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Because North America is the land of immigrants (even the First Nations peoples were immigrants; they just arrived thousands of years before the rest of us), it's only reasonable and right to give all the different groups some recognition. May happens to be the month that acknowledges Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (and also Haitians, mental health awareness, bicycles, brain cancer awareness, chocolate parfaits, and more...but I digress.) This year, I've been invited to be a part of a virtual panel commemorating AAPI Month put on by the venerable Books of Wonder bookstore! Each of us will read from our books followed by a Q&A.  I'm sure it was a pity invitation, but I am tickled to be in the group nonetheless. If you want to watch it, register here.
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I've noticed that "all is not" is often used when the person really means "not all is." And it always stops me in my tracks. I don't know if those people realize the difference. The first is a blanket statement, while the latter points out a specific segment. For example: "All is not well." means "Everything sucks." versus "Not all is well." means "Not everything sucks, but here is what does." Another example in which the order of the word, i.e.* where a word falls within a sentence, is vitally important to the meaning is the placement of the word "only." Spot the difference between these sentences? "Only Pat and I will go to the mall." "Pat and I will go only to the mall." "Pat and I will only go to the mall." That concludes another episode of "Teresa's Pet Peeves"...hahaha! But guess what? Barnes & Noble is having another one of their preorder sales! If you want to preorder DISGUSTOLOGY and get 25% off, join their free rewards program and use code PREORDER25 at checkout! *i.e. stands for "that is" and not "for example," as some folks mistake it for
Do you have grammar pet peeves? Let me know! A number of years ago, we bought some of these delectable greens from the farmers market and I fell in love. (I'm a huge fan of eating deep green veggies.) Surprisingly, no ramps grow on our 27 acres. Whut?? So, we ended up buying some more from the same booth at the farmers market and planted them in a partially wooded area on our property. (Part of our subsistence philosophy is foraging...yes, I am STILL trying to sell my picture book manuscript about that.) Fast forward a few years, and that little handful finally spread enough for us to harvest!  So, what are ramps? Here's a good description from Wikipedia: "Allium tricoccum (commonly known as ramps, ramson, wild leek, wood leek, or wild garlic)[2][3] is a bulbous perennial flowering plant in the amaryllis family Amaryllidaceae. It is a North American species of wild onion or garlic found in eastern North America. Many of the common English names for this plant are also used for other Allium species, particularly the similar Allium ursinum, which is native to Eurasia. An edible plant, Allium tricoccum is used in a variety of North American and indigenous cuisines, and has also been used by Native Americans in traditional medicine. A French rendering (chicagou) of a Native American name for this plant is the namesake of the American city of Chicago." Granted, it was a small harvest, but there should be more next year and in every subsequent year. Here's this year's along with some spinach and collard side shoots that the Spousal Unit harvested at the same time. If you want to see an impressive field of it, check out Prof Andrew Whipp's photo on iNaturalist.
Do you have a favorite green? Tell me what it is! I'm so excited to have my very first art show! It's hosted by Gather :handmade shoppe: and will run through the month of April. Here's a short video of one of the walls courtesy of Gather: If you're breezing through south-central Indiana, I invite you to stop on by to take a look! The Gather shop itself is a great place to buy various fun and creative items (I love the handmade soaps they carry).
Not to be confused with the song Volare, this fabulous pillow called the Valari has been a game changer! I've never endorsed a product or become an affiliate before but I love it so much, I just had to. :) They didn't pay me to say any of this nor sent me a free one to try; I paid full price for this pillow and am only recommending it because I truly think it's awesome.
I have, however, now signed up to be an affiliate because I love this pillow so much. :) If you want to try it for yourself, you can go to the Valari website and use the code AUTHORTROBESON15 to get 15% off. Or you can use this link to get the same discount. Did reading the subject line make you think of this?  Most people I know use conjunctions pretty well, but there are a couple of people I have to interact with who can't seem to understand when to use them. They join unparallel items with "and," parallel items with "but," and never seem to use "so" when it's warranted.
