Telling Our Stories – The Intimacy of Memoir

As first heard in the gritty black-and-white film The Naked City in 1948, “There are eight million stories in the naked city.” Everyone has a story and appearances can be deceiving when it comes to knowing who has led a remarkable adventure, survived a harrowing experience, or been celebrated at some point in his or her life. Three books recently crossed my desk about women who stepped out, survived, or were deeply affected by a brief star turn. Each is compelling and inspiring in its own way, and each reminds us of how seldom we know another’s secret heart.

THE LOVELIEST WOMAN IN AMERICA: A Tragic Actress, Her Lost Diaries, and Her Granddaughter’s Search for Home, Bibi Gaston. William Morrow 2008. I met Bibi a few years ago at a party and, as we sat together enjoying glasses of wine, she told me that recently, out of the blue, she had received 1,500 pages of her grandmother’s diaries from the 1920s and 1930s. Before that she had known nothing about her father’s mother except that she had been very beautiful and had killed herself in 1938. Her grandmother, Rosamond Pinchot, had been born into an illustrious political family, was dubbed “the loveliest woman in America” at the age of 23. She was a celebrated actress, an accomplished sportswoman, and a well-known socialite. By the age of 33 she was dead by her own hand. This candid book relates Bibi Gaston’s own journey as she explores her family’s secrets and the convoluted maze of subsequent events following Rosamond’s death. It’s a fascinating tale!

PACIFIC LADY: The First Woman to Sail Solo Across the World’s Largest Ocean, Sharon Sites Adams with Karen J. Cootes. University of Nebraska Press 2008. In June 1965, Sharon Adams sailed solo from the mainland United States to Hawaii. Just four years later, she completed a 74-day sail from Japan across the Pacific to the coast of California. No woman had ever done either before! This was an age when high-tech navigation equipment and communications were unknown. Imagine the challenges she faced and yet she is virtually unknown. Adams had always been athletic and a tomboy, but these were times when women adventurers were few and far between. Following the death of her husband, this intrepid sailor “discovered” the sport and had her first lesson, bought a boat, and within eight months set out to achieve her first world record. A truly inspiring story for anyone dreaming of taking on a challenge!

CANCER IS A BITCH (Or, I’d Rather Be Having a Midlife Crisis), Gail Konop Baker. Da Capo 2008. Life can really whack you upside the head sometimes. That’s what happened to Gail Konop Baker, an accomplished columnist and freelance writer, a runner, yoga practitioner, doctor’s wife, and mother of two. As she puts it, in her early forties, just as her life was cooking on all burners, “my right boob turned on me. Seven biopsies in five years, the last one ductal carcinoma in situ.” Gail’s valiant fight again this dreaded disease put her priorities quickly in order. At this point in her life, she had expected “to be feeling bad about my neck; instead I was feeling bad I wouldn’t live long enough to feel bad about it.” This story is as much about family, friends, and love as it is about cancer. The author pulls no punches, but she writes with humor as well as candor—it’s a real story with no bullshit in sight. Author's website: http://www.gailkonopbaker.com/

-- Rosemary Carstens

Outdoor Dreaming . . .

Today’s special guest is PAGE LAMBERT, guide and mentor for women who want to connect or reconnect with nature in a deep, inner exploration of self. Lambert’s own tie to nature is profound and joyous. Welcome, Page!

-- Rosemary Carstens, Editor

Spring is the time of the year when I begin to panic. Last fall’s carelessly scattered optimism has taken root, breaking through the nitty-gritty soil of today’s reality. The lazy days of winter, which I expected to spend sequestered in my writing den, have vanished. Summer is just around the proverbial corner and I find myself wondering why I thought I could accomplish even half of what’s on the calendar. A horseback writing retreat in Wyoming? A writing salon in Taos? A canoe trip on the Green? A river writing and sculpting trip on the Colorado? Even a 3-day retreat perched on the edge of the Grand Canyon.

Someone clone me, PLEEEZE!

The chasm between last fall’s optimism and the reality of the summer schedule is deep, and steep. Panic sets in. Then I begin to read the letters from various retreat participants, sharing their dreams for their upcoming adventures.

