Of Ice Cream & Imagination

Next Tuesday Evening I will read from my recently published book, The Sky Behind Me, a Memoir of Flying and Life . One of the promotions for the event came about from a rather indirect route. I found myself in an ice cream shop in Clintonville, a suburb of Columbus Ohio. The young woman who manages the store was a classmate of mine at Ohio State where I finished my college studies last June. Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream is something of an institution in Columbus. The owner/creator, Jeni Britton Bauer decided years ago that ice cream should be the one pleasure that among all others reflects the local and the artisanal nature of things. In other words, one of life’s ultimate pleasures.
In other words, like good writing. Toss in pure, locally grown and nurtured ingredients, flavor with just the right touch of fresh and wholesome sweet & sour, add a snippet of the unexpected and the result is magical. In other words, like good writing.
So when I got the opportunity to pose for a picture at Jeni’s, and my classmate added the shot to Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream’s FaceBook page I was flattered and grateful. I suspect (I hope) that those who attend my splendid reading next week (see details) will come away satisfied and intrigued at the stories I tell. And I hope they all head for Jeni’s afterward. I recommend the Salty Caramel. I could write an entire story about that stuff.