Corn Belt

Farm Report: 7.4.19

- Mel

Hello. It’s me. Is the first post back after a hiatus always the hardest? It’s not you, it’s me blah blah blah. It was never my intention to fizzle out for 3+ months, but I’m now in the internship phase of my graduate school adventures and I needed to finish out my coursework with a bang. I also went to California two weekends ago to celebrate with my cohorts in commencement. Ooooooh. Ahhhhhhh.

My grad school adventures could probably command an entire post – and I’m really working this year on holding two truths at once – but it was both an eye-opening, life-changing experience and also kind of a disappointment. Too soon? Too deep? Here, have a bomb pop.

bomb pop popsicle july 4 independence day cold sweets
TAKE THE POPSICLE.

Yinz, the internet just showed me bomb pop-flavored vape juice and my disappointment was put rightly in its place.

knee high

The weird weather this year has caused a shortage of sweet corn this Independence Day – but if you hold your shorts (yes, it is FINALLY shorts weather!) the sweet, sweet corn prize is only a couple weeks away.

midwest independence day shenanigans

I live in a municipality that doesn’t allow personal fireworks AND YET I am forced awake until after 11pm because people are inconsiderate and they suck. Iowa Nice (except when I need to celebrate America with fireworks)*

Don’t suck, here is a list of PROFESSIONAL and LEGAL displays in the Des Moines metro.

*Don’t steal my tagline, Raygun.

Farm Report: 2.15.19

- Mel

Iowa is firmly in a winter storm cycle, with seemingly every Wednesday and weekend adding to the accumulation. I have read about where some of that snow goes (I mean, aside from the ONE day we had when it was 45 degrees and melt happened), but also is there a company that will come and remove these feet of snow from my roof? Also: Did you know it is IMPOSSIBLE to buy a snowblower in the middle of winter? Like, nobody has them for sale in the metro. It’s like when summer hits and you want to buy a bathing suit but they were sold out in February. (So, suffice to say, if you are looking for a bathing suit, NOW IS THE TIME PEOPLE!)

corn syrup bud light super bowl commercial
Gimme that sugar, baby.

oh the corntroversy

Iowa corn farmers are PISSED. Don’t mess with the corn industry, man. Also, your shitty commercial was dumb, Bud Light.

More: Corn farmers are not amused {via Fortune}.

midwest (meat) shenanigans

adding to the midwest bucket list: MEAT RAFFLE. Sadly, I missed this year’s Amana Freezer 5K again, which includes meat bag swag. Yes. A MEAT BAG.

Farm Report: 10.5.18

- Mel

A few years ago, I started making a conscious effort in stopping use of the phrase: I’m so busy. Because, like, we all are. We’re busy with what we choose to prioritize in our lives – and that is OK. It looks different on all of us. There is a negative connotation with explaining to the world and answering “how’s life?” with “BUSY!” And, well, I don’t like that trap. Also, no, I am not the type of person who will answer “I am happily prioritizing all my Life Things this month!”

I’m a work in progress.

There are seasons where prioritizing is difficult and there are more Life Things than usual and something has to give. The beginning of fall requires a LOT of time management (and packing extra clothes and changing in my car) because I am often bouncing from one thing to the next.

If I leave you with anything with this message, it’s: BE KIND TO YOURSELF. The corn will be planted before we know it.

pumpkin spice everything

basic bumpkin

Sweet Corn season is done. In fact, corn season is done completely. The final signal to summer’s end is the mowing down of the corn fields and eating pumpkin spice Cheerios.

Also, you must watch this: Pumpkin Spice Everything with Adam Rippon

There is only a week or two left of Farmer’s Market season. I had to wear fleece while I was coaching this week. The Harvest Moon is waning. This week also starts fall semester of my second week of grad school. Time to light up the fire pits and burn last year’s syllabi. 🤘

midwest shenanigans

A couple weeks ago, my husband and I took our first trip down to Lake Ozark in Missouri. It was so beautiful! And we really lucked out on finding an AirBnB (with a hot tub!) on the lake (though probably a little further from All the Fun than we’d stay again). Last weekend, I took my first trip to Mall of America, and I was so underwhelmed that I just ate lunch in the food court and never left. Like my dad’s favorite joke goes: If you’ve seen one mall, you’ve seen em’all.

(No, seriously, my dad actually told us that joke when I was a kid and I NEVER stop laughing at it when I’m in a mall. I also strongly dislike malls very very much, maybe because of all my retail management years?)

