2012 YearEnder

A tradition for me over the course of the past ten years has been to send out an annual email to friends and colleagues filled with shtick meant to summarize the year in the rear-view mirror. I've held back the personal sections in what follows below. But this is otherwise what spilled out in my 10th Annual YearEnder. I hope you enjoy it.
--------------------------------
2012 As A Series Of Snapshots

- Mitt Romney lost. Michael Dukakis gleefully handed over the "Worst Candidate Ever" sash and tiara. Ann Romney regretted ever bothering to learn the names of their gardeners, housekeepers, chauffeurs, stable hands, dog groomers, elevator operators, moat diggers, and son wranglers.
- Lance Armstrong got outed years after taking countless performance enhancing drugs and doing every ugly thing possible to deny it. Finally affirming what so many had known for so long - that guy's got real ball.
- The UK politely hogged the spotlight through much of the year. London's Summer Olympics unfolded famously well, while the tabloid paper "News of the World" folded poorly. Kate & Will went topless, then got pregnant. Andy Murray actually wins something, the real Queen and the new James Bond earn raves, "Downton Abbey" thrilled the equivalent of PBS tote-baggers in 100 countries.

- The prematurely lionized David Petraeus got blown off the road to the White House in 2016 after news of an affair with his crazily fit and creepy biographer came to light. The entire gallery of flawed characters largely faded from memory by year's end. Yet the buried lead still stands out for me - one driven, often shirtless FBI agent pulled off a professional hack of the CIA Director's email. Welcome to the New Normal.

- Big Bird was the most discussed "Sesame Street" character this campaign cycle. Besting the usual top Muppet, Grover Norquist.

- "50 Shades of Gray" by E.L. James became the biggest publishing phenomenon since the "Twilight" series. Millions rejoiced in the practice of openly reading porn in public.

- Facebook's IPO flopped. Mark Zuckerberg quickly got married. The things some people do to come up with ever more clever status updates.

- NASA pulled off a stunning landing of their "Curiosity" rover on Mars in the same year they mothballed their Space Shuttle fleet to star in a series of commercials for Toyota.

- Sandra Fluke's birth controlling zeal offended Rush Limbaugh. Leaving him no choice but to not-so-subtly mention her youth and sexual self-empowerment. It was all just a big misunderstanding. Because inside Rush's head, it started out sounding like a compliment.

- The flaming cartwheel of horrors in Syria finally drove the community of Nations to intervene militarily. Didn't we? Really...not yet? Wow, we suck.

- The U.S. Postal Service threatened to shut down thousands of small town offices while a paralyzing drought this past summer decimated crops across huge swaths of America. Thankfully, the U.S. Congress stepped in and helped people where and when they needed it most.

- Gun control was on everyone's mind after an unthinkable tragedy. Then a metaphorical squirrel ran by, causing the nation to lose focus. But then gun control was on everyone's mind after an unthinkable tragedy. And then a metaphorical squirrel ran by...

- Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's previously unnoticed genius with ad copy was revealed when he coined the phrase "fiscal cliff" and thereafter changed how we all looked at...I'm not sure, floor wax or something. Doesn't matter, really. The important point being that Bernanke is Don Draper. 

- The Mayan calendar's much anticipated date for the end of the world passed without incident. Presenting the worst forecasting job since the collective freakout about Tropical Storm Issac scuttled the opening of the GOP's National Convention in Tampa.

- Felix Baumgartner jumped out of a hot-air balloon 24 miles above the Earth, pulled himself out of a death-spin while accelerating to speeds over 800 miles/hour, landed safely and became an international hero. Amazing. But his 84-year-old "coach" free fell for 17 seconds longer when he jumped from the previous record height of 19 miles. In 1960. Who the heck is that guy? No, not Hugh Hefner.

- The Supreme Court led by Chief Justice John Roberts ruled that "Obamacare" should stand. Opponents prepared to target the thing next closest to Obama's heart and legacy. So all you fans of "Bracketology"...you heard it here first.

- The tragic killing of four Americans in Benghazi, Libya became a means by which some asked hard questions about the loss of life in foreign danger zones. Wouldn't it be nice if some small part of that outrage could be focused upon the 310 Americans killed in Afghanistan just in 2012?

- Much of the northeastern U.S. suffered through the onslaught of Superstorm Sandy. One bright spot appeared for some when New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's brash and candid style elevated speculation of his future viability on the national stage. Reaction to his stance on that stage was already tested prior to the 2012 Election. Is this sounding like a series of subtle fat jokes? Sure, Christie's what some might generously call "a little husky." But the YearEnder works best when it doesn't sink to that level. Although once you lean that way, pretty much everything starts sounding like a rip. See what I mean?

Comeback of the Year

The NFL's regular referees returned to work after an inglorious lockout. Prior to them coming back to work, the much maligned replacement refs had a thankless job. Which is why I won't thank them.

Lexicon Addition of the Year

Acronyms really failed us this year. I saw their unattributed ubiquity as a wave that broke in all sorts of directions. A few of the most egregiously overused and under-explained examples were YOLO, LIBOR, and SOPA. It's been a very long time since I went to journalism school, but even I remember that part of the job is to provide the appropriate context every time a new acronym is used. As much as I'm entertained by texting lexicon entering the mainstream, too much is too often left for the reader/listener to find on their own after the fact. KWIM?

Trend of the Year
Kickstarter blossomed as a means of crowd sourcing artists across a wide spectrum of proposed projects. While it certainly shouldn't be expected to fully replace the legitimate role of other private - and, yes, public - funding for the arts, this avenue exist added an option for creatively proposed projects. Abuses and bad ideas occasionally get teed up. The overall trend, however, rose to be accepted as a net positive.

A Few Picks For My Favorites of 2012
TV - "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" might seem like a rather pedestrian pick, given all the inspired shows that kept on rolling along impressively this past year. But Jimmy's uncanny good musical impressions and boundless likeability make him my fave this year. I even let our 7-year-old daughter occasionally watch him play games with guests and some of his crew's instantly classic skits. Of which there were many. This show should only get better as they step forward and beyond the usual formula.

Music - It was a great year for things both Northwest-y and indie - two of my favorite musical flavorings. Which is partly why I've settled upon Seattle's own Macklemore and Ryan Lewis for this year's fave with their independently produced album "The Heist". Unceasingly "posi" - that's "positive" which can be an insult but shouldn't be. Filled with hooks and catchy beats. I met Macklemore (Ben Haggerty) at a lit event two years back after he slayed a cold room full of folks who wouldn't know hip hop from head cheese. No offense. Really liked him then, love him now. Bonus points for the lyrics on "Thrift Shop" and the timely sentiment behind the anthemic "Same Love".

Books - An exceptional year for fiction. Yet no "book" did more to push the physical and conceptual boundaries of how to tell stories than Chris Ware's "Building Stories". Ware packaged 14 separate graphics and text experiments in a box that looks like a board game. The characters can get mopey and his intricate drawings might have you looking for a magnifying glass, but the stories unfold like mysteries with no beginning or end. For those looking beyond the conventional, I can think of no better ground-breaker from the past year's releases.

Film - For all the prestige films left to be seen at year's end, I doubt that I'll find a tastier treat than Wes Anderson's "Moonrise Kingdom". Young love never felt so weirdly authentic. Everyone's great and not a detail is out of place in this fully realized alterna-world.

Person o' the Year - Nate Silver. Not only did he completely nail the entire election in terms of predictions, he wrote a best-seller that makes statistics seem entirely cool. For all the time spent discussing polling numbers in politics, it's quite refreshing to take stock of who gets those numbers right. Silver nailed it, with a humbling lack of spin.

Live Performance - I saw my first live story slam put together by the good folks at "The Moth" in NYC this past October. The energy absorbed from this amateur storytelling competition led to a pair of my many New Year's Resolutions: 1) Always throw my name in the hat, no matter what's at stake and 2) Never show up to an open mike without at least something prepared. The larger point being you should love "The Moth" and I hope you soon get the chance to experience one of their shows live.

Audio - A recent but already white-hot podcast love affair of mine is with Julie Klausner - a fellow ginge and the truly hilarious host of "How Was Your Week". This podcast might just hipcheck aside all those allegedly funny shows coming from comics who couldn't hold Klausner's hair while she hurls a steady stream of culturally astute awesomeness. Very New York-y, best when she's just riffing right off the top before her interviews, not for everyone but oh-so-perfect for many. Including me.

