Kevin Kling: Unraveled

16 July 2025: I went into Kevin Kling: Unraveled knowing just about nothing about it--and I am really glad I did. It's one thing to be moved, delighted, and entertained. It's another thing when you completely didn't see it coming. I'm grateful to have another work of art that reminds me of goodness, light, storytelling, and just the simple beauty of living and doing your best.

Before the show started, I was talking with the guy sitting next to me, a friendly and smart guy. He lives in MA now and is, if I heard him correctly, is in town because of a screening of a documentary he worked on. We talked about Shepherdstown a bit and I said it's just a "gem" of a place. CATF is another facet of that gem.

Street Fest 2024

29 June 2024: What a great day today was! This morning, I had a volunteer shift at Street Fest. Then I can home to meet Erin and the girls, who finally met Jo. That went swimmingly, of course. And we went to Street Fest. Hot as heck, but fun. 

Streetfest 2023

24 June 2023: Had a lot of fun volunteering at Streetfest today. I worked a "security" shift, basically politely asking folks to stay in the beer garden area. Great for people-watching and catching up with the folks I knew who walked by. Then I hung around and listened to some of the bands with Carrie. The rain threatened but held off all day. Lovely way to enjoy this amazing town. 

Turtle squad

8 August 2022: A moment from my walk this morning: a guy doing some road maintenance (a town employee, I think?) stopping what he was doing to walk a bit further up the hill alongside me so that we could both cheer, encourage, and sort of shoo a box turtle across the street. A team effort!

What a town!

Streetfest!

25 June 2022: Pushing back against the darkness a bit today. Volunteered at Streetfest and worked at the SU table for a couple of hours. We are now experts at helping vendors set up tents. Got home a bit before 3:00, took a cold shower (it was HOT out there), and have been crashing since then, watching TV: first the Yankees (they lost), then a movie (Fire Island, which was so cute), and now Dickinson, which I have been putting off forever to serve as a treat (but only when I was also able to really focus on it). 

Two things...

14 August 2019: Still working through this funk I've been in, which seems more intense when I've got lots of unstructured time on my hands. ("Unstructured," of course, isn't the same as "nothing to do." I've got lots to get done...)

Anyway, as I know I've written about so often before, walking always helps. On my walk today, two things made me feel better. First, The Hilarious World of Depression, particularly this episode about travel. I actually intentionally waited until after my research trip to listen to it because I was a bit worried it would hit too close to home. But it's really interesting and moving, as all the episodes are.

Second, a conversation with a neighbor. As I walked down one cul-de-sac, I waved to a woman doing yard work. (I wave so much on these walks--to passing cars, to people in their yards, to cats sunning themselves...) On my pass back up the street, the woman cut across the road to talk to me. "Are you Dr. Hanrahan?" she asked. Turns out she remembered me from my Lectures and Libations talk. She also remembered that I had won the award right before and congratulated me again. I complimented her yard and asked her about a plant that stands out to me every time I walk by. (Turns out it's a type of milkweed. Huh!)

When you are having a rough time, having something like that happen? It means so much. And yet another reminder of how blessed I am to live in this place and have this job.

Jane Austen Tea Party

15 July 2017: “You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you." --Darcy to Elizabeth, Pride and Prejudice

Today my friend Carrie and I led a discussion of Jane Austen at a library fundraiser. The above passage--on lots of people's "favorites" list--came up during the discussion. To tell the truth, I was a bit nervous going into the event, not knowing what to expect. But I should have expected that the people of this cool little town would show up with their A games, and they sure did.

Reading Emily Dickinson

30 September 2016: I got to participate in a really cool event on Friday night: an annual fundraiser for the Shepherdstown Public Library. It's an evening of poetry and music and I was invited to read Emily Dickinson's poetry. (All of the other readers are actual poets who read their own works.) Honestly, I was a bit nervous before taking the stage, so to speak, which is strange because I speak to big groups all the time. Maybe the difference this time was that these folks had paid good money to be entertained? Once I got going, though, it was a blast. Emily never fails to entertain. What fun!

This magical town...

30 July 2016: At a potluck on Saturday night, I found myself surrounded mostly by people I hadn't met before. The dinner was hosted by a friend from work, Rachael, who is one of the most decent, loving people I've ever known. It's no surprise, then, that her friends are also wonderful. But I think there's even more to it than that...it's this town, this lovely, strange, magical town. What a blessing to live here.