A few responses are casual. “No specific goals—just want to relax.” But many agonize, sharing intimate details, lifelong dreams, age-old disappointments. “I used to pray for all the things I wished for, but most of my wishes didn't come true,” writes one woman. “Now my prayers are gentler, and my hope is that somehow my life story will make sense to me in the end. That's what writing does for us, isn't it? Helps us to process the mystery?”

Yes, that IS what writing does for us, especially when we embrace the mystery of both joy and pain. “Sometimes life takes you abruptly down a path you would never choose and grinds you up a bit,” writes another woman. “I want to heal.” Another shares a desire to simply be appreciative: “I want to find a way to save in my core the beauty I've seen and felt.” Another wants to face her fear of water. Another, her fear of horses.

Another kind of fear often surfaces. The honesty of what a well-known broadcast news journalist writes humbles me: “I’ve spent years buying beautiful leather journals, which are stacked away in various parts of my house, without a single word written in any of them. I’m intimidated by the thought that I have nothing worthwhile to say.”

Often, colorful stories emerge in these letters. “I didn't get a horse until one of my favorite uncles was killed in World War II,” one participant writes. “He left a beautiful sorrel quarter horse that he'd ridden to win goat-roping contests every Sunday.”

Some dreams are less ambitious, but just as vital to creativity. “I want to remember what the night sky looks like when the tent fly is off.” She may surprise herself, deciding by the second night to sleep outside the tent! One enthusiastic soul simply writes, “I’m on a mission!!” And then this wonderful confession: “I am giving this experience to myself as a 50th birthday present. I can’t believe it. I don’t feel 50!”

Each of these letters reminds me how lucky I am to share rivers and horses and canyons and deserts and mountains with such like-hearted souls. The best part, though, will be falling asleep (in a comfortable bed) this fall, thinking not only of the letters, but of all the smiles and tears that graced the summer, feeling eager to sow more seeds.

PAGE LAMBERT writes from Santa Fe, often about Wyoming, often about Colorado, often about rivers, but always about the land and the many ways in which it feeds us. She has been leading creative outdoor writing adventures for ten years, working in partnership with organizations such as The Women’s Wilderness Institute, the Grand Canyon Field Institute, and the Aspen Writers Foundation. In 2006, the River Writing Journeys she facilitates were featured in Oprah’s O magazine as “one of the top six great all-girl getaways of the year.” For more about her published books and editing and consulting work, or to get on the waiting list for next year’s “Literature and Landscape of the Horse” retreat in Wyoming: www.pagelambert.com.

New Issue of FEAST now available!

For the latest delicious offerings of books, art, food, film, and unique travel--check out the new issue--you will not go away hungry-- http://www.CarstensCommunications.com/FEAST.html

Magic in the Land of Volcanoes

Today's guest blogger is a creative freelance writer who seeks adventure and inspiration in exotic spots around the globe, keeps in shape mentally and physically with her yoga practice, and continues to progress on her novel. It's a pleasure to welcome LAUREL KALLENBACH! -- Rosemary

MAGIC IN THE LAND OF VOLCANOES

by Laurel Kallenbach

In February, I attended a creative writing and yoga retreat at the glorious Villa Sumaya resort on Guatemala’s Lake Atitlán. It was the perfect blend of three of my favorite pastimes: writing, traveling, and yoga.

As our group did our early-morning Warrior pose, the volcanoes across the lake were a deep purple. Later, propped on colorful embroidered Guatemalan pillows, I scribbled away on my novel. From time to time, I looked up from my pages to gaze across the water at the volcanoes, now showing their green foliage in the full afternoon sun.

This was my sixth international retreat led by either Writing Journeys or Patchwork Farms. Over the last eight years, I’ve stretched and written in Mexico, Ireland, Wales—and now Guatemala. There’s something magical about the camaraderie of fellow writers and yogis who share a spirit of adventure. I also believe there’s magic in combining yoga, writing, and travel. Yoga loosens me up, gets the juices flowing, and creates a physical and spiritual practice that frames my writing practice.

