Solace in a Book

  • Home
  • Ellen Wade Beals
  • SOLACE in So Many Words
    • Discussion Questions for Solace in So Many Words
    • Reviews
    • Contributors
    • PRESS KIT
  • Weighed Words
  • Submissions
  • Events
  • Contact

Archives for October 2015

Wabi-Sabi

10/30/2015 By Ellen Beals Leave a Comment

The subject of accepting one’s age recently came up on my Twitter feed so I thought I’d share my thoughts on Wabi-Sabi. Do you know about Wabi-Sabi? It’s the Japanese tradition of revering authenticity, finding the beauty in imperfection, celebrating transience. What could be more perfect for aging baby-boomers than a mindset celebrating the loveliness of life on the far side of ripe? Wabi-Sabi finds the beauty in impermanence, imperfection, and incompletion. When … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: aging, appreciation, coming to terms with aging, dignity, Ellen Wade Beals, getting older, Jon Spayde, Marcia Tyson Kolb, maturity, Photography, Robyn Griggs Lawrence, Solace, Solace in So Many Words, the gifts of aging, Utne Readerk, Wabi-Sabi, Weighed Words

Glimpse of Solace: Open House Chicago 2015

10/20/2015 By Ellen Beals

Those of you who read my posts will know that Open House Chicago is one of my fav weekends in the fall. This year was no exception. We started Sunday with doughnuts from Glazed and Infused and then visited McCormick Place, Bronzeville, Back of the Yards, and Pilsen.  Here are my pics. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: A Glimpse of Solace Tagged With: artist Fontaine Myles, Back of the Yards, Bernard Williams, Bronzeville, Chi-Town Chart, Chicago, Chicago Architecture Foundation, Chicago neighborhoods, Ellen Wade Beals, Fontaine Myles, Glimpse of Solace, Growing Power's Iron Street Farm, Hector Duarte's studio, Inner City Youth & Adult Foundtion, McCormick Place, Open House Chicago, Photography, Pilsen, Poetry, Solace in So Many Words, Swift Mansion, Thalia Hall, Weighed Words, Wheeler House

Diversions and photo prompts

10/17/2015 By Ellen Beals Leave a Comment

As I have mentioned here before, I am a crossword puzzle enthusiast, an addict really. The Chicago Tribune runs the puzzle from the Los Angeles Times syndicate and the Sun-Times runs the The New York Times puzzle (a week later than it originally appears),  I still get the Trib delivered and do the puzzle each day. Usually I warm up with the Jumble. I work in pen. I time myself. I have let my Chicago Sun-Times subscription lapse. The paper is not what it once was, and I … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Always a crossword between us, Chicago Book Expo 2015, crossword puzzles, Ellen Wade Beals, Lesléa Newman, Lilith, Open House Chicago, Photography, photography prompts, Poetry, Solace in So Many Words, Weighed Words, Writing prompts

Ireland calls

10/13/2015 By Ellen Beals Leave a Comment

Can you be homesick for a place that was never your home? I don’t know, but that’s how I feel about Ireland lately – that it is calling me. The feeling was intensified this weekend when I attended iBAM!, the festival of Irish Books and Music at the Irish American Heritage Center. Mary Pat Kelly spoke about her books, Galway Bay, and especially the latest Of Irish Blood. She said she learned from the McCourt brothers to talk about her book, rather than read from it. She … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: 2016 Gregory O'Donoghue International Poetry Competition, AfterHours, Beats Me, Blackrock, Chicago, Colum McCann, Cork Spring Literary Fest., Ellen Wade Beals, Galway Bay, Ireland, Irish American Heritage Center, Judy Lee Burke, Mary Pat Kelly, Maryrose Carroll, Munster Literature Center, Of Irish Blood, Paul Carroll, Photography, Poetry, Rick Kogan, Solace in So Many Words, Thirteen Ways of Looking, Weighed Words, WGN Radio

Go, read, submit

10/05/2015 By Ellen Beals Leave a Comment

Hey there.  Hope all is well with you. Mark your calendar for Book Fort's winter Pop Up Book Fair presented by Curbside Splendor, which will be held Sunday, November 8th, from 1:00 to 6:00 pm at Empty Bottle (1035 N Western). This is a great event and always a lot of fun.  You get to support Chicago's literary talents and enjoy a tasty beverage (I've heard the Bloody Marys are great). There may still be spaces available for exhibitors -- contact Catherine Eves (catherine … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: ". . . better loving", Alison Gopnik, Alloy, Barry Silesky, Cathy Park Hong, Community Church of Wilmette, Contributors, controversy, Curbside Splendor, Curbside Splendor Pop Up Book Fair, Ellen Wade Beals, Jan Bottiglieri, Joan Corwin, Kenneth Goldsmith, Little Eagle's RE / VERSE, Mayapple Press, Photography, po biz, Poetry, Ralph Murre, S. L. Wisenberg, Sharon Solowtiz, Solace, Solace in So Many Words, The Atlantic, The Guild Complex Anne Calcagno, Weighed Words

Buy From

    Order Through PayPal:
    Number of copies
  • IndieBound
  • Amazon
  • Powell's
  • Barnes & Noble

Contact Ellen

Click here to email Ellen

Follow

Follow weighedwords on Twitter  Follow on Twitter
Follow Ellen on Facebook  Follow on Facebook
Share |

Categories

  • A Glimpse of Solace (145)
  • A Slice of Solace (51)
  • Blog (365)
  • Guest Posts (43)

Sites I Visit Often

  • Academy of American Poets
  • Betsy Lerner
  • Brendan Coudal
  • CJ Laity's chicagopoetry
  • Coffee-House Poetry
  • Curbside Splendor
  • Dave Bonta
  • Elster Photography
  • Emerging Writers Network
  • Escape into Life
  • Fiction Writers Review
  • Kathleen Kirk
  • Luisa A. Igloria
  • Mary Beth Coudal
  • Media Bistro
  • Moving Poems
  • Mslexia
  • Nathan Bransford
  • New Pages
  • Poetry Ireland
  • Role/Reboot
  • Salmon Poetry
  • Small Press Review
  • The Chicago Reader
  • The Guardian
  • The House That Del Built
  • The Morning News
  • The Morning Porch
  • The Nervous Breakdown
  • The New Yorker
  • The Paris Review
  • The Toronto Quarterly
  • The Utne Reader
  • This Blog Will Change Your Life
  • Tom Aplomb
  • Via Negativa
  • Woorat Photohaiku

Copyright © 2025 · Site Design: Ilsa Brink