top of page
Search
I went to medical school
“Making Death Casual” should be my tagline. Most people don’t want to discuss mortality, but it’s one of my favorite topics. When I talk...
Feb 16, 20243 min read
2.7 seconds on a bull named Fu Manchu
Little memories of Ramón pop into my mind on an almost daily basis. Occasionally, though, one will surface from the darkest depths of my...
Feb 1, 20243 min read
Livin' it up at the Death Café
When I imagine a café, I picture an atmosphere teeming with energy — pleasant smells, bits of conversation and laughter, an overall sense...
Jul 27, 20232 min read
Did Ashton Kutcher Get Punk'd?
"I wish I could give Ashton Kutcher an update," I sometimes think. I wanted him to know when I started performing improv. And when I got...
Mar 24, 20236 min read
La mademoiselle Megan
When I met Megan, she was holding a box of donuts. It was March 2021, and we were standing in my parents’ driveway, leery of COVID-19....
Oct 26, 20226 min read
27 months
"Today's date is the 20th," the poll worker announced this morning as I completed paperwork to vote in Georgia's (very important)...
Oct 20, 20222 min read
Remembering Ramón
I think we’ve all had the same pressing question lately: How do I live a life that's so amazing they name a bridge after me? Just...
Sep 22, 20221 min read
Stories of Grief: Drew Dotson
After losing Ramón, I began connecting with other widows on Instagram. (See? Social media has some benefits!) I stumbled upon the Forced...
Sep 12, 20221 min read
October 1: Save the date!
Several months ago, a *quite* special resolution was introduced to the Georgia General Assembly: HR 918: Judge Ramón Alvarado Bridge;...
Aug 22, 20221 min read
This is a shout-out to my grievers.
Where all my grievers at? Can I get a BOO-HOO? Just kidding. But if I were to craft a rap about grief, it would definitely start off like...
Apr 1, 20223 min read
How's my happiness level?
Today, when setting up an online account, I was prompted to select a security question. The first one on the list was, “In what city or...
Jun 30, 20212 min read
Open doors
One day last June while I was staying in the hospital with Ramón, I decided to watch the video of his swearing in ceremony. Since he was...
Jun 3, 20211 min read
That's how this works
This day last year, Ramón walked out of our house for the last time. In the days leading up to his transplant admission, he spent more...
Apr 3, 20212 min read
Thank you for everything
A friend gifted me this leather bracelet in August. She conspired to get a sample of Ramón’s handwriting, and my mom had a note from...
Oct 25, 20202 min read
Always a rainbow
When home between hospitalizations in late March, I heard a song that resonated with me. As my anxiety about COVID-19 and transplant...
Sep 3, 20203 min read
Befores and afters
A few weeks ago, two of my long-time cohorts stopped by to enjoy drinks and conversation – and bring dinner (Yum!). My friend Amanda...
Aug 18, 20204 min read
An August of opportunity
Though I’ve been writing regularly, I haven’t posted much lately. This is mostly for good reason. For example, my friend Elaine came back...
Aug 5, 20203 min read
One week
It’s been one week since we said goodbye to Ramón, and it’s been more than 14 weeks since I said farewell to the version of Ramón I’d...
Jul 27, 20202 min read
Day ???
Many of you have followed our story and its constant ups and downs, particularly since Ramón’s chemo/radiation/transplant...
Jul 21, 20202 min read
One sunset at a time
It’s our third night in the hospital, and we just witnessed the best sunset so far – a Fight Like Mike sunset. Throughout Ramón’s cancer...
Apr 5, 20201 min read
Gallery
My name is Drew Dotson, and my life has been anything but perfect, yet it's still perfectly beautiful. After growing up with a genetic disease, cystic fibrosis, I was blessed to meet an amazing man who loved me without bounds. Then he died.
bottom of page