Sports - R.A. Dickey is a baseball pitcher who won 2012's National League's Cy Young Award, published a memoir, starred in a documentary about his favorite pitch, and consistently entertained me whenever he did press for those or other endeavors. Because knuckleballers make so many baseball people nervous, the New York Mets traded him to the Toronto Blue Jays. Which gives me one more cool Canadian thing to root for in 2013. The story of Dickey's evolution proved as refreshing and unique as any in sports this past year.

Killer App - "Made in the USA" became more than just words on a label for me in 2012. If Apple can feel the heat and subsequently move some manufacturing back home, that kind of pressure on American corporations must have legs going forward. I believe that appeals to this sort of patriotic pride can cut across the biggest political divides we have. So long as the products rock. I think that app works on whatever platform you might prefer.

2013's Not-entirely Baseless Predictions
- Even if the idea was stolen from a very clever musician, the game "Rate 5 Things" becomes the Nation's new favorite pastime. Here's how you play:  list five unconnected things and rank them in order. Up, down, by weight, height, karmic value - you and your friends are the unimpeachable judges in this competition. "Rate 5 Things" is part clever-off, part Rorschach test, and can be all sorts of fun. Here's a suggested test grouping to limber you up - Earl Grey tea, a monocle, Samuel L. Jackson, a hammock, and Kansas City. Got it? Well...you will with practice. Oh, and I plan to ascend the ranks of the newly formed Rank Professional League (RPL or "Ripple") and compete for the RPL's inaugural National Championship.
- Iran's Presidential election in June results in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad being forced from office due to term limits. He begins the transition to a new role in Iranian society - morning talk show host and style maven.

- "Maker" culture and the widening practice of using increasingly accessible technology like 3D-printers and laser cutters to, well...make stuff crosses over from the geeky fringe to the mainstream. Soon everyone will be inspired to "print" little epoxy dinosaurs and two-inch-tall Eiffel Towers for their junk drawers and workplace window ledges.

- Silvio Berlusconi returns to the job of Italian Prime Minister. Proving yet again that he truly is political herpes.
- In a rare example of successful group therapy, the simple advance of time vastly thins the ranks of triskaidekaphobiacs (those fearing the number 13). A lobbying effort to properly rename the 13th floors of countless hotels takes hold. However, the burgeoning confidence of triskaidekaphiliacs goes a step too far. Their desire for a National Holiday (on 13/13/13 meant to build upon the informal success of the 11/11/11 and 12/12/12 celebrations in the past few years) manages to only pass the U.S. House of Representatives.

- Clint Eastwood gets so sick of people making empty chair jokes at his expense that he decides to turn into the skid. He opens an unfinished furniture store in Carmel with the game changing idea of incorporating a paint-it-yourself cafe and gallery. "Eastwood's Paint Your Wagon" is a concept store that both softens his increasingly irascible side and lets the public in on his secret love of DIY home decor. By year's end, hugely successful franchises have opened in 14 States and two Canadian Provinces. In a change of faith, Clint chooses to donate all the proceeds to philanthropic causes, steers away from politics, and smiles every time he sits down on one of the new stools he painted to match the color of the marble on his breakfast bar as he looks out at the Pacific.
- Members of the Russian protest band Pussy Riot license their name and trademark balaclavas to the band One Direction for the massive re-branding needed for a rushed second album.

- Paul Ryan's wounded pride from people poking fun at his little lie back on the campaign trail about running a marathon in "two fifty something" pushes him to train and aim for entry in the Boston Marathon. He gets really bad shin splints and a mild case of plantar fasciitis, but still manages a respectable 3:48 and change in a flat, late-summer qualifying marathon. When he learns he's still over 30 minutes slower than Boston's qualifying time for his age group, Ryan eliminates Medicare and Medicaid funding for all of Massachusetts in a hidden line-item tucked into a Commerce Department budget rider. Then he lies about it, claiming he has a wedding the weekend of the Marathon back in Wisconsin so he couldn't run that stupid, liberal race anyways.

- The season finale of "Buckwild" (MTV's latest reality show phenomenon) garners the highest ratings for any program in the history of basic cable television. West Virginia's Tourism Board reports an annual 200% increase in first-time visitors, while the state's hospital emergency rooms bemoan a 350% increase in patient visits for the year.
- The African warlord Kony stages a comeback when he's paid handsomely by Donald Trump to search for Obama's ancestors in Kenya.

- Justin Bieber finally lends his monumental Twitter influence to a political issue away from his Canadian homeland. The Bieb implores his minions to call their "congresspeeps" after stepping up to the mike with the following debate changing Tweet: "det ceiling haters. democrats, republicrats - lets come together and raise tha roof. #momoneylesproblems #BELIEVE" Immaculately, the debt extension passes.
- The future looks bright for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Not only does he get to show off his nation's improved status with a G20 Summit in September, and jauntily prepare to host the Winter Olympics in early 2014. This year Putin also woos back home a trophy wife that all of Mother Russia embraces - Anna Kournikova.
- Kim Jong Un leaves the family business, after being approached to collaborate on an album with South Korean pop personality Psy (whose "Gangham Style" became the biggest viral video of all time in 2012). Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen ("Call Me Maybe" was equally ubiquitous this past year) is brought in to lend her talents on one song, but instead falls in love with what she sees and hears happening in the studio. The resulting album is an international sensation. In turn, their home countries sign a trade agreement that directly leads to the North Korean people being saved from the previously intractable cycle of drought and famine. This new power trio appear to be shoo-ins for the Nobel Peace Prize by year's end.

-------------------------

Which somewhat sadly brings me to the end of this thing. Meaning what you've seen here is not only my 10th YearEnder in the series. This is the last one I plan to write. My YearEnder Ender, if you will. It's certainly been an exercise that I've enjoyed, and the replies have been a joy to read over the years. Who knows - resurrection may be possible. Life's more fun that way. But by these means and in this context, I offer a fond farewell. Look for me in other formats. Maybe even face-to-face. I would very much enjoy that. Be well. Go Pack Go.

Barn raising, barn razing, barn reminiscing.

While 2012 winds down, I'm pulling back my focus to look at the big picture (more details upcoming...). But I'd be remiss if I didn't comment upon a recent event that meant a great deal to me - both as in the lead up to and after the fact.

If you've ever admired the old Swedish barn in the background of this blog's old-timey template, you might appreciate a bit more detail. It was built in 1890, primarily by Simon Danielson who was my father's mother's uncle - Granduncle or maybe Great Granduncle...I might be missing a generation in there and I'm not entirely sure of the term to use. Nonetheless, I spent countless hours working and playing in that barn as a kid. From the house I grew up in from the age of 10, that barn was within view. Whenever anyone looked toward the western horizon, there she stood watch - massive, weathered, grayish-yellow-and-brown. I don't know anything about architectural physics, but the weight of the upper levels seems to have tested the lower structure's integrity greatly. It was obvious to anyone who saw her in the last few years that the sideways lean toward the town road had become precarious. To hold the inevitable in check, she was strung through by five load-bearing cables. For a while, the epic, virgin-timber bones of this grand childhood neighbor had moved to a shifted but stayed position.

Well, that is until last week.

With little advance notice, it came to light that four of the five cables had stripped. It had changed from a lingering hope to a possible danger. Luckily, an often well-timed neighbor was using a fleet of agile, land-moving equipment nearby. So rather than letting it dump out and disintegrate on its own, they eased her down.

Over the years, I'd made a habit of taking at least a few pictures of the barn whenever I return to Wisconsin. The one above is from a clear, brisk afternoon less than two months ago. It holds the distinction of being the last one I will ever take of that beloved homestead icon.

Some days are for barn raising. Others are for barn razing. If you're lucky, some folks gather to assist and maybe even help reflect upon the enormity of such things for a farming family. That's basically how she went for mine.

For a number of days before our barn went down, I'd been having trouble focusing on my work. The natural thought was to blame the Holidaze, and how all the details of what came off as a lovely time for us all at that point had hijacked my focus. I've come to see that just maybe there was a different reason behind my recently skewed equilibrium. This surely sounds like rationalization after the fact - I'm hardly one to fixate upon premonitions or the like. Yet I will always believe that I knew something was out of balance. That is, until our barn went down. Put another way, I feel so much better now. In this I'm serious yet oddly relieved - the barn going down was something I anticipated without even knowing about it until after the fact. Did I feel the pull for a chance to move on, even from nearly 2000 miles away? Maybe I did.

With that off my chest...I'd come to this post wanting to talk about the Farm Bill and the infinitely cool new Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI) that I got to preview yesterday before the grand opening this weekend. There will be time for that and so many other areas of deserving focus in 2013. Please check back. I'm leaning forward, after all. If you haven't already noticed.

Follow the Money? Or the McRib and jokey hunting accidents? Hmmm...