Guatemala provided inspiration and transported me out of the ordinary. Our group visited the lakeside village of Santiago de Atitlán, a bustling market center for the area’s craftspeople. It was a riot of color, especially the rich textiles of skilled seamstresses who weave exotic birds, such as the quetzal, into their clothing designs. I could feel the country’s creative (and entrepreneurial!) pulse while bargaining with the market’s sellers.

A Mayan shaman came to Villa Sumaya to perform a protection ceremony for all us gringos. After offering sugar, cinnamon, chocolate, and taper candles to the gods, he entreated them to cleanse our spirits and keep us safe throughout our Guatemala journey. How could I not feel creative in the hands of chocolate-sated deities?

And last but not least, there was the sheer, transcendent magic of writing. I’m working on a novel set in Kentucky—a world and culture far away from Guatemala—yet while I was imagining a Midwestern tornado, the Mayan winds blew a violent thunderstorm over Lake Atitlán. The lightning and deluge of rain eerily echoed the scenes I was writing. I felt the same weather-induced fear my characters experienced as the tornado hit their town.

There are many types of journeys, but I’m especially fond of these writing and yoga retreats. They stretch my personal borders—taking me to unique locales and into that most adventurous of places: my own creativity.

I'd love to hear about your own best places to write or be inspired--is it a cozy nook at home, an exotic location that brings you new connections and ideas?


LAUREL KALLENBACH is a novelist, freelance magazine writer, and world traveler who lives in Boulder, Colorado. You can contact her at Laurel@ecentral.com. Read Laurel's article about staying healthy and fit while traveling in the March 2008 issue of Experience Life magazine at http://www.experiencelifemag.com/issues/march-2008/fit-body/have-body-will-travel.html

It's All About Change . . .

Do you get the feeling there’s a longing for change in the air these days? Not just when it comes to our present administration (where longing for change could easily turn to begging or demanding), but for change in our everyday lives to include more fun, better money, more slow dancing, faster horses, better-looking men, more candlelit picnics on the beach, and so on? I know for me right now, that longing lingers at the back of my tongue like the last bitter-sweet memory of dark chocolate.

My friend and colleague CYNTHIA MORRIS has decided that her time for change has come. After quite a few years in Boulder, Colorado, coaching others to have the courage to make their dreams come true—and following quite a few of her own, including completing a wonderful new novel—Cynthia is leaving Boulder in search of adventure. She’s started a new blog called Journey Juju – http://www.journeyjuju.com – where she’ll discuss creative, magical travel and share her journey, which begins in Milan, Italy, in May. She’ll sell or store everything, hop a flight, head for parts unknown and see what the world brings her way—that’s the plan. Always an artist at heart, she has designed 100 unique and very special travel shrines (see photo, then visit the website for more details about ordering).

Cynthia, I wish you good juju in your travels, new friends, lots of art, books, delicious feasting of all the best kinds!

How about the rest of you readers? If you jumped the tracks today to follow your own new paths, where would you go and what would you do? Just thinking and writing about it brightens these drear winter days-- Rosemary

Art, Artists, and Hanging In . . .

We are fortunate to have as our latest guest blogger the best-selling author and actor RON MCLARTY writing today about art. Art as the centerpiece of short trips to some of the finest museums in the US is an exciting way to frame a travel adventure. In addition to the refreshment found in new surroundings, your imagination is sparked with bold palettes, fresh and traditional ideas, genius, and, for a writer, original connections to inspire your work. Welcome Ron!

--Rosemary Carstens

BRINGING ENDURANCE TO THE TABLE

By Ron McLarty

Even with the plethora of exciting exhibits around New York, my wife, Kate Skinner, and I are occasionally drawn away from our traditional haunts to those one-of-a-kind presentations in other cities. A few years ago for example, we took the train to Philadelphia for the Museum of Art’s exhibit of some rarely shown works of Andrew Wyeth. We loved the drawings and watercolors, which displayed his gift for portraying the quiet simplicity and beauty of both interiors and landscape. And we had a ball playing hooky from our regular daily grind at the Ritz. So, a few months ago, when Kate read about two major exhibitions at the National Gallery in Washington D.C., we didn’t need to think twice about another few days of picture viewing to see their exhibits of Edward Hopper (1882–1967) and JMW Turner (1775–1851).

