Hotter Than a Pepper Sprout

It's a week into Lent, and I should give up blogging. I should be spending time on more productive and pressing pursuits (say, like learning my lines for a show less than 3 weeks away!) but blogging makes me feel a little less antsy. It gives me a sense of accomplishment and control, and my brain has hit line absorption capacity for the night (week?). I've never, past or present, observed Lenten deprivation, but I can see benefits that aren't tied to religious beliefs. Primarily it seems like a worthwhile exercise in mindfulness, and in being more aware and conscious about what I do or consume. And giving something up, even for a while, could make me more appreciative. I think I would also like the world to give up "Keep Calm" posters and whatnot for Lent. And summer. And Time.  Sound and compelling reasoning, but (at least right now) I like my "bad" habits and indulgences too much. I can even make a case that, especially as I get older, giving ...

Another holiday milestone: Chad and I just celebrated/experienced/endured our 25th Valentine's Day together. Our major festive activity was running the Valentine's Day TC 5K around Lake Harriet (so no, this was not the dash in your underwear down Nicollet Mall). Once again, I'm going to resort to a cliche because I can't think of any better way to say it: If you had told me 25 years ago that I would run a 5K in frigid (3 degrees Farenheit) temperatures I would not have believed you. I was definitely not a runner, or a jogger, or even much of a walker or mover back in my youth. The upside of that is I have really had no where to go but up. As I age, I'm not haunted by my past athletic glories. I was very obsessed with getting my race shirt. Sorry, but you are going to see a lot of this damn shirt.  These days, a 5K run isn't daunting, but I was totally freaked out about running in the cold. So why did we do this? This run is part of the TC Summit Challen...

I spent the last night trying to cram celestial knowledge into my head. And pissing off our household AI.  I wasn't really reading  Neil deGrasse Tyson or  even"Cosmos," but trying to learn lines for my next play and music for our next tribute band. Conveniently, these two things are thematically related. The next show that I'm in, a two-person play co-starring my awesome friend Debbie, is Lanford Wilson's "The Great Nebula in Orion." (Wilson is the amazing playwright who wrote "Talley's Folly.") We'll be performing "Orion" for the MACT (the MN Association of Community Theaters) Festival on March 20. The week before that, Chad and I are in a Twin Town tribute band for Big Star. So. Nebula. Star. Astronomy. Get it? Pretty   cosmic,   right? I've always been drawn to stargazing, at least in a casual way. When I was a kid, my mom used to read stories about the constellations to me (although never about Orion, as far ...

Today began and ended with contemplation about generational differences (and obviously, some coffee and red wine).  This morning, as I was cleaning out my e-mail, I came across this MPR story about "Millennials in Mourning" ( http://www.mprnews.org/story/2015/01/15/daily-circuit-young-grief ). While I had no intention of subjecting my gentle readers to yet another dead parent post, I had really strong reactions to this story, and thought I should perhaps examine them. What better way to shine a light on the dark recesses of my psyche than through my blog? Plus, I've been stumped lately about what to blog about, and as the saying goes, "write what you know." Who would put these lads down? I think this story hit me so hard because I wish I had been able to access these resources and support about experiencing grief when you're relatively young when my mom died. I'm actually annoyed and a little angry that I didn't. I don't think grief is ev...