Azalea, lilac, forsythia

The sun has finally broken through dark stormy skies. There is life and splashes of color sprouting from the dirt. The forsythia is blooming now while the azalea and lilac wait their turn.

Ahead, I still have much to do. I started a first draft of horrid scribblings that hopefully won't be so embarrassing when I email it to the editor on the 14th. There is no way he's getting this any earlier. I have a long way to go and much stands in the way.

I am truly honored, exceptionally grateful and somewhat stunned to be the recipient of this year's PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award for Nonfiction! Last Friday, I received the call. This starving writer ate up all the glowing words of encouragement and made sure to note them. Walt later asked where the celebration was. Heck, if I know, I took down the key points.

I've entered this contest at least five other times and I still remember the sting of that "sorry" letter with no clue where I went wrong. Every year, I had to figure it out. After several years of not seeing any nonfiction winners, at one point, I wondered if it was even possible to win this award for nonfiction, but those doubts didn't stop me from entering.

In the middle of my notes is the champagne cork that I'll be turning into a Christmas ornament. I'll post a photograph after the transformation (so my editor knows exactly how I'm spending my time). And my New Year's resolution: "Burst out of the egg and shatter the shell!"

Recently, I bought some neat little solar lights shaped like rocks. I'm amazed that they're still shining despite the gray skies, clouds and torrential rains of the past three days. The night photograph that looks like two headlights (the rocks) was taken this evening. I'm pretty impressed.

Also, Google has a new energy saving search called Blackle. I set my home page to a Blackle search instead of a Google search. Every little bit helps.

I now have a deadline of 4/14 to finish a first draft. Ut oh. I think I'll be living in the library hiding from phone and emails. Today, I was at the library rethinking the article. This evening I spent quite a bit of time researching details that will surface in the first paragraph. I've got to really pour on the steam and get moving on this article.

Mount Monadnock, Jaffrey New Hampshire

Saturday, I took a symbolic hike to the summit of Mount Monadnock, New Hampshire. Freshly charged batteries in the camera went dead after one photograph from the base of the snow-streaked mountain. The camera was left behind and the battery charger later implicated.

The park ranger suggested micro-cleats for hiking (at $60/pair, no thank you) and reminded us that whatever we hike up we have to hike down. Admittedly, I was apprehensive. This was my first ever hike of a snow covered mountain. I had no way of knowing how deep the snow was, how slick the rocks were or if we could make it to the summit. As we were trekking up we passed a young female hiker heading down, too scared to continue.

Hiking a snow and rock covered mountaintop was a different and exciting experience and that's what made it fun. I picked my way around icy boulders and trudged over packed snow. I love my packable Olympus 8x21RCI binoculars!

At the summit on this clear day, Mt Washington's snow-covered peak floated on the horizon. Boston was visible in the east. Although the temperature was in the mid 30s, I had a hard time parting with a peak that was almost mine. The real challenge of the day wasn't the hike up, it was the hike down. Walt bloodied his hand on the descent, but thankfully it was nothing serious.

As far as writing goes, I'm going to finish the book I've been reading today. Next up, I need to start formulating questions for the scientist. This is going to be a challenging week to accomplish anything so I expect to struggle for time.

Crocus' and daffodils

The first day of Spring is here at last! Hopefully, it will bring the start of better days. Despite contending with a towing nightmare that encompassed way more of my time than I would have liked I've been slogging through a thick book taking notes as I go. I think I will try and read a set amount of pages per day to keep myself moving forward.

Monday, in hard cold driving rain, the fuel efficient Honda Civic I drive broke down about 1.5 hours from home. It barely hobbled to its destination. Today my daughter skipped off to meet friends in Boston leaving me stranded without a car . It was really nice to be stranded on a beautiful day in an Adirondack chair surrounded by piles of notes and research papers. That's my kind of stranded. Outside, I spent a good deal of time reading, organizing, and assembling material. The subject makes a great story so in addition to a ChemMatters article, I've started the bones of an outline for something on a grander scale.

Yesterday, I was fortunate enough to have a good chunk of time to spend outside in 68 degree weather in my favorite spot right on my deck. I love the wide arms of this chair for holding all my books and papers and it's roomy enough for furry little friends seeking attention. It is here that I seek the sunshine and get lost in another time and place.