We traveled by train, which is quite nice as long as you steel yourself against the cell phone bores that are proliferating at an alarming rate—even in the “quiet car,” where you have to be asleep not to notice all the NO CELL PHONE signs, not to mention announcements regularly made by the conductor! I suppose it won’t get any better but it does make you think back to not so long ago when the tools of disruption weren’t in the hands of the traveler or the theatergoer and a little peace was possible.

We stayed at the Hotel George, a small hotel we first stayed at on the book tour for my novel, The Memory of Running. It’s an excellent base of operations as it is within walking distance of Union Station and the Mall and has a superb restaurant, Bisto Bis. Kate has appeared in 11 plays in D.C., including 8 at the Shakespeare Theatre and knows the Capitol like the back of her hand.

We began our tour of the National Gallery with their permanent exhibition of Small French Paintings, which is filled with small works by many well-known impressionists. Favorites included works by Berthe Morisot, Toulouse Lautrec, and Corot. From there we moved on to the Hopper upstairs. I was struck by how familiar all his work feels, even the many works I had never seen in any other venue. I had heard references to his arrangement of space and especially light but didn’t understand it until I stood in front of those paintings his wife posed for. He seemed to be saying that everything we take for granted can also be viewed as abnormal or even bizarre. And though his work is unlike Wyeth’s, they both understood the power and simplicity of the world around them to a profound degree.

That many of Hopper's astonishing paintings were completed while he earned his living as an illustrator was particularly thrilling to me. He didn’t sell his first painting until he was over forty. I was fifty-five before I got my first novel in print and while I’m not foolish enough to ever compare my efforts to this giant, it’s inspiring to know that along with his amazing artistic vision he brought substantial endurance to the table.

Even though Kate and I were quite overcome by Hopper’s life’s work, we took the stairs to the underground passage connecting the newer wing to the older part of the National Gallery to view the life’s work of that great English master, JMW Turner. I was put off at first by the exhibit because of what seemed to me super-patriotic depictions of events such as the Battle of Trafalgar. But Kate’s deep and delicate eye for art pointed out how his later work was the obvious precursor for the impressionists yet to come, and his work evolved right up to the end. He, too, brought endurance to the table though, as opposed to Hopper, he gained fame and fortune right away. In 1798 at the age of twenty-three he was elected to the Royal Academy. It’s nice to know that when he died he willed the English people all his paintings and left his fortune to “the maintenance and support of poor and male decayed artists.”

The following day, we set out to see the Impressionists by the Sea exhibit at the Phillips Collection. Phillips was a major collector of mostly modern art and the museum is housed in his old mansion which connects to a newer wing. It was a lovely if not startling exhibit and, as always, a pleasure to view the collection at what Kate considers one of the finest small museums in the country.

I’ve since been very busy in old New York, correcting the proofs of my third novel, Art in America (July 2008) and completing narration of the current season of “Murder By The Book” for Court TV. My series on Fox, ‘The Return of Jezebel James,’ debuts March 12. As time permits, we will continue to pursue our love of art and travel.

RON MCLARTY is the author of The Memory of Running (Viking 2004), Traveler (Viking 2007), and the forthcoming Art in America (Viking 2008). He is also a veteran character actor with a long career in films and television and one of the leading audio book narrators. He lives in New York City with his wife, actress Kate Skinner. For more information: http://www.ronmclarty.com/ .Photo of Ron McLarty by Jerry Bauer.

