This Midwestern Life

2010-11-13T22:32:00.001-06:00

Ethicist Michael Josephson spoke at the Dillon Lecture Series at Hutchinson Community College in Hutchinson, Kansas on November 9. He founded "Character Counts" in 1993 to teach students and others integrity. More than 7,000,000 students have been involved with the program based on six pillars of character: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring and Citizenship.

He offered many summations I thought were worthy of note. Some were funny and some more thoughtful. I jotted down some of them to share here.
We are all building our own houses.
If you keep doing what you're doing, you're going to get what you're getting.
I want to be thin... when I'm not hungry.
You don't have to be sick to get better.
When you really believe something you want to share it.
Kids don't care what you know until they know you care.
Everyone has a label that says, "Make me feel important."
Someone who lies for you will lie to you.
First and foremost you're an individual responsible for your own actions.

He spoke about rational decisions and rationalization. He said the rational decision process is that you reason first and come to the conclusion. Rationalization is when we reach the decision then come up with the reasons for it. He said, "Rationalization is an anesthetic to the conscience."

He shared numbers from a recently released report on values and conduct of American Youth that included 43,000 students.
55% of boys and 33% of girls had been bullied in the past 12 months
53% of students said they have hit someone because they were angry
28% of Seniors had five or more drinks in the past two weeks
26% of Seniors have used illegal drugs at least once in the past month
18% of boys and 12% of girls have had sex with at least four different partners
11% of girls have been forced to have intercourse at least once in her life
14% of girls have been pregnant at least once
64% have cheated on an exam in the last year (67% of athletes)

He said the true test of integrity is, "my willingness to do the right thing even when it costs more than I want to pay."

Some schools in the area participate in the program, and one of them mentioned at the luncheon that they just started the program last year, but a disciplinary standard they're tracking went from more than 300 last year, to 13 so far this year. Josephson says the idea is to make character part of the DNA of a community or school.

At the luncheon, someone asked if this program could work without the parents being involved and Josephson said it certainly did. Sometimes parents are part of the problem, he said, "Parents are a mixed bag," and represent all the behaviors possible. He said sometimes they're, "reprogramming kids from some of the problems."

Someone asked if this was a religion-based program. Of course, it's not, since it's used in public schools. When he was questioned more about religion in schools, he gave a great answer that it was best to keep them separate, because not everyone shared the same faith - he is Jewish for example, and he wanted the program to be able to reach the most people. He went on to say that character and religion were not tied together, saying, "There are people of character who have no religion."

Another question was about what is legal. He said legal is the bare minimum and "ethics is much broader than the law."

He spoke about politics saying "I think most people in politics are much better than their campaigns indicate." He asked an important question, "Why did compromise become such an ugly word? Democracy requires compromise." He said he wants people who can change their minds. That means you can receive new information. He said, "Thinking people disagree."

The Character Counts program is about starting with a notion of core values and a common language. He said we need to institutionalize continuity so regardless of who the mayor or superintendant is the program continues.

2010-10-24T15:37:00.001-05:00

Hutch Haunts was Great Experience

Saturday night I attended Hutch Haunts, a partnership of the Kansas Underground Salt Museum (KUSM) and the Hutchinson Theatre Guild. They were kind enough to invite me so I could write about the evening. It was a very full, and very fun, evening.

We started at KUSM with a welcome from Director Linda Schmitt, and heard an overview of the findings of paranormal investigators from Kansas City and Hutchinson. In a nutshell, they found no activity at Armstrong's Antiques or Fire Station Number 1, but found much activity at the Reno County Museum. They pointed out it didn't mean there was nothing there, just that nothing happened when they investigated.

Our next stop was Eastside Cemetery, where the theatre guild was doing its fourth annual presentation of "Talking Tombstones."

It was a perfect fall evening activity.

We then convened at the Reno County Museum and began a tour of the downtown spots the investigators went to. Our group finished at the museum, but we got a bit of history about it from a vantage point across the street at Memorial Hall as we started our tour.

Next we toured Armstrong's Antiques.

I'm afraid this ghostly flag flapping in the breeze was the most mysterious thing I photographed all night. And that wasn't too mysterious.

Next on our tour was Fire Station Number 1, which has been occupied 365 days a year since the early 20th century. At one time it housed the police station, too, and they showed us the two cell jail, which was interesting.

They even played a song for us, sung by Nancy Sinatra, written by someone who spent some time in the non-climate-controlled jail. It was called, "It's Cold in the Hutchinson Jail."

One of my favorite parts of the night was hearing a ghost story from Firefighter Casanova.

I could have listened to him talk about his experience for a long time. It was a highlight of the evening. Our timing was very good, too, because just as we were leaving an alarm went off and the firetruck was on its way to an emergency.

Our tour group wrapped up at the museum. I didn't know anything about ghost hunting, but apparently the approach is to go into any investigation trying to explain away anything that has been reported as unusual.

The ghost hunters shared their findings at each place, including some photographs they took the night they were investigating.

The blue room below was one of the "hot spots" in the museum. My photo, unfortunately, has nothing unusual about it. It's just a blue room.

We then went back to KUSM for a special underground tour through non-public areas. It was too dark for me to get photos during that tour, but suffice it to say that it was amazing.

Myron Marcotte, who oversees the mining operation, led us on a hike through the underground area, and shared some stories with us about miners who've died. I really, really enjoyed his tales of Lloyd Lightner.

Everytime I'm down in the salt mine I want to explore more and more. I've written about it before. We're so very fortunate to have it and the Cosmosphere in town - two world-class attractions right here.

