The Season of But(t) Thanks is upon us! That is to say, it's Advent, and therefore Messiah season! This is, of course, opposed to the Season of But(t) Dust (Ash Wednesday/Lent). Which is also Messiah season, of course, just different bits of Messiah. Still! As a church musician, the But(t) Seasons (Advent and Lent) are my … Continue reading Inappropriate Cracks

There was a young fellow named Hall Who fell in the spring in the fall. 'Twould have been a sad thing Had he died in the spring, But he didn't — he died in the fall. I wish I could claim credit for that gem, but the author's identity has been lost in the mists … Continue reading A Seasonal-ish Limerick

I blinked and suddenly it was summer, at least in fact, if not in feel. It's been pretty grey, wet, and misty late of late, but thankfully, we've had a few nice days to take the Long Low Ladies to the beach. The day job has finally slowed down enough to let me catch up … Continue reading Sumer Is Icumen In, bonus niceness

The weeks have been flying by, as they tend to do when the weather is glorious and the air is redolent of flowers. Even Fiesta Island Dog Park has gone super-bloom-y! This is the Least Tern nesting area that is open to frolicking doggos when it's not nesting season. They mowed most of the island … Continue reading The uncertain glory of an April day

I'm glad I managed to grab a bit of R&R after the December Gauntlet of 2018, since 2019 is off to a rip-roaring start! I'm working up four sets of repertoire for three different choirs, my day job is in high gear through March, and this is that wonderful time of year when people who … Continue reading Hitting the ground running

The end of the year is fast approaching, my in-laws are visiting, and I have a schmancy Thanksgiving feast on order from a local purveyor of deliciousness so as to tax neither my sanity nor my 50+ year old electric stove. And while this is indeed an occasion for gratitude and joy, I have a … Continue reading Thankfulness

How is it already October? On the bright side, October contains Oktoberfest, Halloween, AND is the birth month of Healey Willan, the Anglo-Canadian composer who is the focus of Willan West 2018, a year-long festival of his music in this fiftieth year since his death. In mid-October, the Willan Collective, a Willan-loving choral supergroup, will be … Continue reading Wait, where did summer go?

So in addition to the incredibly kind folks who have reviewed RISK A VERSE: A Year in Daily Sonnets on Amazon and Goodreads (THANK YOU!!), my book received its first professional review from Kirkus Reviews, and it's almost entirely good! And the criticisms (i.e., that the annotations tend to over-explain and that there's a penis joke sonnet) … Continue reading *screaming internally*