For all the lamentations in the coverage of what Congress does - or does not - do, accurate portraits of those elected to govern seldom appear. In one particular, under-reported post-election character study, I'd very much like to see more. Since so many of us missed it, I'll mention it here.

Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO) was just re-elected. Convincingly. She (and her deceased husband, who previously held the seat) saw Missouri's 8th District turn reliably Republican. Emerson should be a person worth mentioning in the current political debate embroiling Washington. A Republican woman - some have even called her a "moderate" - with Committee memberships that cover rural issues, financial services, and other budget-y/wonky areas. So kudos to her, take that you nay-sayers and let's get to work, right? Well, she's had a change of heart and will instead be skipping the work part of that job to instead head up the Rural Electrification Administration's lobbying operation in February. Certain cynical people say she's doing it for the money - an annual salary well over $1M versus $174K for a Congressperson. A different criticism would point out that she's leaving the good people of Missouri with the cost of a Special Election to fill her seat just a few months after the previously scheduled one.

More to the point of my own interests that so often skew toward mentioning a national tendency to ignore rural America - how exactly is that sort of salary justifiable for the boss of lobbying for the REA? Most people will never encounter the REA and many surely will be surprised to know that its progeny are very much still around. It began a New Deal program that electrified much of America using Works Progress Administration (WPA) laborers. A different brand of cynics would call that a "socialist" program. Unless that service meant turning the lights on, and eventually bringing phone and even the internet to the farthest reaches of the Nation. Truth be told, I grew up in an area that's still serviced by a REA cooperative. I hate to take it this far on down the road, but the thought of those farmers and folks in the area paying Emerson's salary out of their monthly bills just saddens me. But try putting that on a bumper sticker.

I fully realize that essentially no one will report on this. Not when there are stories big and small so much more entertainingly worthy of attention. Like the reintroduction of the McRib on December 17th. And how Milwaukee Brewer legend Robin Yount recently shot Cubs manager (and ex-Brewer shortstop) Dale Sveum in the back and face while quail hunting in Arizona. Come to think of it...I would rather read both of those stories. Even though I know what I should be reading.

The Dakota War, Lincoln and Sibley

"This American Life" offers up some sharp audio portraits, along with the occasional dud. Seldom do they knock me flat and send me back to a broadcast for repeated digging. That is, however, exactly what I find myself doing after a first listen to this week's show - "Little War On the Prairie" - and with good reason. It not only satisfied my own interest in learning more about trade and cultural interactions with those Nations of inhabitants who predated the expansion of the United States. It does so by providing the most compelling portrait of a previously hidden history I've experienced in a very long time. Do yourself a solid and listen to it all the way through. Maybe you'll even find yourself following my lead, which will mean checking out what other work is to be found at the Minnesota History Center's online and in-person (if you're so lucky - on display through September 2013) exhibit on this conflict which they call the "U.S. - Dakota War of 1862". The little that I've browsed through this compiled work stands as wholly impressivex.

Taking this a bit farther, let me first of all say that I don't think this is a spoiler alert for either this audio documentary (done by John Biewen) or the fresh and fabulous movie "Lincoln" which I saw over the Thanksgiving holiday. But for those most staunch in their seriousness about knowing nothing of any particular narrative going in, you might want to return to this post after you've gotten through both. Wth that said...it's no surprise that the real Abraham Lincoln was a leader who had to weigh immense philosophical costs for benefits that sometimes only he could see coming down the pike. Such is possibly the case with respect to his treatment of the Native Americans and the effected mostly white settlers in hugely complex situations like the Dakota War. It is stunning to imagine how Lincoln dealt with such daunting news while simultaneously trying to soldier on through the bloodiest part of the Civil War (September, 1862 included the Battle of Antietam - the first major battle to be fought on Union soil and the single deadliest day in the history of all U.S. wars). But that is just what ol' Abe did. Which tangentially brings up my admiration for the truly amazing storyline used in the film version of "Lincoln". I have yet to hear of arguments raised with respect to Tony Kushner's script or Daniel Day Lewis's uncanny portrayal. Which makes me think they were spot on. That being said, Lincoln's implied presence also factors into this narrative about the Dakota War. Specifically, he's described from a distance dealing with the difficult decisions of what to do with captured Dakota warriors who certainly sound like were the victims of horrible injustices. Heartbreaking stuff. In this, the Minnesota History Center's bibliographic sourcing offers much more fuel for future mental journeys.

The leap of my specific interest(s) have then taken me to one character in the Dakota War episode - Henry Sibley. This guy's name is all over Minnesota, but the story behind his ascendancy was a blind spot for me. Thanks to this incredible hour of radio drama - and the thoughts that got rolling from seeing "Lincoln" a few days ago - I'm headed in a fascinating direction toward that understanding. I'm sure I'm not alone in that.

The point being? Hidden history provides storytelling gold. Or an honest attempt to accurately read and capture that history once in a while offers a chance to shoot for an artful summation. That is, after all, what some of aspire to do. All the while looking to others who have done it so dang well.

Recycling the immortal tribute "and PFFT! You were gone."

While so much post-election journalistic energy has been spent oogling the orbiting awfulness around ex-CIA Chief David Petraeus, two flown-over stories recently caught my eye.

I. I've been wonking out on an intriguing little Bill currently wending its way through the U.S. Congress. Oddly, this was the first business the Senate took up after the election. Which now seems like eons ago. The title for the Bill must drive copy editors wild - the "Sportmen's Heritage Act of 2012" - and the hodgepodge of issues covered therein never makes it above the fold. Plus it's well on its way to passage even as it was sent back to the Senate's Committee on Energy and Natural Resources after a cloture vote (meaning a voice vote without objection...after which Congress seemingly just greases the skids we've got ourselves a new-car-smell law). A few papers and blogs from places presumed to still care about hunting and fishing ran headlines last week mentioning, well, not much up top. Other than that a few dozen hunters upon passage will be allowed to import polar bear trophies from Canada. But aside from the cutesy focus on what a "baculum" is (that's a polar bear penis bone, folks - extra credit for those who've heard of the Inuit term "oosik"), there's been almost no ink spilled for the range of special interests getting extra dap in the Heritage Act. I'm still trying to tease out who benefits and whether or not that's something to be troubled by. Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) had a tough re-election back home, and he's among those most responsible for what's called for in the Bill. Which runs from changes to the rules for hunting, fishing and recreational target shooting, to changing the sizing of what can be called "wilderness", to letting those polar bears who've been dead and skinned since at least 2008 finally cross the border from Canada to the U.S., and a whole musket load of small bore issues in between. Support in the Congress seems to be broad and largely unquestioned. The Obama Administration even weighed in by saying the bill would be good for the "conservation economy" - take just what bowhunting contributes to the U.S. economy and you've got $38 Billion. Yes, with a B. Admittedly, I don't really have any skin in this legislative game or the background to have a reaction to the ones I've read elsewhere. Yet. When the Heritage Act's post-scripts comes around (Senate Bill 3525, mirroring H.R. 4089), I hope to have a bit more to dress out. Or maybe I'll just prep myself to bid on a pimped-out oosik sent down from a taxidermist in Nunuvut. I know, I know - get in line, cowboy.

II. My second shout out comes from a reclaimed childhood memory that I didn't see coming. First of all, Frank Peppiatt died last week. Who? Exactly. However, if you recognize the title quote for this post - a famous bit from Peppiatt's most famous cultural contribution - you just may be...someone who can find some fascinating details in his life story. Whether or not you grew up in cultural circumstances similar to mine. Peppiatt was a co-creator of the TV show "Hee Haw" (with fellow Canadian, John Aylesworth, who died a few years ago). I watched countless episodes when I was a kid, invariably for the skits and bits. I couldn't get through the country music performances fast enough. Yet it's not an overstatement to say that I can't really think of my childhood's Saturday nights without the corn pone jokes and cutaways with sexy farm girls suggesting a playful roll in the hay. "Hee Haw" came on mild and steady with performers like the hosts Roy Clark and Buck Owens showing comedic chops far removed from the stylish New Country crossovers that now seem so ubiquitous. More interestingly, I had no idea until I read Peppiatt's obit that this long-running syndication hit for flyover America came into being as a summer replacement for the Smothers Brothers. Their top-rated comedy show got axed after their satire went all serious and they openly opposed the Vietnam War on-air - probably one of the ballsiest moves in the history of TV. I kid you not when I claim that re-reading signature "Hee Haw" shtick like "I'm a-pickin'...and I'm a grinnin'" conjured up a long buried fondness. To then read that "Hee Haw" got canceled after just two short seasons when CBS did a "rural purge" of shows that didn't fall into the right target demographics sent me Googling for more details. Where and when I saw "Hee Haw" - along with most of the middle of the country - was in the 20+ years of syndication that followed that purge. I rarely recommend obits. Still, where this one led me after getting acquainted with Mr. Peppiatt's life was a sweet, corny treat.

