Hello World

Hello, I'm Amy and this is my new blog, Wonder & Wheat.

This is my very first blog post. 

It's hard to believe I am only now starting to write a blog.  It was the very hip thing to do in the mid 2000's when I worked as a freelance journalist and aspired to become a novelist (which I did in 2013). Back then, it seemed like all of my writers' group friends were doing it. After seeing Julie & Julia in 2009, I walked out of the theater with some major blog fever (didn't everyone?) but it just never stuck.  

As they say, better late than never. 

So what does Wonder & Wheat mean? In my blog, I want to write about the things I care about. Right now, that's books, travel, food and history. When I tried to come up with a title for this blog, I realized all of these topics are essentially about learning. I've always been a student of life, but lately, it seems I just can't learn enough.  About a year and a half ago, I switched from reading fiction to reading non-fiction, especially food memoir, biography, cookbooks, science, psychology, and history. Once I changed genres, I became a voracious reader again. Now, I read non-fiction like it's fiction, with a "what will happen next?" kind of anticipation. Yep, I'm a bit of a nerd. Lately, I am reading a book every 3-4 days. I finish one, and immediately pick the next one up from my to-read pile. So that's what the "wonder" part of the blog title means. Wonder is that child-like craving for new information. It's curiosity. An unquenchable thirst for knowledge,

The "wheat"part  is a bit more metaphorical. Wheat is a raw ingredient, a staple of the human diet for thousands of years and synonymous with farms, especially the Midwest region where I live.  To me, wheat symbolizes simplicity, a back to basics approach to life. It's uncomplicated. Ultimately that is my goal in life, to enjoy and share the simple things. A good book. A new recipe. A unique ingredient discovered at the local farmer's market. A different perspective to consider. A call for adventure.  

So if you like those things too, join me at Wonder & Wheat for book and travel recommendations,  mini history lessons, recipes to try and more.  

I'm so glad you're here!