Thoughts about writing, and the universe.
Earlier this week, earth crossed the equinox. Days in the northern hemisphere are longer than the nights now. Here in Norway, the sea change between winter and summer is always so dramatic, and around the equinox daylight change is the fastest. We're headed into sun and light. We've had a smattering of beautiful clear days... Continue Reading →
With the end of term on Wednesday of this week, I have been busy with grading assignments and writing reports. I still have quite a lot to do. I'll keep it a short post today. I'll just share a bit of the winter that has now arrived. I grew up in Minnesota, where there is... Continue Reading →
Good weather has continued with just a couple of rainy days the last two weeks. Temperatures by mid-day have been up in the mid-teens (Celsius). Signs of life are beginning. Buds are pricking the trees. And after a winter hiatus, I've got the Seek app out again, identifying what new plants and animals I can.... Continue Reading →
I can't stop taking scenery pictures. When a vista opens up before me, when the sky clears out crystal-blue, when birch trees turning yellow catch the light, I my phone emerges from my pocket. I say to myself, remember this moment, and I snap a picture. Hundreds of these landscapes appear on my phone. I... Continue Reading →
I'm only up for a short post today. I've had a lot of evening events during the last week. I'm behind on grading papers. I'm squeezing out some time to keep up with my writing, but only a bit. We're trying to figure out summer plans. Things keep rushing on and keeping up's a challenge.... Continue Reading →
Typically the snow here doesn't stay. It falls, it melts, maybe in January and February we will have a few weeks of solid snow. This year, it's come early. In the first days of December, we had our first dusting, followed in the night with enough snow to cover up the grass, to make it... Continue Reading →
Sometimes in my writing journey these last several years, I have taken issue with old writing advice--the mandate to show, don't tell; the focus on active verbs that overshadows the great work other verbs do; Western literature's myopic focus on conflict--these are all pieces of inherited writing wisdom that, with deeper thought on my own... Continue Reading →
After a glitteringly beautiful August, the rainy days have come. Bands of mist hang against the sides of the mountains, and the colors have muted themselves, clamped closer together in the wet. Sometimes I feel confused about rain. There is of course beauty in rainy days. Particular things, like the water clinging to grass blades,... Continue Reading →
For years, we have been planning a dinner with colleagues. The idea first arose two or three years ago--my husband and I are hobby cheesemakers, and two of our colleague-friends come from India and make delicious food. When we mentioned once that we had made paneer over the weekend, our colleague hatched the plan: you... Continue Reading →
One more post about my time in Montana--I can't not write about this. On one of the last days of our visit, we drove along the Beartooth Pass from Montana into Wyoming, on the route that leads to Yellowstone National Park. The mountain road twisted past colossal scree slopes, crisscrossed the still visible paths of... Continue Reading →
Words like trees 