Ammi Midstokke

Contributor at The Spokesman-Review

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Articles

Ammi Midstokke: The merits of the original off-grid laptop

1 day ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

On Mother’s Day, my family found the perfect gift for me: An off-grid, kinetic-powered, water-resistant laptop known as the Olivetti Lettera 22. Weighing in at just over 8 pounds (9 pounds if we include the durable, zippered case), it’s the perfect addition to any backcountry writing expedition. I do advise keeping your paper in a Ziplock bag and avoiding moisture contact on the ink ribbon.
Ammi Midstokke: Gardening supports the local economy

1 week ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

For two years, I’ve been in landscaping limbo, unable to plant a garden as we’ve been busy building a house. This has served as an emotional rehabilitation period during which my memories of horticulture carnage have been erased or replaced with revisionist history in which I recall only the four delicious asparagus I harvested and that year the anonymous tree produced dozens of delightful plums.
Ammi Midstokke: The wisdom of the albatross

2 weeks ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

On the northwestern edge of the island of Oahu, a dirt road meanders along the coast like a ribbon of red soil and rock, dipping toward the ocean, spreading out like a fine net of trail between the rubbery alien flora of the island.
Ammi Midstokke: The sound of enlightenment

3 weeks ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

Sometimes, when I am trying to meditate, which they say is good for us, I listen to the sound of the ocean because I need something louder than my brain. The brain can be obnoxiously loud. Mine is forever reminding me of what groceries are needed or that I have not called the insurance company or that I meant to trim my nails two days ago. When particularly petulant, it resurrects the horrors of life to remind me of parental guilt or that one time I asked a menopausal woman when she was due.
Who doesn't love a good park?

4 weeks ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

It has been a long time since I’ve appreciated a good park. A luxury of youth, mobility, and location is that many of us living on the outskirts of the city or familiar with outdoor pursuits have access to green spaces. But a recent trip to the Big City (anywhere with a population over 20,000, as far as I’m concerned) had me in search of a park where I could safely run in unfamiliar territory. Parks require a certain amount of civility that I lack, not to mention fashion sense.
Ammi Midstokke: The apology of water

1 month ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

The water cannot speak for itself. I believe if it could, it would apologize. I am sorry, it would say, I am only doing what water does. Traveling, that is. Between sky and soil, over oceans and fields, bumping lazily into mountains, trickling down streams, exploding into waterfalls. It spreads into lakes and seas, seeps beneath the rock and soil to form mysterious underground waterways, and carries with it always the mineral memories of where it has been.
They don't make 'em like they used to

1 month ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

Years ago, I read Wallace Stegner’s “Angle of Repose” and had a romanticized glimpse of miner’s life in the West. I was left in awe at the hardship humans went through in the pursuit of better things or just a full belly. While my Subaru sputtered over Colorado mountain passes at 70 mph, I couldn’t help but think about how we ever got up here on horses, in wagons, on foot. It’s not exactly like they had Gore-Tex at the time. Or headlamps. Or GPS.
Ammi Midstokke: A final lesson in love

1 month ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

In the small corner room of an assisted living facility, a man sat in a chair softly playing guitar, and five women surrounded another, beckoning her to let go. “Your work is done,” we cooed. “You are so loved,” we whispered. But anyone who knew Marilyn will know that she would leave when she was damn well ready. Anyway, we had not laughed enough yet.
Ammi Midstokke: When endurance is most valuable

1 month ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

All my friends are drinking, shopping and running too much. Some of them are meditating too much. Others are dating, reading, sleeping too much. I hear that half the population is resting better somehow, but I have yet to feel their calm presence penetrate the ennui that has descended upon many in my world. I am also drinking, shopping and running too much.
Ammi Midstokke: Hitchhiking into volcanoes in Hawaii

2 months ago | spokesman.com | Ammi Midstokke

It should come as no surprise that when I head to a tropical island, I am more interested in the mountains than the beach. The mountain I found myself on this particular day was Haleakalā, a volcano the scientists say is “resting.” I know little about volcanoes beyond what I’ve seen in movies. Which means it is probably not a good idea to live on the side of one. I reached this precipice by hitchhiking, a form of transportation less popular these days and an exercise in rejection.