Scientists love to draw pictures in the form of graphs that represent their hours of research and collected data. A current graph of me would show peaks of stress, frustration, resentment, sadness and empathy. Hence the need for Adirondack therapy. The outline is finally done, but I'm still reading a chapter and pulling out little details. I find this such an interesting topic.

I am sorry to say I deleted this post to ward off potential problems. Trust me, it was a good post.

Here is a link to the lyrics and another link to the video.

Case Mountain, Manchester

I'm posting some photographs of another hike at Case Mountain in Manchester CT. I would love to post a hiking map of the place because the online map I brought was the worst map I've ever used plus they were out of trail maps at the trailhead. At the trail, I took a photograph of the large map, but I've been advised that this map is likely under copyright so, it is unfortunately, not mine to post. To give you an idea why you need a hiking map, the route we took was: white trail --> pink --> gray/white --> yellow/red --> yellow/blue --> red --> blue --> yellow --> yellow/blue --> blue --> white. But at some point we missed the yellow trail.

We are very lucky we aren't still wandering around those woods.

The outline that I've been struggling to complete is almost done. But I am so overwhelmed right now it's a big struggle to accomplish anything.

Lately so many things stand in my way I wonder often why I bother trying. It's been a stormy year. Despite the sun-brella, my snowman lasted all of an hour before falling backwards. But building it was symbolic.

I'm still reading a key resource. Today I found and placed a hold on an another ILL book that has information about the scientist that I will be writing about.

I thought I'd post an amusing photograph of Marbles reaching up to ring the bell. No she doesn't salivate when she rings the bell, but she does want to go outside and this is how she tells us. Darn cute if you ask me.

Amidst a host of obstacles, I've been reading a key resource to learn about the chemistry of my current subject in greater depth. It's quite interesting material. I'm amazed that so much information can come out of something so.......so..... seemingly mundane.

The boys are back and there's gonna be trouble. (Hey la hey la the boys are back).

Look at the way one of the opossums is clutching the rail for dear life. I suspect when I came outside with the camera it nearly wet its pants, but did it exit? Heck no. And Walt thinks he's feeding the birds.

I started an article outline last night and it's looking pretty good. I have to add resources to it and polish it up, but the bones are there. Hey la hey la the bones are there.

Back in 2005 when I was working on "The Beavers that Struck it Rich", I noticed an error in Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia. In January of this year, I happened to come across a Grzimek's booth at the Boston ALA Convention. It jarred my memory and I mentioned it. Afterward, I followed up by emailing two pages of the encyclopedia to someone at Thomson/Gale.

This morning I received this email:
"Just wanted to let you know that we're going to be processing some corrections to the text in Grzimek's this week, and our beloved North American and Eurasian Beavers are going to be included. Finally, they'll get their due."

Does finding an error make the whole encyclopedia a bunch of rubbish? I don't think so. Then it follows that a couple of errors in climate data should not at all diminish the work of many dedicated scientists in many countries as some folks are trying to get everyone to believe.

Today, among the crowds at the university, I found 7 research papers. Unfortunately, some research papers were unavailable because the subscription had been canceled.

I was out snowshoeing yesterday morning at Case Mountain in Manchester (elevation=petite) to get some exercise. I brought a small pad and pen and wrote a few things while I was out. On the way back, I swung by the library and picked up what looks like a fantastic resource, a plump first-person account written for adults. I plan to check out the bibliography to see if there are any other papers of interest. The other two ILL books I requested are already in transit! Unfortunately, my day was so chopped up with a late opening of school that I did not make it up to the university. But Friday I plan to get there.

Today, I was in a research frenzy reading online material, digging up research papers and ordering ILL books at the library. I need to hit the university library some time soon. I am real happy to see that one really key book is checked in and another is already in transit! Woohoo!

This evening, my niece was over the house. I handed her the autographed copy of "Upon Secrecy" that has her name on the inside page. She was so thrilled to see her name. Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened when I mentioned the book was about spies. "Cool!" What she doesn't realize is that I have a bunch more books for her, but she's only getting one at a time so she'll appreciate them.