Local fun

25 June 2016: I really love where I live...here's some of what I did on Saturday.

1) Attended my first ever "poultry swap" in Sharpsburg. Two of my friends have chickens, so they were interested in checking it out. As far as I could tell, no poultry was swapped for anything other than money, but it was fun for people (and poultry) watching.

2) Attended Shepherdstown Street Fest, which is always a blast.

3) Attended the "New Voices Play Festival" at the Old Opera House in Charles Town and saw four one-act plays, including one starring my friend, Kelly.

The day's good thing, though? Probably getting my picture taken with these two Ghosts of Shepherdstown stars.

This show is so ridiculous and and my friends and I are having a blast watching it.

Walk through the neighborhood

25 May 2014: I felt the need to really stretch my legs this morning and get a good walk in. The weather is gorgeous so lots of people were out and about. It's quite nice to wave to folks mowing their lawns, playing with their kids, walking their dogs, etc. I still can't believe sometimes that I get to live in this community.

Thanksgiving Weekend

Just a few more pictures from Thanksgiving Weekend...

Tara and I at dinner on Friday night.

Mom and Dad at dinner on Friday.

My dad trying on a dapper hat at O'Hurley's in Shepherdstown.

Colin used his own money to buy this nifty walking stick at O'Hurley's.

We took Ava (Tara and Jeff's dog) down to the Potomac and she dashed right in. She didn't even hesitate. Here she is coming out...

...before heading back in.

Colin down by the river.

We took in more of the sights and activities of Christmas in Shepherdstown, which included free face-painting for the kids (and maybe adults, too, if they wanted?) and a visit with Santa.

Maybe my mom is right...

...and academia is turning me into a crazy liberal, because (with the possible exception of the first play), I don't see anything inherently left-wing about these plays. Simply talking about race, the wars, etc. is not partisan. (You'll notice, I hope, that they are being hosted at Shepherd.) Anyway, check out this little blurb at the Corner...

The Corner - National Review Online

(I hardly ever visit the Corner anymore--I just went there today to see what folks were saying about the Byrd vacancy. Imagine my surprise at seeing SU front-and-center on the first post!)

Here's the NPR story...

And yeah, my mom isn't right on this one. Sorry, Mom.

Birthday pictures...

Well, they are about a month late, but here are some pictures from my birthday, when my mom and Kelsie were visiting.


My mom and Kelsie outside Crystal Grottoes in Boonsboro, Maryland (about 15 minutes from my house). Visiting the Grottoes was a nice way to spend an hour or so. It's no Howe Caverns, which I remember vividly from my childhood, but it was still interesting and cool (literally) and our tour guide was excellent.

Below, a bunch of pictures from inside:

For dinner that night, we went to the Bavarian Inn and had a lovely dinner. You can read about the last time I was there here. The food was delicious, of course, but my favorite part of dinner was watching Kelsie develop a crush on our waiter, a Shepherd student who I know a bit from Sigma Tau Delta stuff. Girls got good taste--he is a cutie and he kept calling her "Miss" and "young lady," which she seemed to love. At one point, he asked if he could refill her almost-full water glass and she was like, "Sure!" and took a big gulp when he went off to get the pitcher.

A nice view of part of the Bavarian Inn.

The chalets overlooking the Potomac at the Bavarian Inn.

After dinner, we walked around town a bit and took my mom to see my new office. Kelsie sat at the desk and pretended to be me.

Okay--that's about it for August, which turned out to be a pitiful month for posting. I am making a vow right hear to aim for at least 30 posts a month. (I managed that in July, I think.) I am already behind for September, but I like a challenge.

Home!

You know what's an awesome feeling? Waking up in your new house. And being an official Shepherdstownian (sp?).

The move went very well yesterday. If you are moving somewhere in this area, I highly recommend Rockwell's Moving and Storage. They sent over a four man crew who got everything packed and unpacked in less than two hours. Amazing. (Of course, I probably helped a bit by knocking off a decent chunk of time with my own full-car trips the day before.)

After they were gone, it was back to the old apartment to pick up the boys, who were locked in the bathroom. First, I did about 90 minutes worth of cleaning there. Then back to the house with cats in tow. I let them out to explore--which they did very slowly and tentatively at first--as I ate a quick lunch.

