tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80197464538467918002024-03-13T01:31:59.614-04:00In My Little TownA companion blog to Twig and RivetLThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.comBlogger136125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-66993829914922922162012-10-19T10:03:00.000-04:002012-10-19T10:03:34.345-04:00This week's highlightsIt's been a good week for a lot of reasons. Here are three:
REVIEW: Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo
I'm a reader/writer/lover of narrative nonfiction, so the chance to read Behind the Beautiful Forevers made me very happy. The book itself stirred me, as did a survey of the reviews. Read more here.
FROM THE NOTEBOOK: The country road
There are downsides to driving in the country:.LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-84710951037056727052012-10-12T09:16:00.000-04:002012-10-12T09:16:05.373-04:00Order, Beauty, AbundanceNew post is up at Twig and Rivet. I'm looking forward to considering this in more detail:
So often we think in terms of economy: the language of money, the language of sparseness. I want to turn away from home economy and toward home ecology. How might we flourish and thrive?
Thoughts?LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-90339178971920010592012-10-09T11:16:00.000-04:002012-10-09T11:16:02.147-04:00So I've mentioned my new blog, Twig and Rivet.
While I continue to work as a freelance writer, and continue to develop content for a future business venture, this site has nothing to do with all that. Twig and Rivet is not-for-profit, dedicated to exploring the ideas of beauty and place.
In my first post about this, I mentioned that In My Little Town would become a companion site to Twig LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-14307566474199143692012-10-03T09:12:00.000-04:002012-10-03T09:12:10.507-04:00Twig and Rivet - OriginsBeauty and place occupy my mind, sometimes as independent ideas, more often interlocked. What is it we hope to create and grow in our homes, our communities, our churches, our schools, our world? How do the concrete spaces help or hinder what we desire? What works well? What stands in our way of creating and growing the things we value? What cheap substitutes do we accept? Beyond the money, how LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-73321970386417944862012-10-02T10:55:00.000-04:002012-10-02T10:55:50.322-04:00Changes in DirectionHi! It's been a while, hasn't it?
I'm not good at transitional chit-chat, so ... here's why I'm posting. I'm making some changes. In the next few weeks, the focus of this blog will shift. For the next year, I want to explore some ideas I have about beauty and place, but I have a problem.
I find the blog templates on Blogger limiting and not beautiful. This runs counter to my interests, soLThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-19621175568144532202012-05-21T15:00:00.000-04:002012-05-21T15:00:30.201-04:00Rained Out HaikuClouds bode a downpour,
but I rejoice in downtime--
unexpected gift.
Today is haiku day in Blogathon 2012, and rain out day for my family's sole scheduled activity. Hurray!LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-90217158317395687382012-05-17T09:00:00.001-04:002012-05-17T09:00:17.910-04:00Letter to the Tooth Fairy
The tooth hangs by a strand of flesh. Last night it brought forth enough blood to simulate a vampire movie, but alas, it remained. This spawned great weeping; for how, the child conjectured, would funds be gathered and applied toward Disneyland without the immediate benefactor-y of the Tooth Fairy?
Sorrow continued past bedtime, but then, quiet ... and finally... Eureka! Glorious light! A LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-56466475380397322672012-05-15T23:27:00.000-04:002012-05-15T23:27:16.473-04:00Recipe for Chuck RoastI originally posted this recipe at my consistently neglected food blog. It's one of the most popular posts I've ever written, and it's a great recipe for families on the go. I hope you enjoy it!
My personal tastes run toward the ridiculously expensive. Take my relationship to beef. I wait until I have a few extra bucks and splurge on ribeyes, our favorite cut. This means I sometimes forget LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-33867119964897006252012-05-14T09:26:00.003-04:002012-05-14T09:26:56.497-04:00Scheduling Like Clockwork
I have a friend who can remember not just the birthdays, but the due dates of all of her friend’s children.
Me? Unless I make an effort, I can’t remember how many kids she has.
This is what I mean when I say that I am not a detail person. In some ways, this makes me feel very unwomanly. Combine this with a distinct tendency toward uni-tasking, and there’s no doubt. I fall short of the LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-3401986990625565632012-05-13T18:00:00.000-04:002012-05-13T18:00:39.249-04:00Happy Mother's DayWe celebrate moms today: their love, their care, their sacrifice. I especially want to celebrate my mom's sense of humor. She's funny, and she thinks her kids are funny (and at least two of them are). I loved sitting around our dinner table, listening to her pun away. Still do.
Happy Mother's Day! May your quick wit and clever ways continue with your children's children.
LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-1989409825088635472012-05-12T07:03:00.003-04:002012-05-12T07:03:58.996-04:00Top posts
As some of you know, I'm participating in a 31-day blog challenge hosted by Michelle Rafter. I wanted to take the challenge and see if I could post about life as a family on the fly. How do we stay connected to each other and our communities? What do we see and learn? How do other families do it?
As of yesterday, the challenge is one-third complete. These are my most popular posts:
Mom LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-73032982681040917652012-05-11T10:10:00.000-04:002012-05-11T10:10:05.537-04:00Out of the desert
When you come to a desert in your work, what do you do?
Obligation, Like Mercy, my new essay, is now available for reading at Curator Magazine. Here are a couple of quotes that influenced me as I wrote:
What more, you may ask, do we want? Ah, but we want so much more—something the books on aesthetics take little notice of. But the poets and the mythologies know all about it. We do not want LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-80811726863297741772012-05-10T10:13:00.000-04:002012-05-10T10:13:41.479-04:00Music on the RoadLife on the road, I hear, isn't all it's cracked up to be. Oh sure, traveling sounds great, and some of the destinations are remarkable, people tell me, but you get sick of the airports and the restaurant food and the hotels.
