I used to be an artist before the stroke. I was a newspaper photographer for a while, and then at age 49, I tried painting. I went out and bought some artist supplies, and just started painting. I had no training and no idea what I was doing. I just did it.
What prompted me to try was somebody else calling me an artist. She was referring to my photography, but she took me by surprise. "Oh, you are an artist so you know what I mean," she said offhandedly. I thought to myself, "I am?
I joined the board about March or so, and promptly disappeared.
I had a good excuse, though. I was busy going in and out of the hospital. In fact, I died in the hospital last April 28, 2005. Obviously, I'm okay now, but they did call a "Code Blue" after my second carotid surgery.
My first carotid surgery was March 11, 2002. My carotid arteries being plugged up is what caused the stroke. I did try and change my diet after I had the stroke, but apparently it didn't help. They had to cl
