The shameless promotion of friends and family

The Daycare
The Nanny

• Articles

  • Polish Girls and Irishmen by my cousin, Tim Bazzett is an article inspired by the book The Grasinski Girls by Mary Erdmans, another cousin of mine.   Tim's reflections on ethnicity, family and the career choice of "just a Mom" are near to my heart and I can't read this without a tear.

  • Morgan Gibson, our beloved friend, has generously given me permission to publish these poems here.   They have all been published in other places, but never before as a collection.   I hope in the future to have a place on the site that does more justice to his writing, but in the meantime, here they are in the pdf file as he sent them to me.   Thank you Morgan!

  • Ben Hansen, my husband, soulmate and friend. And writer.
    • CATIE & You
    • Involuntary And Illegal Electroshock In Michigan
    • Questioning Doctor's Diagnosis
    • Tarahumara Journey

  • My daughter, Elizabeth, wrote the poem The Women In My Life which speaks so eloquently about our friends and family that I proudly publish it here with her permission.   Thank you to all these women.

• Books

  • My cousin Tim has written four books: Reed City Boy, Soldier Boy, Pinhead: A Love Story and Love, War & Polio.   These autobiographical stories are told with that dry sense of humor and wry philosophy that the Bazzetts are known for.   They may be a little too frank or explicit for the more fragile reader, but for the rest of us they're a hilarious, tear-jerking insight into a wonderful Michigan family.   In the first book, you'll find my parent's wedding picture!   Tim's Mom, my Aunt Daisy, wrote an introduction to Soldier Boy that makes me wish she would write a book.   (I've heard rumors that she is!)   I have yet to read the newest release, but I'm sure I won't be disappointed.   For a sample of his writing, read Polish Girls and Irishmen.

  • The Grasinski Girls was written by Mary Patrice Erdmans whose Mom is my Mom's cousin.   The book is full of interviews with her mother and aunts, all of them relatives of mine, so you see why I had to put it on this page!   Mary explores the private lives of these white, working-class, Polish-American women in the post-World War II generation comparing them, at times, to our own postfeminist generation.   A wonderful insight into how gender, class, ethnicity, and religion shapes the choices we are given as well as the choices we make.  For a reflection on this book, read Polish Girls and Irishmen by Tim Bazzett.

• Websites
  • Ben Hansen's website, Bonkers Institute. In the interest of full disclosure I must admit that I am the webmistress of that website as well as this one.

  • My sister-in-law Bernadette is one of those great teachers who really cares about kids and goes the extra mile to make her school a better place.   Her website is mostly just for her students and families, but she has some good links on it that are worth checking out.

  • Chateau Chantal is a gorgeous winery and bed and breakfast owned by Bob and Nadine Begin.  Nadine is my Mom's cousin; one of those Graskinski Sisters in the book above.  Even if we weren't related, I'd still think that they have the most beautiful winery in the area; and I have done my research.  Their website is very informative, including some delicious recipes.  They also have great jazz entertainment on a regular basis all year 'round in a family-friendly atmosphere.

  • Equine Art by Jeanne Rewa is a place to view and buy stunning original portraits of horses by my cousin's daughter.   Go look for yourself; I wouldn't include her on this list if she wasn't worth a peek.  Also some equally stunning hand-carved wands by her sister, Amy.   I would love this stuff even if I didn't love these women, but I do.

  • My good old buddy from way back in high school days, Bruce Peterson, is still a rabble rouser and has a the Fear No Arts website to prove it.   There are few people that I admire as much as Bruce for his unrelenting passion for fighting the good fight with such peaceful, mindful humility on this earth.   Brace yourself, and then check him out.

  • Five Springs Farm is owned by our friends, Jim Sluyter and Jo Meller.   They're wonderful people who live in my idea of heaven and their website is a sweet peek into that heaven.   Jim wrote a beautiful article, The Community in Community Supported Agriculture that helps us understand why what they do is so vital.   If we didn't have farmers, how would we eat?   These are some of the most important people on the planet.

  • Besides being a profound, innovative jazz musician with a big heart, Jeff Haas is a magnet that draws other great talent to him.   Wherever he's performing you're certain to find unparalleled quality.   What a joy to be able to include him on this page!

  • New Pages is the website of my sister Denise and her husband Casey Hill.   It's a dense resource of news, information and guides to independent bookstores, independent publishers, literary magazines, alternative periodicals, independent record labels and alternative newsweeklies.   Though aimed primarily at the literary world, even if you're not a writer or a reader (I've heard there are such people...) you'll still find interesting musical recommendations here as well as books and periodicals that are off the beaten path; the most interesting kind.   My favorite part of the site is the blog which used to be just snippets from other sites or magazines; now it often has a bit of editorial comment as well, usually by Denise who always is worth listening to.

  • Olson, Bzdok & Howard, P.C., is a specialty law firm located in Traverse City, Michigan, that provides high quality, progressive legal services to clients throughout Michigan and the nation, with an emphasis in environmental, natural resource, land use, real estate, Indian, and corporate law.   These attorneys really are the good guys.

  • Poet's Night Out     The best community poetry contest ever.   Made possible by our local library and a small group of amazing people.