheumatoid arthritis, a lesser known type. Are you kidding me, was her response. Brenda is quite passionate, when it comes to terminology, because as an advocate, she feels it is her responsibility to get the word out there, if it is not correct in any way, shape or form. That is who Brenda is. Allow her to be your teacher for this post, with my help of course. BOL First of all regarding rheumatoid arthritis. You have to know first, that there are at least 100 different types. Osteoarthritis is #1 and Rheumatoid Arthritis is #2. I hardly would consider that a lesser kno...

Hello my fellow readers, it's Trevor with our September tale. This has been a week of celebrations. 2 very special golden retrievers that Brenda has connected with through social media had their Barkdays. BOL That's what we call them in dog lingo. Brenda also had a celebration herself. She officially became a twelve-year brain tumor survivor. She belongs to a special group of survivors, named the #12yearclub.  Brenda shared a beautiful story over at ParkerPup's Posse, another group we belong to. I say we, because they welcome me also. After all, I'm one of them, sort of. BOL  Gill who is ParkerPup's youngest brother and following in his big brother's paws as a therapy dog, celebrated his Barkday on September 7th. He turned 4. I remember when they brought him home as a puppy. That video was so cute. Gill lives with his human father and mother.  Reser who also celebrated his Barkday on September 9th, is one of the 3,000 heroes, enrolled in the Golden Retriever Lif...

Trevor here, with our August tale. Today is Sunshine Saturday, which has been celebrated since 2015, usually on the 2nd Saturday of each month. A day to reflect on all things positive. I can't think of a better day to share this tale about Brenda's brain tumor journey, because so many great things have transpired since that day. Brenda had her craniotomy on September 8, 2008, almost 12 years ago and exactly one month from today.  Brenda does live with an acquired brain injury, frontal lobe syndrome as a result of where her brain tumor was located and removed. It can cause her to become quick to react, by becoming angry or brought to tears. It isn't necessarily a bad thing. Brenda has learned how to control her reactions, by knowing when it is best to step away or spend time reflecting. She started her journal 6 months after her brain surgery and has been keeping one ever since. In fact, she is now on her 12th journal. Writing helps, as it allows Brenda to express her emotio...

Hello it's Trevor with our July tale. We are going to be doing something so different, that I think will be an eye-opening experience for some. Brenda has already shared a bit on her Facebook page about her upbringing and heritage. We are going to expound more on that aspect. Brenda was born in 1960, so you might know where we are going with this. She grew up in a small town and in a farming community, although Brenda herself never lived on a farm. Those of her generation and age will probably understand more of what we are trying to convey, than those who have had all the advantages of modern conveniences. Brenda is happy to have grown up this way. It taught her to appreciate all that she has and continues to work for. Nothing was handed down except clothes from older siblings, which were a treat, because to the recipient, they were always new. See where I am going with this? BOL Brenda lived outside the city limits, which meant, that they were not actually living in the t...

Hi, it's Trevor with our June tale. As you know, we are living through a pandemic, which has been going on for months. It seems like dog years to me. BOL  Brenda has been logging the numbers in her journal, regarding the cases of COVID-19 in her state of North Dakota. This has always been a fascination of Brenda's, keeping track of statistics. Dates are a thing with Brenda. I'm not talking about romance here. BOL How could you now with social distancing? When are we going to be able to hug again? I miss my fellow golden friends. All I have are memories of our times together. That sounds like a romantic novel, doesn't it? BOL I kind of got off course here. Sorry. BOL Brenda comes from a smaller state, so what we are about to share, does not reflect what is going on nationwide. As of today we have 3,251 reported cases of COVID-19. The current active cases being 293. Those who have recovered is 2,882. Currently hospitalized is 28. Sadly, there have been 76 deaths. Let me b...

