RAGBRAI: 500 Miles of Pie Across Iowa
We are making a documentary film called “Pieowa“ about the obsession with pie in Iowa. Really. People are so obsessed with pie they will ride their bikes 500 miles, braving sweltering heat and headwinds over 7 days, just so they can eat it every day! As part of the film we will be covering this […]
An Unsung Hero of my Own
This post originally aired as a commentary on Tri States Public Radio. To listen, go here. NPR has started airing a new series called My Unsung Hero. Produced by Hidden Brain Media, its mission is to provide an antidote to the despair brought on by the daily news, with the goal of renewing faith in […]
Stay Calm and Bake Pie — Episode 4: Key Lime
My farmer’s hands. They not only build strong fences,they make good pie! And now for something a little different in the “Stay Calm and Bake Pie” video series. Doug appears as the guest baker in this episode, making key lime pie. There are many approaches to making pie and yet the same pie made in […]
Pedaling Across Iowa for Pie
RAGBRAI, the Des Moines Register’s Annual Bike Ride Across Iowa, is really all about the pie. The Amish, the church ladies, home bakers and commercial bakers alike can be found all along the 500-mile route feeding the masses their homemade goods from strawberry-rhubarb, peach, blackberry, apple and more. Sometimes they even have homemade ice cream […]
Make America Nice Again
This aired on Tri States Public Radio March 21, 2019 LISTEN HERE The 2020 presidential campaign has begun and with it the Democratic candidates are descending upon Iowa. Flying in from all parts of the country, they are bringing with them the promise of new ideas, new policies, and, god willing, a new administration. […]
Marking Myself ‘Happy’ During the Polar Vortex
It’s 3 degrees outside and dropping. They’re calling this the Polar Vortex, the Arctic Blast, or maybe it’s just Hell Freezing Over. News reports say that Midwest temperatures will be the lowest they’ve been in a generation, that it will be colder in Chicago than in Antarctica. To think I could be in Florida right […]
Radio Commentary: An Outlet for Dealing with Overwhelming Issues
Over the past few years I have occasionally written commentaries for Tri States Public Radio, but only when an issue bothered me so badly I was compelled to weigh in on it. Apparently listeners appreciate the positive messages I try to convey as I was invited to contribute more commentaries, but this time I was […]
“There is ALWAYS Hope, Bea.”
There is ALWAYS hope, Bea. He wrote this—with the word always in all caps—above a newspaper article he had circled in black ink. He left the paper on the kitchen table knowing I would be down for my morning coffee well after he had left the house to feed hay to his cows, check on […]
Bread Making Class: When the Teacher Becomes the Student
The Pie Lady goes to bread school. On Saturday I took an artisanal bread making class. I have been teaching baking classes for the past 11 years, not the student of them. But I believe in continuing education, in stretching, growing and expanding. I hunger for new information, crave new ideas and skills, and I’m […]
Guest Blog: Life in the Not Very Fast Lane at Camp Doug(h) — by Doug
There is no set time when Happy Hour starts on the farm. Beth’s dad, Tom Howard, had a set in stone 5pm start time. For us, in the late spring or summer, it may start at 9pm while we are fixing supper. But now and then it actually starts right on time. The official start […]