Happy New Year!

Yeah....I know. I am a few weeks late but hey, I'm here. It's been a bumpy start to the new year. I kicked it off with bronchitis and and an upper respiratory infection that kept me in bed for four days past the start of school. My mom said "Well it's nice to not have to go back!" and I had to disagree with her. Even the doctor said that I looked like I wanted to die. I did. I was coughing as though I was going to hack up a lung. Then I read somewhere that a woman did actually cough up part of her lung and it terrified me.

I didn't cough up a lung. I made it back to work. I somehow, miraculously started 2012 in a bona fide, adult relationship that only gets better and better. And Hector the cat still likes to sleep in boxes. Things are good.

I'm also starting the new semester with some good writing news. I applied to the Jenny McKean More Community Workshop at The George Washington University using a sample from Until the Heart Stops Beating and a letter of interest that I will post later. I'm pleased to say that I've been accepted into the class! Hooray! This is both a good and terrifying thing.

Terrifying because I have to commute to DC every Tuesday: Yuck. It's also terrifying because I have written with any regularity in a year and a half (it looks sooo bad when I see that written down). I keep anxiously checking my email to see what my homework assignment will be! Homework! Ack!

But...It's a good thing because I do my best work when someone demands it of me. I'm really, really excited about writing for a small group of people. I can only hope that they are as excited about writing and read as I am. They must be if they took the time to apply, right?



That reading challenge I started? Oh yeah, that...Well, I'm going to try and finish up Yiddish Policeman tonight and tomorrow. And I'm reading a ton of short stories in preparation for the unit I am about to start with my class and hopefully this weekend I'll get to The Marriage Plot. But it's the Airman's birthday weekend so I make no promises.

I did begin and mostly finish these:

So I will have at least two knitting projects done! And I'm busting down my stash. Yay me again!

And because it's my blog and I can be obnoxious and gross and annoying here as much as I want, I'm still madly in love. #winning

Oh, hey, yeah...I'm here...

Where have I been? In my head I post here all the time. No seriously, in my head I think, "I should put this on the blog." It's very likely that I've convinced myself that think is the same as doing. Like I think about writing letters of recommendation and then I don't actually write them but I convince myself that I've done and, well, yeah.....So, where have been? Let's see. Mostly Baltimore, but there have been trips to New Orleans, Boston, Philadelphia, Delaware, Delaware, Delaware.

Back in September, I went to New Orleans for a conference. It had it's ups and downs. Ups: I was in freaking New Orleans! Downs: I was on antibiotics and had a sinus infection. I basically went to my conference and then went to bed. I did some writing but give me a few paragraphs before I get to writing.

After NOLA, we took some kids to visit colleges in Boston. 'Nuff said. Though, it should be noted that we had an amazing dinner, Mexican/Cajun. Who knew?

The Philadelphia/Delaware trips are all connected. My aunt, my mother's youngest sister got married this past Friday. A few things: Please, don't get married on a Friday, or, if you do, don't ask me to be in the wedding(unless you're family/someone who I really, really, really want to be a bridesmaid for--think carefully before answering this question).

And I straightened my hair for it. 

The wedding was lovely. Not to be overly sentimental, but I can't think of anyone who deserved to get married in such a lovely ceremony more.  And on top of that, I remember being a little girl and wanting so desperately to be in my aunt's wedding (at the time she was engaged to her high school sweetheart who died in a car accident when I was in the 8th grade). I got to put her veil on the evening of the wedding--I can't even tell you how emotional it was. I was thinking of her, her sisters, my uncle who passed away back in 2002, and my grandparents who weren't there. 

I feel bad for The Airman. I'm a bit wedding crazy, now. He knows it, is very patient with me about it, indulges me even. He actually watches Bridezillas and Say Yes to the Dress, with me. He's a bit of a saint that way. When I wake up from being supremely tired from all the wedding nonsense, I'll probably get over it. In the mean time....We're approaching the six-month mark, [Applause, please...Fucking clap. I've never been good at this!]  and when I tell him I'm bored, he says, "You could be doing something like, I don't know writing your novel." When he says this I don't want to slap him, so I guess it's love. I want to slap my mother when she says things like that. Truth.

Did I mention the time he showed up at my house with flowers, champagne, and Maker's Mark? Yeah, I'm really, really, lucky.

