Monday, Monday

It's a wonderful blustery Monday, and there is some blue sky peeking through the clouds, and I think the winter weather might finally be ending. Please God. Frankly, I'd like to drive a stake through the heart of this past winter. It was ferocious and lasted forever. For this entire past month, my two sons and I have had some form of cold or virus or cough, and it was hard not to feel that it was the winter's way of saying, "I may have to end, but I won't let you forget who's boss." Okay, Uncle! You win. Now, please go away!! Sorry for the rant. You can tell that I am out of denial about my feelings about the cold. Anyway. I did have another Spoken Interludes last Thursday night - didn't take pictures :( - and I loved every writer who was there. So many people said to me, as they were leaving, that it was the best show they'd been to. The shows are like my children, I don't have a favorite, but I can say that it was like one of those glorious afternoons when the boys and I are having a great time playing, and everything is perfect and pure fun. That's how the evening was. Marek Fuchs, Joshua Henkin, David Ebershoff, and John Burnham Schwartz all read. And can we just take a moment to acknowledge that group?? We all could have listened to each of them the entire evening. It was an embarrassment of riches in terms of their talent, and generosity of spirit, and showmanship. I feel so blessed that I get to show up and be with the audience members that I adore, and either meet, or see again, writers that I love and respect, and hear their work and their thoughts on their work. When I was doing the shows in LA every month, one thing that made me really happy was that it was one of the few places in that town that when someone was introduced to someone there, they didn't ask what they did for a living, they asked how they found out about Spoken Interludes. It was a like an underground literary club, and I loved that, everyone coming together on the basis of loving the written word and the desire to hear stories. I felt that so strongly the other night. If you haven't read the newest books by Marek, Joshua, David, or John, run don't walk to your nearest bookstore. They are all divine. And at the show, a very interesting theme emerged from the readings, as one always seems to, of people being trapped or encapsulated in a community or institution, and it was great getting to hear the different ways that was developed.
I did a panel at the Irvington Library yesterday for the Rivertowns Arts Council. It was on Creativity and Motherhood led by Carrie Barron, and it was wonderful to hear the other artist talk about juggling these things, and connect with the audience on it. My sister-in-law, Judy Siegel, came which meant so much to me. Her husband, Jon, just became mayor of Irvington, a more fair man I have never met, so we will all be in very capable hands once he gets sworn in next week. And speaking of creativity, off to work on my novel. Happy Monday!
xo