• Time for a curiosity check

    June 27, 2018 / 1 Comment

    Answer these three questions:

    1) You’re reading a book and come across a word you don’t recognize. Do you look it up in the dictionary?

    2) While sitting on your couch, you hear a loud noise. Do you get up to see what caused it?

    3) Have you started a new hobby in the past year?

    Answering yes to any/all of these questions indicate that you have some level of curiosity — deep in the recesses of your brain, there’s a center of wonder, a place of questioning, a need to know. This is great news! Now, feed that need. As Plutarch once wrote: “The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.”

    Did you answer no to any/all of the above questions? That’s great news, too! You now have the opportunity to grow, to change and to try. The world is literally your oyster. Pick up a new book, listen to a singer you’ve never heard before, wander through a museum or explore a city, a library or a hiking trail. The more your step out of your comfort zone, the more likely you’ll have experiences that will change your life.

    Don’t know what to do first? Here are some great suggestions.

  • Pedestrian walkway for exercise lined up with beautiful tall trees

    Quote of the week

    June 25, 2018 / No Comments

    “A city is successful, not when it’s rich but when its people are happy. Creating bikeability and walkability shows respect for human dignity. We’re telling people, ‘You are important — not because you’re rich, but because you are human.’ If people are treated as special, as sacred even, they behave that way. We need to walk just as birds need to fly. Creating public spaces is one way to lead us to a society that is not only more equal but also much happier.” —Meik Wiking

  • stonehenge sunrise

    Spying a bit of magic

    June 22, 2018 / 1 Comment

    After a long week at work, I’m usually too tired or too mentally drained to be very creative. Which breaks my heart because writing short stories and poems and journal entries and novels has always brought me such joy.

    It feels like my imagination has been hiding in a safe room, unable or unwilling to leave. I’m convinced she’s hanging out with my muse since both have been MIA in recent years. As is my nature, I keep that safe room fully stocked with books and food and fresh water so who knows when they’ll come out again. Yet once in a while, when I peer through the tiny window in the door, I can spy a bit of magic.

    On Thursday morning, the northern hemisphere welcomed the Summer solstice. While the solstice marked the arrival of torment for me — damn you Summer migraines — it was also the longest day of the year. As someone who vastly prefers the nighttime, I took some comfort in knowing that from this point forward, my blessed darkness was on its way back.

    To celebrate, I applied that bit of found magic to a challenge issued by New Hampshire Pubic Radio: Sum up this season by writing a haiku. I managed to write two, and I’m thrilled to say NHPR broadcast both of them:

    Summer Solstice in New Hampshire

    as dawn broke this morn
    summer’s light bathed New Hampshire
    the solstice is here

    * * *

    Summer Solstice

    first day of summer
    season of heat, bugs, migraines
    bring back the darkness

  • Manchester City Library

    The library’s riches are at your disposal

    June 10, 2018 / 1 Comment

    When was the last time you walked through the doors of your local library? Last week? Last month? Last year? Now is the perfect time to stop by. I’ll bet you’ll be surprised at everything your library has to offer.

    There are few things I enjoy more than getting lost in the stacks. My library — the Manchester City Library — provides residents with free access to hardcovers, paperbacks and ebooks. But locals can also access newspapers, magazines, music, audiobooks, videos and DVDs, games and computer tablets.

    My library holds events as well: storytime for kids, book clubs for adults, crafting for teens, movie screenings, classes and lectures for all. During the summer, children can watch a puppet show or improve their literacy skills by reading to therapy dogs. At the park in front of the library, families can meet wildlife ambassadors and watch free outdoor concerts.

    But that’s not all! With just a library card, patrons can obtain free and discounted passes to area museums or borrow books from affiliated libraries. Need to use a computer or print a resume? Just log in and get to work. Interested in doing a bit of star-gazing? Then borrow a telescope. Patrons at my library can even check out framed prints to hang in their homes/offices.

    As a relatively new homeowner, I’ve been reticent about hanging any artwork on the walls for fear that I’d somehow screw it up. But recently, I decided to take the risk and brighten my rooms with some color. Here are the two framed pieces we checked out last week:

    For the kitchen: Country Living I by Vivian Flasch:

    And for my library/office: The Crystal Ball Skull by John William Waterhouse:

    (I also checked out three ebooks and four hardcovers. How could I not?)