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The exciting sequel to the World In-between is now available. Bow of the Moon takes you on a journey through the Empire submerging you into forgotten myths and legends. Trek beyond the ends of the known world. Face creatures men have learned to fear. Protect secrets that could unravel everything. Most legendary weapons have been lost to the ages. Although their true power is long forgotten, their memory makes some risk everything to procure them. One such weapon is hidden in plain sight. When ignorance melts away, the weapon that has saved the Empire on numerous occasions becomes a target. Can the weapon’s steward keep it a secret before it falls into the wrong hands? Bow of the Moon is available in perfect bound paperback only on Amazon . The ebook is available for Kindle , Nook and Kobo , and on Smashwords , Diesel eBooks and Make Your Offer . Happy Holidays and Happy Reading!

The Bow of the Moon proof arrived yesterday. It looks fantastic! The back shows a rendition of a Watcher’s Locket—so prevalent in this book. Although this is my third published book, I always seem to tweak it after I go through it with my pencil. This time, I decided to include a picture (watermark) of the bow on the title page. My tweaks were minor. I only repositioned a few items. The 6x9 paperback is 252 pages, filling 21 chapters. Bow of the Moon will be available soon in print and for Kindle.  The ebook is already available on Nook , Smashwords , Diesel eBookstore , Make Your Offer , and Kobo .

Here is a first look at the cover, description and first line of my latest book.  JosDCreations did a fantastic job with the cover! Bow of the Moon Most legendary weapons have been lost to the ages. Although their true power is long forgotten, their memory makes some risk everything to procure them. One such weapon is hidden in plain sight. When ignorance melts away, the weapon that has saved the Empire on numerous occasions becomes a target. Can the weapon’s steward keep it a secret before it falls into the wrong hands? Book two of The World In-between series. Chapter One   Home Again Berty stood waiting in the large circular room with its wood grained walls and brass chandeliers dressed in his gold trimmed green shirt and matching pants. Bow of the Moon will be coming soon.

The First Thanksgiving has become an American legend, a fairytale of sorts. Pilgrims and Tribesmen gathered around a large table celebrating the fruits of the first harvest. Each brought different foods to share. Yes, it really happened, but the true details have been lost to the ages. Thanksgiving dinner with the Castellano family has all the makings of being legendary. We get a huge turkey from a local farm. Stuffing is made from saved leftover bread. Our cranberry mold has a lightness that dances on your palette. The pumpkin pie harks back to the days before dense, sugary pre-made crust. Of course, there is a pasta course like we have at every big meal. This year, we will blend our pasta with clams and mussels from our New England roots. A colonial style oyster stew will be served in cute covered pumpkin bowls. Brussel sprouts from the garden are sautéed with roasted Italian chestnuts. Our meal will start with a classic Italian-American antipasto salad. We blend our her

There is nothing like 70+ degree weather in late October. It gives the senses a false indication that winter is still far away. Alas, my deadlines loom despite the beautiful weather. I have been busy editing the second book in the World In-between series. Book two will be called Bow of the Moon . The mock-up of the cover looks great. I am so excited and can’t wait to see it finished. The description is still in draft mode. What I can share about the new book is that we learn more about the mysterious Watcher and archer, Declan. Berty and company venture to new places in the world on the other side of the portal. We meet Delyth’s brother, Telor, the Crown Prince of Fairyland. Hope, Berty’s young niece, plays an integral part in the story line. More action, magic, and love entwine throughout Bow of the Moon. Once the cover and description are finished, I will post them here for a pre-publication peek. If all goes well, then Bow of the Moon will be launched in early December. I

Tricentennial’s Giveaway on Goodreads is over. I want to thank all who entered for their interest in Tricentennial. The five winners will be receiving their signed copies shortly. For everyone else, I am offering 25% off coupons for the ebook on Smashwords and for the paperback on Createspace. Both coupons expire October 31st. Download your preferred ebook format (for your Kindle, Nook or iPad) on Smashwords using coupon code AB58S. Or have the paperback sent to you using discount code NJXSJNUF.

Fall at my front door Today starts my favorite time of year.  Days are cooler.  The trees begin their multicolored foliage exhibition. I love the brisk smell of drying leaves.  Hearing the crackle of a bonfire.  Seeing the mountains form an expansive patchwork quilt of reds, oranges and yellows. My boots and sweaters beg to be worn.  Soups, stews and chili entice savoring.  The couch lures with a throw and a good book. This time of year makes my senses come alive.  I am a romantic hopelessly in love with the world around me.  Autumn brings a magical romance to every aspect of life.

