Maria is going away for the weekend. I can handle it. I might hit some bars in Glens Falls, N.Y. or Saratoga. I’ve decided to volunteer to do some writing teaching at a local college. It’s an interesting process. Two colleges invited me, but they are too far away. I’ve contacted three others, offering to teach a seminar for free, and gotten form letters saying there are no openings and none expected. I’m locking in on Adirondack Community College because I think I could do the most good there. We’ll see what they say.
  I think it’s good for writers to go mix it up with young writers from time to time, and challenge and be challenged. My 20th book is coming out next month, and I feel I ought to pass on some of the things I’ve learned while I can make some sense of the process. I love teaching briefly – I’ve done it at Yale, University of Minnesota and NYU – and hate teaching for any length of time.
  Good to give something back, too. I find the form letters amusing. Some places are so tight you can’t even work for them for free. That’s tight.