Category Archives: Health

Big Fires Everywhere…

Posted on September 9, 2020 by Gabriella West

“Extremely dense & tall smoke plumes from numerous large wildfires, some of which have been generating nocturnal pyrocumulonimbus clouds (fire thunderstorms), are almost completely blocking out the sun across some portions of Northern California this morning.” –Climate Scientist Daniel Swain … Continue reading →

Posted in Health, News, Personal, San Francisco | Tagged air quality, California, climate change, fires, Oregon | Leave a comment

It helps to watch New York Governor Andrew Cuomo‘s measured, eloquent press conferences in the mornings. I watch them on CNN; I think MSNBC carries them as well. Here he is today, asked about what he would tell people who … Continue reading →

Posted on March 26, 2020 by Gabriella West | 1 Comment

Coronavirus Dispatch #1

Posted on March 19, 2020 by Gabriella West

Here’s how it started, at least the official story, from a site called CIDRAP (Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy) that I just happened upon today on the web: “As suspected, a novel coronavirus has been identified in some … Continue reading →

Posted in Health, News, Personal, San Francisco | Tagged alienation, Bay Area, California, capitalism, coronavirus, COVID-19, crisis, death, empathy, fear, friendship, global pandemic, loss, nature, shelter in place, shortage, society, surreal, tests, Trump Administration, uncertainty | 1 Comment

Review: Between Heaven and Hell by David Talbot

Posted on February 16, 2020 by Gabriella West

Between Heaven and Hell: The Story of My Stroke (Chronicle Prism, 176 pp, $22.95, January 2020) David Talbot—journalist, popular historian, longtime San Francisco resident, and author of Season of the Witch—has written a surprisingly vulnerable, intimate, often funny and engaging … Continue reading →

Posted in creativity and its discontents, Health, Reviews, San Francisco, Writing | Tagged Between Heaven and Hell, David Talbot, Health crises, Hollywood, meaning, memoir, mortality, nonfiction, Salon Magazine, San Francisco, Strokes | Leave a comment

Beto and Pete: A Tale of Two Articles

Posted on April 29, 2019 by Gabriella West

In this election season, good journalism is important. But what happens when “good journalism” comes up against people’s uncritical adoration of a candidate? We all know the stereotype of the “hit piece.” In Janet Malcolm‘s 1990 book The Journalist and … Continue reading →

Posted in Editing, Health, News, Writing | Tagged Beto O'Rourke, Candidates for 2020, elizabeth warren, good journalism, hit piece, Janet Malcolm, Journalism, Nathan Heller, Pete Buttigieg, politics, power, Vanity Fair, Vogue | 1 Comment

‘ADD & Romance’ Author Gives Intimacy Tips for Valentine’s Day

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Gabriella West

As promised, here is a little article that I dug up from my files about Valentine’s Day and keeping intimacy alive in your relationship. Although it was originally written with AD/HD in mind, in this world of screens and hyper-busyness … Continue reading →

Posted in Health | Tagged AD/HD, ADD, ADD and romance, ADHD, couples, excitement, intimacy, relationships, sexuality, Valentine's Day | Leave a comment

Ebola…Now a Global Crisis

Posted on October 10, 2014 by Gabriella West

I’ve been following the course of the Ebola outbreak with increasing dread. The Ebola virus was discovered in 1976 but never spread outside remote African villages till the latest outbreak in Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia, where the disease is … Continue reading →

Posted in Health, Personal | Tagged cdc, ebola, ebola virus, global crisis, medicins sans frontieres, outbreak, teresa ramos, Thomas Duncan | Leave a comment

The East Bay Express ran an interesting story last month about a Berkeley (or Oakland) man who leaves colorful Post-it notes—expressing various positive sentiments—all over town (on bikes, bus windows, cafe tables). The man prefers to remain anonymous; the article … Continue reading →

Posted on March 1, 2014 by Gabriella West | 2 Comments

…and Happy New Year 2014

Posted on January 4, 2014 by Gabriella West

Twenty-fourteen has started with a nice little burst of energy. I got the flu in late December (it may very well have been swine flu, since H1N1 is a predominant strain this year) and was knocked flat on my back … Continue reading →

Posted in Health, Personal, Reviews, Writing | Tagged 2014, Covered California, Downton Abbey, Edward Snowden, flu, Google Doodle, H1N1, NetGalley, New Year, Pope Francis, the captain and claire, Year of the Horse | Leave a comment

Fukushima: Pacific Ocean poisoned, millions at risk!

Posted on August 10, 2013 by Gabriella West

Fukushima: Pacific Ocean poisoned, millions at risk!. An important issue, which I decided to reblog. Click the above link for more info… And here’s an excellent article from the Guardian: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/09/fukushima-fallout-threatens-fishermens-livelihoods It reminds me of the Chernobyl disaster, which happened … Continue reading →