Living what we Value, Behaving as we Believe (Why we’re Moving to Ecuador, Part 1)

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Thanksgiving Grocery Shopping and a DNA of Hoarding

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My partner Sara says I’m a hoarder. She insists on this—especially when I lamely claim otherwise.  I prefer to think of myself as a supporter of surplus—not so much a believer in excess, as an advocate for plenty. Call it … Continue reading →

How Haiti Changed my Thinking about Race and Politics in America: “Very Close is not there Yet”

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Whether or not, as a white woman living in middle America, I am as qualified as others to address the role race plays in the 2012  presidential election, as a writer who wants to participate in the national conversation around … Continue reading →

One Twinkle at a Time (What Memoir, the Mafia, and Haiti have in Common)

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It’s been more than a year since I began writing about my father and his mafia affiliation, but several months since my most recent effort. Not good! I need to return to my memoir.  I set the project aside for the summer … Continue reading →

A Haitian Tale of Veterinary Angst: Dr. Wulff Bites Back

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I was reminded recently that my most traumatic travel experiences have invariably involved our dogs and my lame attempts to move them in and out of the US.  My efforts to traffic pets internationally has inevitably devolved into a canine comedy of errors  Cesar Millan himself could not … Continue reading →

Do-Over: A Frenzy of Freshly Pressed

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It happened 15 months ago. It happened again this week–both times on a Tuesday. Both times I had a less-than-cool response to being Freshly Pressed. I may have over-reacted.  I may even have caused a scene. But 15 months ago my … Continue reading →

March Madness: A Slam Dunk for Bracket Rackets or Missed Shot at Winter Weather?

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Except for the spring I taught writing to six University of Kentucky cheerleaders, I’ve paid little attention to American basketball or the phenomenon we in the US call March Madness. Yes, I know this is a sacrilege for anyone in our … Continue reading →

A Friday Manifesto on the Creative Process

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Please read my post on the creative process published this morning on “The Elephant Journal.”  It includes photos of an art project I completed for Habitat for Humanity in Haiti.   Hope you enjoy and leave me a comment at “The Elephant … Continue reading →

A DNA of Hoarding

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My partner Sara says I’m a hoarder.  I prefer to think of myself as a devotee of surplus—not so much a believer in excess, as advocate for plenty. Call this what you will.  We all have our crosses to bear, … Continue reading →

7 Signs of Domesticity Displaced (including why we love a yellow rhinoceros)

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In recent years, Sara and I have lived abroad—have set up house in places as far away as Haiti and Vietnam.  However, in being dislocated, we’ve not so much forgotten how to live here in the US, as we’ve learned … Continue reading →