Small Stuff, Plus a Schedule Change

David and I had a goof-off Monday, which made for a catch-up Veterans Day Tuesday for me. My after-dinner reading on Monday was The World of Jewish Cooking, by Gil Marks. Strange how one's mouth can water after a perfectly satisfying dinner. I've had hamantaschen on the brain lately, those little filled, soft-dough cookies I ventured to make only once in my life (unlike bagels, which I made on a regular basis for a few years long ago), and there they were, along with so many other tempting dishes and their cultural history. [Note to self: buy red lentils!] Later I fell asleep (after we had watched several episodes of "Jane Eyre" on DVD) reading Deer Creek Raft, by E. H. Lansing (illustrated by Marc Simont) a young adult novel published in 1955, and woke this morning thinking about the creek and river and pastures in that book and about the creek and the millpond in Northport and the woods and fields I've been exploring lately. Finishing the book over morning oatmeal, I read the pasted-in flyleaf (ex-lib. copy of the book) and saw that Mrs. Lansing once worked at Macy's. When, I wondered? Was she there at the same time as Emily Kimbrough? I'll have to look back at the latter's book on her Macy's days to find out. But about creeks, fictional and actual. A creek, much more than a large river, seems to have the power to carry adults back into childhood. Exploring the intimate, small-scale geography of my township, anyway, makes me feel still, in some ways, if not young at least not-old, especially with the energetic and irrepressible Sarah as my companion.

Coming up next in my reading world: Obama's Challenge, by Robert Kuttner; Roads to Quoz, by William Least Heat Moon. I've dipped into the latter; the former only arrived this afternoon at the bookstore.

SCHEDULE CHANGE: Grafton "Mac" Thomas will be at Dog Ears Books to share stories from his life and to sign copies of his book, Confessions of a Maverick Minister, from 2 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, November 22. This is a week earlier than originally scheduled, so it will be a challenge to get the news out. If you see this, help spread the word. Thanks.

Veterans Day note: The cemetery was cold and damp this morning, and not a live visitor did I see--very different from the crowd that gathers on Memorial Day to remember veterans. This time of year, it seems, here Up North, we keep the vigil more in our hearts and minds than graveside. Also, it may not be traditional, but besides my Army Father and Navy uncles, I also think gratefully of my CCC uncle and all those outdoor workers did during WWII to make this country more beautiful. Thanks, Uncle Jim!