Category Archives: Blog Archive

I should be out weeding the vegetable garden or picking Russian berries. It’s five o’clock in the morning. I have the day off from my job as a judge and I am still up, sipping coffee, pondering my “to do” … Continue reading →

You might think that driving from Duluth to Ignace, Ontario with four octogenarians crammed into a blue Pacifica might be problematic, what with all the pee stops, driving instructions, and potential for discord inherent in such a journey. Not so. … Continue reading →

Today I received a check from the Finlandia Foundation representing a national grant from the Foundation in support of my novel-in-progress, Sukulaiset: The Kindred  a novel of the Holocaust, WW II, and Karelian Fever set in Finland, Estonia, and Karelia. … Continue reading →

No, the new book still is not done. Right now, it’s at Scribendi, the editing service I use, going through a professional proofread before I put the final touches on the manuscript. The plan is to have copies of Sukulaiset: … Continue reading →

My name is Penny Evans and I’ve just gone 21 I am a young widow in the war that’s being fought in Vietnam I have two infant daughters and I do the best I can Now, they say the war … Continue reading →

I couldn’t sleep. Anxiety and self-doubt and apprehension swirled ’round my brain. Why did I agree to do this? I’d been approached by Mary Lukkarila of the Cloquet Public Library towards the end of 2013 about participating in the One … Continue reading →

9: The number of Longboard Lagers that a retired Marine gave me when my pal Ron and I were grilling steaks in the courtyard of the Marriott Ko Olina on Oahu, Hawaii. The guy was leaving the island early due … Continue reading →

I didn’t set out to find him. In fact, when Nancy McVean suggested that Rene’ and I visit Punchbowl cemetery during our time in Honolulu, I had no idea what she was talking about. The Arizona? Sure, everyone has seen Tora, … Continue reading →

Friday night in Hanapepe, Kaua’i, Hawai’i. The little town was once the home to the bloodiest labor dispute in Kaua’i history (the September 9, 1924 “Hanapepe Massacre” wherein striking Filipino sugar cane workers clashed with police, resulting in twenty deaths … Continue reading →

Kauai. The Garden Island. A virtual paradise for endangered species including monk seals, green sea turtles, and humpback whales, the island is also home to many species that, well, weren’t here when Captain Cook “discovered” this island, the first of … Continue reading →