A thick depression settled in after publishing Lit Up late last year. There’s something about the cover, or my inability to quickly describe that it’s about grappling toward a sustainable locally-based life, that fails to draw prospective readers in. I see the lack of interest as a light goes out behind their eyes. I wish … More The Joy of Minimalist Accounting. What??
A bunch of years ago I received an artist fellowship grant to write a book about, “Living locally.” $7,000 meant the world as I entered the long winter, my first season of hard-core farming concluded. I thought my second book would be easier. Quicker. Problem was, our family needed to build a sustainable life. Forging … More Lit Up: Out of the cubicle and into the real world
Running into this beaver yesterday, in the most unlikely of places, reminds me of Duluth’s answer to Donald Trump: The entrepreneur/property mogul/recording artist quietly goes about his work, lunch pail in hand as blue collar as they come, with humility, grace, and generosity. His persevering spirit, paired with an innate urge to create and share … More Duluth’s Duluthiest Entrepreneur Embodies Artistic Success
He reached out to me when the snow piled waist-deep, but I continued to resist long after the thaw. The pursuit endured for months, as with a pack of hounds. Finally, I relented. Unlike the fox exhausted to the point of death, my change of heart came when I caught the scent of a potential … More Joining the Symphony of Life through Partnerships.
Overwhelmed by the cacophonous crowd below, I retreated to a solitary corner of a long leather couch upstairs with a book—one man awkwardly weighing down the stern of a canoe. Meanwhile, Shawna’s painting was quietly winning the People’s Choice Award below: Nursing a migraine that began 12 hours ago, and which now accompanies me here … More Migrainous Musings In The Dark
This painting has been on Shawna’s easel for a LONG time. It has been in progress for most of the year. I thought it was pretty much done two months ago, but still she let it sit a while (waiting for those ducks to finally fly in and complete it). After looking at it from … More On Tainting the Well
As we neared the firing of the cannon marking the end of summer, discontent bubbled up inside me like a witch’s brew in a red hot cauldron, threatening to boil over at any moment. With school set to resume tomorrow, our usual quota for adventure was woefully short. We completely failed to camp together as … More Making it happen after failing so miserably
The skin on my face was incinerated today. Prior to the photodynamic treatment, a $300 medication was applied to ensure a 10X sunburn. It turns out that an effective treatment for precancerous sun damage is another extreme burn. Burn off all the bad stuff, and the skin should regenerate anew. Needing to avoid contact with … More Skin in the game
These paintings were rejected by Shawna years ago. Several date back to 2007, when Shawna decided to begin painting again, after a significant hiatus, during which time we moved across the country twice, bought a home, yada yada yada. They’ve been in our basement collecting dust for years. A hopeless sentimentalist, I’ve rescued them from my … More Introducing the Hall of Rejects!
Our home is on the cusp of entering its 107th year. My family is just the fourth to live here, and this is not uncommon on our street. Numerous folks spend the majority of their lives here, which has made for a tremendously desirable, stable neighborhood. I’m aware of two former notables: a U.S. Senator out … More Woven into the tapestry of an old home
Ed's Big Adventure 