So, you wanna hear about writing? I've done some writing. This goes back to my time in NOLA. I spent most of the time I was there sick, like nasty sick. So on the last morning when my head was a little clearer, I took myself over to Cafe du Monde shortly after the sun rose. I ordered a cafe au lait and some beignets and let my powdered sugar fingers do some writing. NOLA is a beautiful city. I can see how many people are inspired by the place. It reminded me of many cities that I'd lived in. Cobblestones like Philadelphia; a city that stays awake like New York;  a rich artistic history (music) like Iowa City (literature); and a people that love their city like Baltimore. I don't know if I could live there, but it was so easy to write there. The words flowed. Pages and pages. I wrote until I had to leave for my flight.

I had a second order of beignets.

Instead of writing my novel...

I'm blogging. Or thinking about blogging. But I suppose that since I have begun a post and written at lest two sentences, I am, in fact, blogging.

I did have some editing momentum this afternoon. And I actually made it out of the house to get some work done. Though I feel I have been foiled by the internet (the cafe I work out of didn't have internet until recently). The internet and the missing edited pages and the short piece I know I wrote last year about the main female character having an affair with her Ethics Professor while she was in medical school. I know I wrote and I don't know if I can re-write it because the first time it came our so well...I was really, really, angry at men and it came out very well in the fiction. I know I have it somewhere and maybe when I start packing up my house I can take some time to go through the dozens of notebooks and legal pads I have that contain the remnants of my unfinished works.

But now, I'm going to go back to novel writing.

We we we so excited. So excited. Part I

Admittedly, I've watched the Friday video one too many times. Don't worry, this has nothing to do with the video or the lack of a verb. It's all about the Hampden Writer's Workshop. Next week will be the very first planning meeting between my new partner and I and I can't wait to unveil who the writer signing on will be. I'm thinking two weeks from now, and you'll know!

In other writing related news I've been working on a draft of a story I wrote about two years ago. I recently submitted it to the Summer Literary Seminar contest and while I didn't win or place even, I received a very nice note from the Seminar's director about how much he liked the submission. Add to that a 5 day stay in Wellfleet where the story takes place, I'm feeling very close to the work and the characters and I think that in the next couple of days I will have a draft that I'm really proud of. Perhaps What the Bay Broke will find a home in 2011!

In novel writing news...Meh. I'm a little more than frustrated. After having made a significant amount of edits to the manuscript, the manuscript has gone missing. Frustrating isn't the right word. I'm ever so slightly devastated. I'm trying to get over it and start working again, but my momentum is off. Next week, I'll sit down with the edits I had the chance to transfer onto the computer and start again. I have a feeling that I won't have a completed draft at the end of August as I had hoped. End of 2011? Yes, please, maybe?

WIP's

I've been so neglectful of this space and I know why. My life, for the last year has been fairly uninteresting, meaning that I haven't really had any major changes. Usually, when life feels calm, I have little to say to the internets, my feeling being that the people I love and know are around to hear most of what I need to say so why post it online?

Well, now there's some news. After nearly three years in Iowa City, I'll be leaving at the end of July to take up a post teaching English on the East Coast. Home at last. But this change does lead me to think about my time here in Iowa. Although I'm leaving, I realize that my connection to this place is a lot like some of my knitting projects, the ones I start and will probably never get around to finishing, on Ravelry, they call them WIPs (Works in Progress), I'll never quite be done with Iowa City.

I came here to write, which I did, maybe less than some but more than I could have hoped to accomplish in New York.

I cam here having fallen out of love. While I was here, I fell in love. Fell out of love. Fell back in love, with myself. Fell in love with writing. Fell out of love with writing. Fell even further out of love with writing, only to get close to the end and fall back in love with my writing. Can you say DRAMA? I can. I also realized that you never really fall out of love, you just move on and discover new (and hopefully) more fulfilling love (I know, it kind of sucks but really it's kind of awesome).

I learned to live alone. Learned that I love living alone, learned that I should probably learn to live with others.

I learned to knit (a skill I will always treasure).

I learned to drink whiskey (a skill I will always treasure and a skill I'm sure I'll regret time and time again).

I learned how to be a teacher. I even wrote (for a failed job application) a statement of my educational philosophy from where I got this gem of a line: "What I learned about the classroom environment at Sarah Lawrence is the very thing I try to make the foundation of my classes at Iowa: that while we have university-designated roles—teacher and student—we are all learners."