Looking Back and Forward

Election Day. As an unabashed political junkie, today would seem like the perfect time for reflection. In terms of political analysis, however, today snuck up on me this go around. Not because of a lack of attentiveness - I assure you that my bets are well-voiced off-line and my Washington State ballot was tallied weeks ago. We do it all by mail here and in Oregon - this is the future of voting, America. Well, unless/until the Postal Service goes belly up.

Nonetheless, the point of my distraction from the national matter(s) at hand have everything to do with just getting unpacked and dusted off after one last research road trip. I've just unpacked the travel bag for what truly feels like the last time on the primary research for Pelting Out. This final jaunt I'm happy to report allowed me the chance to purposely bring along my curious and amazing daughter, while my wife pursues her own research travel in Africa (Zimbabwe in particular, for those wondering where in the world Sarah is this time). Maya and I went to Wisconsin for a once-in-nearly-a-century special family gathering that provided me with among other related pleasures the true, hands-on narrative ending my book needed. Which begs the question from some - jeez, is it done? That depends on what definitions for "is" and "it" and "done" you're looking to use. I'll just say that the "it" makes much more sense now. I'm happy to report - with a healthy dose of bittersweetness - that without this last trip back to my family's homestead, that "it" couldn't possibly have made as much sense. Or felt as true.

So today is all about "transition" for me. As a storyteller and a citizen. I won't say in which order of importance. However you may reflect upon today - whether you're celebrating or lamenting or trying to tease out why any of this really matters - I hope you've found an equally satisfying reason to move forward with your own work.

Considering NYC's Garment District, and all those on the "Make"

I spent last week in New York City. I'm still processing what I found. Since returning to Seattle, one overarching question has grown in importance for the story I'm telling. Namely - what can be said about the historical arc of that part of Midtown Manhattan generally known as the Garment District. Or Garment Center. Puh-tay-toe, poh-tah-toh. This part of NYC has tried re-branding for a while now, with no apparent luck. But that's merely semantic - calling a duck say, "a mud ballerina" only gets a debate over the future flight of a thing so far. The Garment District in my consideration exists as a place with more history than present or future - no offense meant to anyone with a stake in this debate. I'm just saying that the more time I've spent trying to understand the Garment District, the more I'm intrigued by what I find looking backward.

One group that is very much looking in the opposite direction got some press this week for their efforts. Including an enigmatic little piece in Thursday's NYTimes. If you have any interest in this part of NYC's history, a few clicks through are certainly worth the energy and time. Especially as their efforts to build an economic engine in the Garment District comes up against the high-end condos I saw springing in the midst of that largely bland and low-rise part of Manhattan.

A thumbnail of history might be in order for those who are still with me at this point in the summary. Boundaries for the Garment District creep in all directions depending who's talking and when. I spent chunks of two days at the New York Historical Society pulling references and photos and never found a definitive answer. But I've settled upon between the Avenue of the Americas (6th Ave.) and 9th Avenue for the east and west thoroughfares, and between 26th and 42nd Streets for the north and south. If you go by just the employment records of the unions representing workers there (the International Ladies Garment Workers Union or ILGWU was a biggie), back deep into the 20th Century you had a quarter million people employed making garments there. That's not an aggregate - I'm talking all at the same time. Huge industry. What's left of that? Start ups. Small manufacturers. A shell of an industry, now surrounded by the kind of new media and technology companies who'd never even been dreamed of when the unions of prior dominance were being shut out and those industries were being shipped overseas by the changing dynamics of manufacturing.

For me, finding what had been in the Garment District has grown into a mission. Somewhat in contrast but still on the same point, the Design Trust for Public Space is looking to the future of that part of Manhattan. Their activities were what sprung forth in the limited media coverage this week. They're working on a multi-stage plan - moving from a multi-media history titled "Made in Midtown" to the just released "plan" (in book form) for "Making Midtown" a driver of NYC's future economy. Is this wonky stuff interesting? To a very limited audience, absolutely. But I think it's broader than that. This is economic history that just might evolve into a stage for the new economic Century. I haven't yet seen how they address the manufacturing workforce and how it, too, has evolved. Please remember, America - not long ago NYC's Garment District was basically a Union "town". The hundreds of thousands of people who worked there came from all the Five Boroughs to my deepening understanding, because they could earn wages there to feed generations of Americans. Yet they had to fight for those jobs for over decades. Is that what's proscribed for this newly re-made Midtown? Or is it more on the order of "American Apparel" and what they've done in L.A. It's mildly ironic that one of the historic buildings I've in on in the Garment District now has an American Apparel franchise on the ground level of 7th Avenue - or Fashion Avenue, if you go for that bit of re-branding. Obviously, I've got some reading to do and then I'll get back to you.

Oddly, this connects with one of the coolest places I saw in NYC last week. In Chelsea - which is so posh, undeniably on the make and my favorite neighborhood for meandering - I happened upon this permanent pop-up store/gallery named "Story". They rotate and curate the themes of the place - it's more gallery than retail - and the current incarnation is called "Making Things". This comes after a fashion-themed "Story" most recently in conjunction with Fashion Week in September - they certainly feed off the neighborhood vibe more often than not. Basically for this "Story", they had 3D printers, laser cutters and all sorts of prototype fabricating technology and know-how there to dink around with. I got a few things made for my daughter, printing in epoxy based on plans called up from the searchable archives of "Thingiverse". I predict in five years, every city in America will have some sort of 3D printer in a store that fits the sort of fashion of what "Story" offered up (GE Garages actually supplied the technology and knowledgible folks) Seattle's already got one of this ilk, and the market I think will be limitless. The point still being that if you happen to be anywhere near Chelsea on the lower West Side of Manhattan through mid-November, this "Story" is a blast to check out. Pair it with the Rauschenberg Foundation's "We the People" show just across the street and maybe even a walk down 9th Avenue to Chelsea Market - the pop-up flea market named "Artists & Fleas" just dripped with quirky ideas from hip vendors like wax off a locally sourced beeswax candle - and you'll have as much of a blast as I did.

Come to think of it, a long look at what has gone on and what might come to constitute the Garment District isn't that far removed from a place like "Story" and the sort of maker culture that's currently being shown therein. You just need to find the right seam between the ideas and get to stitching. Then again, I don't really have the time to dress this transition up fully. This comes simply off the rack. I'll do some creative alterations on the connection sometime hereafter.

Keeping a running tab in NYC

To prep for my latest research trip - I'm in NYC this week - I've been poking around in some new subject areas. Much to my surprise, the history of labor unions has figured prominently in that. So I want to quickly give a shout out to the collections housed at New York University. Specifically, the Tamiment Library within the Bobst Library offers an impressive starting point. How appropriate that the Bobst's interior looks like a huge Escher painting given the levels that seem to feed up and down and into one another therein. The access to living history in the form of an honest-to-goodness union icon best got me on the path I intend to follow going forward. Expect you'll hear much more about that from me in the future.

That's not exactly the kind of thing you can put in the ol' scrap book or add to your travel "must see" list. Not that anyone's looking here for those sorts of things. I will offer up a few tasty choices from this latest trip to the City. More recap than guide. Less definitive than anecdotal. Do what you will with it. I've most certainly just straight up enjoyed what I've dipped into thus far.

