So it goes...

My memoir in progress (MIP) is coming along well. I'm just over 70,000 words into it andI've got the chapters roughed out. Now the hard part of slogging through edits comes into play. Tenatively titled, Cretin Boy, it is about my teenage years in an all-male, Catholic, military (JROTC) school in the late '70s. The book is not solely about the school, but also about all that comes with being a teenager and all the changes that life brings. One of those changes of course is a kid's introduction to the working life. Once you hit 15 back then, you were expected to start looking for a part-time job. It was in part to keep you off the street but also a way of teaching you work ethic and helping take the load off of Mom and Dad's need to supplement your income (or lack of it). In the book I talk about my first job at Tu-Way Car Wash on Cleveland and Randolph in St. Paul, Minnesota. I was a freshman in high school and my brother Tom worked there and got me the job. I ...

This past weekend I had to make the trip up to Minnesota to pick up my daughter from the University of Minnesota. I went up alone because Donna had to work. I sort of like these trips alone to get her for a couple of reasons. First, I get five hours of time alone to think, listen to music and ponder life. The other benefit is that it provides me with quality one-on-one time with Sarah both during the packing and on the drive back home. I miss having her around, so this is a great way to get us back on the same page after months apart. But there were a couple of other benefits this time. The first one was taking a side trip into downtown to drop off a copy of Dirty Shirt: A Boundary Waters Memoir  at   Subtext Books . They not only purchased a copy, but the owner mentioned that if it sold, she would order more copies through Ingram, a large distributor. Furthermore, it turns out she lived in Milwaukee for a time, so we had a bit in common outside of books. She told me she mig...

Spring seems to be approaching fast and furious this year. We've had a decent stretch of weather ranging in temperature from 40's to the 60's. The warm weather has me thinking thoughts of open water and fishing. Whether it is from my kayak, my buddy's boat, or from a dock somewhere, it is one of my favorite warm weather activities. Because I've been doing it for decades, I have a number of great fishing memories. Here are a few that include a broad range of friends and family. Hibbing For a short time in the late 60's my mom dated a guy who had a cabin in Hibbing, Minnesota. One weekend he took her and all of us kids up to it for a weekend of fishing and swimming. In the early morning hours on Saturday, my brother Tom took Rob and I out fishing. All three of us caught northern pike. It was both Rob and my first northerns, a sizeable upgrade from the many panfish we had caught over the years. More importantly, it put the three of us brothers in the boat at ...

I just completed an 1126 mile book tour/college send-off. My equilibrium has me thinking I'm still in motion. It is a weird sensation. I saw a ton of sites, old and new. At the moment I'm too tired to write about any of it, but thought I'd give a flavor for what the experience brought. I'll expand on more of it after my next zillion mile adventure. I have much to tell and realize I probably should have taken notes. Alas, I was living the moment and, anyway, why start now? My course of travel, with several stops and a few U-turns along the way. That right there's called a Dad on the Dash. Mickey's Diner - A St. Paul Landmark with great burgers. Ben's new favorite. Mom's apartment primed and ready for her move-out. Caramel Rolls and bakery. Duluth by bluff. Foggy, misty and beautiful. Ben said it looked like a "model set". Fitgers Books. My books were sold out. I asked them to order more! Two Harbors Librar...