First Blogging Assignment

 I grew up in Pleasant Hill, California -- a very pleasant suburb of San Francisco. I lived there from age 5  until my early 20s and since then I have lived in New Zealand, Utah, Oregon, Hawaii, and now Texas. I guess my hometown is Provo, Utah, since that is where my parents grew up and where they live now. It is also where lots of my extended family lives. I come from Mormon pioneers who colonized Utah, so I have a rich heritage tied to that landscape. My maternal grandmother was from Dalhart, Texas, and her father was from Dallas. My coming to TCU has been an interesting return to my roots, so to speak. On my dad's side, his ancestors were some of the first Anglos to colonize east Texas. They came from Georgia in the 1840s, and then migrated to Arizona, where a town is named for them, Greer's Ranch. But I have also lived many years in the Pacific, and identify with those landscapes and people as well. A "hometown" is something I am looking for still. For now, it is Fort Worth.

I don't remember what turned me on to reading, but I do remember being a "voracious" reader. Standing in front of the bookcase in my childhood home, literally starving for something new to read, I would look in dismay at all the books I had read already. My mother was an English major in college so I read many of her college novels before high school. Even now, after reading over 120 texts for my exams, I still find myself thinking, "What am I going to read next?" And I read anything, but especially novels, memoirs, autobiography, scriptures, cookbooks, cereal boxes, newspapers, magazines, blogs, and lots of student writing.

While I have yet to produce any good scholarship, I have been a consistent writer for over 30 years. I started keeping a journal in elementary school and have been going strong ever since. I counted up my journals once and it was close to 50 volumes. Before the Internet and email I used to write a lot of letters, mostly to family and my pen pal in England.  I also used to write a family newsletter and book reviews.  I also dabble in creative writing and have won a few small prizes. I even had a short story published in one of the Chicken Soup books. So writing has always been significant in my life.

My biggest goal this semester is to get going on my dissertation -- finding a topic and just rolling along. My second goal is to survive teaching 2 sections of Major American Writers -- actually, do more than survive. I want to thrive and have a positive impact on my students.

I think the worst teacher I ever had is one I cannot remember. Even the evil Mrs. Galvin who was my third-grade teacher taught me some useful things about writing. But those that I don't remember are the ones who were the worst because they left no mark or impact on my life.

While it is difficult to narrow it down, here's my list of three important books. Besides the Bible and other scriptures, I would say my top three are: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte -- which taught me women can be strong; The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell -- which helps me see the mythic in all stories; and Miriam's Kitchen by Elizabeth Ehrlich -- which taught me that preparing food is a ritual of power.

The years 1770-1830 were great years for the expanding nation. But they were also troubling years with Indian removals and genocide; there were many reform movements that grew up during this time, especially moral reform; and lastly, there were some great novels published during this time, such as Charlotte Temple, The Coquette, and Secret History, that all reflect the changing social mores and tumultuousness of this time.