Category Archives: Writing

Now Playing:“She Cleans Up” by Father John Misty Okay, heat, now it’s personal. Word Raccoon and I have not been to the dunes once this summer, and we are pissed. Well, mostly we’re pissed. Also, we’re hot. Remember my post the other day saying I’m fine sitting in the heat? No, really, I’m fine. IContinue reading “She Cleans Up and She Writes. Because of Course She Does.”

Now Playing: Latch (Acoustic version) — Sam Smith Word Raccoon and I struck a deal today: if she would quit messing around and get ready for the café, I would let her choose our earrings. (As if I had a choice.) She whined that it was too early, and that she had written on theContinue reading “Word Raccoon Stumbles Over a Poem for You”

This morning I have spent time doing the bane of my existence: busy work. Administrative shit. You know, wrangling the poems—because apparently they can’t wrangle themselves. Word Raccoon is not happy. We wrote a poem this morning, and she says writing about a clock’s tongue is way too engrossing to now be dealing with digitalContinue reading “🗂️ The Epic (and Occasionally Maddening) Quest to Organize My Poems”

Eff Yeah! Mic drop from a mile up!Not sure I need to say more. (But of course I will.) Word Raccoon went nuts for this video. She won’t stop playing it! John Green (and video guy) for joint Hoosier Poet of the Year! Green is a guy (no offense) who has left cool so farContinue reading “John Green Recites Peak Hoosier Poetry!”

Yesterday, while I was blissfully devouring my home fries dripping with Heinz ketchup, my husband decided to stage a pop quiz. “Which way is north right now?” he asked, leaning across the table like he was hosting Jeopardy: Marital Edition. Reader, I nearly choked on a potato. Let’s set the record straight: I can getContinue reading “Cardinal Directions? Couldn’t Pick Them Out of a Lineup. Also: I Don’t Care”

Now Playing: These Arms of Mine by Otis Redding. Ah, Otis! All the Otis! She’s on a break, Neal. She needs a break. (Quote from Dirty Dancing. The song above was used in the movie, too.) Yesterday morning, Word Raccoon was fully in charge, sticking up her middle finger at the world. She was overContinue reading “Word Raccoon’s Day Off”

Now Playing: The Argument I Had with Myself About Accidentally Writing a Song The rain has passed. It’s cooled enough that I’m back on the porch, writing. My street is quiet except for the sound of children a street over, and the sound of birds wondering if it’s time for me to wind down. IContinue reading “Broadway Called. (Not Really.) I Hung Up. (…Then Called Back. Maybe.)”

🎧 Now Playing: “Work Bitch” by Britney Spears Since mid-April, I’ve written over 200 poems. I know, right? HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE? I’m not saying they’re all A+. Some are skeletal. Some are decent. A few make Word Raccoon buzz so much she can’t sleep. Which is to say, she slides them under her pillow.Continue reading “Do Not Pass Me By (Or Do. Up to You. It’s a Hymn.)”

Word Raccoon has been submitting poetry in this heat, no less. Big cheers to her! She submitted to, I think, three journals, and that after she woke me at like 1:30 am and said we needed to talk. I followed her downstairs where she insisted on Coke Zero at that ungodly hour and I toldContinue reading “All of the Things, Some of them Interesting”

What do you write about when you’ve spent all day with Wordsworth in a warm café and your brain is fried and you’re not ready to share your thoughts on his work? His words are heady; they are muddled by the heat, and you want to taste them line by line, but your fevered notesContinue reading “SAVE DRAFT (No Title Intended)”