• One impossible to get ticket in town is sadly the "Discovering Columbus" exhibit using the statue of Christopher "Yes, THAT" Columbus at the Circle he discovered back in 1492. I may be mixing up a detail or two. The point being that I walk by that elevated fake apartment most times I head to or from the actual apartment I'm staying in while in NYC. If you've got dibs on one of those few slots upcoming, way to go, Sport. Share your thoughts and everyone will surely be glad to know more than what's already been written.
• If you're a Green Bay Packers fan and you find yourself in the City on a game day, you can do no better than Kettle of Fish in Greenwich Village. It was a beatnik bar - pictures of Kerouac and the various icons from the era are still hanging on the walls amidst all the cheeseheads and beer posters. Incredibly friendly folks fill the place to bursting. I met a few prime Sconnie ex-pats, and even a current member of the Lambeau Field grounds crew who travels for work when he's not back in Green Bay for home games. This past Sunday I left at halftime to head to a Salman Rushdie/David Remnick snoozefest conversation as a part of "The New Yorker Festival". Mixed blessing because we were up 21-3 at that point. Don't remind me what happened thereafter. But do head there if you want to see natural fans in a mostly surreal environment.
• The day I'd spent digging deeply into the history of labor unions in America, I followed by seeing the documentary "Detropia". I would have never imagined that decay and despair could be so beautiful and stirring. I'd read criticism before seeing the movie saying that Detroit is exploited in showing how much has gone wrong and what is left behind. I completely disagree with that and highly recommend seeing it yourself. 
• If you're not already a fan of "The Moth" I'd love to say run breathlessly to one of their live events. Maybe start with the podcast if you're unfamiliar. I hadn't planned especially well ahead of time to go to the show I caught last night at Housing Works in SoHo. No snacks, long line, all sorts of standing around. Then I got to talking with folks. It was fantastic. And I left hungry for more. It's all about the people - I met more cool ones than I can itemize now. Including someone in line from Michigan who I tried to convince to go see "Detropia". It's amazing how things manage to come full circle in a City like this.
• Here's an obvious one - write and read and just plain build a bigger brain by spending time in the Rose Reading Room at the New York Public Library. That's a well traveled recommendation. But it's still a truly good one.
• If you need to find a gift for a curious 2nd Grader or grown up science geek, there are few cooler places I've found than the Evolution Store in SoHo. If I had a few extra Benjamins bouncing around loosely in me pocket, I'd so be carrying an awesome skull in my backpack right now.
• I had a very particular reason to seek out the New York Historical Society (on the Upper West Side - Central Park West and 77th Street). Almost everyone in there with me this morning appeared to have first hand knowledge of the new WWII exhibit. There are certainly no shortage of great museums in this City. This one, however, started out as a work visit that turned into a totally fun one - bonus points for that. Be sure not to skip the movie.
• On a much smaller scale, there are just so many moments navigating life here that charge my batteries and keep me on edge for what might happen next. There's a complex but very rational reason behind that persona almost all Americans recognize immediately as being that of a New Yorker. I can only take a small vicarious thrill from being lumped in with those who actually live here and act like they damn well do. On my first full day, I got approached by a foreign tourist for directions. Which I gladly gave in full knowledge of what he needed ("There is red line subway near this Chelsea, no?"). As in all places, I like to pay attention closely. In NYC? Times ten.

That maybe all seems rather random. But this post lets me clear the pipes out, know what I mean? Speaking of catharsis and pulling a major non sequiter out of my hat - there was a wonderfully odd piece in the NYTimes a few days ago about one of my favorite overlooked eras. The War of 1812. In this Bicentennial Year, it seems that Stephen Harper (the Prime Minister - but you already knew that, right?) is making a militaristic embrace of Canada's conduct during the War in response to American aggression. I'd normally give big props to anyone putting that historical curiosity on the front-ish burner. Well, unless you're doing what Harper's seemingly doing and trying to spin things for political gain in the present. I know, I know - next thing I'll be offended to learn that there's gambling taking place in the casino where I eat dinner in every night. So to speak.

And with that, I'm off to Brooklyn. Literally, not figuratively. Wherever you're headed, don't take any wooden nickels along the way, mmm'kay?

Bellying up to the bar of "The Master"

I slipped comfortably into a full crowd of movie geeks at Cinerama on Sunday night to see "The Master" - Paul Thomas Anderson's latest extended visit to the brain salad bar. While I normally don't venture into movie reviewing here, the overall movie has been lingering in my imagination for the past few days. Especially the imagery in a particular early scene.

To begin by clearing the main rhetorical bar, "The Master" is a daunting and inspired film. This is film making for grown-ups, and there's no easy summary. Or maybe there are too many. I'll nonetheless take a swing at it by saying that it's a movie about the terrible things people do to themselves. Joaquin Phoenix underwent a stomach turning physical transformation as the alcoholic representing one half of the heart of the story. He's a barely tethered wreck - thin as a greyhound and just as high-strung. On the other side of the whole stands an imposing Phillip Seymour Hoffman. He looks like any physical training he's done over the last few years has been limited to repeat visits to the bar - no matter what's being served there. He puts on an acting masterclass as a dynamic charlatan while never dropping the imposing sense that the wheels might come off at any unwanted turn of phrase. They are both very naughty boys, sharing only a temper barely tucked into their perfectly chosen period props. The entire cast and look feels more authentically pulled from 1950s America than anything this side of a Douglas Sirk movie. The storytelling is full of countless challenges, both great and small. If you do see it, go out afterward and talk talk talk about it. I think few filmmakers are better at launching conversation(s) than this Anderson. I think I loved "The Master"...although it will surely be the biggest "love it or hate it" movie of the year. Check back with me for a rating in a week or two. For now, it feels like totally A-grade material.

For my purposes, however, the scene of greatest impact came very early on - after Phoenix's character (Freddie Quell) comes home scrambled and drunk after World War II. He takes a job as a photographer in a department store. This introduction to life State-side begins with the image of a model wearing a full-length mink coat. She approaches customers opening the coat to show the green and blue lining that matches the fabric of her dress. She repeatedly quotes the price with a forgettable  tagline showing that she's just a walking, talking, sexed-up billboard. Soon thereafter we see her drinking Freddie's dangerous homemade hooch with him in his creepy work room - no more fur coat, still wearing the dress, after which the layers get peeled back further in the first of the many of the movie's brazen nude scenes. Some might see all this as just era-specific costuming. Not me, given all the time I spend looking for this specific imagery and the way it continues to be used to evoke post-War America through the following decades. I can (and will) take it a great deal farther in what I'm writing. Still, seeing a talent like Anderson use iconic images on the leading edge of the 1950s is heady stuff. Maybe someday I'll get the chance to ask him - or his production designers or costumers or prop masters or whoever one should go to in pursuing such minutiae - just what he meant to show by having this woman be the first who Freddie gets his hands on.

That's only a small piece of what I took away from this film. Any comments on what worked or didn't work for y'all when you see it would be appreciated. It truly amounts to a trip to the movie-going salad bar - lots to choose from, much of it good for you, some tastes just don't go together for some people. I really do suggest that you load up on what's served by "The Master". But, then again, I'm a sucker for a good salad bar.

For fans of IRS Code "Subpart F" or "Form 5471" - get your lighters out.

This might sound like even more of a subjective stretch than usual. In terms of this being a scratch pad for thoughts and interests that spring up while doing book research, this one is maybe equal parts past and present. Whatever the tab, I ducked back down an unlit alley this morning. So goes the world when no editors are involved. Or metaphorical electronic dog collars to get me back within the proper mental fencing.

Back on the barely Google-able, leading edge of this century, I was doing some freelancing and had an assignment from a fresh web-based money/business newsy site. "Green Magazine" was pretty cool in its day. Now that URL is used by John Deere enthusiasts...where a certain cut of folk can find some serious ag and machinery loving kinks. Nonetheless, way back yonder I tried to work an angle on explaining "offshore bank accounts" as a tax shield. I soon realized I'd swung way too broadly and the idea never came together. I do remember one especially greasy interview with a financial planner - the sort where you want to take a brain shower afterwards - who loosely framed how people from all walks of life could set up a foreign company or open offshore accounts with little more than the will to do so. The devil - as the cliche` goes and he often is - was in the details.

Over the years I've often come back around to that subject. Not actually doing anything to better understand the idea of parking money offshore or setting up the means to launder it. Just thinking when the subject came up that an operational story would be a good idea. Was it hard to head down this road? Could truly anyone venture offshore with their money? Thankfully, there are some pros who are pursuing parts of that broad story right now. "Planet Money" (National Public Radio's economics and business podcast) just posted the latest installment in their series on setting up "shell companies" - they chose Belize and Delaware (yes, that Delaware). The "Planet Money" folks are describing how people might move money places in hopes of avoiding taxation. Not really a "how to" even though that's certainly part of it. I think it's more of a "what if you did" story. And a darn good one, at that. The style is incontrovertibly NPR-ish - quirky, willing to slow walk a story that might tucker out before it's run the whole course, genius as a concept and really well-executed, self-deprecating while being eviscerating. I really recommend that you check it out.

Future plans for NYC, farm funding, and redheads.

