With Thanks to @Othello88 and @KrisSealey for the Apples. I Put Them to Good Use in a Crisp (and Am a Better Man for It)

Was yesterday a Tuesday? I can't keep track, as these days are all blurring together in a Basquiat painting recreated by my favorite under-age-10 artist, Ishmael. I have no idea what is going on, but I know something is going on and I am participating...doing my best...hopeful. It's up for interpretation.

Actually, Kris and Dave brought over apples late last week (Dave took the boys apple picking) and sometime over the that week (I have no idea when), I baked the apples and put together two trays of apple crisp. Nothing says the Autumn months more than the flavor of nutmeg, apples, cinnamon, brown sugar, and a crunch crust. If I was a great friend, I would have made a tray for them (it was their apples after all), but I figured they were apple'd out and didn't want me to bother them - some friend I am).

Besides, I only wanted to walk over to their house with the hot-off-the-press copy of Jerry Craft's Class Act (and await the critical analysis of Isaiah).  It's about books...not about excessive Fall treats. Waiting on their sniff-report...the whole family wafts their reads.

Yesterday was also a bonanza of reading for me, and I realize in my adult life that I don't want to form an opinion until I hear the perspectives of others first. I know what I think, but I want to balance that with a variety of other thinkers....I'm not sure if that is objective or not. 

Meanwhile, first Apple Crisp of the season (perhaps the last) with a lounging Glamis in the background is my photo of the day. I would think this would be something that Glamis really would want to disturb me about. Nope. She slept. No interest in my gluttonous, evening dinner.

It's another hump-day, but I've given up deciphering the weeks. It's all the same to me. Humpday. Monday. Sunday? How do they differ these days.

And loved the Jerry Craft interview (and thoroughly enjoyed Class Act). Now, I await others to read it so I can have a conversation with them.

Overwhelmed (but Excited) for Yesterday's Book Deliveries (and Thrilled for THE WRITE TIME with @JerryCraft Tonight, 7 p.m. EST - Facebook)

I have officially moved onto my front porch to read, write, and think, which is where I spent almost 12 hours yesterday, pausing at 3:30 because I knew that Kwame Alexander was hosting Jerry Craft and Kwame Mbalia on Facebook (Two Kwames & a Jerry): a celebration of their new books,  a good time to pick on one another, a high-fiving of excellence, and a gathering of tremendous human beings. I would post a photo of Mbalia's new Tristan Strong book, but it didn't come yet. The other two arrived 15-minutes before the show aired. When I first I looked up and saw the UPS man, I thought, "I wonder what Chitunga ordered this time." 

Nope. This delivery was for me. My books finally came (from the publisher, not out of the back of their cars).

And for a second I got extremely overwhelmed. I was in a writing groove (aiming for a November deadline), needing to finish the drafts, and suddenly I was presented with two books of the three. For a second I thought, "I don't have time to watch them squawk on Facebook. I need to read the books." I found myself. Refocused. Re-centered. Put their interview on audio, listened, and continued to do drafting on my own. It was a FANTASTIC interview...one of the best I've seen since we've all moved our realities onto digital spaces.

Congratulations on the book birthdays. There phenomenal men.

And I'm thrilled that the National Writing Project and I will air THE WRITE TIME with Jerry Craft and Dereje Tarrant this evening at 7 p.m. EST on Facebook. The show will also be on radio, YouTube, and THE WRITE TIME website soon after. I am proud of this recording. It is the first time we had a middle school kid interview an author. The National Writing Project is not only about teachers - it's about the kids we serve. I wouldn't even know Jerry Craft if it wasn't for Dereje's passion for his work, long before New Kid.

ALERT ALERT ALERT (cough cough). It would be a true honor to have Kwame Mbalia on the show, and for Kwame Alexander to make a return to the  network (here's his first show: A Talk with Kwame Alexander (2015) - he was just a baby rooster then and I was still a pollywog.

What a day! The three writers were amazing together, and I didn't get to any of their books because I kept writing and (because I live on the front porch) I was swindled into a conversation about adding vinyl siding to my house from a door-to-door salesman. 

So now there's today. I have two books to read before 7 p.m. (wouldn't they like to know who I'm reading first) (cough cough) (Jerry), and another round of writing for myself. There's also the daily run and walking the dog. Absolutely love the craft of these three. Cockledoodle doo, Ribbit Ribbit, and much more. 

Today will be good.

I Didn't Know There Was Such a Holiday, but Whereas I Am Not a Known Taco-Maker, I Submitted and Gave It a Shot. Tacos it Was.

Yesterday, September 4th, was National Taco Day. I count on one hand the number of times I've attempted to make tacos and I made the decision that I'd go for it after mowing the lawn, running, walking, vacuuming, mopping, and listening to more Scythe. I perused the fridge, sized up what I needed, and made arrangements. Tacos, both with chicken and vegetarian, were had.

