CURE

A few weeks ago I was invited to be a guest reader at the CURE annual meeting. Several local writers had been wrangled to mingle and read poetry, reports, essays, and (thanks to me) middle grade fiction -- all with connections to Minnesota and the land. As a former board member of the grassroots environmental group, I was especially pleased to join in the fun of the day.

And I was certain that pretty yellow kayak in the raffle was MINE.

Patrick Moore, one of CURE's founders and most ardent supporters, has spearheaded the renovation of a "Writer's Retreat" above the current CURE office on Main Street here in Montevideo. It was my first visit to the cozy space. Well done, Patrick.

I greatly enjoyed chatting with the other authors, as well as the many CURE members and volunteers who decided to join us, open house style. My favorite part was listening to Athena Kildegaard read from her book of poetry, Cloves & Honey: Love Poems. It is in my amazon cart now, along with the DVD of Bright Star (a John Keats biopic I've rented too many times not to purchase) and This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection by Carol Burnett (our April book club choice).
       
Before the Writer's Retreat open house was over, a familiar face appeared. Cody Maynus, a reader for the SPOTD series, was in town for the festivities. Here we are, happy as clams. Cody was probably thinking, "How nice to see my high school English teacher and talk about my crazy St. John's literary theory prof!" while I was thinking, "That pretty yellow kayak in the raffle is MINE."

We palled around a bit at the evening banquet, as much as I could between frequent visits to see how much my donation of Super Power of the Day: Origins of a Sixth Grade Superhero was fetching in the silent auction ($18!!!). The meal of locally grown food was wonderful, the speakers -- especially Hudson Bay women Ann Raiho and Natalie Warren --  were brilliant, and a jolly time was had by all.

Alas, my name was not drawn in the raffle.

I was so sure.