This is that most awkward of blog entries: the inaugural post, in which (channeling Pooh) the author tries to introduce herself and give the reader some idea what the story is. Or perhaps, what my story is.
Well, here it is. I wanted to start a blog about these things: parenting, politics, planet, and pop culture (and whatever else). No title came to mind that really embodied all those "p" words. But sometimes, when you're a woman/mother/kind of the at-home variety, you are standing in the shadows. Plus, I get a melody in my mind when I say it to myself. (Oh, besides all that, I wanted to have a spot in which to archive my work, link to the blogs I love to read or peruse, champion other writers trying to move from the shadows, too, because one thing I've discovered as a writer is I have some great camraderie in these shadows).
In introducing myself, I will just offer a quick sketch and hope you'll start reading to fill in the details: I have four kids, ages thirteen to one; they are awesome (although annoying at times; name me kids who aren't–actually name me people who aren't) and I guess if I had to say one thing about them up front it's that I believe in them wholeheartedly. I gave birth to the three boys; the baby girl we adopted. Ours is an open adoption and I was present at Saskia's birth. I will certainly be writing about adoption. I'm a longtime reproductive rights activist, who thought I would leave plants and animals to others but I have become one of those many people changed by An Inconvenient Truth in profound ways (Al lives on my shoulder, now). That political background has fueled my explorations as a fledging media critic (I'm honored to write, sometimes, for Women in Media and News' group blog, with this link to my most recent post). I'm a networker by nature. I'd describe myself as an extrovert, who requires a lot of quiet time (thus, in part, the writing life). I am married to a very cool, very funny,very smart man, who happens of all things to be an antiquarian book dealer. This works just fine in groovy Northampton, Massachusetts, where if you do something quirky you fit in.
Oh, and I think I cannot end my first-ever post without mentioning that I've become a complete and utter addict on Facebook (which prompted a number of people to urge me to start a blog). While I write a lot of haiku on Facebook, I am not planning to do so here (unless I do). One thing I really like about Facebook is how–if you engage–you can feel part of a community. That is to say, I like comments and I hope that you'll comment on my blog.
