Louis has family in Rome, and he asks me to go visit them for him. They’re his second cousins or something along those lines, and there are three brothers who own a pizzaria not far from the Spanish steps, he tells me. Also, as a bonus, it’s supposed to be the best pizza in Rome,Continue reading “In search of the best pizza in Rome”
Author Archives: Katie Botkin
The papal blessing that was not
There’s a whole passel of people, Catholic and non, going to Rome with Emily and Thomas to see them get the papal blessing on their newly-minted marriage. I have the same flight from Cork they do, as does Mary, so we all share a cab to the airport. Em manages to convince Aer Lingus toContinue reading “The papal blessing that was not”
Sunday night in Cork
I’m staying in Emily and Thomas’ house after their wedding, with Mary, one of Emily’s bridesmaids. Fortunately for everyone concerned, they are not there; they’re in downtown Cork staying a hotel, on something they have dubbed a “mini-moon.” Sunday nights in Cork, they say, there’s a band that plays down at Counihan’s, and they tellContinue reading “Sunday night in Cork”
The whole purpose of my visit
One of the most surreal things about traveling is finding people displaced into a new context, as, in this case, happened shortly after I arrived at Barabrow and people started trickling in for the wedding of Thomas and Emma, which was my whole reason for being there in the first place. Most of these peopleContinue reading “The whole purpose of my visit”
Beyond Dublin
“You’re checked through all the way to Dublin,” said the uniform-clad woman in the Spokane airport, at half-past four in the morning, handing me a trio of tickets. And one, two, three, four, five, the phrase “all the way to Dublin” was lodged melodically in my head for the next 20 hours, until, in fact,Continue reading “Beyond Dublin”
Areté after Ares
There is no honor In resting upon your laurels or your thorns In letting past glory or failure answer for the day There is no honor In claiming gain as worth, or debt as sin In having either steal your self-possession There is no honor In giving any slight, annoyance, hindrance, tardiness or lack InordinateContinue reading “Areté after Ares”
To catch a thief, crowdsourced
On May 29 or 30 of last year, my Burton snowboarding jacket got taken out of my car, which was parked (unlocked) in front of my house. It was a distinctive coat, with a purple argyle pattern that had endeared it to me when I discovered it on clearance in Seattle back in 2007. ItContinue reading “To catch a thief, crowdsourced”
Polarizing on purpose
Here’s the thing about having something like your own book label. It means you’ve got to get people’s attention one way or another if you ever hope to sell anything. Let me just say from a quick survey of hits on various blogs and websites I write for that the easiest way to get attentionContinue reading “Polarizing on purpose”
Stop Abortion Now
There was this sign I used to hold as a kid when we went to pro-life rallies, which typically consisted of long lines of families standing on the sidewalk. It said, like all the other signs said, “Stop Abortion Now.” Once, when I was nine, some guy jumped out of a van with a televisionContinue reading “Stop Abortion Now”
Easter in the graveyard
My sister’s in-laws have this tradition of getting a bunch of people together and eating Easter breakfast as a picnic in the graveyard. The result is this sunny spread of bacon, sausage and sweet rolls against the backdrop of weathered gravestones, right around the time of year when you could actually first have a picnicContinue reading “Easter in the graveyard”
Botkin Creative 