Then back to the apartment again to finish cleaning. I had to shampoo the carpets, wash the vinyl floors, etc. At this point I was already so tired (having slept less than 2 hours on Wednesday night after spending all that day loading and unloading my car) that it took every ounce of strength to haul that Rug Doctor up and down the stairs. I considered coming back today (Friday) to finish it all up, since I had until 5:00 today to get out. I didn't want to do that, since I had a 9:30 meeting with my department chair today and the cable guy coming between 2 and 5 (love those 3-hour windows), but I just didn't think I could get everything done before the landlady left at 5:00 on Thursday.

But then I saw that my landlady was (for some reason) staying in the office later than she usually does and I used that as motivation to get it all done. So I did. I was like Popeye full of spinach, if Popeye full of spinach was also a whiny, bitchy, tired girl who was basically crawling up the stairs as she vacuumed them. I don't even want to think about what I looked like (a sweaty mess) when I finally stumbled into her office to hand in the keys. Here's a hint, though: she said, "How's it going over there? About as much fun as a funeral, right?"

I also look like I am a beating victim--bruises all over my arms and legs from boxes and whatever. Lovely stuff. I can't help it: moving is like a full-contact sport for me.

But...it's all worth it because A) I am officially done with the old apartment and B) now comes the really fun part: unpacking. (And I mean that--I like unpacking.)

Oh, and Bing and Wesley are doing great. Right now they are kind of like little stalkers, following me from room to room (or at least floor to floor), but they are also having fun--chasing each other around, playing, sleeping, eating, etc. It's like they are their regular old selves, but just a bit excited and hyper-aware. But I think they love their new house already.

Visit from the family...

A few pictures from one of the best parts of my summer so far: a visit from my mom, my sister, Colin, and Olivia. I don't have that many, in part because my mom and Tara were snapping tons of pictures the whole time and I'll just get copies from them. I still wanted to share a few, though.





We visited Harpers Ferry (both the National Historic Park section and the Historic District) and really enjoyed it. I think you could spend several days there doing all sorts of things. I really like this shot of Colin looking at the geese by the river. I love how he has his hands crossed behind him.


One of my favorite parts of Harpers Ferry was the John Brown Wax Museum (not a part of the National Park). Equal parts educational, campy, horrifying, and funny, you have to see it to believe it. I wish I had audio of my sister trying to explain slavery, abolitionism, and the complicated legacy of someone like John Brown to her kids. Case in point: the first scene represents young John Brown witnessing a slave child being beaten. Then came a scene from "Bleeding Kansas." Quite a challenge for a parent to explain. I must say, though, she did a great job emphasizing the bare bones truths: people should be treated fairly no matter what they look like and violence is rarely the right way to solve a problem.


The kids were mesmerized (and probably permanently scarred) by the body of Heyward Shepherd, the first man killed in John Brown's raid. It lays on the ground and when you hit a button, and as a narrator tells what's going on in the scene, the guy's chest moves up and down in the throes of death. Lovely stuff. It just gets better from there--John Brown on a stretcher during his trial (which is historically accurate, of course), and finally...



...Brown about to meet his doom. I was half expecting his wax figure to turn animatronic and fall through the floor, but thankfully (for the kids, at least) it didn't go that far. Still, even this image is a lot to explain to a couple of 5-year olds.


That same evening we had dinner at my mom's favorite Shepherdstown restaurant, the Bavarian Inn. It was a lovely night--we ate outside (in perfect weather for outdoor dining), the kids were well-behaved, the food was delicious, and as we sat there, the lightening bugs lit up the grounds around the inn.



Colin snapped this picture of my mom at the restaurant. I am struck by how much she looks like my late great-aunt, Tante Lieselotte, in this picture.



One last picture--another one Colin took--of Olivia and I at dinner.

Gulp...

Since I signed the contract today, I guess I can finally officially post this (although lots of you already know)...



This is an old picture of the place from back when the current owners were buying it, but it's the best one I have on hand. Tentative move-in date: July 29. I'll probably give more details later. This whole thing is terrifying, by the way--very exciting, but also terrifying.

Where I work...

My friend Wilkie sent me a link to this Washington Post story about Shepherdstown. Sounds idyllic, right? So why the heck don't you come visit me?