The conventions are over. All the confetti has been swept off the convention floor. Politicians are racing to the booths. Each wants your vote, but for whom do you electronically tick the box? Will it be for the donkey, the elephant, or someone else entirely? As a country, we are at a crossroads. We have the choice to continue down our path of inevitable self-destruction or charge ahead differently than the status quo. Manufacturing has moved beyond our borders. Our institutions are in shambles. Our government spends much more than it could ever take to cover its debts. The national debt has surpassed 16 trillion dollars. More and more Americans have fallen into the arms of an ever expanding government dole. Friday morning, the Labor Department released the new jobs numbers for the month of August. 8.1 percent unemployment means that for 43 consecutive months the unemployment rate has been over 8 percent. Full employment is typically 3 to 4 percent. Almost 400,000 pe

The very idea of eating a delectable beige bean spread on a warm soft flatbread conjures pictures of mounds of spices, shapely pierced metal lanterns, colorfully woven rugs, and bright material hanging as room dividers. Five simple ingredients blend into a creamy delicious dip. Many people buy it already made in a container. Although convenient, I have found that store bought hummus tends to add more ingredients than necessary. Plus, those tubs can be expensive for such a simple nutritious meal or snack. Can you make this exotic dish at home? Yes. Is it easy? Very. Are the ingredients hard to find? Shouldn’t be. I live in a small town and am able to find everything I need in my local grocery stores. Chickpeas (also known as Garbanzos or Ce-ci) can be easily found in the canned bean aisle of your grocery store. They may also be in the latin or ethnic section. Their dried counterpart is harder to find. I buy dried chickpeas in my local Metropolitania’s Indian st

My latest novel is officially here! Tricentennial is a dystopian science-fiction adventure. Government cover-ups, a secret ruling society, environmentally friendly Pod Cities, powerless fringe settlements, and control over nanotechnology weave throughout Tricentennial . Take a peek 60 plus years into our future uncovering what lurks behind the utopian veil of Pod City one-five. Find Tricentennial in both ebook and perfect bound paperback at Amazon , Barnes & Noble , Kobo , iTunes , and Smashwords .

My small town does the Independence Day celebrations on the evening before. Watching the fireworks from my house chokes me up every year. The fact that a small town of barely 5000 can make sure that we celebrate the country’s birthday is great. We could always go to the nearest “big city” – the county seat – or into downtown “metropolitania” for our fireworks. But, no, we celebrate as a community – the way it is supposed to be. That’s how our country was formed. Communities, big and small, came together to fight oppression. Now, communities come together to celebrate our freedom from that oppression. When I watch the bombs bursting in the air, I don’t think about my ancestors (descendants of English pilgrims) who fought in the War for Independence. I don’t think about how generations of immigrants came to this country in search of a better life. Nor do I think about how the governmental model for the United States laid the background for other countries after their revolutions

From Tricentennial by IE Castellano Untitled By "Nickie Kelton" Darkness quakes my heart Ruthlessly depart Pieces of my soul Reveals gaping hole Mending time will take Vengeance mine to make --IEC Tricentennial is now available on Kindle , Smashwords , Nook and Make Your Offer . Will soon be available on Apple and other ebook retailers.  Also soon to be available in print. Watch this blog for updates.

June has been hiding. I remember the beginning of June as a child. The bright blue sky and the summer-like breezes taunted us as we spent the last days of the school year stuck behind a desk. How we yearned to run barefoot through the grass. Or longed to play under the watchful gaze of the sun. Nighttime brought lightning bugs to the backyard. Short and t-shirts became our uniform. This first week of June brought weather forgotten in months that have already passed. Cold rains, dreary dark days, and nights that need an extra blanket. In spite of the lack of warmth, lush green carpets all the eye can see. The middle of the night smells of summer. All that is left is for the sun to command the sky to stay blue so I can find my shorts for a journey through the grass.

