Friends who are interested in a shared poetry reading project: Please check out the comments earlier this week. Right now, two names are surfacing: Rilke and Geoffrey Hill. There are poems by both men available online, so dip into what you can find and see if either of these poets ignites your curiosity. Then we can make a decision and move ahead.

Friends who are trying to write Amazon reviews of Vagabond: There is a glitch in Amazon's customer review program: reviews appear on my author page but not on the book page. I am trying to make the behemoth solve this problem, but getting its attention is not so easy. I will persevere. In the meantime, keep trying to post reviews and let me know what is happening.

Friends who like to hear about what I ate for dinner last night: Homemade sausage with green garlic and sage, topped with sauteed chanterelles and parsley. Buttered potatoes tossed with baby peas. Tiny green beans roasted in olive oil. Cucumber and kelp salad with sesame oil. Giant bowls of raspberries with cognac-flavored whipped cream. Afterward, we reclined on the couch and torpidly watched The Rockford Files.