Yesterday, three interesting things happened. First, I got an email from the director of the Smith College Poetry Center inviting me back to the college to lead a January term session about teaching poetry in K-12 settings. It was good news to learn that the faculty liked what I did with that class last year.

Then a reporter from the Bangor Daily News called. She was working on a long story about Maine's dwindling rural towns and wanted to know if she could (1) quote my TLS article [how did she find it?] and (2) coax me into writing a contributor's response to hers. I read her article this morning, and it's really beautiful. I was thrilled to discover that a young reporter is writing so sensitively about this situation.

Finally, as I was sweeping floors, I listened to an interview with Bruce Springsteen, which Tom had listened to on Saturday and then told me I had to hear. He was right: I'm not sure when I've last heard such a dazzling interview. My urge to write a fan letter is strong.

Today the weather is supposed to be a sloppy mess, but I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to sit in a yellow chair and read a manuscript. I'm going to keep flushing chlorine out of my pipes. I'm going to imagine what I might write next.