After A Long Sleepless Night After a long sleepless night... I watch the sunrise through the trees, The music of the early morning pounds in my head, Windows illuminate like spotlights on stage. The clock ticks away yet another minute... I throb from head to toe and back again, Knowing the drudge that lies ahead, And that damn bug that buzzes in my ear. Orange to yellow to white to blue... Hunger growls inside me, Searching the house for satisfaction, Flashing of what was done before. Sunrays peek around to spy... Silent emptiness of this place, Somewhere off in the distance a motor runs, I wander aimlessly from my bed. --IEC

New World Order Walking along        walking alone       i roam this world full of... lonely hearts       wandering spirits       i join The NEW WORLD ORDER No one understands The NEW WORLD ORDER Takes us by the hand Depressed comics      violent pacifists    they roam my dreams at night... When will it all       be all right?       they join The NEW WORLD ORDER No one understands The NEW WORLD ORDER Takes me by the hand I wanna know...how i got here? I wanna know...what now is fear? I wanna know...can you show me? I wanna know...why can't i see? In this NEW WORLD ORDER Where no one understands This NEW WORLD ORDER Takes the mighty man -IEC

So, you’ve just written the last word of the last line of your newest novel. Now what? Do you send it out to agents and publishers? Do you go the indie route? Neither. Writing the novel is only part of the work. Now, it is editing time. Sure, you can send your work to have it edited professionally. But, you should never send your novel anywhere until you have had the first edit. Editing goes deeper than just reading for typos. Sure, cleaning up those typos is important. But just as important, if not more so, is checking your sentence structure, reading for flow, and making sure that you have been consistent from beginning to end. Sentence structure sets the tone of your novel. Ideally, your sentences should be of varied length and syntax throughout a paragraph. I am not one to stick to rules. Playing with your sentences can help move the story along. You don’t want long sentences entangling the reader during a fast action scene. Short sentences and paragraphs will help t

Twenty years into the New Era, Xavier Kelton lives in a carefree world until his father uncovers a problem in commonly used nanotechnology. Without warning, his world crumbles. Trying to keep his family together, Xavier inadvertently starts another American Revolution. Exclusively at Make Your Offer : Download a three chapter sample of my latest stand alone science fiction novel, Tricentennial . The full release will come out in June but you can make an offer and preorder Tricentennial before everyone else can buy it.

From The World In-between by IE Castellano Pixie Priestess’ Prophecy Empress watches over all High in the Empire Tree Finding the time ‘fore will fall Watcher watches over thee Find at Amazon , Barnes & Noble , Smashwords , Make Your Offer , and on Apple’s iBookstore Also in paperback

From "Tapestry" by Solitaire Parke available at Barnes & Noble THE FACE OF LOVE by Solitaire Parke She sits amid the cushioned chairs And quietly reflects on life Her heart still beats, her breast still clings To thoughts of love and what it brings But nightly as she waits it drifts To darkened fields and blackened cliffs And stains the love she feels with inner strife. She glances at her hands still clasped And sees the years within the lines Her mind still yearns, her heart still feels The memories that make her real But like the empty bottles there Her life is but a hollow stare And cries to have her deepest love defined. She reaches for the mirror's touch But finds the glass has fingers cold Her heart can reach through space and time To touch the soul she wants to find And feel the warmth she's grown to miss The breath of life, a gentle kiss And tears that fall from love she's often told. Official Website: http://www.solitaireparke.com Official Blog: htt

Through the clouds, sunlight dances on the mountains. Shadows camouflage the brown while the new green growth sparkles. Spring is proof that any dark doldrums can be overcome.

CONSPIRACY IN PINK Plaster casts of Bigfoot tracks Your excited laugh Nevada State Route Three Seven Five Gas tank’s down to half Picnic on the grassy knoll Sixth floor windowsill Your wild eyes while you dispute Oswald’s shooting skill You pout and sulk At Arizona’s hulk But you’re angry too Cause Roosevelt knew

Willoughby by Abhay Adil In the journey of life A man searching for light In the coldness of the world And emptiness of the heart Is there any place with goodness and grace? Where one can break free A place where a man can be what he wants to be A place high above in heaven After the long journey of life A man can slow down for a peaceful rest Searching and searching all his life Can’t find a simple spot for rest Living in the chest of broken glass And all the hope is lost He finally found a place to rest The salience he got at last Away from the dreadful voices From whom he wanted to depart Love that he never got Delight he never saw Unappreciated and deceived Is what he feels The darkness filled his dreams Crushing his heart and making him scream He left this place and walked of the ledge Towards the shinning place with happy face To finally find his place On a stop called Willoughby Willoughby a poem by Abhay Adil Inspired from "The Twilight Zone” episode

