Today is magic day for Susan Henderson. Up From the Blue, her debut novel, is finally available! It’s hard for me express to you how happy I am for her. I confess that I’ve never met Susan in person, though I know many people who have. Such is the force of her personality that everyone …Read More

(photo link) A few days ago, I attended a social function during which one of my husband’s academic colleagues politely asked me what I was working on. “I’m 1800 words into a new novel,” I replied, quoting that day’s Facebook status. “I’m not sure what it will end up being, but it seems to have …Read More

This morning I took the dogs for a walk in the deer pasture overlooking our house. We don’t cultivate the acreage specifically for the deer who feed in it. They just show up daily for the grass and other tender bits. We keep a path mowed through it throughout the year, but its body is …Read More

Last summer a house wren nested on our front porch in one of the empty planters on top of the potting table. It wasn’t a terribly organized nest, but it was in a corner, high off of the ground, and so was pretty safe. I spent a fun morning watching the fledglings flinging themselves about …Read More

Given that I’ve had such a busy work and play week, I’m stunned to find that I didn’t jot off a little something for a regular post. Goodness, here it is S.O.S. already. I have rice cooking issues. While I won’t say we eat a lot of rice, it is a staple in our house–particularly …Read More

 (photo by Taylor Kennedy) When my daughter Nora was small, she and I took a lot of short trips together. We started out when she was just a few months old, driving the five or so hours from Lewisburg, WV to Poquoson, VA, where my parents lived. Then there was a truly disastrous trip to …Read More

This photo is from my fifth birthday party in 1967–the year Elvis married Priscilla, Otis Redding died, Thurgood Marshall became the first African-American on the Supreme Court, and the world was rocked by the Six Day War. We don’t look very concerned, do we? I’m the second girl from the left, who looks like she …Read More