I'm also new to the Guac game, but I've made it more often than tacos. I was overall impressed with the result of an evening dinner - not bad for something innovative (tacos? innovative? really?) on a Sunday, especially in celebration of a holiday I never knew existed. We have to get our weekends in as much as we possibly can, especially as the colder temperatures come our way. 

I'll be honest. I don't want another Monday. I want, instead, to continue hiking long distances so I can finish Neil Shusterman's first book of his trilogy. In explaining to others, I realize what a crazy man I sound like, but it really is invigorating. I love the book.

Okay, but it is Monday. My focus needs to shift on planning, organizing, writing, and implementing. I got ahead on several other items for the month so I can dig into the bigger stuff today I've wanted to pay attention to - and will. Yes, I am lured by the book, but I will use it as an award for accomplishing other tasks.

I am also hoping it is the last time of the season for a mowed lawn. We've been rather rainless this year, so most of the lawn is dried out already, and I've already cut back the perennials in anticipation for next Spring, when I will relocate and redesign the backyard. Ah, the winter months. Who knew they would come back to us so soon?

Blink. Blink. Blink. Middle age. It all goes too fast.

Simply Stated: Saturdays are for Waking Up and Saying, "Sure. I Can Venture on a 3-hour Hike & Listen to Neil Shusterman." So I Did

I got up early. I did some writing, then I went to the kitchen, made bacon, eggs, etc. for Chitunga, put it on the counter, then announced, "I'm going back to the Sound again. I found a 13-hour book I want to get into, and it's beautiful out.

The book Scythe came out in 2016 and has already been picked up by Universal; I'm 5 years late to the game. I was a chapter in when I thought, "How is this book not being hyped everywhere. It is tremendous, plot line is amazing, possibilities endless, and the brilliance of the pacing is one-of-a-kind." I always know I have a good book series because I want to tell my mom to stop everything and  "just read." She'd love this story in the same way we all enjoyed Potter and the Hunger Games (I didn't do the Twilight series, sorry).

While walking to the ocean, I decided to head down Birdseye Ave, because I knew there was a bike trail there - what I didn't know is how beautiful the scenery was, and the magical possibilities exist there. I was so engrossed in Shusterman's book, that I didn't care how long I would be on the streets. Sometimes I have to thank the Great Whatever for allowing me to live in close proximity to such beauty on a daily basis. I imagine I walked between 9 to 10 miles, and have Audible to thank because it reported I finished 3 hours and 16 minutes of the book - a few more days like this and I will be ready for book 2. 

The rest of the day was spent cleaning, (took a nap), making apple crisp from the fresh fruit Dave and Kris dropped off, and thinking critically about what Neil Shusterman accomplishes with his book. It's such a fantastic imagination, and I envy the fact that he builds such storylines in his head and narrates fantastic, realistic, incredulous stories (that are all exaggerated and imaginative). I'm sold...if not already addicted to another writer.

I'm hoping that I can get in two more months of this Saturday ritual of hiking and listening before the frigid air, ice, and snow comes. I continue during the week, but only have time for 3 to 5 miles per day because of other obligations. 

It is true that I can't doggie ear pages, and I'll likely forget the memorable lines I want to ruminate over, but I have hard copies of all the novels I listen to, and they remain on my shelf so I will be in good shape should I ever want to reference them.

Ah, Sunday. I might just do this again.

Glamis the Wonder Dog Loves Her New Stomping Ground with Three New Windows, the Crandall Chair, and a New Rug to Shed Upon

Well, the electricity on the front porch went out already. I didn't catch it until yesterday afternoon when I wondered why my laptop wasn't charged and the lamp wouldn't turn on. I invited Chitunga to use the space last night when I was watching the Harvest moon rise and when I inquired he said, "Yeah. It was off last night, too. So I moved my work inside."

It's all good, though, because I contacted the contractor who contacted the electrician, who contacted me, and together we problem solved, finally resolving that it was the pain-in-the-ass arc fault breaker. That is, the breaker that I reset didn't reset, because there's also a test button that might have jammed, which was the final culprit. I was like three x's a charm, but it was the 4th thing we checked the worked. Long story short, I had light by the time the evening rolled around. And I read until 10 pm before Chitunga and I talked and I collapsed.

Yesterday, I had over 40 needles stuck directly into the red blotches of psoriasis on my leg that made me look like I had the plague this summer. My dermatologist agreed that Kenalog injections might be a good approach y, but said insurance would only cover 2 vials at a time ("I'll stick you in as many places as I can, Crandall"). I told him it felt like I stepped on a bee's nest and he swarmed my legs with stings. It was all good, though, because I got further in Tiffany Jackson's Grown, and knew I could finish it so decided to drive to a house in Westport to drop off some books to continue listening. When I returned to the porch, there was only 14-minutes left, so I listened, hoping that Jackson wouldn't twist me in the way she did with Allegedly. The twists were there, but they weren't the mind-frustrating ones I thought might be coming. Her book is phenomenal, and her author's note at the end was sharp, necessary, and poignant. She remains one of my favorite writers composing today.