Although I'd planned to stick a fork in my research-y travel plans when I'd reached the end of August (and the end of the "Year On the Road" that began for me last September), I'm still very much looking forward to a pre-planned week back out there in America in early October. That's when I'm heading back to NYC for a inspiring mix of pursuits. Included in all that was a desire to catch a few events on the last day of this year's "New Yorker Festival". This morning was the opening of trigger-pullin' time - tickets went up for sale promptly at 9am PST. I had my daughter watch my web browser refreshing as I threw together our last few things before hopping her bike and pedaling toward Seattle's crazy late schoolday start. My results? Straight up 50-50. I got the Salman Rushdie conversation with David Remnick I'd put at the top of my wish list. Rushdie's memoir Joseph Anton will rightly be on top of coveted nightstands all around the world in little more than a month. However, I didn't get the walking and eating tour that Calvin Trillin does, taking a small group looking to nosh from Greenwich Village to Chinatown. That sold out in literally one minute. If I'd reversed the order of this short list...who knows. But seriously one minute? Just goes to show that few writers still earn the love quite like Mr. Trillin.

On a totally different page, the required reboot of the Farm Bill increasingly looks to be put out to pasture by this Congress. Few pundits are yet projecting hard numbers, but I'd bet a gallon of Roundup that there are a handful of races that just might tip to the challenger if nothing gets done. The timing is just brutal for not just farmers - the current bill runs out at the end of September. That could mean a month of being home in Districts campaigning while farmers cut from all stripes unload a bit of drought-fueled frustration. I'll even predict a whole lot of YouTube-ready moments capturing that collective frustration. If you've paid no attention to this debate, no worries - not even the wonkiest seem at all engaged. But as someone who has developed a tangential interest in ag policy and who now pays more attention to how this Congress is dealing with actual requirements when it comes to legislation, I'm appalled. It's not the sausage making. It's the complete unwillingness to pick up that casing and get on with the stuffing.

Finally, I try to stay away from most of the links half-way or more down the homepage of the Huffington Post. No disrespect - they have become masters at goosing traffic from even the most tired foibles. But I got grabbed by one of their science writers today - Cara Santa Maria - playing up the "ginger fear" card. Not the "Fear the Ginger" card. Those are very different cards. Basically, she did a clever job of making fun of us redheads while supposedly reassuring us that we're not on the road to extinction. Almost makes me want to grow it all out again - show some solidarity with my not-really-threatened compatriots and all that jazz. Then again, pieces like this show how a derivative artist like M.I.A. probably gets her ideas. Hug a redhead today, won't you? We're not infectious - I promise. And, obviously, we need the love.

Fueling the Anti-Clinton Conspiracy Theorists? COUGH...whitewater payback...

No matter what you think about Bill Clinton, it was fascinating to see some of the old shtick resurface this week in the wake of his Democratic Convention Speech. Bubba's long-winded. Bubba's a wonk. Bubba's charming as all get out. I'm not looking to stir up anyone's favored beehive (or am I?). But I do have another Bubba trope to offer that's I could see being slid back onto the table. Not the adults' table. I'm talking about a folding table, banished to and ignored in another room few people venture into anymore. Still...remember Whitewater? Well, I was shocked SHOCKED to stumble back into that tangle of stories when a surprisingly colorful figure from that whole overwrought saga came across my radar this week. That figure is Parker Dozhier - an Arkansan and self-confessed Clinton foe. Actually I'm talking past tense - Dozhier passed away last week. I never spoke with the man, but I'd been meaning to contact him for months after being told to seek him out by a writer I met at BEA back in June. It was only when I was looking to say a little something to that writer (Steve Rinella, who has a new book out as of this week) that I searched for the proper spelling of this suggested source - Dozier, Dozer, Do'h-seer. From there, I end up here. Polluting the water. With my tongue firmly in cheek.

Just goes to show that some linkages get all up in your face - or simper off into the margins without ever getting their due attention - after the fact of realizing how completely awesome it would have been to have made that call. The moral of this surely confusing story? If you've got a call on your list that might get made today, although it can probably wait until at least, well...it is awfully nice outside and the weekend's almost here in earnest...I'm here to say that you shouldn't delay making that call. You never know who you might end up chatting with across the ol' Bait Shop counter. Know what I mean?

Showing some Minnesota museums the love they deserve.

When I started this occasional blog a year ago, writing about museums didn't factor in. Sure, I always gravitated toward good museums. Take me most anywhere and I'm ripe for some degree of indoor walkin' and learnin'. After the traveling I've done for research on this book, I now find myself in museums more often. Entirely by choice. Plus I've begun thinking about what works and why when it comes to a good museum. Rather than break down the blend of style and substance I look for in a museum, I'll throw down two examples I saw on this past trip through the upper Midwest. Not because I set out to write about them. Because I came to love what they each do, in entirely different ways.

The Minnesota History Center near the State Capitol in St. Paul has been there for 20 years - it hardly seems that long. The building itself sits on a perfect plot looking toward downtown and the Cathedral  of Stain Paul (what a coincidence) a miter toss from the old showy timber/frontier barons' manors in that grandiose hood. I had to set up an appointment to view things there on a Monday. Thanks to the delightful behind the scenes curatorial types, my direct interaction with the collection there was truly special and inspiring.

This museum offers upon special request a chance to see "3D Objects" from the Minnesota Historical Society's holdings. It was the full white gloves and chaperone interaction. If you really want to geek out in an area you are obsessed about - and you're willing to do your homework so you don't look like a buffoon - this is a truly special place to get your history on.

That interaction and the conversation that ensued then led me to drive just over an hour north of the Twin Cities to the living history museum up in Pine City. I've these sorts of places done well, insult the bejeezus out of visitors, and everywhere in between. Thankfully, the "North West Company" site there was incomparably good and refined in its active storytelling.

The fellow playing our tourguide / voyageur was particularly fantastic. Right down to the faux French verbal tics and the healthy improv playing off the the adorable kids in my group who could have been straight out of a Jeff Foxworthy video.

The point may take me a bit to get around to making later. Something about how good museums make you think once you've left the building and returned to the present. Whatever the moral to be spun from the larger narrative, a few places like these on a random Monday make me all the more happy to head for the next institution of moderately higher learner wherever I may be heading next. I hope you will, as well.

Purging some thoughts before filling up with Friday Fish Fry

This trip through the Upper Midwest has given me ample doses of everything I sought this time around. New information from sources I know I'll engage with going forward. A chance to reconnect with people and stories I continue to research. Hours on the road to reflect upon what I'm trying to pull together for a big book on a subject no one seems to have searched for previously. Unexpected pleasures and pains in both unfamiliar surroundings and while tracking down some old favorites. Like so many of the trips I've taken this past year, this is what I've come to see as simply life on the road in America. Today is my chance to reflect and transcribe while visiting a town not far from where I grew up. This is a place where we would come for summertime waterskiing shows and the occasional movie or run to the Dairy Queen. Unlike so much of America, this town and the others around it have changed little from the 70s and 80s. Maybe it even goes back farther. But the ubiquity of coffeeshops with free WiFi and decent espresso even to be found in places like Tomahawk offer a chance to connect the dots with some of the places I've seen along the way.

As I often do, I've collected a mental list of places worth mentioning for others to keep an eye out for when they're similarly out there navigating the vast landscape of America. Whether I'm being a highly selective filter or just a traveler looking for an upside wherever my feet hit the ground, I'll mention a few. With one crushing bummer to show that all's not uniformly inspiring out there on the road.

• I was lucky to arrive on the outskirts of Omaha, Nebraska just as their minor league baseball team (the Omaha Storm Chasers - the Royals's AAA squad) took the field against the Nashville Sounds (the Brewers's AAA squad).  Just outside the ticket office, a Little League coach was handing out free extra tickets - I grabbed one with a smile. Hot dogs were on special inside the stadium for a buck. Then the Sounds lit up the Omaha starter for 6 runs in the top of the second inning (on their way to a 9-1 victory). Baseball purists might look down their nose at what showed up on the field that night. But I was blissfully entertained after a day on the road.
• For the second time - the prior being smack dab in the middle of winter - I made my way to the "Field of Dreams" movie site just outside Dyersville, Iowa. It was textbook example summer afternoon, with the outfield corn standing 9-feet-high (no drought conditions around a tourist attraction). Two pairs of Iowans asked me to take their pictures. Even if I'd had an anxious team looking to start practice, I couldn't have stayed longer. Just a run around the bases and a passel of pictures taken were more than special enough.
• After visiting the Fort McHenry museum in Baltimore earlier this month, I'd had my interest piqued thanks to a reference to the solitary battle in these parts. So I planned for a stop in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin along the Mississippi River. The history part of town was a widely mixed bag, but there were many delights to be found. I even stayed at the Brisbois Motor Inn because of the epic kitsch quality of their signage around town. The motel was full of railroad workers and what I assumed to be a sizable number of drug mules. I didn't get even a little bit murdered. If you've got the time and itinerary to head through, also stop in at a coffeehouse on Blackhawk Avenue named Simply. It was all that and so much more.
• When unpacking the usual Madison cliches, there should always still be a nod delivered for the shared energy that comes from State Street on a summer evening. But my favorite stretch while in there for little more than a day was to get a falafel platter from a stellar food truck (Banzo) and head out back of Memorial Union and to share the Badger familial energy. I followed that up with a visit to the Wisconsin Historical Society's Library on campus, stumbling into their "Wisconsin After the War of 1812" exhibit. I didn't go to school in Madison. I am a different cut of college-aged rodent (Gopher blood courses through these veins). But a lucky, happy sojourn like mine yesterday made me realize yet again how nice that would have been.
• It's not all happy and inspired out there in America, obviously. The browned and sad fields of drought-stricken corn throughout Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin are just devastating to see. We'll be seeing the ripple effect of that sad sight in the grocery stores for the next few years.