Today, I'm posting my last two photographs from Magic Wings, a butterfly conservatory in Deerfield MA. I thought the long weeping fuzzy tassels of the chenille plant were unusual. In the top photograph, several Rice Paper butterflies were fluttering over the shell of this tortoise.

I still have more photographs from Magic Wings, so bear with me (hope I got that right!). The bottom photograph is an Australian Walking Stick. It surprised me to learn they're common insects for pets. I don't know a sole that owns one. The top photograph is a blue poison dart frog that has been fed fruit flies. I find it fascinating that the ""poison" dart frogs at Magic Wings are not poisonous. It is the toxin from the ants and termites they eat in the rainforest that makes them poisonous.

I've been busy doing research for my next ChemMatters article. I am so enthused about the topic that I've decided to write a parallel outline for a larger project based on the same subject. This is so up my alley it isn't funny.

Even though I hate to put a new post up here because I love that hibiscus photograph, I'm going to do it. I have more photographs to share from Magic Wings. The top photograph is of Zebra Longwing butterflies. The bottom is a whole board of live chyrsalis'. Looking at them, I was reminded of one I saw banging in the wind against the bark of a tree in Pennsylvania back in 2005. It was hanging by the tiniest thread. I wondered what kind of super strong glue held it in place. It must have been one wild amusement park ride for that caterpillar while it got its wings. Here's a short video I found of a butterfly emerging from a chrysalis. (Note: The video could have ended after 1 minute and it might have been nicer if it was set to music versus chattering)

Yesterday, I finished editing an article about honeybees. It will be published in April or May of this year. I love the ending of that article.

Hibiscus and blue morpho butterfly

I thought I'd post some more cheery photographs taken at Magic Wings. The first photograph is an absolutely gorgeous hibiscus. The beautiful butterfly with the yellow abdomen is a Cairns Birdwing. The last butterfly is a Blue Morpho with metallic looking wings. The blue butterfly is very hard to photograph because it closes up when it lands and the outside of its wings are an unattractive dusty brown. But notice the v-shaped notch in the wing. I suspect this butterfly has a problem.

Today an editor sent me a really nice email, "I'm very impressed with your article." That was nice to read.

I spent the day up at Magic Wings in Deerfield Massachusetts. It's a breath of summer in the midst of winter, an uplifting cheerful place filled with butterflies, plants and flowers. It's a place you never tire of going to. Using the butterfly identification card ($1), my 9-year old niece Abigail helped me to identify the butterflies I took photographs of. The first photograph is of Rice Paper butterflies. According to the employee I spoke with, there are some chemicals in soaps and lotion that butterflies are attracted to and this guy must have had that chemical on his skin. Both his hands were covered with butterflies. The middle photograph is an Indian Leaf butterfly that landed on me without me even knowing it (sneaky little devil). The bottom photograph is of a Glass Wing butterfly, named for it's clear wings.

Soapstone Mountain, Somers T

With Walt and my brother, I hiked up Soapstone Mountain today. We left late and hiked briskly uphill through about 2 inches of snow. Exhausted after three miles or so, we finally reached the lookout tower at the top. On this windy cold day, Mt Monadnock in New Hampshire was visible in the distance. By the time we got back, the three of us were frozen and starved so we had an apres hike party. Once again, I couldn't resist the stunning sunset right out the bay window.

I've received the ChemMatters theme list for articles for 2010 and spent some time reviewing those. I have a vague idea for a story about one of the topics. It's in line with another proposal I've been working on. There's also another webinar in the upcoming weeks.

I had a great day of accomplishment today and since it is now close to 11, it's probably time for me to close up shop. I spent the day revising and improving an outline and working on chapter transitions which required quite a bit of thought. It has renewed my excitement for this project because I think it's an action packed captivating story. But then again, who doesn't think that about their stuff?

After reading a book called Super Stars by David Aguilar, I showed it to Walt. His telescope has been locked in a cabinet unused for years, but my interest and the book inspired him to pull out the scope this evening. In the frigid night air we saw Mars and the Orion Nebula. Apparently Mars is very close to earth right now. Who knew? My line of questioning went something like this: Is it better to view the stars in the winter or the summer? Followed quickly by how cold is it out here? My down slippers felt like sandals. Now I'd really like to go to the Copernican Observatory and Planetarium at Central Connecticut State College in New Britain--where it's warm!

