So, forging ahead in this new life, I am embracing dining alone. First, I am not, nor ever have been, a fan of cooking. Bruce did the heavy lifting in that department. And it’s not so much that I can’t cook, though some have suggested that. It’s more that I never know what IContinue reading “Dining Alone”
Author Archives: J. Gardner Hurd
On the Road Again
So I did it. I drove five hundred miles over six days from Milwaukee Wisconsin, through much of southern Michigan and then, eventually, to Detroit. In Milwaukee I spent four days at a writer’s retreat, met some wonderful new people (fellow writers), got great feedback on my short story, used lots of quiet timeContinue reading “On the Road Again”
Old Spice and Memories
The scent is faded now. That unmistakable odor of Old Spice deodorant. The stick is half gone, last used almost nine months ago by my husband. It remains one of the most visceral memories I have of him. When we first met as teenagers, and after we got over the nervousness of revealing uncomfortable orContinue reading “Old Spice and Memories”
Distant Camera
I have somehow taken, inherited, or otherwise acquired a massive number of photos. They come from homes we’ve had to pack up and empty over the years – my mother’s, my grandparents’, my mother-in-law’s. As I sit in my home office, I am surrounded by piles, and piles and yes, more piles of photosContinue reading “Distant Camera”
Gratitude for Christmas 2020
What a year! I’m sixty-three, almost sixty-four and I don’t remember a year quite like this one. My parents or my grandparents, I’m sure, could point to horrendous years – they got through the Great Depression, World War II, the Korean War. They never talked about the hardships, though, except indirectly. Instead, they’d talkContinue reading “Gratitude for Christmas 2020”
Thoughts on Completing a Novel and the Printing Industry
These seem rather disparate subjects, but somehow, they’ve become enmeshed in my mind. As to the first, I completed my novel two days ago. Well, the first draft anyway – it’s over five hundred pages so I know I have some trimming, editing, and underpainting to do. (I read about underpainting in a bookContinue reading “Thoughts on Completing a Novel and the Printing Industry”
Researching for Fiction
I’m working on my first novel – as I’ve mentioned before it’s a coming of age story about a young Deaf man. I am a child of Deaf parents (CODA as we are commonly called), so some of the Deaf experience is familiar through their lives. I grew up in the 60s and 70sContinue reading “Researching for Fiction”
Common Ground
Deaf community groups tend to spring up around deaf schools. It’s something that connects deaf people beyond their graduation from school. In my parents’ case, a deaf club was how they met. In the 40s through the 80s, the deaf clubs were really active – they had dances (I know I’ll explain that later),Continue reading “Common Ground”
New England During the Great Depression
Much has been written about the Great Depression – along with the words are indelible images. There are images of Dust Bowl farmers in the Midwest, men working on highways – cutting roads out of a hostile environment. There are men in bread lines hats in hand, women in worn clothing clutching the hands ofContinue reading “New England During the Great Depression”
Why am I writing this book?
I’ve asked myself why go through the hard work of not only writing this book but going through the even harder job of trying to get it published. It’s not a simple answer – but what I’ve come up with is I have to. My parents were both deaf – from birth, not from anContinue reading “Why am I writing this book?”
J. Gardner Hurd 