Food from your own garden always tastes better than anything bought in the supermarket. Sometimes that’s because of growing a different varietal. Most times it is because food from your garden gets picked at the height of ripeness. Planning your garden should be done well ahead of the ideal time to plant. In preparation for this year’s garden, we made lists of what plants we wanted to grow. Of those plants, we’ve decided which ones were going to grow from seed and which were going to transplant from nursery flats. Over the last month or so, different stores have been having sales on seed packets. Collecting seed packets are a fun first step to building this season’s garden. Earlier this month, Home Depot had a buy one get one half off sale on herbs and veggies. Even though we cannot plant much yet, we also could not pass up a sale on our favorite garden plants. We bought 20 plants from our local Home Depot. Those collection of plants include a variety of herbs, a f

Beauty is revolting in a superficial way. Attraction is deceptive when it isn't meant to stay. The game of love's suspense is one I never wish to play ==>Again<== A philocalist sees beauty most clearly when he keeps his eyes closed. By: paradox

A week or two ago I was in the middle of spring cleaning which really means spring re-organization. Just about every surface was covered with something. My stomach was rumbling and I wondered what was for dinner. Takeout does not satisfy the way a home cooked meal does. Why not pull from the pantry? I was spring cleaning after all. Digging in the pantry I gathered, two cans of tuna, a can of anchovies, a can of string beans, a can of condensed mushroom soup, and two 13.25 oz boxes of whole wheat spaghetti. First, I filled my pasta pot (with insert) with water and turned on the flame. While that heated, I got out my trusty 7 quart dutch oven. Into the pan, I dumped the entire small can of anchovies plus the packing oil. The tuna was drained before it made it to the pan. I added a touch more olive oil to help sauté the fish. The very thought of canned anchovies may repulse some of you. For you food snobs out there, the canned product I buy is very nice with wide, firm fillets.

Spring days, spring nights… Hear the wind course as birds take flight… The morning a time for growing pains, The night a time for laughing dreams. The soul a wondrous creature, How it gazes out upon the land, Wishing for hope, for dreams For midnight moonbeams… Spring days, spring nights… Watch for the caterpillar or the worm Those the birds peck and feed upon-- More lovely their dying, serving part. by Mark Alan Murray MARK ALAN MURRAY works, composes and creates in the Berkshires of Massachusetts. http://markamurray.com/home.html

Think of an orange. The bright, pebbly skin. The sweet, juicy insides. Oranges pair well with foods like chocolate, toast and vodka. But, how about with mozzarella? Or tomato? Olive oil and capers? Garlic and red onion? Absolutely. Do not be fooled by its breakfast and sweet persona. Oranges play well with more savory items also. In Sicily, from where a portion of my ancestors hail, oranges are used in salads with lettuce and shaved fennel. Since that salad is delicious, we decided to change it a bit. My mom has the best food ideas. There are many times where we sit around and talk about different recipes. This recipe is one of them. Take a Caperese Salad. All it is is sliced fresh mozzarella, tomato slices, fresh basil, and a drizzle of olive oil. Now let’s look at our more Sicilian version: Sure we have slices of fresh mozzarella and tomato. But we also have sliced red onion, black and green olives, sliced garlic, and slices of supremed cara cara oranges.

I can remember where I was when I wrote each of my favorite poems. This is the fun little story behind my poem, Dogs Bark off in the Distance. During the summers of both high school and college, my family would spend a good number of evenings around the kitchen table playing games. Some nights we’d play poker. Some nights we would play board games like Sorry or Scattergories. The kitchen table would be filled with snacks both salty and sweet. I was usually losing if we were playing Sorry. All four of my little plastic yellow game pieces would sit in the start while the other colors would grace the squares around the board. It became a running joke. I bet if we broke out the Sorry board today, we would have a good laugh as my pieces stayed stuck in start. Our table sat in front of the sliding glass doors that went out to the deck. We would always have the door open, which would provide a great cross breeze with the open front windows. You could hear everything in our suburban n

Dogs bark off in the distance As i look out my window at the trees swaying in my head i hear a music calling me and dogs bark off in the distance. A light flashes above my head i think about the fan circling around its idol the statue june it gets hot and dogs bark off in the distance. I sit and watch the cars swerve by monkeys climbing the sky falling on the hen laying eggs frying with bacon and dogs barks off in the distance. I see people jogging on a trail left behind their back door where the draft comes in crowd being led into battle and dogs bark off in the distance. This is the life saving device opening the garage where mechanics work on planes flying overhead that is spinning a web of life as dogs bark off in the distance. --IE Castellano

The new Make Your Offer website is great community of readers and writers where we can chat about anything under the sun and offer to buy most the e-books below retail.  The site's founder interviewed me for MYO's blog.  Read the interview here .

