Wayward Reptiles in the American Gothic House
The new American Gothic pose? Bob, Don, the Hoe and the Snake I was on the phone last night with a reporter from ABC News in San Francisco, Wayne Freedman. A friend of mine works at the TV station and when she heard Wayne was looking for stories about life in rural America, she told […]
My Apple Pie Shortcuts, As Seen on Better TV
One snowy January day a television crew from BETTER TV showed up at the American Gothic House and wanted to film me making pie. Since I love making pie — even better, teaching others how to make it — I said, “Sure.” I showed them a few of my shortcuts, the ones I learned from […]
Crazy for Ham Balls
No, ham balls are not pig testicles. On Monday I was invited to “dinner” by Eldon’s mayor, Shirley Stacey. First of all, let it be known when someone invites you to “dinner” in Southeast Iowa, they do not mean come over after work. Dinner is served promptly at noon. “Supper” is the term for the evening […]
The World Needs More…Artists
I had an old boyfriend who insisted that in his house he would hang only original art. This guy wasn’t an artist, and he was broke, but by god he wasn’t going to have any cheap posters adorning his living room walls. Even if they represented Picasso or Matisse. I remember rolling my eyes at […]
Revisiting Grandma Genny’s Workplace…and Her Crumble Topping Recipe!
City Clerk Ann Cullinan with my Grandma Genny’s recipe Life back in Iowa can often be strange and wonderful. It seems every week brings a new surprise, often in the form of a renewed connection to my roots. Roots I didn’t even know I still had. I came back to my birthplace of Ottumwa, Iowa […]
Going to Church…In my Basement
My phone rang and rang and rang on Christmas Eve — my local line, I mean — and I knew why Eldon’s residents were calling. They wanted to invite me to church. Worried about me spending the holiday alone, my new Eldonite friends were doing what I’ve experienced them do best: demonstrate kindness, compassion and […]
Going to the Post Office without a Parachute
Eldon Postmaster, the ever-smiling and compassionate Kathy I made it to the post office with Marcus’ coat and bike jacket. Barely. The packages had sat on my desk for several days but I hadn’t sealed them. So before I strapped the tape on the Priority Mail packaging that held the coat and bike jacket I stuck […]
Sweat, Tears and Boxes in the Basement
I’ve been spending a lot of time in my basement lately. Why? Because it’s zero degrees outside, my basement is dry and spacious, and Marcus bought a bicycle trainer before he died and I figured I could put it to use. A trainer is a bike stand in which you hook up your rear tire […]
The Pie Teacher
When I was 22 I took a career interest test. I had always wanted to be a writer but my parents didn’t consider writing a real job. But if not a writer then what would I be when I grew up? In a fit of desperation to find out I consulted a career counselor. The […]
Pie, American Gothic Style: My Latest House Guest Writes About Her Stay
I don’t normally do this, re-post someone else’s blog, but this story by Christine Buckley still resonates with me. Christine was my latest house guest at the American Gothic House and she wrote about her pie baking experience here. In her piece, she truly captured the essence of pie and how it heals, something I […]