I learned to knit a cardigan. A freaking cardigan.

I learned more about friendship that I ever did before. Taking those failed friendships in New York, the friendships that are still so dear to me from the time I live in NYC, and the amazing people I connected with here in Iowa, I learned what it mean to have a friend and to be a friend.

I learned how to be a writer from some really good teachers. And I hope I can pass this on to other young writers I will encounter in my future.

I learned that even though you will continue to lose the ones you love, life goes on.

In all these sentences, I used the past tense when really, I should have used the present. Like the unfinished baby blanket, the socks that have no mates, and well, the cardigan (it's missing a sleeve) I'm a work in progress. I'm hoping the finished product will be last long and look awesome.

New Writes, New Reads and New Knits

I'm just returning from a whirlwind trip to Philadelphia and New York. Not only did I get to celebrate my own fabulous 30th year, but also I wanted to celebrate with
von Hottie and
May in the Bay And let me tell you, these ladies know how to get down. We are all 30 and FABULOUS!



I did get some things done (other than celebrating). First, while I was in Philly, I spent my days at the Chestnut Hill Coffee Co. So far it is my favorite place in Philly to have coffee (it's where I get my espresso for homemade lattes)and write. There's no internet, it's quiet, and no one talks to you. It's perfect. I wrote a draft on one of one of my novels short chapters. Yay!

I finished Yiyun Li's newest novel "The Vagrants". One word people: Phenomenal. Okay, maybe a second word: Devastating. I mean that second word in the way good fiction should knock the wind out of you. I finished and I though. Jesus H. Christ that was hard. Admittedly, I didn't really get into it at first. I was interested in most of the characters, but there were so many that I sometimes needed to take a break and pick up something else less complex. When I finally went back to it, I couldn't put it down. There was something kind of enrapturing about the strong convictions of some of these characters and the knowledge that their convictions will do them no good by the end. And for those without conviction, without loyalty, well, I felt for them too.

A good read people.

And as for the yarn....well...I visited three yarn shops. Purl Soho (of course), Loop in Philadelphia and The Tangled Web also in Philadelphia. Purl, has just moved from it's teeny tiny shops on Sullivan St. to an expansive and beautiful location on Broome St. They never, never disappoint. Also, I had a lovely conversation with Joelle Hoverson, one of the owners. I was seriously star struck once she introduced herself. While I was there, I picked up some Habu textiles raw silk lace weight yarn. I'm planning on making my mother some lacy thing with it. Jared Flood has a pattern or two I'm thinking of. At the Tangled Web--which is a nice shop--I picked up some Jojoland Melody sock yarn in a pretty reddish pink, that I am going to turn into cute lace anklets, the pattern on the Purl Bee site. Seriously, that website makes me want to knit all the time. Lastly, I picked up some lace alpaca yarn from Loop. I met a friend there and while it was nice to be reunited after two years, I did not love the shop and that made me sad. Their website is so delicious that I thought I'd walk into Philadelphia's version of Purl. I work in a yarn shop, and I try to give my customers space, but I at least talk to them a little, ask what they're working on, if they need help, or ideas. at Loop...Well, the woman working behind the counter was way more interested in her computer screen than the only two customers in the shop. Also, I wasn't super impressed by their stock. I think it's because I'm spoiled by the shop I work in and also the other shops in town. We all have different, but exquisite yarns and the people who work at the shops in my area are all awesome. Seriously. Still it was a lovely yarn adventure.

Before I left for the east coast, I was gifted some really pretty yarn. A Funky Zauberball (I have one already and I can't wait to knit them both up!!) Some Jojoland Rhythm, Lorna's Laces sock yarn in a sweet pink, and a skein of Mini Moochi. So it's basically been a good two weeks for my stash.

What's next? Knitting anklets, a baby blanket and some finishing some socks. I've started reading Arvind Adiga's "White Tiger" and working on one of the more challenging parts of my book.

I have to say, I'm loving 30!

The Whole Catastrophe

Ah the monthly salon.

Once a month, I gather with my writing/knitting friends and we have a salon. We take turns reading our work out loud and offer constructive and thoughtful words about writing. I both hate and love it.

I hate it because I hate deadlines. I hate having to prepare for things. I write best when I have no set dates, when no one is expecting anything from me. I like it that way. Unfortunately, if I want to have a real writing life, that ain't gonna work. I also, have a little bit of stage fright. Even though they're my friends--best friends in town--I still get nervous. And let me tell you, the shot of whiskey and or tequila I treat myself to before reading is not really appropriate for these nights.

