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Fairy Girl Settles in for a Good Read

While my new alter ego, Fairy Girl, aka Clothespin Doll, nestles into the book shelf for a good summer read, I’m off to dormitory life for the next two weeks. It’s time for Summer Residency in the MFA program at Southern New Hampshire University. My second and final summer residency before graduating in ’10. So today is a day of final organizing, packing, paying a few bills, and double-checking my to-bring list.

As I did last year, I will be recording key moments during the residency with my camera.  A slide show of last year’s images will be shown to the Advisory Board next week and at this year’s graduation. A nice little stepping stone in my avocational pursuit of a new career as photographer, joy-capturing shutterbug.

MFA - Summer Residency 2009 - a new fiction writer takes to the streets

When I left for home at the close of last year’s residency, I thought I was going to spend the next 24 months on a bicultural novel with a heavy South American presence. By week #2, everything changed. The short version is that I concluded that my life was the story to tell. And that’s how the memoir came to be. There are now 200 pages written and I admit to a tremendous sense of accomplishment. Looking back, I am still amazed at what can be accomplished when one focuses on the little steps — ahh, that is, monthly pages due to my mentor — and keeps moving forward.

I’ll sign off today with this photo, taken near where the Tornado of ’09 struck. I’ve certainly given away my penchant for all things of diminutive stature — what with the fairy garden and clothespin doll. So it won’t come as a surprise that I imposed on my travel companions and asked if we could turn the car around, so that I could take a picture of a 1-room post office. They were more than happy to oblige. None of us had seen such a small goverment facility before. And this one appeared stranded, in the middle of a field of grass and day lilies.

Somewhere near Northwood, NH

See you ’round campus!