On today’s run, I was not bitten by a deerfly. On today’s run, I was briefly distracted early on by a variable oak leaf caterpillar. On today’s run, I saw a kingfisher and an American goldfinch and possibly a scarlet tanager–but it was quite a bit ahead of me, so Read more…
In which our heroine bangs her head against the wall again and expects it not to hurt, again. “Art isn’t anecdote. It’s the consciousness we bring to bear on our lives.” ~ Cheryl Strayed as Dear Sugar I’ve been trying to really think hard on this one. What is the Read more…
First of all, I have several to-be-read stacks. There are two shelves in the bedroom, both over full (and that doesn’t count the poetry books above them, mixed in with the ones I have read, that I need to read, like Richard Siken’s Crush and that Mary Ruefle and Natalie Read more…
It is nearly impossible to get through a conversation with me without hearing a number of tangential stories about people I (have) know(n), places I’ve been, things I’ve read or learned, or experiences I’ve had. Sometimes, I get back to the original story I was telling and sometimes I don’t. Read more…
It’s all over but the long lines at hotel checkout, the cab stands, and the airport. On Saturday, I went to three panels. I rounded out the last of my (always) excessive book fair purchases. I said hello and tried to talk meaningfully with a few people I hadn’t yet Read more…
Eight, eight… I forget what eight was for. Today started off slowly with a mad dash through the bookfair, where I managed to still somehow spend $100 (and other ways the bookfair is exactly like Vegas AND Target), but I now own signed books by all the best people, like Read more…
All the people. All the hugging. All the books. All the walking in high heels. The thing about this weekend is that it reminds so many of us that though we might labor behind closed office doors, or headphoned away from the world for hours or days or weeks or Read more…
So, first, my luggage was lost. Then I saw Sofi T (which was a BALM), It’s still lost (the luggage), far as I can tell. My cute (new) shoes are in it—which is a whole ‘nother story—plus my makeup and clothes and brush. Then I rapped with Alison Hawthorne Deming Read more…
I want it to be spring. Spring in the north is like fall in the desert: a cause for celebration. There are only a couple of seats left in my ApiaryLit generative CNF workshop in April. If you’re stuck (believe me, I know how that feels), or looking for new prompts Read more…
I may have been struggling to write my science book, and suffering a bit from imposter syndrome there, but that is not what I want to share today. Regardless of how the last couple of months of bird writing has gone, I have really loved teaching my nonfiction workshop at Read more…