Meanwhile, Glamis is mesmerized by all the new views and angles of the sidewalk and streets she is getting. At first, when she saw a squirrel or dog coming, she'd look at me then go to her perch in the bay window to bark. After a while, she figured it out. She could bark from the front porch, too, which she decided to do while laying at my feet. 

Okay, Saturday. We know nip is in the air and we have decisions to make on how to best spend the time. We're quickly moving into good books under a blanket season (and that is very, very tempting). But for today, the idea of walking to the beach and back while listening to Neil Shusterman's Scythe seems to be a top priority.

Although I Cherish Cycles, There's No Way to Capture a Harvest Moon on an I-Phone (but I Can End the Post with Eryka Badu

I was up and at 'em by 7 a.m. yesterday morning. I worked straight until 1 p.m. and came down to get lunch. Yes, my National Writing Project brothers and sisters, I submitted my October 15th site profile early (because I could and I needed it out of the way to focus on other work). For those who don't do our work, you'll understand why this is a tremendous big deal. National Writing Project site directors do no sleep. The work we do for K-12 educators and youth is endless, and muc goes unnoticed by traditional University and K-12 districts. Alas, it is what makes the magic happen. October is the time to report our work, and usually with classes, professional development, conferences, and advising, it is the labor  I do from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. on the weekends. This year, however, on sabbatical, I had time to get it done earlier. And during the day. When I even had time to put in a 5-mile hike. It is so awesome to be free from the other burdens.

Last night was the Harvest moon, too. I like our tradition to go to the Long Island Sound on Walnut Beach whenever there's a full moon, and last night was no different, although it was October's full one, and the sky was pretty clear. It was stunning, as I expected, yet there's no way to capture how incredible it really is/was with a photo. It is so much more beautiful to the naked eye...and I suppose my rat-like tendency wants more. I can horde, can't I?

I can't. 

Let's just say that I am thankful to live where I do, as I do, so I can see such beautiful cycles of nature on a regular basis. 

Which reminded me of Eryka Badu and her song "Orange Moon" from so many blue moons ago. I loved the album it came from and her song, so I will lead this TGIF with her. Such a beautiful voice. 

Reading Landscapes 2020: @getnicced, @WeirFarmNPS @writingproject @fairfieldu & Reading Landscapes with @richnovack - We Got This

Yesterday, I channeled my inner-postal worker, UPS employee, Amazon-God self to pull together all the goodies from Weir Farm National Historic Site (thank you, Ranger Lessard) and all the tools provided from the Connecticut Writing Project at Fairfield University, to put together packages to mail to all the educators joining us for #WriteOut (2020) and #NDOW - our National Day on Writing Celebration.

Our teachers are getting a copy of Shuri by author Nic Stone, simply because there's much to be said about this Marvel text, up and beyond the wonderful story told. There would no Wakanda, no T'Challa, without the brilliance (the science, the inquisitiveness, the curiosity, and the intellect) of Shuri, a young woman who stands her ground with grace. Her truth, that challenges truth, transcends superhero stories. Nic Stone gets this...girl nerds...brilliant women...quirkiness... eccentricity...the importance of multiple stories (and I'm celebrating Dear Justyce, too - Happy book-born week! I was lucky to review a copy earlier in the gestation process. Boom! She did it once again!).

CWP-Fairfield is very thankful to receive another round of funding for a National Park Service / National Writing Project collaboration, and I am beyond pleased to work with Weir Farm National Historic Site once again. It is a beautiful location, John Weir's impressionist paintings are stunning and remarkable, and in this period of history, it is also important to bring forward critical literacy, diversity, ecological sustainability, and the role English educators --- all educators --- have to sustaining National parks, the Earth, honesty, analysis, storytelling, perspective, and democracy. 

Yesterday, I put together the first round of packages to mail to our selected applicants and I'm likely to continue this for a few weeks. A special shout-out to Rich Novack who has continued to be at the helm of this project (phew! How many years now?) and to Ranger Lessard for her commitment to K-12 education.

I know the power of Weir Farm, especially the magic of watercolors, artistry, and connecting with the outdoors. I'm super excited, however, to connect this year's cohort to the writing of Nic Stone. Due to Covid, we can't meet in person, and as a result, we have educators from all across the nation (making the conversation that much "Rich-er" (pun on Mr. Novack). This year, we transcend beyond Connecticut.

Get outside. Be adventurous. Write. Know your world. And as Shuri teaches us, "Stand up for what you believe in," even when it goes against roles, traditions, and norms of your culture.

I am very thankful to be part of this work once again.

Hello, October! Can't wait to hear all the stories around a camp fire.