All summer, while I was mostly without internet, I was thinking that I wanted to take the blog in a little bit different direction when I got back to Mexico. Then when I got back, I was immersed for the first month in getting settled into school and classes, but the question never left my mind: What direction will the blog take this year?

I feel a lot more comfortable here in Torreón. My Spanish has improved some, and while I still often find it impossible to understand what people are saying, I feel confident telling the taxi driver what route to take to where I want to go and I can order sotol con tomate at Garcés. I have my regular shopping day on Saturday and cooking and laundry on Sunday. I have help with the house cleaning. I still don’t have much of a social life, but I’ve accepted this as something I can live with for the present.
I’m much more confident in my work. I am improving as a writing teacher, and I’m learning a lot about the craft of writing at the same time.

One thing I have remembered is that readers make good writers.

My choices for reading material are limited (unless of course you consider the Kindle option, which I often do, but I need to hold a book in my hands). The school libraries are my only sources for books in English, but I find my favorites are there, and a third reading of Cold Mountain seems to be in order.

Frazier’s book makes me feel a lot of things but the point I want to raise here is simply this: I love to read. I don’t have as much time as I would like to read (or at least I tell myself that I don’t) but reading is very important to me for entertainment as well as for learning.

So now it’s been two months since I got back and I’ve decided what to do here this fall. I’m going to use the blog to talk about books. I’m going to share what I’m reading, good and bad, great or awful. I’m going to talk about the past and the present and maybe the future. I’m going to share my fiction with my readers and the world (or at least a little part of it).

I will continue to share my experiences in Mexico as well (I had my first ever acupuncutre treatment today and I plan to spend a few days in Mexico City over Thanksgiving break). I expect that I still have a lot more to learn while I’m here.

So welcome back, my devoted fans and dedicated readers!  I hope you’ll hang with me for a few posts and let me know what you think of the new direction.