Another book I read recently was Upon Secrecy by Selene Castrovilla. I really liked the voice in that book and I thought the topic, the Culper Spy Ring, was interesting. Short sentences conveyed the immediacy of the story.

I made revisions to another proposal and now I'm at the point where I no longer like it. Ut oh. Must move quickly because I need to send it out soon.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times ~ Charles Dickens

In the final weeks of 2009, I wrote a blog post about my desire to make 2010 the year that I "burst out of my egg and shatter the shell." The very first day of 2010 was a burst and shatter kind of day. In a sense, I ate those words and found them difficult to swallow. At this point, good news is an ice cube in a raging bonfire. The cruel irony is that with pen in hand, I'm always eager to escape to my writing world--even if it is a burst and shatter world too.

Fu Manchu (Fu) is becoming a regular on our deck lately. That's not actually his name, but the first thing that came to mind when I saw the cat.

I've decided I'm going to take half the chapter and call it an article and submit it that way to a contest. It has an action packed beginning and a powerful ending, but it doesn't lead into anything else because it's not the end of the chapter. What the heck, never hurts to put another iron in the fire. Currently, I'm reviewing it for accuracy.

The howling wind last night reminded me of the publishing industry being tossed around by technology. It will eventually settle down.

Today I received an email that for the first time, my course at the college has been canceled due to low enrollment most likely stemming from the bad economy. This year, it is actually a blessing in disguise. My sled is full from a lot going on so having this drop off the back is actually a relief. One of the things I wanted to get going this year is a school program so I'll move my efforts in that direction when time allows.

The page and a half I've been working on is in great shape. I think it's pretty awesome and I am amused thinking maybe I will enter it in a contest as a book chapter even though it's not the first chapter. It's got as much action as a first chapter would have, maybe more. But right now it's probably too short.

Today I was particularly pleased to receive the Jan/Feb 2010 issue of Fun For Kidz. I have two articles in this issue, but one is more than a clip, it's a memory. In the article about hiking a glacier, there is a fairly big picture of my daughter Melanie wearing crampons. I emailed her the scanned pages (I only received one copy). She has no clue she's in the article. The other reason I'm real happy to get the article published is that I really like the writing in this one as I did the ChemMatters article that was published in December.

While in Boston earlier this month, I passed by the Grzimek's booth. I found out it's not "grzeemicks" as I have been pronouncing it, but it's more like "chermicks." Anyhow, passing the booth jarred my memory that back in 2005/2006 when I was working on an article about beavers I noticed an error in that encyclopedia. After talking with the very interested associate publisher, I emailed two pages of the 2004 version of this encyclopedia. I haven't heard a peep, but I'm fairly certain that what I found was indeed two small mistakes.

I know I've posted sunrise and sunset pictures before, but I couldn't resist the blazing night sky. The sunset really looks like fire in the photograph. Last night our night wanderer returned looking for some scraps. I slowly walked down the deck stairs crunching on some snow and the opossum didn't even budge. I have to admit I was a bit leery when I took that last shot looking through the deck stairs into the darkness underneath. I was a bit afraid it might bite my feet. I'm sure the nocturnal creature really appreciated my flash in its sensitive eyes.

Today was a day of great accomplishment (Hallelujah!). Sometimes I get the feeling I'll never get it the way I want it. I'm almost there. On another piece of writing, I dug out last years mistakes and I'm working to fix those, spice up this manuscript and mail it out again.

I caught another sunrise in the backyard this morning and thought I'd post it. I'm quite pleased with myself that I saved and was able to relocate the instructions to convert a word document to a PDF document. This morning, I followed the quick steps and shipped off my proposal. It feels good to have another iron rising with the sun.

Walt took these photographs while I was out one night this past week. It's good to see that someone likes the pumpkin pancakes that were not a hit with my kids. The birds have been eating them, but this past week we had a new guest on the deck. It was caught red-handed with the goods in its mouth. I thought the photographs were pretty entertaining. If you click on the top photograph you can really see those impressive toenails.

