That loud swooshing sound you hear is the sound of a giant trapeze swinging, with MomBrain hanging on by her knees, upside down, swinging her arms gleefully and yeehawing. Which is not the way this leap started. No, that was with me hanging on right side up, all elbows and knees and trembling uncertainty. But when a leap is inevitable; when you see the ground rushing toward you and there’s no way to scramble back to the platform’s edge; well then you may as well enjoy the wind in your hair and let loose with a yodel.

I shouldn’t be frightened. After all, I am leaping toward familiar territory, into the arms of a partner I know will catch me. All the same, it’s still a change, and I am very very fond of ruts. The mundane monotony of unchanging routines is reassuring to me. But after three years as Managing Editor of Literary Mama and then Director of MotherTalk, I am flinging myself wholeheartedly back into the world of hedonistic reading and writing. And I’m ecstatic. For the first time in years, I can focus my writing energy on my own projects, including a hairy beast of a novel-in-progress, a fictionalized memoir that’s covered in dust, and two — count ‘em, two — collections of essays.

But then, THEN, I get dessert. I get to read purely for pleasure, blog about what I’m reading with no conflict of interest, and even write the occasional book review without a disclaimer.

I get to be who I am.

So give me some suggestions. What have you read lately that’s fabulous? Breathtaking? Easy and fun? Hard and soul-shaking? Help me fill my shelves!

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When the archeologists find the manpower to excavate MomBrain’s desk, this is what they will find:

• A coffee-stained galley of Cancer Is a Bitch, the UNBELIEVABLY FABULOUS memoir of writer friend Gail Konop Baker.
• 233 birth certificates of Little League players, waiting to be scanned then shredded.
• Notebook and voice recorder documenting recent trip to Vancouver BC for upcoming travel article. The Little Guy was mortified by the voice recorder. “Do you have to do that in public?” he kept hissing. Yes, yes I do.
• A stack of tourism brochures from Vancouver BC. See previous item.
• 2 pairs of reading glasses which I totally don’t need.
• The Big Guy’s expired driver’s license.
• A goldleaf prayer tower made by artist Holden McCurry. The middle is hollowed out and contains my most secret wish scribbled on a small piece of paper. No I’m not telling.
• A ceramic cat painted by the Little Guy.
• A cat brush.
• A serrated bread knife. Not to be used at the same time as the cat brush.
• A stuffed mouse that an old friend gave me to remind me that overwhelming tasks can be accomplished by nibbling like a mouse.
• An empty coffee cup, still warm.
• A scrap of paper with my friend’s husband’s cell phone number.
• 6 CDs by Alison Krauss, Keb Mo, and the B-52s that I mean to import into iTunes for maximum iPod playage.
• A golden dragonfly in memory of my friend K.
• A small glass bowl with nine polished black stones; a memorial to what was lost.
• A large colorful metal gecko from my friend G.
• A vitamin B capsule.
• An RCA small wonder, full of cool video that is absolutely useless to me because I cannot figure out how to transfer the files to my computer.
• My muse, Celeste, which to mortal eyes appears to be a headless dress form, painted blue. In addition to silently inspiring me, she holds my Skype headset.

What’s on your desk?

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