Dance It All Away

The next time you’re thinking about giving up, think instead of Yvonne Puckett.

A few years back, Yvonne, a dancer, wanted to perform in the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera’s production of The King and I.

At the time, her father-in-law was Louis Adrian, conductor of LACLO’s orchestra. When she told him she planned to audition, he looked appalled. “You?” he said. “In the King and I? No way.” Continue reading “Dance It All Away”

Not Too Late

You watched or read Annie Proulx’s recent speech at the National Book Awards, didn’t you?

If you didn’t, you really must. Her talk is at once urgent and quirky and eloquent and moving, like her novels. And the most important part might be her opening line:

Although this award is for lifetime achievement, I didn’t start writing until I was 58. Continue reading “Not Too Late”