I'm working on a proposal with a maximum word count of 1,000 words. It's coming together pretty fast, but I'm hoping to enhance it with a few more details before emailing it. Essentially, it could be considered done at this point.

Yesterday, I went to Boston for the ALA Midwinter Conference. It was my first time at one of these events and hopefully I'll get the opportunity to go again. I haven't been to Boston in so long I was delighted that I was flawless driving and taking the T. I would have loved the opportunity to see Al Gore speak, but not for over $200.

As you can see from the photograph, I picked up a "few" things. If not for the weight of eighteen books, a mug and a bunch of other stuff, I might have stayed longer than the 5 1/2 hours I was there. I met some folks in the publishing industry and browsed booths brimming with new books. It felt like I was in a candy store.

I learned some new words. A blad (I have no idea what the spelling is) is a short thin summary book of the real thing. An ARC is an advanced reading copy and may contain errors. A whole pile of ARCs can get quite heavy. It seemed to me, quite a bit of money to spend on an imperfect copy of a book for the sake of reviews. Like everything else, I'm probably not fully understanding why they do it this way.

Today, in the "writing" section of this website, I added back the links to two published articles (ChemMatters 12/08 and Highlights 12/06) so they can be read online. I also found a third article about tiger cubs that is now available online.

I am grateful that another nonfiction writer pointed out a problem with the "writing" portion of my website. Since I view it using Firefox, it looked fine to me. But when viewed using Internet Explorer, the HTML code shows up. Ugh. Not a pretty sight. I am currently working to fix this problem.

I have been reviewing maps of Boston, T-maps, and the ALA conference exhibitor list. All systems go for a Saturday trip into writing land.

Today I reviewed three thrilling videos that really helped me to turn actions into words. I watched each several times and wrote down descriptive words that I will work into the paragraphs I'm writing.

Sometimes things don't work out the way they are planned. The intent was to feed the birds, NOT the cat. Thankfully, the cat has not achieved her goal.

It's looking good for the mid-winter conference, but at this precarious time, those plans could change at a moment's notice. There is a lot going on and I'm trying hard to immerse myself in research and writing.

I am happily headed out the door to hole up in a university library for several hours today. There are a number of research papers that I'm interested in obtaining. Later this month, I had planned to go to the mid-winter conference. It's been on my writing calendar for several months now, but ever since the new year (and the tsunami hit), I'm taking it day by day. I will consider myself fortunate if I get the opportunity. We'll see.

Although I am pleased to add two more clips to the collection I did find one little thing that could be misleading. The article about ice carving, namely a competition, was submitted with a number of photographs. Since the editors had difficulty reading the disc (I know it worked before I sent it), they used their own photograph. The photograph was of an impressive ornately carved chariot. Quite showy. I wondered if anyone who read the article might think this intricately carved chariot was created in an ice carving competition. I highly doubt it was. Aside from that, I am happy about the two clips, especially the glacier article.

This morning, I was delighted to discover two more of my articles have been published in the January "ice" issue of Fun For Kidz. One article about ice sculptures was written in 2006 and the other in 2007. The second article about hiking a glacier in Alaska was modified and shipped out in 2009. What a huge difference a couple of years makes--or is it the difference between third and first person? I have yet to tell my daughter that her picture is in the magazine. I'm waiting for my contributor's copies to pop open the surprise.

I posted a photograph of a bird that has been feasting on pumpkin pancakes in the the planter on my deck. Obviously, the pancakes were not a hit. At least someone likes them.

Today, I started writing the first three action-packed paragraphs of a new chapter. I still need to make a trip to the library for more research papers and more details, but it's been a hectic week. For now, stepping into a different time and place is a good thing.

A snowshoe trek through the woods behind my house was a breath of fresh air on this snowy day. This time I made my own path instead of following the trail. I can't get lost in my woods, but you can in life. Next to the sledding hill, the community garden is dressed in winter whites.

This evening, I read an interview that featured National Book Award winner, Phillip Hoose. It took him six years to complete one project. Quite frankly, I'd rather take a longer time and write it well than take a shorter time and write it often.