If I had a tale that I could tell you, I’d tell a tale sure to make you smile

Last Saturday night, I sang the opening lines of John Denver’s 1974 hit “Sunshine on My Shoulders” to an imaginary patch of petunias. I sang it solo and a capella, in front of a packed audience. I am not a great singer, but it was a great moment. It was the end of a scene …

Women and Girls Foundation honors “Women in Media” — including me!

(This is cross-posted on the Big Big Design blog.) Each year, the Women and Girls Foundation honors a group of women who are “engaged in dynamic work in exciting and challenging career fields in Southwestern Pennsylvania.” This year they are celebrating “Women in Media,” and I’m privileged to have been selected among the honorees. The …

Let’s start again and you can tell me all about what you did today

Frightened Rabbit are a band from Scotland, and I love both their sound and the poetry of their lyrics. Of their songs, this is (so far) my favorite: They’re on tour now in Europe, coming to the US in October. They’ll be in Pittsburgh on November 2. I’m buying some tickets, so let me know …

Nerves of Steel: Stories of Moxie and Might — The Moth on tour in Pittsburgh, August 26

The Moth is a live storytelling series. Sometimes the stories are true, and sometimes they are factual. Always they are interesting. Here’s a sample. The Moth will be in Pittsburgh in August, and I’m so looking forward to it. American Shorts @WYEP presents The Moth in Pittsburgh Nerves of Steel: Stories of Moxie and Might …

Liveblogging The Future of the Book – PCWS

Starting around 8:20p tonight, the widget below will magically turn into a live scrolling thing, on which you’ll see my notes on “The Future of the Book,” a discussion between Sven Birkerts and Maud Newton hosted at Pitt and moderated by Cathy Day. UPDATE: Here’s a bit of background on this event. You’ll be able …

The future of the book (take 2)

UPDATE: Find the liveblog of the event at this newer post. The much-anticipated but sadly postponed discussion on The Future of the Book has been rescheduled for April 1. Sven Birkerts Maud Newton Essayist Sven Birkerts and Blogger Maud Newton to Discuss the Impact Of Technology on the Publishing Industry, April 1 at Pitt PITTSBURGH- …

The future of the book

UPDATE: Another casualty of Snowpocalypse 2010, the “Future of the Book” discussion has been postponed. With luck it will be rescheduled soon. Next Thursday, the Pittsburgh Contemporary Writers Series at Pitt’s Creative Writing program will hold an event of primo interest to me: a discussion titled “The Future of the Book,” featuring Sven Birkerts and …

New play: Harry’s Friendly Service, at the Pittsburgh Public Theater

There’s a new play in Pittsburgh that I want to see, but my schedule is conspiring against me. In case I can’t attend, I thought I’d at least let everyone else know about it — maybe if there’s a strong, positive response, the theater will extend it for a while until I can get a …