There's more on my plate for the next few days before sticking a fork in this year's research travels. Up next I'm stoked for a Friday Fish Fry at the bar on picturesque Little Spirit Lake just two doors down from the house I lived in until I was 10-years-old. Because if you come to northern Sconnie without eating your weight in deep fried fish, you surely will be arrested. Not the cardiac kind, I hope. Here's hoping you get the walleye tonight, too.

The last hiatus...for now.

Please excuse the recent radio silence emitted from this platform. For a lingering moment longer, I'll be in Seattle. I've been charging up after my most recent research road trips and getting ready for what's on deck to round out the summer. The first of those recent rollers took me to D.C. and the surrounding states. It was a trip that featured some long hours, but I was still able to mix it up in ways that I love. I soaked up the hot, walkable history on display at Fort McHenry. I got lost in the mix of permanent exhibits (love those Presidential portraits) and a special show of artifacts from the War of 1812 within the National Portrait Gallery (part of the Smithsonian Institution). I even managed to play the full-on inspired tourist, best exemplified by the lump lodged in my throat 'round sunset at the Jefferson Memorial. I didn't melt. It was grand.

Thereafter, I endured Delta losing my bag two separate times in 36 hours. I only mention it to blunt any anticipated surprise for what Delta may do to me next. Although if they lose my bag on this Saturday's direct flight to the Minneapple, I will begin to seriously doubt this as anything related to karma. Wait - I'm getting a bit ahead of myself. Especially since I've not even mentioned the better part of a week I spent in Utah. I'm sounding awfully repetitive, but I fell hard for the Utahns met there - no matter how much I disagree with their collective moniker. Most of my time was spent in either Salt Lake City or Park City. I had great luck with a first foray into the genealogy resources and friendly Mormons to be found at their main Family History Library. I joined the chorus of appreciation for the fresh and stylish Natural History Museum of Utah (just opened in late 2011 - well worth a visit, especially if you've got kiddos to entertain). On the Park City side, chief among my enjoyed distractions were my visits to the Utah Olympic Park. Seeing kids doing acrobatic splashdowns into the pool off the ski jumps was the best display of exuberant rewards I saw on the whole trip. Although my morning runs up to that same park were a close second.

As a general summary of these field research trips, I'm glad to report I repeatedly found myself chucking old uninformed thoughts as I wrestled with newly unearthed inconsistencies. At this particular moment, I'm pulling together big ol' bundle of details to prepare for my final 10-day trip through the upper Midwest. But it's healthy to step back and see that this will complete nearly a year's travels that have taken me into parts of 14 American states and the District of Columbia, 2 Canadian Provinces and China. I've gathered nearly 5 days of audio tape from interviews and hundreds of pages of notes. All to what end? Well...that's coming. Regardless, it has been a glorious trip - not that it's over. Just transitioning. Here's hoping that even something as minor as a lost bag doesn't detract from the clarified focus I feel I've earned to use as I pull up to this next fork in the road.

On the road again - DC edition

I'm back on the research road - flying high above this quite large nation on my way to our Nation's capital. I'll spend a number of days on the ground there, pursuing a plethora of new angles. I arrive on a day I hope will not feature the Postal Service defaulting on the first of their sizable financial commitments. But that souffle may already be cooked, given that Congress hasn't acted on much of anything other than anti-abortion legislation as of late (unsuccessfully, it should be added). And what of the Ag Bill still hanging in limbo as the Nation struggles with a terrible drought? Not much happening there, either. What to do, you might ask, if there's so little goshdarn legislating being done in the required home of such activity? My schedule will be tight, but I am planning to mix it up with some frenzied museum time. Yes, I do indeed know how to party. For those keeping score at home, I have a wish list that includes the following:

• Fort McHenry in Baltimore is a place I know little about other than the basics - think War of 1812, the origins of "The Star Spangled Banner", and probably a fair amount of other stuff. It requires a trek. For those paying attention, however, I do dig being this sort of trekkie.
• Continuing along those Bicentennial themes, the National Portrait Gallery has a War of 1812 exhibit in place. I'd read a review a few months back that intrigued me. Prior to that, I only recall Stephen Colbert's hilarious pursuit of inclusion in the museum's holdings. Put this one at the top of my museum geek wish list for this visit.
• To finish the short list the nerd-poriums I'm hoping to bag, a secret plan to visit the Spy Museum has always stuck in the back of my neck like a poison-tipped dart. In a good way. So add that little divulged secret to the ledger.

I do have other plans. I'll keep y'all updated, if you'll be so good as to check back. But we're heading into Memphis - wow, now that's a sunrise worth tweeting about. As in what a bird should be doing - there's another word lost forever to modernity.

Looking to the East

One result of my trip to China last September was that my radar now sweeps over stories from that general direction with more regularity. Admittedly, I don't know if I understand more about China or just find myself wanting to read loads more about what's going on there. Regardless, I'll offer up a few curious stories seen over the last handful of days. If you're like me and you hold onto the hope of better understanding what's going on across the globe, these stories might help a wee bit.

The burgeoning love for status symbols in China has made it a coveted market for selling those goods. The NYTimes ran what I saw as a fascinating story Monday on the crazed expansion in the Chinese market for fashion magazines. They're mainly a vehicle for ads promoting luxury goods (a category of consumption that's exploding in China). "Elle" now runs over 700 pages. Other issues have been added or they split them into two. And they're expensive. Can you imagine spending over $3 a pop per throwaway mag when you make a bit more than $700 a month? It does fall in line with a culture that I saw openly embracing designer labels - not cheap knock-offs - where the idea of spending a few grand on a real bag is justifiable. Buried deep in this piece is the observation that this whole game could evaporate in a moment if the economy slows and how even the fashion mags need to steer clear of censors.

The Ai Weiwei story continues to evolve. Last week's announcement of his lost appeal on those trumped up tax penalties was more bad news for this artist after a long run of similarly unfair targeting. He's like an aging heavyweight boxer - I often don't know how he can keep getting back up to fight again after all the punishment he's been taking. Ai's latest rejected appeal feels like another punch in the gut. This man shows how even the most powerful artist still can't expect to exercise truly free expression in an evolving China. The hooks from this story are in deep for many of us, all around the world. To fill in much more backstory, I found much to marvel at in the profile over the weekend of the young American documentarian - Alison Klayman. Her film "Never Sorry" focuses Ai and has been on my "must see" list for months. I, for one, am glad Klayman was there to film and stuck it out for as long as she did to do so.

Another interesting tidbit I wish I'd known about when I visited last fall is a bookstore in Hong Kong that specializes in the books Beijing doesn't want the Chinese to see. Apparently there's enough banned books to fill a whole store. The fact that they can operate there after the handover is certainly a bright spot. And with the number of Chinese traveling from the mainland to Hong Kong more than doubling in the last five years (from 13-ish million to 28-ish from 2006 to 2011), there's a growing audience for it. Baby steps, people. But steps, nonetheless.

Touring Hanford, offering somewhat glowing praise.

I'll admit it once again - I'm a total museum geek. Knowledge fetishist. Brain-filler enthusiast. Call it what you will, but I own up to the fact that I'm often happiest consuming new info presented by professionals in location-specific forms. And, man, did I find a doosie over the weekend.

I toured the Hanford Nuclear Reservation's "B Reactor" outside the Tri Cities (Richland, Pasco, Kennewick) along the Columbia river in south central Washington. On purpose. For those unfamiliar with "Hanford" or what sort of history might be housed there, here's a thumbnail. It was there that our nation extracted the fuel needed for the Manhattan Project during WWII, and the following decades worth of Cold War nukes. As a result, Hanford became the biggest environmental clean-up site in American history. The whole Hanford site is 567 square miles, most of which has been secret and/or off limits for approaching seven decades. In 2008, the Department of Energy began offering tours of the site - they're free, but they book up fast. I signed up months ago for my slot over the weekend.

