This topic was suggested by a TMP reader. (Uncredited only because I haven't asked permission to credit him/her.) Yes, that is allowed at TMP. Encouraged, in fact.The other day, a man in suburban Baltimore was shot and killed by his ex-wife. The story jumped out at me for several reasons -- it is very unusual for women to kill their exes -- but the detail that really seized my imagination was that the man had worked for the Baltimore County school system for more than 30 years. Got up and went to Read more [...]

Although I sometimes fantasize about renting one of the empty stalls at the Cross Street Market and working on my novel there, as a kind of performance art with proximity to oysters, fresh Utz chips, sashimi and egg salad, I don't really like to talk about my "process" too often, unless it's to mock writers who talk about their process. But today, as most people drift away toward the weekend, I am thinking about my -- you'll pardon the expression -- aesthetic. I have completed 40,000 words of my Read more [...]

1964: First cavity. I am a dirty, dirty girl. I am Goofus to my sister's Gallant.1964-Today: Multiple cavities. I will be in my 40s before I find out that some dentists actually give Novocaine for people getting fillings. 1982: Wisdom teeth removed over three visits, at $40 a piece, all I can afford as I have no dental insurance. This means no gas, no sedation. Tooth #1 comes out okay. On second visit, tooth #2 turns out to be "much more complicated than I thought," according to the dentist, who Read more [...]

An odd fact jumped out of the radio this morning: It is illegal in Maryland to own turtles whose shells are less than four inches across. Surely I heard wrong, and it's illegal to own turtles whose shells are more than four inches across? I thought about the turtle I had when I was 10 or so. The sad little plastic container, with the ramp up to the plastic palm tree. It seems unspeakably cruel, especially that fake palm tree. Did I really call him Diver Dan? How long did he live? How did we dispose Read more [...]

Website updated for first time since February.

It wasn't worth waiting for, but so it goes. (Link at the top of the page.)

Thanks to Hulu.com -- rumored to be contemplating a subscription fee, and I think it should -- I've been revisiting some old television pilots, such as ST. ELSEWHERE and HILL STREET BLUES. The pilots hold up pretty well, although I see (or am simply reminded of) the elements that would later disturb me in SE.*Revisited any blasts from the past as of late? How did they hold up? I also re-read SPIDERWEB FOR TWO, and it's divine. I cried at the last line. *My central complaint about almost all television Read more [...]

I've been inspired by Brian's comment from the previous thread -- a lovely story about driving a tractor and learning that the John Deere 4440 has three pedals on the floor, none for the gas -- to throw open this question: What's your John Deere 4440 moment? For our purposes, this will be defined as a discovery made via an experience that you found exciting or seminal. An example: I was recently reading a memoir by Jen Lancaster in which she recalled going into a bookstore and seeing her book for Read more [...]