mourningdove

The Cocoa Krispies Method

In Psychology 101 in college, one of our experiments was training a rat using what’s called a Skinner Box, named for the famous behaviorist B. F. Skinner. I put my assigned rat (named Bianca, for the heroine of The Rescuers) in this box, which was empty except for a lever she could push down andContinue reading “The Cocoa Krispies Method”

Friday Favorites: Tomoya Studio

On this YouTube channel by One OK Rock drummer Tomoya Kanki, he usually performs drum tracks from popular songs by the band and then breaks them down for drummers and interested fans. But even if you’re not in one of those categories, I think you’ll find something to like in his videos. He’s a wickedlyContinue reading “Friday Favorites: Tomoya Studio”

Wednesday’s Child: The Discard Devotional is Finished!

I’m excited to announce that The Discard Devotional is now published on Lulu.com in either a handsome little pocket book edition or an e-book edition. As I mentioned before, all proceeds go to Awaken, a charity that helps women escape sex-trafficking. If you know someone you think would benefit from the book, you can forwardContinue reading “Wednesday’s Child: The Discard Devotional is Finished!”

Living In: Sea Ranch

It really is a toss-up whether, if someone dropped a couple of million dollars on my head, I would rather have a sheep ranch just inland from the coast or a house in Sea Ranch. But for now, thanks to Pinterest, I can have both! Cheap as free! Actually, while Sea Ranch is amazing (ifContinue reading “Living In: Sea Ranch”

Cold soba noodles with dipping sauce

This is the best thing I’ve made in weeks, the perfect dinner to make your sleepy appetite prick up its ears in the dog days of summer. It’s a Japanese dish that Koreans adopted after the Occupation, so you can make either version or mash them up, as I did: I started with this recipeContinue reading “Cold soba noodles with dipping sauce”

Living In: Valley Ford Ranch

Yes, I am one of the legions of middle-aged white women who want to have a farm when they retire. But! I was raised by an actual Michigan farm girl and can ride, shoot, and make preserves. I can use a chainsaw. I own chickens. I know how to change spark plugs and prune appleContinue reading “Living In: Valley Ford Ranch”

Letter of Recommendation: Feed Stores

If I were to become a purveyor of those fancy candles with esoteric smells like “Trapeze Artist” that they’re making these days…for sure one of mine would be called “Feed Store.” Actually, even better would be “Tack Shop”—all that leather and Murphy’s Oil Soap and neatsfoot oil…. (The Tack & Feed combo, that’s olfactory heavenContinue reading “Letter of Recommendation: Feed Stores”

Tiny Skillet Enchiladas

Is this even a recipe? Nah. Once you get yourself a tiny cast-iron skillet, you’re pretty much done, especially since they come pre-seasoned these days for lazy efficient people, like myself. I’ve been jealous of my sister’s 6-inch Lodge skillet for years: she uses it to fry up small portions of everything that matters—carnitas, potatoesContinue reading “Tiny Skillet Enchiladas”

Wright’s Beach: Watercolors and Haiku

I usually take my watercolors along and try to knock out a few postcards while I’m sitting on the beach–it’s a good way to pass the time, and salt water creates some neat effects with the pigments. Also, in lieu of writing a journal-style blog post about my week on the coast, I wrote aContinue reading “Wright’s Beach: Watercolors and Haiku”

Wright’s Beach: Photos

I spent a whole week camping at Wright’s Beach with the dogs this year, which gave me plenty of beach days as well as excursions to dog parks and trails in the area. Since I have reels of beach photos already, I tried to take pictures in some other locations like Ft. Ross, the oldContinue reading “Wright’s Beach: Photos”