It's a minor pet peeve in the grand scheme of things (just like the constant and rampant misuse of apostrophes and the word "ironic") but as I become more easily befuddled in my old age, I really would appreciate precision in language because life is confusing enough as it is. It feels like navigating in a heavy when something doesn't make sense because someone has constructed a sentence poorly. I'm just glad that none of those people are my critique partners! Need a refresher on basic conjunctions or a fun trip down memory lane? Go watch the Conjunction Junction video!  We were both so green then
in the heat of summer when we reach for that blue sky, tendrils and hopes flung high. Now we've both turned sour and grayer by the hour. We in our paler versions-- after the autumn incursions which bared the country's perversions-- fear this wicked excursion of moral retroversion. But you remind us of what is good, and what can be if we only would unite to remove the rot of the trump-musk Gordian knot. I'm sorry, pickles, that this has turned out to be more of a lament than an ode to you. I used to like Goodreads as a way to keep track of books I read...that was 20 years ago. But shortly before it was bought by Amazon, I noticed that the app wasn't working as well as it used to. Plus, there were all sorts of problematic bullying and other weird issues. And then Amazon bought it. Not only did nothing improve but now it has the stain of Bezos (anyone else think "The Stain of Bezos" makes a great title to a horror story?) I'd tried twice to go with my own spreadsheet, and that works pretty well when I remember to do it. But when I read this article on The Guardian about a Black-owned alternative, I knew I had found a good alternative to Goodreads.  StoryGraph, here I come!
Anyone else on there? It's such an honor to be interviewed by the multi-talented Dr. Diane who created the Adventures in Learning podcast where she showcases authors, scientists, educators, and more.  Here's a description of the episode that I'm on that releases today:
What do starry nebula, Bruce Lee, and disgustingly cool science facts have in common? They are all products of the creative mind of author Teresa 何 Robeson. In this episode, we welcome back Teresa Robeson, a busy author with a rich background in science and storytelling. Teresa unveils her upcoming books, including Clear and Bright: A Ching Ming Festival Story; Disgustology: The Science of Gross; and a graphic biography, Who Smashed Hollywood Barriers with Gung Fu?: Bruce Lee. Teresa shares insights into the art of storytelling through visuals and the collaborative process of bringing science and historical moments to life. Our discussion ventures into the mesmerizing realms of astronomy and science literature, with highlights from NASA's stunning imagery that fueled her recent book, Clouds in Space: Nebulae, Stardust, and Us. We also delve into the importance of diverse narratives, cultural acceptance, and the role of literature in building empathy. Plus there's a fun lightning fill in the break taken from listener questions (What language does Teresa speak to her chickens? What are the most disgusting facts she hasn't written about yet?) This episode celebrates diverse narratives, cultural tales, building our empathy muscles, and the transformative power of storytelling. Download on all podcast platforms, YouTube, or https://www.buzzsprout.com/2019975/episodes/16730026 On the one hand, with the country in complete chaos, I feel like this is a terrible time to have a book launch. On the other hand, because of the hateful lunacy that is going on, there's probably no better time to remind people that this country belongs to all immigrants (and honestly, the country belongs to NO immigrants either since we are all squatting on land stolen from the Indigenous population who was here first). But since we immigrants are here, let's celebrate our unique identities and our place in North American history. Today is the Ching Ming (also known as Qing Ming or Qing Ming in Mandarin) Festival. It's been celebrated by the Chinese for over 2,500 years. My fond memories of celebrating it as a child in Hong Kong have never faded over the past five plus decades, and some years ago, I wrote a story that incorporated my warm, fuzzy feelings about it with a fictional Chinese family that had lived in America for several generations. It's the story of my heart but it took a while for the right people in publishing to appreciate it. Author and historian, Leonard Marcus, wrote some very kind words about the story which ended up winning Silver in the Astra International Picture Book Competition, and it was ultimately bought by Astra Young Readers for publication.  Astra found the most incredible illustrator for the story. William Low is a fine artist whose work is evocative and dreamy. He completely elevated the story and breathed such life into the characters.
One of my all time favorite poems is about Ching Ming (清明). Written by the poet 杜枚, who lived in the late Tang Dynasty, it goes: 清明時節雨紛紛， 路上行人欲斷魂。 借問酒家何處有， 牧童遙指杏花村。 There's a translation for the poem as well as a short video of a cute kid reciting it on the Cantonese for Families site. If you want to find out more about this very cool holiday, you can check out this brief Smithsonian article, or read my book, CLEAR AND BRIGHT, which comes out today to coincide with Ching Ming! |
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