My essay “Belonging” appears in Western Confluence’s “People on Public Lands” issue (Fall 2018, Issue 9).  I loved working with the editorial staff — they made my writing clearer and more concise while allowing me to maintain my artistic vision.

My essay “Atlantic City: Gateway to a Soul” appears in the anthology Atlantic City: Voices from a Powerful Place (2017).  The volume celebrates the town’s 150th anniversary.   Thank you to the Atlantic City, Wyoming Historical Society for all their work putting this together!

The book sold out at the book launch, but it is available again.

Order by sending the following information to the Atlantic City Historical Society, Inc.:

Atlantic City Historical Society, Inc.
15 South Dexter
Atlantic City, WY 82520 
307-332-9402 leave message
ACWYHistoricalSociety@gmail.com

Souvenir Lit Journal published my essay “On Ammo: A Short Meditation” in their Spring 2016 issue.  You can read my piece and check out the rest of the great writing in the issue here. Thanks to Matt Z. for recommending I submit something to Souvenir Lit Journal and to the journal for picking up this essay!

Today, Wyoming is locked in a massive winter storm. Yesterday, I walked downtown in the sun and was overheated in my down jacket. Two week ago, I went for a ride with the dogs. It was Djinn’s first foray with me horseback and without Rob present to assist. She did great — she came when called, stayed close, and did not get underneath Tucker’s feet.

Tucker takes a look around the plains West of Laramie, WY on March 15th, 2016.

Spud and Djinn put in the miles running through the pasture.

I  just received word that my essay “On Ammo: A Short Meditation” has been accepted for inclusion in an upcoming issue of Souvenir Lit Journal. Thanks to the good folks at Souvenir for picking up the piece, and to my friend Matt Z. for suggesting I check out the journal! I will post a link to the essay once it is published.

Take a look at the great work supported by Souvenir by clicking here.

Sunday was warm and lovely here in Laramie. Rob and I drove out to the barn with the dogs, and I saddled Tucker. Rob walked along with the dogs, and we went out through the southern pasture. The wind was up, but it was warm enough that the breeze felt refreshing. The ground was thawing, the creek was starting to run, a few early calves were on the ground. On the way home, I put Ian Tyson’s song “Springtime” on my phone and cranked the stereo up — I always listen to it when spring-fever hits and I want to indulge in it.

Monday morning dawned warm and bright. Then, at 9:00 am, the snow started to fall. And it fell and fell and fell, a beautiful, straight-down snow full of big flakes and chalk full of water. Check out the view from my office on Tuesday:

The temperature is rising fast, and most of this snow will turn into water by the time I leave for home at 5:00 pm.

I love springtime in Wyoming!

In January, Wyoming Public Media’s The Modern West featured a segment about the Red Desert. The stories shared in this radio piece speak to many of the concerns that I have grappled with as I have grown from childhood innocence, which allowed me to think  of the desert as my family’s personal playground, to adulthood, which comes with an awareness of the complex political and ideological webs layered over the landscape.

Listen to the piece, “The Modern West #7: The Red Desert: Prosperous Resource or Versatile Ecosystem?,” on Wyoming Public Radio’s website.

My cat, Bo, is a big fan of the extra time I’ve spent writing this winter. The office is warm, and he likes to get in my lap or curl up on top of my arms while I type. It’s not a great system for dexterity, but he returns the favor by keeping me accountable. Did you ever feel you were being watched?

We’re halfway into January now, and we’ve been enjoying a bit of a heat wave in Laramie: Temperatures in have climbed into the thirties and even forties after long stretches of single digits. What have I learned, or re-learned, this winter?

1. January and February always feel like the longest months of winter for me. The snow’s been on the ground for quite sometime now, and much of it is drifted, crusted, or iced over. The holidays are behind us, and though some houses still sport Christmas lights, which bring me so much joy in December, those lights seem sad to me now, lingering past their season. However, the days are getting longer. It is no longer dark when I leave work, and the days of walking the dogs by streetlight are numbered.
2. Never leave your house totally unattended when temperatures drop below zero even before wind chill is factored in. Rob and I live in a small apartment building owned by my parents, and we manage the property. For the first time in living memory, the residents of all three units (including us) left town for the holidays. Of course, Laramie underwent a major cold snap right after Christmas, and our old, tired boiler failed. Thank goodness our good friends were checking on our cats – when they found the water dish frozen and the apartment ice cold, they called us at my parent’s house and then stayed to thaw pipes and get space heaters running until we were able to pack up and drive home. Thanks B&L! We were incredibly lucky. Our pipes did not freeze solid and therefore there was no damage once we got things defrosted. Because the boiler is older than I am, we had to wait for two days for a new part to be delivered before the plumbers could get the heat back on. Space heaters and long-underwear and stocking caps inside kept us warm. I grew up hearing horror stories about frozen pipes, but I had to experience it first hand before realizing how serious the situation can become so quickly. (P.S. Our cats are fine, though they camped out in front of the heaters once we got the boiler fixed and seemed reluctant to leave that beautiful warmth.)
3. Because of the above mentioned factors, January makes a good time to look at houses. Rob and I are starting a search for a home with property for Tucker and his future horse companions, and anything that looks good with the winter wind howling is going to look a lot better come spring. Contrarily, every property on the Laramie plains looks amazing and green in June. If we look now, we’ll know what to expect come next winter.

I was featured reading my essay, “Red Desert, Wyoming,” on Public Radio International’s Living on Earth last weekend. Check it out, along with the rest of their excellent programming, by clicking here.

Living on Earth collaborates with Orion to bring selected “Place Where You Live” essays from Orion’s website to the air.

I had a lot of fun working with the talented staff at Living on Earth to edit my piece for radio and to record my reading and the background sounds, and I would like to send my thanks their way.