Happy People: A Year in the TaigaDirectors: Dmitry Vasyukov, Werner Herzog Growing up in Alaska, I watched the documentary Alone in the Wilderness, dozens of times in boyhood admiration of Dick Proenneke and his unlimited resourcefulness. Proenneke comes to Alaska in his retirement, with money in the bank and a long list of skills. HeContinue reading “Happy People: A Year in the Taiga”
Tag Archives: Alaska
Nerves: My First Book Signing
Nerves be gettin’ the best of me. In one week I will be seated at a table covered in copies of Warflower in the entryway of Title Wave Bookstore in Anchorage, Alaska while three other authors sit at tables with their own books waiting for customers to approach to buy a book and ask forContinue reading “Nerves: My First Book Signing”
Film as Literature
I have done many jobs in my life. From a newspaper delivery boy on rollerblades to licking envelopes for a monthly newsletter; from bussing tables at a busy restaurant to washing dishes; from kicking down doors as an infantryman in Iraq to writing articles as a journalist; from making and selling peanut butter in GuatemalaContinue reading “Film as Literature”
Adventure (and a bigger house)
Last night we ate dinner with a sweet lady who said, “We are ‘tiny house people.’ Our place is only 1,600 square feet, with a full basement. It can be tight.”I had no reply. Our home is 700 square feet, and we didn’t use the upstairs for the first two years of Prim’s life inContinue reading “Adventure (and a bigger house)”
Time to Pre-Order Warflower
The time has come to pre-order Warflower through either Amazon or Barnes and Noble. (Links provided below) It will be released on June 1st, and I really hope that I don’t die from anxiety in the meantime. I once played guitar and sang songs live on our local radio station, KBBI, and I was prettyContinue reading “Time to Pre-Order Warflower”
Warflower is Done
Fifteen years ago I scribbled the first draft of Warflower from a cabin in the Costa Rican jungle, and I have been slowly tinkering away on it ever since. It was initially written as a way to save my life, to keep me from destroying myself after I was discharged from the Army with aContinue reading “Warflower is Done”
Making Fun a Priority
It is easy to be swept away by wind gusts of work and necessity. To forget about the joys of life, the fun times we had as children, the useless entertainment that keeps us alive and sane. We often justify our obsession with work with statements of fear; “They are only getting half of theContinue reading “Making Fun a Priority”
Rewrite the Past
The other day I decided I was going to start telling people that my parents died in a plane crash while delivering medical supplies in the Congo. My father was a pilot and my mother a doctor and they had created a non-profit organization back in the 70s that was their life’s work. They livedContinue reading “Rewrite the Past”
Cutting Grass on a Sunny Day
In airborne school we cut the grass with scissors. I didn’t realize how important the lesson on patience, tolerance, and acceptance would be on my life, especially in parenthood. Not to mention how grateful it made me for lawn mowers. I didn’t appreciate them quite like I should have. What do you not appreciate quiteContinue reading “Cutting Grass on a Sunny Day”
This is Why I Live Here
Finally! Spring is here! Today was warm and clear with sunshine from 7 am until just now at 9 pm as the sun sets and I sit in the Laz-e-boy writing this post while Savanna breastfeeds Primrose and rocks her to sleep on the other side of the wood stove. 11 flats of plants takesContinue reading “This is Why I Live Here”