When you buy a farm, said the Roman agricultural writer Palladius, you need to look at the people who live in the area. If they seem a sturdy lot, you can invest with confidence, but if they are podgy and pasty faced (that is a free translation of the Latin), then keep away. The local … Read more
I have a vision of a place in northern Italy, a landscape of rolling, golden hills dotted with oak trees. As my mind’s eye zooms in on this scene, it becomes clear that something is hanging from the branches of the oaks. A sea breeze brushes past, and I realize that the boughs are laden … Read more
Collector: This is in regards to your MBNA account, sir. Debtor: OK. c: And on the MBNA account, I have a due balance of $8,841 and change. They will settle for eighty percent of the balance or a payment plan. d: Oh, OK. c: So how did you want to proceed in that? d: Um, … Read more
The sound of the well-made gun is precise. If you pull the slide back smoothly, the sound of the hammer locking back echoes with a sharp “clock” through the hollow grip. Slap a magazine into the grip, pull the slide back a little more and let it go. The sharp “smack” tells you a bullet … Read more
Eric Sustad sent us this photo from Tikal, Guatemala, with Temple I in the background. Author(s) and Location: Eric Sustad
Liz Benser, chef at Cafe Brenda since 1986 (!) was enjoying the Taj Mahal on Nov. 18, 2005, and decided to take a “Rake Break”. Liz spent earlly a month in India gathering culinary ideas. Interestingly enough, Dan Buettner (on the cover) is a regular diner at Cafe Brenda. Liz will celebrate 20 years of … Read more
Mike Gottsacker of St. Paul takes the battle Down Under. (Thanks so Patty Schulz of Minneapolis for documenting the event.) Author(s) and Location: Mike Gottsacker
Mary Alice and Art Jacobson, of Bloomington, take The Rake to new depths—twenty-five feet underwater—in the Gulf of Siam. They jumped out of the boat at Sail Rock, about five miles off the coast of Koh Tao (Turtle Island), Thailand, and buried their noses in The Rake on the way down. Here’s the whole story: … Read more
The other day, we were surprised to see a certain advertisement in Newsweek and the New Yorker. It was a bold yellow page that made a startling claim: Everything you’ve heard about mercury poisoning in fish is false. According to the ad, published by a mysterious organization identified only as FishScam.com, all the claims about … Read more
In Ideal Corners, a tiny town near Brainerd, trips to the local dump were a family tradition. My grandfather would pop the enormous trunk of his robin’s-egg blue Oldsmobile and we’d load it up with cans, done-in appliances, or dozens of leaf bags. In the spring, he’d bring along binoculars in order to watch the … Read more