On the Road, On the Air

Last weekend my book and I helped celebrate the Grand Opening of the Brunswick Community Library. It’s a nice “little-library-that-could” story: the previous building was small and cramped and the library was about to lose its charter. But the library’s valiant staff and the town’s redoubtable readers put together a fundraising campaign so that they could build a larger, more accessible facility. I spent a sunny fall afternoon with many enthusiastic folks, including goat-herding rabbis, the founder of the Music Mobile, and the head honcho librarian, my friend Julie Zelman, who, among other impressive accomplishments, has aced the Weekend Edition puzzle live on National Public Radio (and has the monogrammed coffee mug to show for it).

Speaking of radio, I now have the podcast for my interview on Barbara DeMarco-Barrett’s show “Writers on Writing”. I’m less than thrilled by how I came across, but I guess part of that is just the oddness of hearing one’s own voice. To me, every “um” or half-second hesitation is magnified about a zillion times. Funny how one forgives others their imperfections. Still, I came up with some good stuff. Like the phrase “the therapy-industrial-complex”. Thought that one up on the spot.I've been watching this dahlia plant grow all season, and here it is the first of October. Just holding on to a bit of summer color...