I love it because my friends are awesome. They say kind things and they make me feel like a real writer. They are as dedicated to the craft as I am and they believe in my talent. What's not to love? Also, I leave those ladies after hearing their extraordinary works in progress and I'm inspired.

Today I've been doing my least favorite thing. I've been editing. Yep, I'm editing the story that will NEVER be done. at least I think it will never be done. It feels like it will never be done. I thought I'd finish up with it today in time for submitting it to a couple of places, but....that's not happening. Which is fine. I really want this piece to go out and be as good as I can make it Once it gets there, I'm sure (I hope) it will find a home. In the mean time, back to editing.

Last two things, one book related and one knitting related.

I'm working hard on my February Lady sweater. I still hope it will be done in time for my trip to NYC next week. So far, it looks good and that makes me happy.

And...I'm reading "The Vagrants" by Yiyun Li. SO GOOD. And, last week I went to hear Adam Haslett read from his new novel. It was a great reading, though I felt bad for the guy who tried to make a snarky Marilynne Robinson comment. She was in the audience. I picked up Haslett's collection of short stories but I have no idea when I'll actually get to them. The "Tower of Books" it tall ya'll. Real tall.

One more thing. And this is totally a vanity moment, and one that will probably never happen again (well, it happened the night f the election, so I'll tell both stories). Last week I was buying a very necessary Red Velvet cupcake and the girl behind the counter called me by name and said she was at a reading I'd given. I believe she used the word legendary. Though, she could have been talking about the cupcakes.

This happened once before, the night of Obama's election. I was leaving a big celebratory party downtown and a very inebriated young man hugged me and said "Go Obama!" Then he said, "I loved your reading." The two did not deserve to be in the same breath, but it was flattering just the same.

I'm done. Back to knitting and editing, the only two things I'll be doing until the weekend.

Food and Fiction

One of the happiest days of every month is the day my Real Simple arrives. It's truly joyous. What I love most are the recipes. Every month, for days I pour through the magazine and pick out delicious things to make for dinner. Nothing is ever too complicated, but in the end, it's always yummy.


For the last three days, I've been making dinner from recipes found on RealSimple.com The first day was a variation on a couple of recipes, basil and garlic beef with heirloom tomatoes and an arugula and parmigiano with a lemon, olive oil dressing. Yesterday, I made the Paprika spiced pork chops with spinach (minus the raisins). Tonight, chicken wrapped with prosciutto, with arugula salad and broccoli.  As you can see, I've been eating rather well. And eating well, makes me feel, well, good.

But I haven't written in two weeks and that is making me feel not so good. Part of this is due to the fact that I worked the entirety of spring break, and it was exhausting. The other part is what I like to call, story exhaustion. I'm just tired of looking at it. At all of it.

I think the main problem is that I need to learn how to look at it in a different way, and I also need to address the insecurity that surrounds my writing. I always think my work is too simple. That it's not compelling enough to get an agent or literary magazine editor's attention. And so, I go through long periods of time where I don't want to write, where I get tired of the words on the page. I find myself in a place where my characters annoy me and their troubles are trivial. (Never mind the fact that I created those troubles and their personalities etc.) Because they're so simple, I get bored.

But, today, while I was making lunch, I realized something about the kind of food that I like to cook: It's simple, but it's full of flavor

The truth it, storytelling is a fairly simple thing. Everyone does it, but some people just do it better. What makes a story "good" is the same thing that makes a piece of chicken taste "good". When it comes down to it in the kitchen, it's all in the seasoning, the method of cooking, and the freshness of the ingredients. On the page, it's the flair of the language, the narrative structure, the freshness of the material. And both can be clearly complex, with a variety of ingredients or multiple story lines. In fact, I think we often think of complex as being a good thing, as being better that which is simple. But you know what? Give me plain old salt and pepper any day. Aren't those the foundations of any good recipe? The basics. And I need to get used to the fact that I like the basics.

Of course, I also like good olive oil and coffee.

UPDATE: Went out for dinner after the Adam Haslett reading (He was great! I picked up his first book and can't wait to read it.) and had an awful bowl of chicken chilli at a restaurant in town. Sent it back. First time I have ever sent something back for being gross.