Julia Park Tracey

So I’m at a neighbor’s house and my neighbor has a falling-down pear tree in the back yard and it is chock-a-block with ripe pears. And since my neighbor is making me lunch, she must think the plate looks naked, or else seizes the moment and a captive audience for her wares. She puts a pear on the plate. Well, half a pear. Apparently all the fruit that hangs on the tree or mercifully falls to earth is not, shall we say, grocery-store perfect. In fact, it’s half rotten. But my neighbor has cut away the yukky parts and made it as lovely as something from the Garden of Eden,…

…or is that treason? I’ve been writing a lot about faith, or lack of it, in recent months — over the past five years, as it happens. Weird, for me, as I’ve always been what I consider a “spiritual” person, to be in a place of “faithlessness.” It morphs as I go — but here’s where I am now (an abbreviated list). I do believe I will wake up each morning. I do believe in oxygen and invisible pathogens and single-celled animals and diatoms. I do believe I will have some kind of literary success. I don’t believe that airplanes should be able to stay up and so therefore when…

I just finished moving from a house to an apartment just three blocks away, because it seemed like a good idea at one time. I think moving is like having a baby: you think it won’t be so bad, then you endure this god-awful day, then forget about it completely while you enjoy your new digs – until the next time you move, and realize how ghastly it is all over again. You can’t just move your stuff, you know. You have to cull through your junk so you don’t have to transport everything. You have to give it away, throw it away or have a yard sale. I did…

So what else is new? Spent the last two weekends working like a dog in the hot sun, first with a mega-yard sale at which everything was sold for 25 cents, and then this past weekend with moving all of my furniture, etc. from one house to another. Kudos to the following for their assistance and support: Annie Anderson, whose brilliant mind saved mine from exploding about where to house the piano until it sells (note: you all had your chance to get it for free — sorry!). Steve Blankenship and Woody Minor, who came to move furniture and offer witticisms. Zack and Blaine, two young men who earned a…

Har. No saddle to be seen. Just me…and my shiny new DRAFT of my book!!! Yes, it is so. What did I say? That I had to kill off most of the rest, except for Internet research? HA! I killed it all, plus did Internet research tonight, so I can finish the rest this week, or next, in between moving. (Realistically I won’t finish anything, except a big bowl of ice cream, but I have it all at hand now, so it’s possible.) We are back from mega-super-vacation in the high hills of Gold Country, where I typed night and day on the deck of this gorgeous house (Thank you,…