August 7, 2025 – Port Vila, Vanuatu My kids and I were on the sectional sofa watching Despicable Me. “Stop moving the couch,” Silas, my oldest, told August, the second-born (not sure why I’m including their birth order). August said he wasn’t shaking it. I told him to turn off the TV. Lorentz (#3) and […]
About Last Night’s Earthquake Read More »
I am 10 years old. My parents often can’t pick me up from hockey practice until later. I’m not terribly upset because Aunt Linda lives one block from the rink. She always seems happy to see me. Her kids have grown, so I have the place to myself. No surprise—she’s baked fresh bread. A thick
Most attendees at the Aster Cafe in Minneapolis that night likely thought it was a drunk, oblivious stranger passing by. They weren’t far off. It was my slightly inebriated cousin Erik, doing a dare by his likely much more sober brother Karl. They were only sorry that the shenanigans just so happened to be during
How My Cousins Pranked Me at My Own Concert Read More »
In this week’s issue I share…
1) That time (last Thursday) when my Instagram post about our family’s number one rule went viral.
2)Austin Kleon on parenting as an artist.
3) What are the steps from honing your craft to having a career?
3 on Thursday – 8/10/23 Read More »
In this week’s issue I share…
1) Screenshots I’m Revisiting
2) Songwriter I’m Reading About on Wikipedia
3) RVs/Campers I’m Looking At (For Hauling My Family Around This Summer on a Living Room Tour)
3 on Thursday – 5/4/23 Read More »
In this week’s issue I share…
1) My One-Week Social Media/Email Challenge
2)For the Audio Nerds: “The Amway Years” DAW Session
3) On Songwriting: Disappointment Is Your Friend
3 on Thursday – 4/27/23 Read More »
In this week’s issue I share…
1) “Sheltering Oaks”: How One Song Led to an Album
2) My Wife Heidi’s 3 Tips for Getting into Gardening
3) On Songwriting: Being Scared Is Normal
3 on Thursday – 3/9/23 Read More »
In this week’s issue I share…
1) Rosie Thomas: The Making of “Tilt-A-Whirl” Part III
2) The Most Inspring Thing I’ve Seen Lately
3) On Songwriting: It’s Like Naming a Child
3 on Thursday – 2/9/23 Read More »
Want a glimpse of what Espe life was like in March? Watch my wife Heidi’s latest “One Second Every Day” video collage. As I mentioned last month, she started taking little snapshots of life that help her notice the beauty in the ordinary.
One Second Every Day (March) Read More »