My younger brother discovered (when we moved from Chicago to SF) that he was allergic to shellfish. We wound up at dinner at Aqua with fancy rich friends, and I’ll never forget how gracious and seamless they were about making sure his version of the tasting menu had no shellfish. He got alternate dishes that were as…

Which is why I only buy chickens from our local Hutteritte colonies. They might not be strictly organic, but they’re also not industrial birds. 

I once brought a (well wrapped in foil and plastic wrap) Chinese roast duck back from San Jose to Montana in my handbag. As it was going through the scanner I told them “there’s a roast duck in there,” then we joked that it wasn’t a liquid or a gel. “You don’t have duck in Montana?” the TSA guy asked. “Not Chinese…

Oh! That made me weep. Which wasn’t what I was expecting. So beautiful. 

When I moved to NYC at 21, I stayed for a few weeks with my boyfriend and his roommate, they refused to come meet me at the subway stop and made fun of me for being scared. In Bed-Stuy. In 1985. I’m 5'1" and looked about 14 (and not in a Lolita way, in a who-let-the-midwestern-middle-schooler-move-to-NYC way). And…

Wisconsin has a strong Danish history -- see also, the delicious Racine Kringle pastry! 

To be fair to Tester, he’s not a rich man, and he is a real farmer. His wife Sharla has stayed home in Montana to continue farming. He’s one of the pioneers of the organic pea and lentil sector in Montana — there’s a solid book that came out a year or two ago called Lentil Underground that details this history. So, as…

I was 45 and still single and had suffered an enormous bereavement 5 years earlier. Resigned to spinsterhood. A friend fixed me up with the builder who was doing her house reno. She said he was really smart and cute and brokenhearted. Town I live in is rotten with brokenhearted builders. We went to Trivia night, and…

Can I just say how much I love the screen grab you guys chose? I might have to put Lindsey-Graham-being-hounded-by-women-with-microphones on my inspiration wall. 

As a woman her age, I read it as a) I’m nobody’s victim, and b) I could be YOUR wife, or sister, or co-worker. Also, not a sleazebag, not looking to profit from this. Just an ordinary middle-aged Mom who was assaulted like so many others when we were all teenagers. Although I also see your point, and agree it’s a…

I had this same conversation with my Beloved, a displaced Masshole and a Patriots fan. Seems clear to me that the team we knew is over (to say nothing of all the noise leaking from Foxborough about how unhappy everyone is). 

My elderly mom, who hates the grocery store above all else, and who tends toward anorexia asked me if she should get one. I had to remind her it does not shop for itself, or automatically fill itself with delicious food. (Sad trombone. I sent her some frozen stews from Omaha Steaks instead.) 

Oh my word. The only thing I hate about having moved to Montana is the food (or lack therof). This is going on my project list. 

We’re a state with just under 1 million people, and between the Great Falls and Billings Trump “rallies” (both of which advertised beforehand to pay attendees), we’ve now spent almost a million bucks on security for these clowns. Which I resent mightily.

You can also heavily salt your bird and leave it in the fridge overnight to draw out excess water/firm it up/dry up the skin (which makes it crispier). If you’re planning ahead. I’m rarely that organized (and we have nice sturdy local chickens raised by the nearby Hutterite colony). 

There’s also the general hysteria about facial injuries and scarring. I know plenty of (white, upper middle class) parents who have gone full psycho about a childhood injury that might leave a scar. 

French Yogurt Cake is the Best Cake. I like a little fruit in mine — or you can go the lemon zest/rosemary/olive oil route too. It’s a nice plain cake that keeps well and is perfect for a mid-afternoon snack. (recipe: https://food52.com/recipes/71580-clotilde-dusoulier-s-yogurt-cake-gateau-au-yaourt)

Which is why I assign papers by word count. 

I was 45 when I found Himself (when we found one another). Nearly 10 years in and it’s all good. I’d resigned myself to fairly happy spinsterhood, but so glad we found one another.

I’m in a small town in Montana (not the smallest, actually about medium for here), and one of the great joys is seeing kids DOING STUFF ON THEIR OWN. A few years back, the front page of our local paper had kids in the creek, in a repurposed wading pool, without alarmist headlines. We just got a skatepark built, and…