Sunday Poetry: To See the Cherry Hung with Snow
Welcome to Sunday Poetry. If this is your first visit you can read about the purpose and inspiration of my Sunday poetry blogs here. This is probably our last spring as residents of the Washington DC area, and I’ll confess that I’ll miss this season the most. Spring in DC is a parade of blossoms, but this year,…
Read MoreLists: Packing for Life
I love to fantasize. You probably knew that. Last night when I should have been sleeping I began making a list of everything I ought to pack on two upcoming trips. Honestly, who cares? But I did, at about 2 AM. Then as I began to make my list, I thought of you. What fun…
Read MoreThe Day I Fell For Horatio Alger or My Introduction to the Study of Popular Culture
Somewhere during the first trimester of my sophomore year in college, I realized I was signed up for the wrong major. I was in music education, and observing just one high school music class was like having a bucket of ice water dumped over my head. Me, standing in front of those kids? Trying to teach them…
Read MoreSunday Poetry: A Crocus Shooting Up A Purple Hand
Welcome to Sunday Poetry. If this is your first visit you can read about the purpose and inspiration of my Sunday poetry blogs here. It’s March, and while much of the United States has seen unseasonably warm weather, we’re still hoping and waiting for spring to emphatically arrive, no maybe yes and maybe no, but right here at…
Read MoreChoosing Asheville
Do you ever wonder how a novelist chooses a setting? Me, too. Really. Because the entire world is open to us, and sometimes all those choices can be daunting. When the time came two years ago to begin planning a new series, I had all the usual options. Should I use a real town (like…
Read MoreCHUSday: What Do Your Cookbooks Say About You?
We’re having company to dinner. Four friends we traveled with to Guatemala several years ago are coming to eat my homemade tortillas with all the (vegetarian) fixings. Along with this I’ve made Cuban black beans and brown rice. You can’t serve this meal to just anyone, but these friends? You bet. In exchange, they’re bringing…
Read MoreSunday Poetry: Reading Away from Ourselves
Welcome to Sunday Poetry. If this is your first visit you can read about the purpose and inspiration of my Sunday poetry blogs here. This week and last I’ve blogged about old books, so today’s poem is an ode to books written by Billy Collins, the poet who convinced me, after a lecture at Chautauqua Institution two years…
Read MoreLists: The Tyranny of Cell Phones
Remember lists? That’s right. It’s time for a new entry. Read about my list posts here, then comment and add your own thoughts to this one and any others coming up. At the end of the month Random.org will choose a winner from everyone who added to a March list to receive an autographed novel. …
Read MoreOld Friends and Book Ends: Repurposing Your Old Books
I was delighted to get so many responses last week to my personal book quandary. Remember, I asked what to with a box of old, not particularly valuable, books before I move? One reader suggested looking at Etsy.com, where books are routinely made into crafts. So, on a whim this morning, after checking Etsy, I began looking for…
Read MoreSunday Poetry: What Else Can He Do But Run?
Welcome to Sunday Poetry. If this is your first visit you can read about the purpose and inspiration of my Sunday poetry blogs here. I’ve spent the last few weeks trying to figure out my future. My husband is retiring this summer, and we plan to move south. Where? Not quite sure. When? Don’t know that, either. When…
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