A bike, a shovel, a severed nose, a hungry dog--Iowa!

When I first heard about this story I assumed it happened somewhere down south.

I was wrong.

I'll just go ahead and quote the article in its entirety:

IOWA (NEWSCHANNEL 3) - A man in Iowa is without a nose. He lost it after a friend bit it off in a fight.

It all started when Donroy Merrival used Matthew Osing's bike to go to the store for more beer. He broke the bike in the process.

Osing told him to get out of his apartment, but the guy wouldn't leave.

Osing hit him with a shovel. That's when Merrival went for his nose, biting it off his face.

Now, Osing is not sure what happened to it. "I don't know if he swallowed it or if my dogs might have eaten it. I don't know," he said.

Merrival is now facing assault charges and could spend more than 12 years in prison.

It turns out that Donroy, no doubt wanting to be thorough, also took off part of his friend's lip. You can read more about it and see Donroy's mug shot here.

Yep, we're getting ready

Cousin Clete is all excited. He took the gate off the neighbor's dog run and he's getting all set up for the big party this weekend. He felt cheated when we didn't throw a party last year, and he's promised to make up for lost time.

Sunday afternoon cocktails

There are no cocktails today. There is only beer.

Bass Ale, which is a fine beverage on a hot day if you've been digging in the garden (me) or slaving over a hot stove (MizBubs.) It's an especially good choice, not too malty, hoppy but not too hoppy, and when you can get it at the Jewels for $10.99 a 12-pack, it's the smart choice. I'd be happy swilling down Pabst Blue Ribbon on a day like today, but my bride has a discerning palate, so I'm happy to spend the extra $5.00 to make her happy.

That's just the kind of guy I am.

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After spending the afternoon living the Las Vegas lifestyle (drinking champagne poolside) at the hot librarian party we returned home wondering how to spend the dog end of Sunday afternoon. Next thing I knew MizBubs had chicken marinating and ancho peppers roasting on the grill. I grabbed some native plants that I'd picked up earlier in the week but hadn't had a chance to plant yet. Because I'm good at grunt work, but not so good with the big-picture stuff, I asked my better half to point out some good places to put them in. She obliged, and an hour later we had wild ginger, prairie smoke, wild lupines, and showy and false sunflowers tucked into the welcoming earth.

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I know I've talked before, at irritating length, about how much time we've been spending in the garden these past few weeks. Today was no exception. I could be doing laundry, organizing my closet, sorting through stacks of paper and books that have taken up near-permanent residence at the end of our dining room, but no. Seriously, no. Here's why not:

It is so much more satisfying to stand in the grass barefoot, beer in hand, watching dozens of bees buzzing around your garden. Here's what I saw:

Sunflowers starting to bloom at the back of the house


Nasturtiums near the side garden


The aptly-named bee balm in the side garden


Brown-eyed Susans, bee balm and some kind of aster that hasn't flowered yet


More bee balm


Rattlesnake Master and some stuff MizBubs got from a coworker. The mock orange bush we got earlier in the spring is kind of hidden behind it.


And, finally, we're in the back corner of the yard, at the pond. When I leave for work in the morning there are always at least ten or twenty birds hopping around here.


And then it's time to go inside and eat.

Hope y'all had a good weekend.

Happy Birthday Eskimo Pie!

One of my favorite websites is the New Orleans Menu, run by New Orleans food writer Tom Fitzmorris. Over the years I've found lots of great N.O. restaurants that, as a guy from Chicago, I probably wouldn't have found otherwise. He's got an email list that I subscribe to, the New Orleans Menu Daily, where he sends out restaurant reviews, recipes, and random thoughts and factoids about food.

Thanks to Mr. Fitzmorris I found out that today is the birthday of the Eskimo Pie. And guess what, fellow midwesterners? The Eskimo Pie originated in Iowa! Yes, Iowa's not just about corn and soy and pigs, it can also be about tasty chocolate-covered ice cream on a stick.

Eskimo Pies were originally sold by a fellow named Christian Nelson, in 1920, under the name "I-Scream Bars." The name Eskimo Pie was recommended by Mrs. Stover after Nelson cut a deal with Russel Stover Candies on this date in 1922.

The Smithsonian has the entire history of the Eskimo Pie here.

Today is also the birthday of canned beer. The Gottfried Kreuger Brewing Company of Newark New Jersey first sold their Finest Beer and Cream Ale on this date in 1935.