Farm Report: 6.3.18

- Mel

Here’s the corn sitch right now:

Iowa Corn - Booneville

Though with this weekend’s rain, it looks like it doubled in size overnight.

summer summer summertime

Sing it, Will Smith.

Not only is it Drive with the Windows Down and the Radio Loud Season, it’s affirmatively GET OUTSIDE weather. Apparently, it’s also Allergy Season (thanks, Iowa!) and Swallow a Lot of Bugs Season and maybe-possibly Is That or Isn’t That Poison Ivy Season. I’ve been riding my bike a lot already this summer, with trips to the High Trestle Trail (twice!), a downtown city journey when my friend was visiting, and a night out with friends to Jasper Winery (which included a very dark, very buggy trail ride home). I have another long ride on the calendar during the Arts Festival weekend (with a visit to the Downtown Farmer’s Market, for sure).

Despite the humidity, the temperatures haven’t felt so oppressive as they did last year. Though I am not actively running outdoors right now to compare. Training starts this month for my fall 50k. I just need to get through this school semester first.

primer for the primaries

Tuesday is Iowa’s primary. Learn more about the candidates.

midwest shenanigans

OMG, when will I remember that Milwaukee is NOT in Minnesota?! It definitely makes a difference when you tell your friend the driving distance to Des Moines. 🤦‍♀️

Farm Report: 4.20.18

- Mel

I waffled (mmmm, breakfast) a bit on importing the posts from my prior blog and decided to do so. If you see anything wonky in the archives, let me know. And if you are at all interested in running and running gear and the running community, well there is a lot of that from the last few years. I don’t want to only write about running, so here’s where I am currently – a transition between a “running blog” and something of a “lifestyle blog.” Which… whatever, I’ll work it out as I go. I no longer have to pretend I have dual identities, which also means that I’ll no longer have to keep two blogs interesting up-to-date.

amaizing corn

really amaizing

I’m sure that I’ll get on SOME kind of list for Googling this, and I only did so because of all the pot references today (*eyeroll*): which grows faster, corn or marijuana? Results are inconclusive. Don’t try this at home. (And definitely not in Iowa, where it is not yet legal.)

moo bitch get out the whey

As part of an on-boarding package purchased at my gym, I completed both my active and resting metabolic assessments. Somehow, this tiny body is supposed to consume 4208 calories a day to properly fuel at its current level of activity (which is considerably reduced because of my Achilles injury) and I have lost all ability to comprehend how bodies work.

FOUR THOUSAND CALORIES.

Mind you, I regularly assume around 2700 calories on my active days, but this assessment is basically telling me that is the minimum my body requires for basic functioning and HOW AM I EVEN ALIVE RIGHT NOW. Also, I guess I can eat an avocado with every meal? Because no clue how I even get 229 grams of fat in my diet every day without eating McDonald’s cheeseburgers. (If I ate 3 avocados a day, I would only get 63 grams of fat. What kind of hell is this?!)

See also: currently looking for a local nutritionist.

midwest shenanigans

Are you new to Des Moines? Check out this welcoming event and RSVP for the reception!

If you’re not new here, you might have heard about the Drake Relays and its accompanying series of road races that start this weekend. Originally, I was supposed to run the half marathon, but since I got injured, I will be volunteering at the Capital Striders water stop. See me for all your Mile 8 motivation!

Farm Report: 2.23.17

- Mel

OH HAI, IT’S STILL SNOWING. Not since my last post from seven months ago, but some days it feels like that. Snow is part of my identity – and something that I missed when living in the mid-Atlantic region where it rarely snowed in six years, aka: Pittsburgh, affectionately called “the east coast” by my fellow Iowans. I am Great Lakes Snow Belt raised, and find great joy in playing in the snow. I have a saucer and I know how to use it. Also, yes: I am 40 years old.

corn addict

Soooo, if people from the Corn Belt are “cornfed,” what does that make people from the Rust Belt?

Is this where I make a Clostridium tetani joke?

hard soft corn

Ahem. Non-GMO.

strap in, huddled masses

Snow Belt, Corn Belt, Rust Belt, Bible Belt, Sun Belt… are there other regional “belt” monikers out there? Oooh, is there a Cheese Belt?

midwest shenanigans

I grew up in Ohio, which was once dubbed “The Heart of it All” and it took me until age 40.83 to realize that is because Ohio looks like a heart. Sadly, not a delicious chocolate-covered peanut butter buckeye treat… shaped heart.