I have just returned from dropping Robbi, Alden, and Kato at the airport in Washington. The barn is deathly silent, save for the quiet whir of the AC. I might hear Iggy’s tail against the floorboards if she had one. It had already been removed by the time we adopted her. I am left with the question of how to spend the next month of my life as a seclusive bachelor. The empty hours represent so much potential.

For now, I’ll start by letting you know that our family is the focus of a very nice article in Baltimore Magazine, the “cameo” feature on pages 88-89 of the July issue (look for the prominent photo of a Maryland blue crab doused in Old Bay on the cover).

Our bookmaking lives are the focus, but Alden and Kato are mentioned by name and included in the accompanying photograph (by David Colwell), a shot of the Six Degrees of Francis Bacon mural that Robbi and a small army of Washington College students painted at the Rose O’Neill Literary House last spring.

It’s a nice piece, written by a very nice person named Jane Marian, who spent a few hours a few months back talking with us in the barn. She sheds some light on how we found our way to the barn, why (and how) we do what we do, and what we think we’re trying to accomplish (I’m glad that Jane has a theory, since we’re constantly asking that question of ourselves).

For those of you who live in Baltimore and chance to stumble on a copy, it’s a nice read, in my completely unbiased opinion.

It will be available for online reading in a few weeks, and I’ll post a link when the time comes.

For now, I’m off to finish up a bit of pending work work before beginning my two-week writing sabbatical. I’ll post a message of jubilation when it officially begins. I’m counting the hours with anticipation.