Gina Kaufmann
@ginak
Journalist-reader-writer-watcher-worrier-joker Future librarian Formerly: editor @theworld.org, talkshow and podcast host @KCUR, freelance for Nieman Reports, PRX, Mass Humanities, WBUR’s Cognoscenti, Boston Globe, Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls
My cousin sent me the poster that used to hang in my dad’s short-lived bookstore. It’s been in her home since the store closed because the drawing of our grandfather was done by her. She sent it to me in honor of my decision to go to library school 😭😭😭 My dad’s whole personality is here
A new digital-only news outlet in a KS news desert called the Lyon County Observer has my attention. Today they shared this press release on Facebook. Please read for info on trans rights + nuance of politics in a state outsiders dismiss based on color coding on a map. That matters, so does this.
We have engaged with tough stories that often *imagine* us (a Muslim and a Jew) on opposing “sides.” What I’ll remember, though, is the two of us sharing friendship and deep understanding all this time.
I have a book called Toraneko Bonbon’s Kitchen Almanac, written in Japanese and filled with delightful illustrations of cats eating seasonally and pickling things. I wish I could read it. I suspect the text offers ideas for being more like these cats and I want that very much.
Took a day off to celebrate and absorb 10 years of being a parent in this world, and am reading the perfect book by @theferocity.bsky.social and @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social gifted to me by the one and only @jessicau.bsky.social
No dining al fresco tonight but I’m still enamored with our little balcony setup… even though it’s fully unusable at the moment
Returning via Amtrak from a long weekend in NYC, where I went to college and imagined I’d stay forever… only to develop, within 3 years, a desperate need to see a horizon line. This book is perfect for this train ride. Thanks @saribotton.bsky.social
Lying under a canopy of cherry blossom trees is the answer, regardless of the question (gratuitous vacation pic from a springtime getaway to NYC)
Quality escape read. Very addictive. Every chapter centers on an incidental character from the previous one, and it always takes a minute to put it together. I can’t stop because I HAVE TO KNOW who’s next.
Two conversations about Iran from this week that should not be missed. First, the amazing novelist Sahar Delijani (author of Children of the Jacaranda Tree) on the part of the story of dissent that she says always gets left out. theworld.org/segments/202...
My former employer shared some fun archival photos of Passover Seders in Kansas City from back on olden times. I’m in one of them 😂 (“pigtails at kids table)… in case you’ve ever wondered how big Kansas City’s Jewish community is.
Signs of spring in the arboretum. Weekend photo roll keeping me going on a Monday morning.
What the snow looks like in Massachusetts after Holi celebrations are over
One of the subtler joys of Kansas City: long shadows. I lived there for about 40 years all together and only this trip put my finger on this feature of the landscape. I love it.
In my hometown, on a walk, admiring the long shadows on the wide open landscape here
This is not what people do here but I like to wish my mom happy birthday everywhere. We’re both older now. One of us is more mature. I’m not saying who. Happy bday to a true badass.
Enjoying this so much as my own kid gets ready to start a new grade and I fall into the predictable cliche of wanting time to slow down.
Hey Kansas City, YJ’s has a long lost twin in Montreal. It’s called Chez Jose. Not pictured: the flier-plastered bathroom.
I know this is not how people use this site but figure it’s worth asking even if I get just one helpful answer: What is something good to make using the leaves of lemongrass? Most recipes call for stalks but the leaves are abundant and fragrant! Photo for attention