July updates
This is the newsletter I just sent to subscribers. Link in first paragraph.
If you’d like to subscribe to my monthly email newsletter, you can do so here. I’m a former journalist so short and sweet is my mantra! My newsletter takes about five minutes to read.
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I hope you’ve been safe and healthy where you are. The unrelenting heat and wildfire smoke has made it a challenging couple of weeks in Minnesota, especially northeastern Minnesota. Even by 8 a.m., when I usually take the dogs for a walk, the air has been oppressive. They say sweating is good for you, right? Not my favorite!
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FAVORITE THINGS
Local art centers
I recently dropped off two of my botanical prints at the Arts Center of Saint Peter for the member show that opens in August. It had been a while since I went to an art center. And there are so many around here! Mankato, New Ulm, Waseca—we’re very fortunate in this region. I had limited time in St. Peter but I took a spin through the gallery. Works by local artists Brad and Ann Widness were on display. I knew Ann when we were both teaching at Minnesota State University, Mankato. She was always a delight to talk to. I knew she was a fiber artist but this was the first time I had seen her work. I was blown away. Now that I’m stepping into fiber arts, I wish I had learned more about her work earlier. She passed away four years ago. The exhibition is a wonderful homage and a testament to her and Brad’s partnership.
7-Mile Park, Nicollet County
Between Mankato and St. Peter there is a beautiful county park surrounding 7-Mile Creek and next to the Minnesota River. I used to do regular runs out there. During Covid and then my sabbatical I went out there at least once a week. There’s not a better place around here to find hills for a good workout. Due to life circumstances, I hadn’t been there in perhaps more than a year, maybe even two. I went there a few weeks ago with a friend and I decided to make it a point to get there regularly, no excuses! I went on Saturday with Twix. We ended up doing a 5K. He was a little trooper!
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WHAT I’M READING/LISTENING TO
In Alnwick I bought The Prison Doctor at Barter Books. Dr. Amanda Brown has been a doctor in England’s prisons for a number of years. She writes with a great deal of empathy and compassion. Her perspective felt familiar to me—when you actually go inside a prison and work with the incarcerated population, your perspective on crime and punishment changes. Now that I’m looking up the book to include the link, I see she’s written a trilogy. I’ll have to read the others now.
I listened to End of Days: Ruby Ridge, the Apocalypse, and the Unmaking of America. The siege of Ruby Ridge in 1992 was one of the biggest news stories while I was in high school. I couldn’t help but to pay attention then, but of course I knew few details. I thought the beginning of the book was a little padded...there was a lot of information about right-wing groups in the late 1970s/early 1980s. It did provide context to the Weavers, but I wanted to hear more about them so got a little impatient with all the background information. But once we got to the assault on the Weavers and the days that followed, I was quite invested. This book really shows that history repeats itself. Paranoia, conspiracy theories, militant groups—we’ve been here before. I was thinking, thank God there wasn’t social media at the time because I think the situation would have spiraled quickly out of control. I’d imagine thousands of people would have converged at the site and caused some real problems.
I’m listening to Spare by Prince Harry. I’ve always been curious about the royal family. The personalities and tension between “the crown” and real life intrigues me (The Crown series did a great job investigating this tension). In many ways, it’s your typical celebrity autobiography. A rote list of “I did this, then I did that.” But we hardly ever get a peek into the life of a royal, so for those curious it scratches that itch.
I’m finally reading Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. I’m about one-third of the way through. It’s not a book I can fly through. I’m enjoying it very much, but the language and diction forces me to slow down. Which is a good thing!
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WRITING NEWS
Still thinking about all things true crime. My new project is massive, which causes me to avoid it in fear. It seems so big and unmanageable. I have to remember to plug away in small steps. You’d think I’d know this by now! Outfoxing my mind is always my biggest battle. I’ll figure something out.
But hey, my botanical printing is coming right along!