Boulder Media Women's 2007 and 2008 Titles

There’s a great group of creative media women in my area. All year long I find the group to be a fountain of collaboration, advice, experiences, and encouragement. There are graphic/website designers, technical advisers, copyeditors, authors, journalists, publishers, public relations and marketing professionals, producers, and film makers, to mention just a few of the talents in Boulder Media Women. Here’s a list of the latest and forthcoming titles produced by them. To find out more, go to their website at www.BoulderMediaWomen.com -- Rosemary

COLORADO'S CLASSIC MOUNTAIN TOWNS, Evelyn Spence. Countryman Press 2007. A guide to seven ski towns with history, lodging, dining, summer and winter recreation, festivals, kids' activities, and more. www.countrymanpress.com/titles/GDCOMtnTowns.html.

DARK HARVEST, Lynda Hilburn. Medallion Press 2008. As a guest on a radio show, Denver Psychologist Kismet Knight, PhD, answers a question from a mysterious, preternatural caller who turns her world upside down—again. http://www.lyndahilburnauthor.com/

HEALING FROM TRAUMA: A Survivor's Guide To Understanding Your Symptoms and Reclaiming Your Life, Jasmin Lee Cori, MS, LPC. Marlowe & Co., January 2008. A holistic self-help guide for survivors of various kinds of trauma written by a therapist and trauma survivor. Complete with exercises, healing stories, points to remember, and resources. http://www.jasmincori.com/

MIRANDA, QUEEN OF ARGYLL: Unlikely Saints, Julia Phillips. One Level Higher Publishing 2007. The anxiously awaited conclusion of Past Sins finds Miranda losing her faith as time runs out to stop Kadar from claiming the child. Hope is in short supply as a traitor wreaks havoc on the inner circle, but it is the unexpected players that will tip the scale. http://www.queenofargyll.com/

NORDIC WALKING: A Complete Guide, Claire Walter. Hatherleigh Press, early 2008. http://nordic-walking-usa.blogspot.com/

ONE GAY, ONE STRAIGHT: Complicated Marriages, Carol Grever, writer/producer; Roslyn Dauber, producer/director. Dauber Film Services 2008. Straight spouses tell their own stories in this unique documentary on marriages mired in the secrecy of a homosexual closet. Watch how some reconfigured their broken lives, moving from bewilderment toward healing. http://www.carolgrever.com/

POWER IN THE BLOOD: A Family Narrative, Linda Tate. Ohio University Press 2008. A family and cultural history brings to life several generations of the author’s Cherokee-Appalachian family. Three interrelated, first-person narrators tell the tale: the author’s great-great-grandmother Louisiana in 1902; her grandmother Fannie in 1963; and the author in her own story from childhood through the present. http://portfolio.du.edu/ltate3

PRACTICALLY SHAMELESS, Alyce Barry. Practically Shameless Press 2008. An uplifting personal story that illustrates how to find the gold in your shadow and how good it feels when you do. An inspirational and heart-healing book for viewing your most troubling personal issues with compassion and loving yourself more. http://www.practicallyshameless.com/

RV TOURIST: Tips, Tools, and Stories, Elsi Dodge. iUniverse 2007. How to plan and implement an RV vacation, from choosing an RV and a campground, to writing an itinerary, to what to do if you're lost. RV TOURIST is full of stories about the author’s adventures while driving a 30-foot Winnebago across the US, accompanied only by an elderly beagle and an odd little cat who thinks he's a saber-toothed tiger. http://www.rvtourist.com/

SUSTAINING THOUGHT: Thirty Years of Cookery at the School for Advanced Research, Rosemary Carstens and Leslie Shipman. School of Advanced Research Press 2007. Unfolding around the seasons of the academic year, this cookbook contains recipes for meals tested by generations of SAR’s guests and fine tuned by distinguished cooks and chefs. The recipes are perfect for medium-sized gatherings and designed to take advantage of the best fresh foods of each season. http://www.sarpress.sarweb.org/

THE BACKROADS AND BYWAYS OF COLORADO, Drea Knufken (with John Daters). Countryman Press, 2008. A comprehensive, mile-by-mile guide to Colorado's 12 best scenic and historic byways. Just in time for summer road trip season! http://dreaknufken.com/

THE HEROICS OF FALLING APART: One Couple's Breast Cancer Journey, Judy Gordon and Dan Gordon. 2007. A candid memoir told through the voices of both the patient and the caregiver; the only breast cancer memoir written by a couple. http://www.theheroicsoffallingapart.com/

