A twist on the farm share idea

I know at least half a dozen people on my friends list have done a Community Supported Agriculture farm-share dealie of some kind at least once. We enjoyed the farm share we split with friends this past summer.

There's a local woman who takes it one step further: She will take your farm share (from one local CSA farm only) and turn the produce into soups, salads & other prepared dishes for an additional fee. It's a little out of my price range, but I can see this being really convenient for a family with kids.

Down on the Farm: Community Farm Kitchen helping busy families

Here's a handful of other stories I've had published recently:

Homes needed for exchange students already in Milan (poor kids!)

A couple of executive profiles, one about an architect, and another about the supervisor of Pittsfield Township.

You'd have to pick up a hard copy to read it, but I have an author profile & a story about the author of "The Living Great Lakes" in the current issue of The Bohemian.

Also, still writing occasional articles that end up on eHow:

Can Triglycerides Be Too Low?

Medications that Affect Cholesterol Levels

Also still posting stuff to my Washtenaw Education News Examiner page, though I've been focusing a lot more on short "News Roundup" pieces. A few samples:

Senators announce more than $5 million for clean energy jobs in Ann Arbor, Detroit

Roundup of Washtenaw education news headlines, from MLK Day events to cutting math programs

Poll by Ann Arbor hospital finds school support lacking for emotional, behavioral issues

What I've been reading

For a couple days, I was thinking- why am I reading so slowly this year? I've only finished 2 books in three weeks, and I usually read abound one a week. But then I realized I've actually finished 3 and just forgot one!

"Kiss of the Spiderwoman" by Manuel Puig. I've seen the movie a couple times and liked it, but my understanding is that the author didn't care for it, especially William Hurt's performance as Molina ( "La Hurt is so bad she probably will win an Oscar."). The book is many times better.

"The Garlic Ballads" by Mo Yan. This book was really well written, and I enjoyed learning about 1987-era China and what life was like for peasants and women, but damn this book was depressing!

"The Botany of Desire: A Plant's Eye View of the World" by Michael Pollan. Pollan gives some historical perspective on four plants: the apple, the tulip, canabis and the potato. I loved reading about apples while we were brewing our own cider at home, and the section on genetically-modified potatoes was pretty interesting. I'm a skeptic about the supposed dangers of genetically-modified crops, but Pollan articulates one of the more sane arguments I've heard for at least approaching them with caution.

My full comments on all three books here.