The plan was to be working on my Hurricane Diane story the last couple of days, but a sick child and traveling husband kind of threw a wrench into things. I do think I have come up with a way to change it into a format that will work better and allow me still to explore how a natural disaster affects the people in its path. What's really interesting about this particular storm is that it wasn't supposed to be that bad, but the ground was so saturated from Hurricane Connie which had blown through a few days earlier (and was not that bad but dumped a lot of rain), that Rhode Island was completely incapable of handling Diane. The Blackstone River had just had enough, and blasted through dams and filled the city of Woonsocket with water. One article I read said that "Diane had no respect" and I thought that was so interesting. They still take it personally, what she did to them. They still think the storm should have been kinder.
People are so interesting.
I read Julie & Julia last week and thought it was outstanding. I have been intrigued by the relationship people make over the internet for awhile - I have friends I have never even talked to let alone met - and what Julie Powell did with her Julia Child project is just the most fascinating thing from a blogger perspective. I knew it would be funny, as she is a funny writer, but I didn't expect it to have so much depth. She's a very good writer as well, as it turns out. I don't want that to sound shallow, she just didn't have the opportunity in a blog to really show how good of a writer she is. But if you want a well written, funny and deeply smart memoir, this is the one. She also has some great bits about cooking Julia's recipes, none of which should be missed. Powells has a Q&A with her this month.
The new issue of Eclectica Magazine is up with reviews from me and lots of other folks as well as all the great fiction, essays and poetry we are known for. It's a great lit mag and I'm so happy to be associated with it.