Check out my interview by author and blogger, Kate Aaron. It's my very first author interview and I couldn't be more excited.

Eulogy From A Late Arrival by Anne Mikusinski It must have been some party The afternoon you left And I, tardy as always, Caught up in ephemera, I came too late to say goodbye. I wanted to be there To see you off And wish you a safe journey As you left for parts unknown. Being late is not fashionable When goodbyes are involved The loose ends that are left Dangle like shoestrings And lie in wait to trip me up. The unsaid words hang in the air Unspoken thoughts haunt me in late hours. Nothing to do but remember And hope I run into you again. May 15, 2011 For Warren. RIP I wish I'd known sooner. About Anne Mikusinski: I have been writing stories/poems since I was seven years old. Some of my influences are Robert Frost, EE Cummings, and Dylan Thomas. Find Anne on Twitter

I was reading an article in the Christian Science Monitor today about “boomerang kids” – adults who move back home with their parents after living away for either school or work. The article says that the move back home is an upward trend. And it claims, “surprisingly, most ... don’t mind living with mom and dad.” The trend, according to the article, has taken hold because of poor employment options and economic situations. Adults without families of their own move home to save money, not live in squalor and to stay off the government doll. Then, the article takes a more sinister tone. It says, “it also means young adults are caught in a murky phase between adolescence and adulthood.” They ended the article with a quote from the co-author of Not Quite Adults: Why 20-Somethings Are Choosing a Slower Path to Adulthood and Why It's Good for Everyone , Barbara Ray. Ray states, “‘If the “launch” feels blocked for too long, will this generation's optimism curdle into bittern

Since the day he was born it was always there ingrained in the deepest part of his soul the instinct that drives him To be all alone in a world that rejects him going against the grain the most important thing to him To be accepted by himself in order to love what he does in his mind, heart, and soul Living, learning and teaching he, himself all his life without knowing but finally understanding Something he feels his heart knowing his head spinning his legs moving Never stopping not complaining finally telling his never-ending story --IE Castellano

Every Wednesday I’ll be posting a poem written either by me or from a submission. See the Poetry Submission page for details. Enjoy!

Like the swallows returning to Capistrano, the robins have returned to my little area. My cats are having a field day watching them peck at the morning grass from the safety of a window ledge. On a gorgeously clear Sunday, like today, the motorcycle brigade roars down Main Street off to some point in the mountains. Over the low rumble of engines, church bells call their congregations inside their stained glass houses. Inside my late Victorian, butter bubbles brown in a pan over a low flame. The robust aroma of coffee permeates the kitchen before escaping down the hall. Ham is sliced off the bone waiting to be reheated in a pan. Eggs, fresh from the farm, are cracked into the bubbling butter. My family and I sit around the table to eat. Soft butter melts into toasted bread while the pulp floats on top of the orange juice. My dad and brother crack open the egg white allowing the golden yellow yolk to run all over their plates. My mom and I savor well fried ham slices as well as s

Ah, March. Spring is well on its way. Of course some of us could argue that winter never really made an appearance. This morning, the snow jokingly played in the air only to melt on contact. However, this evening snow blankets with a vengeance. I missed the snow this winter. I missed the entire month or so of days in the 20s. Some would call me crazy. They loved the mild winter. These will be the first people to complain about our extra buggy spring. Every action has at least one reaction. Sometimes good, sometimes bad and sometimes a mixture of both. The whims of March can bring us snow, rain, sun, warm, cool and pretty darn cold. It can fake the trees into early bloom only to encase the flower show under a coating of ice. Reports of crocuses blooming have sprung around the area. I have pretty lemon yellow daffodils planted by a previous owner that have yet to show their green leaves. Regardless of what the weather brings, this is the time of year I anticipate planting my

For all those who missed my birthday ebook coupon, I am participating in Smashwords’ Read an Ebook Week. The coupon code you need is on my book page . The site-wide promotion runs until March 10th. My next book, a dystopian science fiction, is coming along well. The projected release date is sometime in late April. I am trying to push to make that happen, but it might get moved into May. When the date gets closer, I will set a more concrete release date.

