Yearly Archive: 2018

I don’t know what you were doing in the summer of 1975, but I can tell you what I was doing:  if the sun was up, I was probably riding my bike at an insane speed down a gravel hill with my best friend, Bruce.  We were ten at the time and we would put hockey cards into the spokes of our bikes to…
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My sainted grandmother (or maybe it was Special Agent Dale Cooper on Twin Peaks, I can’t remember for sure now,) but one of them always said, “Every day, give yourself a little present.” I would add that it is especially important to take that advice to heart during challenging times. Like when your report cards are due and there’s no AC in your classroom and…
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The first dog my partner and I ever had was a greyhound that we named Milo – that’s him in the picture above. Please note the soulful, please-give-me-a-biscuit eyes. He was a “retired” racing greyhound – the retired part is highly qualified because although he trained for two years to race and he was very fast, he didn’t make the cut.  He had virtually…
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See this picture? This is happening right now, at the end of my driveway. I stepped out to walk the dog this morning and was greeted by this riot of joy, not ten steps from my house.  All the pinks, all the life.  The Universe just showing off. But this is also happening right now – two friends are grieving the recent loss of…
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So here are some wonderful things that happen, when you give a book talk: People actually come!  Of course, your lovely and supportive friends are there, but there are also people whom you’ve never even met before who show up to hear you talk about your writing process, the Three Jewels of Buddhism and which characters are actually named for dogs.  Also, people ask really…
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I was standing in line at the grocery store this week, catching up on important royal family news by skimming the cover of Hello magazine, when the gentleman in front of me in line said, “Excuse me, maybe you could tell us?” So distracted was I by the photos of Princess Charlotte holding her new little brother, that I had failed to notice that…
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I wrote a letter this week. An actual, honest to goodness, written-down-on-paper-in-fancy-cursive-writing letter.  It was a thank you letter to someone I’ve never met in person, but who has made my life richer and better by what they put out into the world, and I wanted to let them know that I appreciated all they do. Which has led me to think a lot…
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Did you know that the modern book club can trace its roots all the way back to Ancient Rome, when Roman citizens met to drink wine and discuss the bestselling scrolls of the day?  These groups were called Clava Librorums and it was considered the height of sophistication and good-breeding to belong to one… Okay, none of that is true.  I just made it all…
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I don’t know about you, but it’s been tough sledding around these parts lately. You know what it’s like – spring won’t actually arrive, you can’t make ends meet, everybody needs something from you right now, there’s stress at work, friends are sick and the world seems unforgiving and mean. I’m tired, I’m grumpy. I’m discouraged. So naturally, the dog decided we should take…
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I absolutely think you should. And I’m going to tell you how to do it.  Or at least how I do it. First, set yourself up at your laptop, in your writing space.  Bring a cappuccino. Spend ten minutes wandering around the house, looking for your glasses.  Find them beside your laptop. Write a few catchy sentences. Remember you left a load of laundry…
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