Last month during our monthly tale, Trevor shared his pawspective and my thoughts on gratitude. This month, I want to share my personal thoughts on the subject. T Man is getting a month off, as his paws have been all over the keyboard this year. I couldn't ask for a greater or golden helper. This is also Arthritis and Brain Tumor Awareness Months, so I've been doing double duty, with trying to spread awareness. As you know, I have lived with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) for twenty-nine years. I say live, not suffer. It's not always easy navigating this disease, but when my attitude toward it became more of gratitude, that is when things started to change. Ultimately, it took a brain tumor diagnosis and subsequent craniotomy, for something life-changing to occur. As a result of where my brain tumor was located, the right frontal lobe, my personality took on some changes. Not all good and not all bad either. That is where gratitude comes in. I'll expound on that more in ...

Hello, it's Trevor here with our April tale. Brenda was having a hard time, coming up with a subject for this month. We are in the middle of a pandemic, something that many of us did not see coming, or could even imagine, ever having to experience. I'm setting the stage for this particular tale, because it centers around, what I just mentioned. Brenda has been most impressed by many events that have taken place, over the past month. One of  those are daily press conferences on COVID19, with the Governor from our great state of North Dakota, Doug Burgum. Brenda was inspired to have me share this blog post, because of the fact that during his press conferences, he always ends with something relating to Gratitude. It might be a quote, or thanking someone for all the hard work they are doing, during this time. He even has recognized several organizations. He has a great team, or as he refers to them: #TeamND. We are so proud to live in this great state, especially at this time. ...

Hello my fellow readers! Trevor here, with our monthly tale. It was to be last week, but Brenda was feeling under the weather and since she dictates what to share, that wasn't happening. BOL Brenda has been dealing with a lot, these past few months. Change is never easy for any of us. That is why we are going to tackle this subject, in our latest blog post. Brenda has been dealing with eye irritation on and off now, for about a month. It started with eye pain and a terrible headache. It ended up being keratoconjunctivitis. Thankfully, not considered an infection, so it was not contagious. Brenda thinks she knows what started it and hopes it has been solved. The ophthalmologist put her on some steroid drops for a short time. Her eyes were not red, but oh, did they hurt. She has also been checked closely for glaucoma, as this can be something that can pop up, as a result of living with RA. She needs to be checked on a yearly basis, but at this time, there are no signs present. ...

Hello my fellow readers! It's Trevor with another tale. This one is going to be all about glitter and gold. Brenda celebrated her 60th birthday on January 9th and designated this year, to be one of her best yet. Later on this year, she is going on a mini trip that will include seeing one of her favorite singers in concert for the 2nd time; Sir Elton John. Her ticket was actually a birthday present to herself. She is going with a long time friend, who loves rock concerts, as much as Brenda. Brenda has been been slowly getting items that she will need. As you may know, when you attend concerts, you can no longer carry those big and heavy handbags, so Brenda found the perfect one for the occasion. Glitter was the ticket, as after all, it is Elton John we are talking about. Splash a rainbow wallet to go along with this ensemble, and Brenda is ready to party. Brenda will also be sporting her Elton John "ME" t-shirt which is actually the photo on the cover of his new auto...

Hello, my fellow readers. It's Trevor with our first blog post of the year. We want to pay a special tribute to ParkerPup, a therapy dog who went to The Rainbow Bridge this past Saturday. We first want to send our heartfelt condolences to the McFarling family. To Dan, ParkerPup's human dad and Jenn, who Parker, always referred to as his girl. We realize that Parker did not speak, but neither do I, but still manage to tell pretty good tales. BOL Reser and Gill the 2 golden brothers left behind are probably wondering where did he go? Reser is a golden hero and will continue to do his part in the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study through the Morris Animal Foundation. A study of 3,000 golden retrievers who enrolled to hopefully find out why 60% of this breed ends up getting canine cancer. This is a fact that Brenda and I were not aware of. We've learned so much about golden retrievers in general and that is all thanks to ParkerPup's page on Facebook, that Brenda discovere...