THE SCIENCE OF DUNE: An Unauthorized Exploration into the Real Science Behind Frank Herbert’s Fictional Universe, includes an essay by Sibylle Hechtel. Smartpopbooks, January 2008. http://www.smartpopbooks.com/

THE VAMPIRE SHRINK, Lynda Hilburn. Medallion Press 2007. Denver Psychologist Kismet Knight, PhD, finds herself up to her neck in vampires when a new client pulls her into the paranormal underworld. http://www.lyndahilburnauthor.com/

WHAT KIDS REALLY WANT TO ASK: Using Movies to Start Meaningful Conversations (A Guidebook for Parents and Children aged 10–14), Rhonda A. Richardson, PhD, and Margaret Pevec, MA. VanderWyk and Burnham 2007. Real questions asked by 10–14 year olds led to the topics covered in this book. Each topic comes with a suggested movie and talking points for both parent and child to keep lines of communication open during the transformative middle school years. http://margaretpevec.com/

WHEN YOUR SPOUSE COMES OUT: A Straight Mate’s Recovery Manual, Carol Grever, MA, and Deborah Bowman, PhD. Haworth Press 2007. A lively guide to long-term emotional recovery for heterosexual men and women whose intimate partners are gay. Solid therapeutic techniques for self-help in a framework of riveting case studies of mixed orientation couples. http://www.carolgrever.com/

Book Review by Claire Walter - Beserk in the Antarctic

Berserk in the Antarctic
By David Mercy
Lyons Press 2004

David Mercy and I keep crossing paths—figuratively, not literally. Our most recent encounter was in the pages of Berserk in the Antarctic. I bought the book about crossing the stormy Drake Passage in a 27-foot sailboat at London’s Heathrow Airport for transatlantic reading. I knew about the hair-raising experience that David wrote about because Telluride Mountain Film had presented a primitive Norwegian documentary about it a few years ago. (The film won the People’s Choice Award at the 2001 Banff Mountain Film Festival and, if I could have voted at Telluride, I would have selected it too.) In any event, that film particularly resonated because when the Berserk made it to Antarctica, the trio encountered a red-hulled ship called the Disko. My husband and I had traveled to Antarctica across the Drake Passage on the Disko a few years earlier.

David is the kind of traveler I kind of wish I were (or at least wish I had been when I was younger). In truth, I never have had the courage to backpack to places just because I have never been there. David is. He seizes any cheap opportunity to achieve his travel desires, like climbing aboard the Berserk. His opportunity came in Ushuaia, Argentina, where he met Jarle Andhøy, the 19-year-old Norwegian owner of the boat, who had already single-handedly sailed across the Atlantic, and an Argentinean named Manuel, who turned out to be prone to seasickness.

After Berserk’s near-death crossing of the Drake Passage, Manuel sought asylum on the Disko, willing to do anything to avoid setting out again on the 27-footer. Even after Manuel bailed, so to speak, Jarle and David kept sailing through Antarctic waters, dodging icebergs and getting up close and personal with whales, seals, and penguins. Eventually, the Berserk limped back to South America. Jarle kept on going. His boat finally sank off the Chilean coast, with Jarle escaping in a rowboat. Ironically, the Disko later ran aground off the coast of Greenland, 155 miles north of the Arctic Circle, also with no loss of life.

David Mercy’s telling of this whale of a tale is funny, colorful, and occasionally poignant, and his book is a quick, easy, and compelling read. There might be another book in his future. It seems that he, Jarle and a couple of other Norwegians are now on a round-the-world adventure. They are sailing on Jarle’s new steel-hulled boat, the Berserk II, with a comically menacing shark face painted on the bow. Videos and the Captain’s log are available at www.wildvikings.com, for this is a considerably higher-tech voyage.

– Claire Walter

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CLAIRE WALTER is an award-winning Colorado-based journalist and author, specializing in travel, snowsports and food. Her website is http://www.claire-walter.com/ and her highly regarded travel blog is at http://travel-babel.blogspot.com/.