I get this, but consider how irritated you might be on a flight with unsupervised children behind you, kicking your seat, whining, starving, fighting with each other over LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-34406872276564531392012-05-09T09:45:00.000-04:002012-05-09T09:45:01.924-04:00Mom marketing for picky eaters
five more than I would eat
I was that kid. The one sitting at the dining room table for hours. It was me versus four lima beans, I think, and I didn't budge. I like to think I won that round. Some might argue that's three hours of my life I'll never get back, but when you're a kid, you've got time.
Now I've got no time plus kids of my own, and can't imagine using the "sit there LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-69176724749884719302012-05-08T21:57:00.001-04:002012-05-08T21:57:36.256-04:00Two bagel recipes, one GF
Road warrior foodie moms, how do you handle it? Sometimes our pace in life puts our values in conflict. I get sick of packaged food dominating our meals and snacks, but can you imagine if even packaged food was a difficult option?
Some of my friends don’t have to imagine. Those with celiac disease must eat a gluten-free diet. You’d be amazed by the ways gluten sneaks into packaged food. FindingLThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-33202411689801656672012-05-07T11:09:00.000-04:002012-05-07T11:09:07.043-04:00Comedies that InspireThese are not movies that inspire in the traditional sense. You won't find Remember the Titans (although I love that movie). These six reflect my theme this month (family on the fly) and/or push me toward better craftsmanship as a writer. They also reflect what I enjoy most in a movie: humor.
Please note that this in not an endorsement of these movies as “family-friendly.” All contain LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-44824495964324747622012-05-06T15:10:00.000-04:002012-05-06T15:10:15.995-04:00Grasping Offside in Soccer
A friend of mine declared these “soccer mom sandals.”
It’s true. I am a soccer mom. Only I don’t feel like a soccer mom, because one of the mysteries of my life is soccer itself.
Now understand, I’m no sports hater. I can explain the infield fly rule, the difference between a false start and offsides, icing. (I would add “traveling,” but this knowledge is obsolete when watching the NBA, so LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-57039642516242529842012-05-05T19:31:00.001-04:002012-05-05T19:31:05.261-04:00Writer's GroupIn the month of May, I've got 5 days without children's sports. Four of those are Memorial Day weekend, when many of the folks in the Mitten take off for parts north. The other was today. While I would've loved to stay home, I set out early to attend a writer's group meeting.
I know. If you're a writer-type, you may hate this idea. For me, this easy-going group is an encouragement to continue toLThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-24562186357487011402012-05-04T11:53:00.000-04:002012-05-04T11:53:24.498-04:00Pause, Evening Edition
photo credit:Luc Viatour / www.Lucnix.behttp://www.lucnix.be/main.php
Earlier this week I talked about pausing the spin cycle of our life and reconnecting with our surroundings, and this weekend presents a great opportunity. From Saturday May 5th-Sunday May 6th, the night sky will offer both a super moon and the Eta Aquarid meteor shower. What a great excuse to break from our routine, LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-67318987083205382272012-05-03T08:42:00.003-04:002012-05-03T08:42:47.795-04:00ThrivingThrive. It's my word this year. As individuals who are a part of communities, what do we need in our ecosystems to thrive?
the forest and the trees
While I could make a very serious list, today I want to focus on just one thing: playing.
I thrive on play, especially while creating with others. When I go without this, I feel doubly wrong.
Wrong #1, I am a writer. All reports indicate this LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-88018039995105841042012-05-02T09:21:00.000-04:002012-05-02T09:21:28.732-04:00Pause the Spin CycleHow many sayings about traveling can you think of? Do most challenge you to celebrate the journey?
My brain is loaded with a rangy assortment of bygone songs. This means musical clichés may attack at any moment, including that old Mac Davis song, the one where "you got to STOP ... and smell the roses." I’ve wasted space on that for 38 years. Perhaps if you are of another era, you can hear “The LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-29323284198068027112012-05-01T09:12:00.000-04:002012-05-01T09:12:34.431-04:00Queen of the RoadMy husband once threw a legendary fit. In a room strewn with inert children and un-put-away stuff, he declared our kids “like a bunch of hobos”. This struck me as funny, and right. We have a house, we do, but right now it functions more like sleeping quarters. We live out of our car.This is not a complaint. We choose this life, a life of running, and we are privileged to have this option. We run LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-62781674619462491672012-02-24T10:27:00.000-05:002012-02-24T10:27:28.637-05:00Touching the ArtYou are welcome to check out my latest essay at Curator Magazine, "A Record of Wearing and Worn." An excerpt:
The word is “worn.” As in well-worn, as in worn out, as in weary. Wear on, wear thin, wear off.
A thing can be worn in many ways. It may be that a thing is put on, a show, an adornment, a cover. A lady may wear her clothing or adversity well. Hearts may be worn on sleeves, worn out LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-36898338418127102232012-01-19T07:14:00.000-05:002012-01-19T07:14:36.060-05:00On reviewingMy first book review appeared on ERB this week. Here's an excerpt:
When I read a book, it’s as if I’m on a date. Some dates go well. We discover common ground, and the book and I stay together into the wee small hours of the morning. Other dates are like early scenes from a Hollywood romantic comedy, where the evening twists and turns and misunderstandings create distance.
Words to Eat By: FiveLThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8019746453846791800.post-50248924864020279462012-01-13T13:31:00.000-05:002012-01-13T13:31:45.810-05:00Keep February ShortIf you know me, or if you've read this post, you know how I feel about the coming month. I've come up with a new plan to deal with my hatred of February. You can read about it at Curator Magazine. Here's an excerpt:
I will go to great lengths to ward off the February blahs. In years past, I have decorated my home with tropical flourishes, distracted myself with games and group trips, tried to LThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17647320873274443107noreply@blogger.com0