My first published novel started with notes about a man learning about a woman who lived a world in-between reality and fantasy. Before I knew it, I had names, places, a plotline and subplots. I never intended to write a series. Yet, I had. My initial draft was penned on unlined printer paper. When I finally sat to type it, I needed to learn how to format a manuscript. Title page, slug lines, double spaced true type font all stuffed into a tidy package. The easy part was over. I had to write query letters to agents who I thought might want to represent my baby. The hook was written and re-written. My author bio drove me crazy. The synopsis haunted me. Still, I wrote them. And out they went. I waited and I waited. Some had the courtesy of sending a reply, even if it was a canned one. Many did not. The noes poured in. The most heart wrenching replies were the ones who said that they enjoyed my work but, it wasn’t a good fit for them. Onwards I pressed. I believed in my wo

An approximate 300 word snippet of The World In-between is available on Indie Snippets. Read the excerpt here .

Tuesday the fourteenth was my birthday.  To celebrate, I wish to share with you a coupon for my debut novel, The World In-between. Leap into a hidden world known only to those who have been there.  Fall in love.  Battle for magic.  Find your inner strengths. Take 34% off (makes it $5.93).  This offer is good only through Smashwords.  Smashwords offers every format for whatever e-reader you have or in an easy pdf format to read on your computer. Find the ebook on Smashwords here. At the checkout, enter coupon code: VY67U (not case-sensitive). The coupon expires February 29th. Happy Reading! --IE Castellano

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, we are bombarded with chocolate. Commercials entice you to buy chocolate covered strawberries. Cooking shows feature chocolate in every recipe. Stores sneak chocolate candy into aisle after aisle. All because of a cliche or a very clever marketing scheme. Women love chocolate. We want to eat nothing but chocolate. Bathe us in chocolate then enrobe us in more chocolate. At one point in my life, I enjoyed chocolate. Now, the Mayan food of the gods bores me. Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy a tasty piece of dark chocolate on occasion. It is just the onslaught of the chocolate trends has pushed me into chocolate doldrums. Trend weariness happens more often than we like to admit. People see something popular and grab. What started as something lovely, morphs into a barrage of garbage. Those who contribute to the trend can find success before the inevitable happens. Often the problem with riding trends is that we are left with a gapi

As the days begin to explode with pink, my birthday inches closer. In a little over a week, I am going to be older than I am now. Profound, I know. I thought it would be a good time to give you my backstory. The wind blew white across the land that February. Already a month late, I was not waiting for a little snow to subside. While my dad was helping my mom to the car, the dog escaped through the back door. Marble loved to run and did so often, to the chagrin of my parents. Fortunately, his dark coat was easy to spot against the mid morning whiteness. Too far back? My love of the English language began early. With my parents reading to me constantly, I learned to love the fine art of storytelling. Reading at bedtime. Reading at other times. Reading while we all sat in the family room. Reading around the table. Family time included a book of either nonfiction or fiction in most genres from the classics like David Copperfield to Greek and Roman mythology. After reading, di

Currently, I am working on four novels. Each is at a different stage of completion. Everyday, I am writing scenes, developing characters, or working out plot points. Yet somehow, when it comes to writing a blog post or on a forum, nothing comes. People keep telling me to go on Twitter. Although I am considering joining, I am not sure what messages I would convey within 140 characters. And, I wonder if I would have the time to keep up with the world’s tweets. My priority is to write my stories. They require nurturing until they can be released into the world. Everything I read about being an author tells me that I need to be out there, shouting to the world to notice my work; pick it up; peruse it. However, does an author risk having one’s work suffer from neglect because our internet society expects us to be connected at every waking moment? I would hope that readers would respect me more because I chose to write a novel in which they get immersed into the world I created for th

Pink kisses the clouds’ bellies before the sun peeks over the mountains. Smoke rising from chimneys is the only life against dormant trees. A second story window overlooks the eastern part of town. The gentle hug of snow on rooftops transports me to a time found only in artists’ renditions.