Terri Rimmer

Check out The Life of Stephen Connelly by Scott Metheney, a book about a dangerous game called The Choking Game that kids are playing resulting in deaths.

By Terri Rimmer My friend has panic attacks at work sometimes from the stress of her job. Another one has them from working with her boss. I consider myself lucky to have not had one in a few years, from what I can recall. But I still remember what they feel like. Now there is a self-help site dedicated to anxiety and phobias – anxietycoach.com. According to the site everybody experiences anxiety periodically also called “anxiety disorders.” According to Dr. Carbonell these are the most treatable of the psychological problems. “These problems do have solutions,” he said. “On the site you can get basic information about anxiety disorders and identify the particular problems you face, develop a plan and begin working at it.” Once you’ve completed the work suggested in” First Steps” on the website you can read various self-help articles about different disorders there. They consist of practical understandings, suggestions, and techniques that Carbonell and his colleagues, use with clients...

By Terri Rimmer Ronnie used to pay for everything with plastic, get a high off of his weekends in Shreveport, and stroll through life without a care in the world – or so it seemed. Today he has been unemployed for months, is trying to get on disability, and has to sell junk he finds just to put gas in his car. “Most of my money I lost gambling,” he told his friend Elaine recently to which she gasped. Not most of his money – all of it. When one woman dated him briefly she thought he was rich the way he flashed his credit cards around all the time, paying for everything at expensive restaurants, movies; etc. Until she saw his house and how it was falling apart at the seams. “I should be ashamed of myself living like this,” he said and she silently agreed though she knew he was in the throes of a gambling addiction that he was in denial about. Gone are the days when Ronnie would travel to the casinos out of town to gamble and come back a lot of times with a lot of money, excited to the co...

By Terri Rimmer It was eight years ago that Madonna Coffman decided to take her loss and give others hope. When she was in her 20s she developed a condition called Alopecia, a hair loss disease after receiving a hepatitis vaccination. A retired cardiac nurse, Coffman decided to start Locks of Love (locksoflove.com) where people could donate ten inches or more of their own hair for financially disadvantaged kids who had lost their hair due to the same condition. For a long time Coffman’s garage was full of mail and donated locks of hair. The number of hairpieces has grown significantly since the organization’s inception in Dec. 1997. Locks of Love is a non-profit organization helping children ten years old and younger who suffer from hair loss conditions who cannot afford wigs or hairpieces. Unlike some pieces, the locks do not require tape or glue but are custom-fitted for each head. Many sponsors have come forward through the years to help, like Fantastic Sam’s Hair Salon and Glamour ...

Chapter 20 1st Birthday August 1, 2001 That night Tara was on top of the world and she didn’t know why. But she felt this tremendous surge of energy and happiness unlike she’d known in her life, she was pretty sure. Maybe it was just the full moon, which always affected her. But she felt actually thrilled about the adoption. She put up new pix of Mackenzie and her apartment looked great. She could actually watch a show about adoption and be unemotional. She wrote a poem for Mackenzie and sent it to her for her 1st birthday with a card: Number One Your laughter they just ache to hear your skin like silk a baby’s breath. Your smile a whisper to our hearts awakening us to your sweet spirit. Your soul a flower opening up Each day a grand experience. Your birthday wishes wrapped in pink blowing kisses waving goodbye I visited the playground today and smiling, remembered our time together. The way your tiny arms flailed about my arms against yours, the sun’s bright hue. Not long ago you we...

Rest in peace, T.C.

Chapter 17 Mother’s Day May 2001 Tara always felt there was a miniature version of the International Figure Skating judges’ panel sitting inside her head and she never got a perfect score but always zeros. She felt guilty about sleeping more than seven hours a night. But it was other people’s problem when they went ballistic because she canceled plan at the last minute. She still remembered her high school grades and where she ranked in relation to the valedictorian. Her friends were generally funnier, smarter, and sexier. Her mirror was her foe and her fridge was her friend. She thought she’d be a household name if only she weren’t so stupid didn’t grow up in a bizarre family, if she’d had more self-discipline, and went to a better school. She felt like some people had too much self-esteem. She had to be the best perpetually. Being the best was exhausting even to think about. She envied others for being satisfied with good enough yet she always limited her risks and gains. She was a...

Chapter 16 Finalization April 8, 2001 There was an article in the local paper’s magazine/tabloid about Ray Liotta, the actor, who was adopted and who met his birth mom years later. He grew up with parents who supported and encouraged his acting but said he needed to find his roots. He said when he was younger he felt like damaged goods, which crushed Tara to hear. He maintained that being adopted affected me since he was a child. He was always searching for family. He lived in an orphanage till the age of six when his adoptive parents got him. When he was three he got to “pick out” his little sister, also an adopted child. Ben was also three. Liotta got to travel the world as he and his sister got older and when he needed his dad he was always there. He never forgot about being an adopted child, however. But meeting his birth mom helped him to finally understand the circumstances surrounding his adoption. Meeting his birth mom helped him to appreciate how the opportunities afforde...