Gather 'round…
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin My rating: 5 of 5 stars A wonderful, moving, endearing story of redemption and transformation that will sing in your heart for a very, very long time. That is what Garth Stein said about The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, according to the blurb plastered across... Continue Reading →
I'll make up for my overly verbose last post with an abbreviated one today... I just saw my first tufted titmouse. Ever. Here at my own birdfeeder. Where the squirrels play. Yes, he was adorable. The slackline is up, the treehouse is swept out and in use, and the driveway is muddy. The first tree... Continue Reading →
Vern Libke is banging on my windshield wiper with a wrench the size of my arm. Libke's Auto Service sits here at the corner of Highway 47 and County J, just south of Woodruff, Wisconsin, in the same garage that has stood here since 1967, yet I don't remember it from a single on of... Continue Reading →
It was one of those few and far-between epiphanies. The forehead-to-palm moments. In Quiet, Susan Cain was pontificating on the need for solitude in concentration and creation. The basic need for peace and quiet when embarking upon any creative - or deep thinking - process. She wasn't writing about writing, per se, but she did quote a... Continue Reading →
That retreat, that last post about the seedlings needing tending, they both ushered in something I've never previously managed. Something I've never really even tried. Not for fear. Well, maybe a little for fear. But mostly because I have some very specific priorities, and while writing ranks pretty high on the list, it does not... Continue Reading →
And the starvation was effective. Somehow, by some miracle of January, I was able to break hard, frozen ground at my retreat, and push forward into a new project. There was a seed before, but the thing just would not develop. Compost is faithful, however, in heating things up. The manure of starvation and the fertile... Continue Reading →
I'm cold. I've been cold all day. Give me one day of decent temperatures out there and the return me to single digits and I have completely softened. It's been snowing for a few days and once again the lines are soft and clean. The bird seed and rabbit leavings have another fresh slate on... Continue Reading →
I don't generally take the time to finish books that I don't like. Sometimes, if I feel that I must, I'll push through, but for the most part, I have no need to torture myself. So, it follows that I would be statistically prone to writing favorable book reviews. I fear this is inevitable, and... Continue Reading →
We are sacked in, once again, with frigid temperatures in Wisconsin. I wish to be that hearty soul that walks to their evening meeting, even when the mercury is dropping well below zero. I wish to be the one who gets myself out there despite the cold, just for the sheer joy of being out... Continue Reading →
Shotgun Lovesongs by Nickolas Butler My rating: 5 of 5 stars It took me years to read this book. Well, 17 days to read it, but years to begin reading it. It's been sitting there on the pages of Volume One for what seems to me like Ever, and I have, for mysterious reasons, scorned... Continue Reading →
We have finally reached true winter around these parts. Snow has fallen, in fairly impressive quantities. The logging trail has been groomed with some sled tracks, and the ice skates have hit the rink several nights in a row (FYI, Eau Claire and Bloomer rinks aren't open yet, but COLFAX IS!). The shed has been... Continue Reading →
And, on the heels of the Standing Rock ruling in the right direction, we have a similar decision on the Twin Metals Mining proposals on the shores of the Boundary Waters. The Bureau of Land Management and the Department of Agriculture pulled the plug on Twin Metal's leases, possibly ending the argument on whether highly... Continue Reading →
Tales From the Nexus 