Tony Branco

Politics

Trump's rise to power (again): What happened to US?

You reap what you sow.

Politics

Clint Hill: Dealing with guilt

Nobody knows when they are born what lies ahead in their lives. When we go through year after year of schooling, we don't know what fate has in store for us. Most of us will lead average lives. We may experience the thrill of meeting a celebrity who

Movies

Hachi and the lessons he teaches us

About ten years ago I watched this heart-wrenching movie for the first time. It wouldn't be the last. It is a movie that has resonated with me ever since. There are several reasons why. First off, the movie was filmed in Woonsocket, Rhode Island which is the next

Father

Don't wait until it is too late to take the car keys away from a parent

I still live in the same house where I grew up. It's a two-family house and we've always rented out the top floor. About fifteen years ago, instead of having to deal with tenants anymore, I decided to move up there with my life partner, Erin.

Troubled souls

Kevin Smith: Trauma is trauma

Kevin Smith opens about his battle with mental illness.

Mother

My mother's birthday: A day for reflection

Things I've learned in the three years since my mother's death.

Techniques

Reintroducing myself to myself

Who am I now? After the death of my mother, I am forever changed. But who is this new person?

Troubled souls

An uneventful end to an eventful life: Alex Van Halen opens up about grieving his brother Eddie's death

Alex Van Halen sits down with Anderson Cooper to discuss his brother's, the great Eddie Van Halen, death.

Mother

Andrew Garfield discusses grieving the loss of his mother

You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.

Politics

Trump Fatigue

I'll tip my hat to the new Constitution Take a bow for the new revolution Smile and grin at the change all around Pick up my guitar and play Just like yesterday Then I'll get on my knees and pray We don't get fooled

Politics

Politics and depression

Election day has finally arrived. The point of this article is not to persuade anyone of my political views. Everyone is entitled to their views. What I will say is that who you vote for says a lot about you. I wanted to write this is to highlight something I

Observations

Halloween: Stay off my lawn!

It has become a tradition that my lovely partner, Erin, hands out candy on Halloween and I, being the loving, supportive partner, sit in the adjoining room and keep a count on how many kids come. I even invested in a tally counter clicker thing last year so I wouldn’

Inspirational

It's ok, it's ok, it's ok

I’ve been meaning to write about this person for a long time. Thinking back, she was one of the first people I wanted to write about when I started this site in March, 2023. I know this person was an inspiration for me then, and is now. This person

Observations

Knowing when to hold 'em and knowing when to fold 'em

I have recently rediscovered my passion for playing poker. Poker and I have had a love/hate relationship for over 20 years now. As with many poker players my age, I really discovered the game while watching the 2003 World Series of Poker (WSOP) on ESPN. The WSOP is held

Politics

Can you believe there is a nationwide shortage on Adderall? For almost two years now?

I am here to pick up my prescriptions. My name is Branco. Antonio. OK, thank you, Mr. Branco. Let me go get those for you. Ok, thanks for waiting. You have two prescriptions ready. Um, excuse me, I should have three. Oh, I’m sorry. One of your meds is

Observations

Is there such a thing as a "safe space"?

Certainly, you feel safe in this room, don’t you? No – I, most certainly, do not. This was the conversation I had with my therapist a couple of months ago. I forget the context of the exact conversation. I may have been telling her how I was anxious and nervous

Troubled souls

The worst kind of betrayal

My therapist, Suzy, and I were discussing alternative treatments to deal with depression besides medication. Specifically, we were discussing the possibility of me trying a treatment called transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), The way my therapist described it to me was like when you go to the dentist and they have

Troubled souls

Crawling in my skin

My Administrative Law Judge (I refer to her as"Judge Laura") during my Social Security Disability Hearing had one, and only one, question for me during the 40-minute hearing. “Do you have panic attacks?” “No,” I quickly responded. Ever since that day, and especially after getting denied my

Personal

Yet another loss

As one of my relatives in Canada texted me today, “So sorry, Tony, for yet another loss.” Yet another loss.  My favorite aunt on my father’s side passed away this week. She was (is?) my father’s sister. She was 87. I am not sure what, specifically, she died

Personal

How do people survive while waiting on their disability case?

Spoiler: I don't know. I have been hesitant to write on this site while my disability case is ongoing. There is so much I would like to say. I figured my case would have been decided by now. I mean, I have been out of work since October,

Personal

The judicial system has let me down

I have been hesitant to write about the process I have had to endure for the last two and a half years to try to obtain Social Security Disability benefits. It has been ongoing, so I didn’t want to do anything, however innocuous, to jeopardize my case. Little did

Father

Daddy issues

I was a huge Burt Reynolds fan growing up. For many years, Smokey and the Bandit was my favorite movie. He was the epitome of cool. I thought he was the definition of a man. It was an extremely sad day for me when Burt Reynolds died in 2018. Of

Personal

Partial hospitalization: There is no shame in seeking help

The fact that I can write about this with the awareness that there is even a 0.0001% chance someone I know will read it is telling. Ten years ago, maybe even ten weeks ago, there is no way I would ever go public with what I am about to

Observations

Nature vs. Nurture

Maybe you’ve heard the saying, “A zebra can’t change its stripes.”  I use it all the time. It means – to me, anyway – that no matter how much you may think someone has changed their behavior, there will be an occasion where that individual will revert back to their

Inspirational

The modern day Brady Bunch

I kid you not when I say I believe Wayne Brady is the most talented multidimensional performer of my lifetime. When I say multidimensional, I mean all the usual things like acting on film and stage, singing, and dancing, but also being witty and funny enough to do improv comedy