Mmmm...

Malt-o-Meal. We ate lots of hot cereal when we were kids-- oatmeal, Cream of Wheat, Red River Meal... but Malt-o-Meal is the most fun to say out loud, I think. Back then, I just liked with butter and salt. That's still my favorite, but when I eat it now, I put in a blob of peanut butter and a blob of jelly. I don't stir it, I just take get a little of everything in each spoonful.

Birdseye maple. I love all wood-grain, real or fake. Bamboo, oak, walnut, even pine... but birdseye maple doesn't look possible. Even without polishing or varnish, it has this eerie glow, and so many dimensions. It's really beautiful.

Marbles. I love marbles the same way I love buttons and glass doorknobs. They can be solid colors or speckled or faceted or swirled... but they're really just little bits of polished glass. I have about a dozen marbles that were my dad's when he was a kid, and he taught me how to shoot them in our basement in Minnesota. I'd really love to have more marbles, actually... I'd keep them in old mason jars and put them in my window to catch the light.

Meat. I won't apologize: I've never wanted to be a vegetarian. My ancestry is dominated by Polish, German, Norwegian and Swedish ties... these are people who eat sausage. My agricultural background makes me appreciate the work and the care that goes into raising animals for our consumption. Of course, I'd love all animals to be raised by people with moral, ethical and environmental convictions-- for the animals' sake as much as my own. But at the end of the day, I just love meat.

Mushrooms. They're incredible. They grow on trees and decay and moist soil. They're magnificent little beings. Some of them are chewy and delicious.

Moss. It's my favorite part of walking in the woods, and I've always looked for special arrangements of rocks and trees covered with moss that feel like little nests. It's so soft and lush and dense and moist... it feels oddly magical.

Miniatures. There was a huge dollhouse at my grandma's house, that my grandparents made for my mom and uncles when they were little. The furniture was made out of blocks of painted wood, with little finishing nails for handles and knobs. I loved to just set up different scenes and arrange all the pieces. I still love anything teeny tiny.