Ask a writer, what is the one thing you hope to achieve, and the frequent answer is that we want our work to affect someone - anyone, somehow. And we are also likely to say that we hope our readers can find their own meaning in our work. Toward that end, we strive to be as honest as we can, and to tear away the walls and pretentions that prevent most people from expressing their deepest, darkest feelings.

But what happens when the meaning your reader takes from your work is not precisely what you had hoped for? And what happens when the person bearing the brunt of your honesty is the one person you love most in the world? (more…)

Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving!

The high point of this weekend was seeing the delightful Ms. Petula Clark in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Sunset Boulevard”. Mishi feels the lyrics fell short of your average Simpsons parody, and there were few, if any, truly memorable tunes, but Petula (if we may call her that?) gave an extraordinary performance that more than made up for any flaws in the script.

Beyond that, the turkey is still taking its toll and we all must sleep, sleep until tomorrow. It’s crazy-time for all of us, and we’ll be busy planning a really groovy Solstice celebration - watch for regular updates!

Be well,
gooey & Mishi

Not long ago, we told you about tearing out the bathroom. One of the risks we take when we tear down walls is that what we find behind will take longer to repair than we imagined. That’s been the case here, in a big way. We’ve been chipping away at additions to the foundation. We’ve been cutting back damaged support beams to good wood and trying to figure out how to stabilize them. And we’ve been trying to clean up as we go. In the mean time, things that once seemed so simple have become chaotic - things like bathing, getting ready for work in the morning and getting ready for bed and night. Just taking a piss holds some risk. (more…)

The bathtub is installed. At long last, the deep, sensuous, claw-foot tub John and I bought almost ten years ago is installed. I took the first bath, no more than three minutes, with some magic-tinged salts I created some time in the 80’s. I felt wonderfully, perfectly relaxed and fulfilled. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a bath like that.

It felt so good, I was compelled to wake gooey from her nap on the couch. The water was still hot and I just had to share the pleasure. A few languorous minutes in that water and gooey was rubber, just like me.

The tub is heaven. It is peace. It is good. And it is temporary. (more…)