Women’s Hero Journey: An Interview With Lois McMaster Bujold

Fertility isn’t power; it’s more like the universe reaching through us to pursue its own ends.

via Women’s Hero Journey: An Interview With Lois McMaster Bujold.

Summer reading, Margaret Atwood’s Cat’s Eye

Revisiting old friends this summer with Margaret Atwood’s Cat’s Eye. I picked up this copy at my friend’s father’s wake. He enjoyed reading and had traded books with me before. We were invited to take books from his small but bursting shelves in remembrance.

Summer reading

Cat’s Eye was my first introduction to Atwood. I had checked it out of my local library before a family vacation driving across the States in a Ford Bronco. Lying on my stomach on a pallet of blankets in the back of the vehicle, willing myself not to be carsick while reading, ignoring the majesty of the Rockies passing us because family vacation, ugh. I suppose I was primed to appreciate the quiet terror of navigating the world of girls, where secrets are currency and loyalties are always suspect. My parents seemed equally clueless yet well-meaning, my brother lost to me fighting his own battles in becoming a man. I read about the protagonist peeling her skin while biting my own nails down until they bled.

Chocolate Raspberry Cake

For the Fourth of July, a rich, dark chocolate, raspberry cake celebrates the flavors of summer. The raspberries were harvested from Pahlman Farms, but the blueberries were store bought. Our blues won’t be ready for a couple of weeks yet. The frosting recipe was gleaned from Giada De Laurentiis’ Chocolate-Raspberry Layer Cake. The cake is triple layers of devil’s food from Cook’s Illustrated Magazine’s The New Best Recipe. I probably over-beat the batter as the layers came out a little thinner than expected, although they were still moist and had a light crumb.
Chocolate Raspberry Cake
The secret ingredient was a generous brushing over each layer with Chambord liqueur, which is optional if you are abstaining.
I served this a my father-in-law’s lake party. As soon as I began cutting, a line of appreciative friends and family began to form. I managed to sneak a slice for myself but forgot to set one aside for my husband at the grill station. Alas. Perhaps I only need an excuse to make it again.

Milkweed declining in Iowa cropland

Common milkweed was present in only 8% of Iowa corn and soybean fields in 2009 compared to 51% in 1999.

Reduction in common milkweed Asclepias syriaca occurrence in Iowa cropland frm 1999 to 2009.

Monarch butterfly

My childhod memories of Iowa are full of country roads glittering with butterflies and drifting milkweed seeds. It breaks my heart to know we are losing habitat for these natural pollinators.

Pie Wisdom, Meringue Power

When life hands you lemons, get cracking, break some eggs and make a great pie.

Amelia of the Roses

Weigela