Each day for the past six months, I have inserted my key into a rusty lock and noted the crunching metal sound that lets me know the door will open, albeit, with a little effort. Nonetheless, I envision the entrance as it will look someday as I shove the door shut, step over random objects, … Continue reading Solitude within Community →

Memorial Day is right around the corner. COVID-19 restrictions are being lifted all over the place. Fatigued minds and bodies want to know: Where can I go to get a great massage and start feeling human again? Well...ordinarily, that would be here--The bāsalt Studio. However, as many have been gathering... we are still temporarily closed. … Continue reading What’s Going On? →

If you read Part One of this series, you found out a few things about me that don't necessarily exemplify stability. The circumstances surrounding this pandemic have gifted me with a petri dish and time to grow out my under-developed sense of self-- magnifying my lack of committment to basic self-care. But, hopefully, you can … Continue reading Side-Effects of Self-Care: Part Two →

If I may, let me begin by acknowledging: we are all finding new ways to approach and navigate this lifetime. Some of us really hate being told what to do--but--some of us would really appreciate it if someone would-- just please-- tell us what to do. We are learning much regarding our level of self-reliance … Continue reading Side Effects of Self-Care: Part One →

I remember being in the backseat of my parents' station wagon--windows down...my mom's doo-rag waving in the wind... the filter of a Marlboro smoldering in the ashtray-- on a trip that never seemed to end. I remember mustering the courage to pose those four little words in the form of an impatient question. ...Then jumped … Continue reading Are We There Yet? →

After New Jersey's non-essential businesses were forced to shut down back in March, the bāsalt Studio put a lot of thought into it's decision to re-open on August 1, 2020. In the back of my mind, I knew that it was entirely possible that operations may need to be halted once again. However, I had … Continue reading The Last Session on 8th Street… →

An atrocity occurred recently. Unless you were privy to a series of Executive Orders, signed by New Jersey's Governor Murphy, that were meant to address and outline the steps in which "personal care businesses" were to re-open after the shut-down caused by the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic, you may never have known. This has sent many therapists … Continue reading The (pär-lər) Controversy →

Uncertain times have a tendency to curl one into the proverbial fetal position. One starts to crave the comfort of the familiar--doesn't normally seek out more mystery in life. Sometimes this leads one back to old and undesirable habits. But it doesn't have to. Revisiting the familiar, but for further reconciliation; Shifting awareness...and willingness--on a … Continue reading The Only Constant… →

Compassionate massage therapists and bodyworkers forced to examine their personal and professionial framework have encountered an emotionally charged ethical dilemma filled with more than one paradox.  I have discovered the irony in my thinking that I could escape the stressors of being a nurse by starting a relaxing career as a massage therapist. Attempting to capture data … Continue reading The Work. →

"NIAID’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories (RML) in Hamilton, Montana, produced images of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2, previously known as 2019-nCoV) on its scanning and transmission electron microscopes on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020. " If you are adhering to social distancing to avoid infection and/or wearing a mask in an effort to reduce your risk of inadvertent transmission-- … Continue reading Are You Concerned? →