There have been lots of musical milestones in our house in recent years, but perhaps one of the biggest comes this weekend. On Saturday evening, my wife, Laurelyn Dossett, and her singing partner, Karen Sickenberger, will sing on the iconic public radio program A Prairie Home Companion with famed radio host, storyteller and author Garrison Keillor. We have been listening to this program for nearly 25 years, and this week, at the new Durham Performing Arts Center, Laurelyn and Karen, as Polecat Creek, will share the stage and sing to a radio audience of millions. The show airs at 6 p.m. on a public radio station near you.

This will actually be the third time Polecat Creek has performed with Keillor. The other two times, in Greensboro (shown here, Laurelyn on the left) and Winston-Salem, they opened for one of his non-radio storytelling events. Their harmonies caught his attention at the Wake Forest gig last fall and an invitation to APC followed soon after.

UPDATE: Our alma mater, Penn State University, helps spread the word — here. Thanks Tina.

Tuesday night at The Monti in Durham, N.C., program creator Jeff Polish will award what he calls the 1st Annual Hippo Awards. Each month, The Monti features a half-dozen regular folks invited to tell a true story in 15 minutes or less to a live (always packed) audience. No notes or scripts are allowed. Last July 22, Jeff invited me to share the story of “Uncle Tony and the First Miracle,” which I adapted from my book. Jeff liked it well enough to make it one of three nominees in the Best Overall story category.

Details are here. I’ll let you know how who won.

UPDATE: I didn’t win, but I hear the voting was really close!

I have a few book events coming up: on Thursday at 7 p.m., I’ll be speaking at Head House Books in Philadelphia, Pa. On Dec. 14, I’ll be signing books at the Barnes & Noble at Southpointe Mall in Durham, N.C., from 1-3 pm. And on Dec. 20, I’ll be signing books at the Barnes & Noble at Friendly Center in Greensboro, N.C., from 1-3 pm. Hope to see you there.