Published in Connotation Press
My somewhat snarky essay on misadventures on a cruise ship has been published…
Where I Write…
More like, “Where I Try to Write.”
I’m about to head back to the city for the winter. As much as I’m looking forward to an indoor toilet and indoor shower, I’m also longing for a private writing space (…)
Gundruk Saves the Day
Rain. Day before last, it was relentless. We had a reprieve yesterday, and I got some planting done, but most of my garden is flooded and impossible to work. I’m already a week or two behind. In this short season, that could mean a lean year for vegetables. So when I woke at five this [...]
Ancient Lessons in Food Storage
One of the things I loved best about teaching high school social studies was shaking up students’ perceptions of history. And one of my favorite lessons was in Ancient History. I’d bring in a a jar of beans and a potato with so many sprouts it looked like an octopus (the fact that I always found one in my cupboard could have doubled as a cautionary lesson in the domestic arts)….
Building the Yurt
It’s easy to be impatient at the pace of progress of in our yurt living adventure. We still need indoor plumbing, shelving, walls on the porch….
Electrified Yurt
Okay, I’ll admit we had some electricity before. With Jerry being an electrical engineer, we’ll always have electricity. But we’re enjoying major improvements now: bigger solar panels and a more centralized system with wiring (still pretty funky) into the yurt. We even have a light switch (more on that in another post)….
Species, Satellites, and Old Houses
Living off-grid in a yurt is mostly wonderful, at least this time of year. I know that spending time in such a beautiful place is a luxury not everyone can afford. So please understand, I’m not complaining….
A New Constellation
The NaPoWriMo prompt at Read Write Poem asked us to open a few different poetry books, choose some lines and work them into a poem. I selected lines ( in italics) from the works of Mary Oliver, Rainier Maria Rilke, Pablo Neruda, Paulann Petersen, and Sharon Olds (more detailed citations below). This piece is also [...]
city frog
Written for prompt #18 at PAD. city frog pond _______________________ city frog in my barrel pond one pacific tree frog croaks I hear no answer _______________________ _______________________ ______________________________________________
Beware the Easter Bunny
In memory of Luigi, Luna, Leo and Daffodil. Easter is the time of year when animal shelters and rabbit foster homes brace themselves for the post-holiday deluge of abandonment. Too many people bring baby rabbits home as Easter gifts for children. Then the rabbits grow up and do what rabbits do: become feisty, stubborn, aloof. [...]
My WordPress Odyssey: Finding Help
No. 2 in a series: My WordPress Odyssey Last week, I explained my foolish reluctance to commit to WordPress. Once I had pledged to work through the issues, I realized I needed professional help to get started. I visited a local, independent bookstore (I hope you’ll do the same). We’re lucky in Portland to [...]
My WordPress Odyssey: Introduction
No. 1 in a series: My WordPress Odyssey Warning: If you’re looking for a step-by-step how-to on WordPress, this isn’t it. This is a how-I-did-it with dashes of humor and perhaps a few pinches of insight you may or may not find useful. I began this blog on my main website at www.elizabethenslin.com. As described [...]
Tomato Dreams
A hint of spring weather in Portland this morning gave way to rain, ruining my plans to transplant herbs and clean up the yard. So I started tomatoes under grow lights indoors. Starting Tomatoes They have many challenges ahead: a six hour ride to our property in Eastern Oregon in May, a month or more [...]
Coyote Calling
It was the howling and yipping of coyotes on the edge of the Grande Ronde canyon a few years ago that confirmed for me a need to get closer to the wild….
