Published in November 2023

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What follows is a roundup of all my articles that published in November 2023. If you are interested in what I’ve been up to, take a look. I hope you find something interesting, informative, or both.

Earth911

Add Seaweed For a More Sustainable Diet

Extreme Weather Summer Scorecard – How Did You Fare?

Protecting Your Garden in Winter

Do You Live Near a Superfund Site?

Does Your Chatbot Drink More Water Than You Do?

Reprints

Good, Better, Bets: Cutting Carbon From Home Heating and Cooling

Reducing Washer and Dryer Impacts

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ParentMap

Causes and Treatments of Common Rashes

Holiday Shows and Performances for Seattle Families

Reprints

3 Seattle Families Share Their Adoption Journeys

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WWMG

Diagnosing ADHD and Autism in Adults

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Reading Down a Crooked Road

I only finished reading three books in November, but they are all interesting in different ways. I purchased Dreamland: A Self-Help Manual for a Frightened Nation back in 2018 because I have enjoyed everything I’ve read by Andri Snaer Magnusson. But avoided reading it because it was about aluminum smelting in Iceland, and I was afraid it would be either dry or a downer or both. That was stupid because I already know what a brilliant writer he is. Despite the specificity of the book, Andri created a lyrical and enlightening meditation on the nature of thought and creativity while at the same time illustrating the way that we let fear trick us into listening to people who place their own profits above our well-being, and how a little creativity can sidestep the false dichotomy of economics vs. the environment.

I bought We Spread by Iain Reid (whom I met at the Iceland Writers Retreat back when he was still a milennial memoirist) when I stumbled on it during Independent Bookstore Day this spring. I was a bit uncertain because his fiction is known for being “deeply scary and intensely unnerving.” But the protagonist is an elderly woman, and he wrote his grandmother so beautifully back in the memoir days, plus, I’m beginning to take a personal interest in representation for old women. We Spread was a fabulous merger of the things he’s already good at. If Catherine House was an assisted living facility instead of a college, you’d get this creepy yet touching novel.

Finally, I read a microhistory lifted straight from my daughter’s college syllabus. The Revenge of Hatpin Mary: Women, Professional Wrestling and Fan Culture in the 1950s. I think the title sort of says it all. I knew nothing about professional wrestling in the 1950s and had no idea that it boasted a mostly female fandom. I think we all secretly know that the 1950s fed to us by pop culture is a construct that doesn’t match anyone’s real experience of the period. But I really got a kick out of this alternative view of 50s femininity.

If you like seeing what other people read, feel free to connect with me on Goodreads. These days it’s almost my only presence on social media and I’m always excited to talk about books with another reader.