Both in terms of Hanford and the Tri Cities, I found the entire area to be fascinating. Around town(s), the locals and their hangouts were often unintentionally entertaining. That sounds like a dig, but I mean to be sincere - I really like the energy out there. I found a few new favorites - the Atomic Ale Brewpub & Eatery in what had been an old A&W Root Beer stand, Roaster's Coffee housed in what must have been an old gas station, and the updated outdoor Uptown Shopping Center which on a summertime Friday night was filled with Juggalos and various categories of locals straight out of a casting call for a sequel to "Dazed and Confused" - once more, all meant in a good way. The top headline in the "Tri-City Herald" on the morning of my tour addressed in very technical minutiae the "sludge" being cleaned from a part of the massive Hanford "Superfund" site. The people out there not only live with Hanford's legacy. They embrace the reclamation. I respect that immensely.

It's rather hard to summarize both the immensity of what exists even in the minimally accessible parts of Hanford. I had a real reason for heading out there aside from my museum lustiness. It was indeed satisfied, although I was stunned by the way my question of how what's there (and what came from it) connects to something grander and more specific to the current book I'm writing. But I also ended up finding things and feeling emotions that I just didn't expect. No, it was not the latent radiation. I'm talking about the stories of the people who not only worked there but were impacted because of what was done there. Just this morning, I listened to a "Radio Lab" podcast about the bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki (centered upon one of the impossibly rare individuals who survived BOTH blasts - an absolute must for fans of that show or just good storytelling on the radio). The knowledge I brought to it because of my tour of the place where the plutonium was made cannot be overstated in its added power.

I will pull no punches - the B Reactor tour is a work in progress and I'm not sure if the audience is all that broad for what's to be seen there. But if you're the sort of person who'd consider blowing 4-5 hours on a tour of a nuclear plant, you will be fully engaged. If you're in that general area (they do take drop-ins because of the number of cancellations - on my tour only 27 of 43 slots were filled) please do check them out. Let me know. I'd love to talk with others about their reactions to the place.

Rural Tastefulness vs. Forced Urbanity

I want to offer an afterword on my visit to the Maryhill Museum on the Washington State side of the Columbia River. For those not up on the connection, we ducked away from our urban life over a briefly extended 4th of July holiday. Among other awesome rural and wilderness exploration, I could finally justify a visit to this hard to reach - and to characterize - museum. The hodgepodge there rates a qualifier-filled thumbs up. If you're close by, you really should check it out. But don't make a special trip - its honestly not that grand. I'll mention a few things to justify what might seem unduly harsh.

The surrounding hillsides are dotted with white wind farm turbines. They add a modern, idealistic charm to the otherwise hot and dusty shades of brownness - or greenishness, where an irrigation system has been employed to grow something. The Maryhill Museum features right at the entrance a collection of jewels, furniture and general whatnots from the Queen of Romania - it's overplayed payback from the founding of the museum and a real deadening factor to kick things off. My brief interactions with the staff were also occasionally a bummer. Here's where I'll play the scold in saying that none of us have to visit, so please try to be pleasant. With that snark out the chute, the Native American art struck me as a particular strength. It's delivered with well-researched support for the artistic and cultural differences between the nine regions of North American peoples - I learned a bunch and wanted more. Their Rodin collection (not just the sculpture - the dood could draw) and accompanying education it provides is wonderful. At long last, someone explained the essence of Balzac to me. Not that I went in looking for that.

In overview terms, the man behind the museum was Sam Hill (named it for his daughter, Mary, with no explanation offered for why its not the "Mary Hill Museum" instead). I wish he made for a better story. He's not even the one memorialized in the old line "what in the Sam Hill?" Basically, Sam was a railroad company lawyer from Minneapolis who made a boatload of cash and then took on "good road" for cars as his personal quest. Yes, promoting highways partly inspired him to build his mansion/museum way out in the Sam Hill part of the State. The fact that the money now keeping his museum running comes from wind power seems like an irony that's been lost on almost everyone. The weird combination of the original museum's poured concrete - quite unique back in that day, but now about as inspiring as a poured basement - and the new modernist wing and the sculpture gardens with new works from around the Northwest and all sorts of far less noteworthy works give the Maryhill the feel of shifting sand. It's almost like they're trying to make up for the fact that they're out in the middle of nowhere by being a little bit of everything to everyone. They don't want to be rural. But they surely aren't urban. So what are they? I think, at best, an invitation to debate something ephemeral.

To take in the full scope of this area's strangeness, visit the (fake) Stonehenge a few miles east. Look for Sam Hill's tomb as a challenge and tell me if you don't agree that it represents a particularly inglorious end for a man whose ego must have been huge. Better yet, stop at the Gunkel Orchards down in the Town of Maryhill for some tree fruit. I also really enjoyed the winding drive just north of the Columbia between White Salmon (where a stop for a juice and joe at 10 Speed Coffee Roasters was a particular fave) and Trout Lake. That stretch allowed me to think about real (and metaphorical) bridges between rural and urban sensibilities. Not as much as our stay at the Farmgate Homestead (just outside the awesome town of Trout Lake and within constant sight of Mt. Adams). That's a place we'll definitely visit again. Not just to cross it off some list of curiosities. Because it's awesome and we now know it.

Just a few degrees of newsie separation

Before we do a holiday getaway, I'd like to offer a few newsie reflections. The connections to my book's larger theme of issues might seem a bit more stretched than usual. Consider the following as akin to packing for a roadtrip - not everything thought to make sense at the get go will get used. But it's there for a reason.

• For a needed family mini-vacation, we're renting a house with another family of local friends. That means we're bringing along and seeking out all the usual outdoorsy distractions. I'm rather blissfully unaware of the logistics. In fact, the only contribution I bring to this getaway is the hope to take us down the road a piece further one day to visit the Maryhill Museum of Art. That supremely-isolated, decidedly-odd museum expanded recently. Plus they have their very own Stonehenge replica, along with what appear to be stunning views of the Columbia River. The oddity of being effectively endowed thanks to a wind farm more than keeps the lights on there. Hopefully, I'll report back later on what's also worth seeing in their collection.
• I'd be remiss in my newly amplified Canadian awareness if I didn't acknowledge that yesterday was Canada Day. I've continued to think a great deal about Canada and its history since my recent trip. Museums such as the one in Lachine just outside Montreal and the decidedly thoughtful and complete view of Canada's history seen in Ottawa got me rolling. I even dug Kurt Andersen's "rebranding" effort on last week's episode of "Studio 360". The resulting "Know Canada" campaign is a damn good one - I wonder what the view of it is from the northern side of the border. I even asked a financial planner last week about specific Canada funds - Fidelity has one, and there are certainly others. My newfound embrace I think might go on for a while.
• Our other next door neighbor, Mexico, had a big day yesterday. Or a depressing return to form, depending upon your political persuasion. They elected Enrique Pena Nieto. Barely. And the next closest candidate - Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador - is pulling the same trick as he did last time around by not conceding the result. I tried to observe Mexico's process the last time out in 2006. We lived for a month in a small Mexican city (Cuernavaca, an hour south of Mexico City), just prior to the election of Jose Calderon (think Romney, without being so Mormon-y). I do dig Mexico's term limit rules - one six-year term per President, no chance of another. This time around, Mexico's problems with drugs and constant mayhem - combined with what sounds like a total yet superficial embrace of their President Elect's style and soap opera star wife - drove them back to the party (the PRI) that ran the country for 70+ years. The PRI is totally sketch. And fascinating, from what little I've read. Still, they're back on top. The point being that if we don't know Canada, we really don't know Mexico. Which is sad - you should always get to know your neighbors.
• Speaking of what we Americans don't know, Minitel is gone. Oui, it's true - France's partly beloved old jalopy of a precursor to the internet is no more. If you've ever heard of it, you might also know that Minitel looked like a phone with a stripped down computer screen. I'm talking production value straight out of that seen on the infamous show "Space: 1999". They finally shut 'er down over the weekend. I never got to use it, but it was often discussed in my grad school back in the early 1990s as an pre-"information superhighway" model to understand in operation, not just in theory. Obviously, the worldwide web spun onward and everywhere else. But I was instantly touched by the piece I read last week about French dairy farmers in Brittany being some of the first and then some of the last heavy users who as a subculture seriously hated to see Minitel shut down. Unlike vinyl records, manual typewriters or whatever sort of old-timey standard might enjoy a new utility, there will be no rebranding of these old units. And as of Saturday, the plug has been pulled on Minitel. Au revoir, ancienne et adorables téléphone.