Archive for the ‘Minneapolis’ Category:

It’s mid-May and spring has finally arrived in Minneapolis. We are high on the weather here, having been deprived of warmth for so long. So in celebration, I’m going to take another snapshot. Here’s a list of some of the things I did yesterday.

Today I made my television debut, interviewed about Mothers and Daughters on a midday local news show. I had asked my sister’s advice on what to wear—as a writer for Newsweek she was often on TV—and she said no patterns and bright colors. I don’t own any bright colors so I opted for—surprise—black. I got to the studio very early. The greenroom was like the waiting room at the Subaru repair shop: big loud TV? Check. Coffee with powdered creamer? Check. Freezing air conditioner? Check.

With the launch of Mothers and Daughters, I have been talking a lot about how much becoming a mother influenced the writing of the book (tons) and how it affected my writing process (turned it upside down).

My sister likes to say that one of the reasons I left Brooklyn for Madison five years ago was so I could have no friends. It’s true that I’m a bit of a loner. This is a good thing considering my profession—writing is obviously a solitary pursuit. But on occasion, even I recognize the need for adult socializing.

We have never taken a vacation that wasn’t to visit family. So this year we did. We spent a week in Florida, in Coconut Grove outside of Miami. We stayed in a guesthouse, or more likely the maid’s quarters, of a faded, 1920s Moorish mansion. The pool was too cold to swim in, but it looked great—a huge original concrete pool from the period with steps down into the water. Cue flappers lounging at the water’s edge, sipping champagne. Our week wasn’t quite that glamorous, but it was a success. It actually felt like a vacation. (Being the pessimist that I am, I had predicted a C+ for the trip, but it turned out to be an A. That’s one nice thing about being a pessimist: one’s expectations are often exceeded.)

One of the things I miss in the winter is being able to walk. So on Saturday, we did something I never imagined us doing. We went to the Mall of America.

When my sisters and I was young, on particularly gorgeous spring mornings, my mom would fling open the windows and say, “Remember this day, girls!” My mother is an optimistic lover of life, and, the older I get, the more I appreciate her indomitable attitude.

So on this random, winter-dragging Tuesday in March, I thought I’d follow her example and remember this day:

For my looming 40th birthday, my husband gave me a romantic night at the Chambers Le Meridien. For me and the baby. Sure, my first choice would have been a night alone with my husband, but we’re not in a position to do that given our three-year-old. He offered to keep both kids and send me alone, but I didn’t really want to pump or be away from the baby for that matter.

Minnesotans are an impressive bunch. I cringe when the temperature plummets, but they see it as an opportunity for some outdoor activity. After weeks of gritting my teeth with each new weekly forecast, I finally stopped complaining and decided to join them.

I haven’t been able to explore the Twin Cities as much as I’d like to with the arrival of first a baby and then winter, but as a follow up to the last post, here are some things I love about Minneapolis: