A heartening tale: a friend whose agent has been circulating her first novel to editors for three years and three months just got a two-book deal. Here’s to discovering one’s calling in life and keeping on! I find that such occurrences encourage me, not just at work but in every part of the day. Here’s […] Read More

It takes some bold individuals to start an independent bookstore of any sort at this time in history. All Booked Up not only opened this past May, but after only four months in business, they moved down the street to a larger location. The place sells gently used and antiquarian books and collectibles. It has […] Read More

A variation on yesterday’s idea: for moments when you need encouragement, keep a file in your desk drawer of nice notes or reviews or even a letter from your mother that reminds you that you’re dazzling and your work is important and worthwhile. –This idea came from psychologist husband Bob. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to […] Read More

What I’ve discovered from writing the fellowship application I was blogging about yesterday: Affirmations work. Or they can at least stoke the passions and build confidence. You know what I mean by affirmations, yes? The empowering sayings we’re encouraged to repeat to ourselves, such as: I am a calm and capable person. I am a […] Read More

Two recent bits of bold living that I’m proud to claim: 1. Took the whole Labor Day weekend off and caught up on reading and sleep (in order of importance.) 2. Am now at work on my application for a Guggenheim fellowship, which is a very prestigious and sought-after plum. I just ran across a […] Read More

It appears that some alien has messed with my email addresses…causing a variety of confusions and miscommunications. Decisive action was called for: new email address. I spent the day semi-successfully working at viewing the complications as a “challenge” and an “opportunity.” Mentally tiring. But do-able, both the fix and the positive mindset. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble […] Read More

All grownups need the fresh start of the first day of the school year. Kids have this, of course. And my academic pals do, too. For me, time seems weirdly seamless. Gardening season eases into kayak season which cools back into gardening. And work is the same year-round: except that in August a lot of […] Read More

This blog is spiffing up a bit. As with human make-overs, the change is not happening in an instant. Instead, with much help, I’m sorta playing with it. Trying this and that, learning a tiny bit about the inner workings. I never thought I’d be interested in such a thing, but it keeps calling me […] Read More

This blog is spiffing up a bit. As with human make-overs, the change is not happening in an instant. Instead, with much help, I’m sorta playing with it. Trying this and that, learning a tiny bit about the inner workings. I never thought I’d be interested in such a thing, but it keeps calling me […] Read More

Why this blog looks peculiar today: Last night I decided that I’d go into the inner workings, fiddle with the html code and make a few changes. I’d never touched any code in my life before. Amazingly, I was somewhat successful. I made the changes I wanted. Plus, obviously, a few that I could do […] Read More