2010-04-23T22:19:00.001-05:00

When you walk in the door at the Cosmosphere, the Blackbird is hanging overhead. It was America's first "stealth" plane, although its greatest defensive technique was its speed - literally faster than a speeding bullet.

Bill also worked on the T-38 to get it ready for this weekend.

It's interesting to walk under these every day at work.

2010-04-23T17:12:00.004-05:00

2010-02-16T18:09:00.004-06:00

Henry Winkler spoke at the Dillon Lecture Series at Hutchinson Community College Monday morning. Best known for his role as "The Fonz" on Happy Days, Winkler is also an activist and co-author with Lin Oliver of a series of children's books.

The son of German Jews who emmigrated to the US and believed strongly in education, Winkler's academic showing was a disappointment to his parents. They referred to him with a German phrase that translated means, "dumb dog."

Winkler learned at age 31 he had dyslexia and it explained the difficulty he had had in school. He said he defined dyslexia for himself as being one-third figuring out school, one-third figuring out why you can't figure out school, and one-third covering the shame and humiliation.

When it was time for college, Winkler applied to 28 schools before getting two to accept him. He went to Emerson College in Boston and said he nearly flunked out his first year but he took so many tours around that they gave him another chance.

At the luncheon afterward he said he got through college by reading each word separately, and outloud. He learned scripts the same way.

He eventually was accepted into the Yale School of Drama. At this time he said, "I was tired of continually hearing negative thoughts about everything." He realized that's how he was talking to himself and he learned a technique that whenever a negative thought started he would mentally say, "I'm sorry. I've got no time for you now."

He said, "Don't put a period on the end of a negative thought." That way it can't grow into a negative sentence, a negative paragraph or a negative thesis. Winkler finished Yale, and was one of only three asked to join the professional acting company.

Winkler has an affinity for children, and spoke directly to the young people in the audience today. He said, "You all have greatness in you. Every single one of you has greatness. Your job is to figure out what your gift is. How we learn has nothing to do with how brilliant you are."

He spoke about auditioning for his famous role as "The Fonz" in Happy Days. He said he got the call he had the role on his birthday, when he had run out of money. He mentioned the large amount of fan mail he got during those years, including the many gifts. There's one he says he still has on his wall today, that he has had visible since 1975 - a metal cutting that says, "If you will it, it is not a dream."

He said, "There's no reason you can't live your dream." He reminded the children, "You have an amazing amount of power inside you. Your job is to figure out what to do with that power."

Winkler's parents were not impressed when he got accepted to Yale. They were not impressed when he got the role of "The Fonz." But, once the show became popular, and for the 10 years it ran, they referred to themselves as, "the co-producers of Henry Winkler." He joked people were always telling him they had his parents' autographs.

Winkler said we all have to make the most of ourselves because:
1. each of us has unique qualities
2. we need to help someone else, and if we don't something mportant will remain undone
3. we can help people at the beginning of life before damage is done
He went on to say, "This city, this state, this nation rests in very little hands."

He admonished the crowd that the "prejudice between intellectual and vocational pursuits has to be erradicated." He went on to say that the great scientist will be living in a house built by a contractor.

At the luncheon afterwards, he spoke briefly about education and said teachers are expected to teach the brightest student and the one having difficulty the same material in the same amount of time. He said, "It is Herculean, and almost impossible."

The short section he read from one of the books today was about him trying to take a spelling test and the frustration that led to him banging his hand on his head.

Winkler ended his speech by saying, "Thank you so much for listening, because my parents never did."

Afterwards he spoke with people and shook hands for quite awhile, getting to the patron luncheon much later than usual. I didn't mind at all, even though we had very little time with him at the luncheon. It was nice to know lots of people got to connect with him.

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2010-02-12T22:22:00.001-06:00

"Five Women Wearing the Same Dress" is being performed at the Hutchinson Art Center this weekend and I urge you to take it in. It's one of the best community theatre productions I've seen.

It's, as you might guess, about five women who are bridesmaids.

Some of the characters are "drowning their sorrows" in various vices throughout the play.

It's really funny - I mean, laugh out loud multiple times kind of funny.

There are adult themes in the play, so it's not for the kiddos.

These "antenna" on their headbands were just the perfect topper to the dresses. I think they captured the idea of bridesmaid dresses and hats.

I can't urge you strongly enough to take it in. It's Friday and Saturday night at 7:30 at the Art Center at 5th and Washington. It's really good. And a bargain at $8.

My congratulations to:
Jaden Bowman as Frances
Casey Walker as Meredith
Tobie Henline as Trisha
Michele McCartney as Georgeanne
Meredith Miller as Mindy
Matt Montgomery as Tripp

and Director Shannon Knipp

This was a production of the Hutchinson Theatre Guild.

At the end of the play they all pose for a photo. Very convenient for me.

"Five Women Wearing the Same Dress" was written by Alan Ball. Make plans to attend.

2010-01-31T21:58:00.002-06:00

This morning we had a hoar frost in Hutchinson, Kansas. I'd never heard of this until earlier this month. It's somewhat unusual, and now we've had two of them in three weeks.

As soon as Greg called and told me how beautiful it was outside I threw on some shoes and went out to take photos. As you can see by the fact that my house is in the background, I didn't get any further than my front yard before I found beautiful scenery.

My neighbors, Bob and Ruth, weren't home, but I wandered over to their yard to take more photos, including this leaf.

On one of the trees in their front yard I spotted this little bit of seemingly free-standing frost. We speculate it's actually built on part of a spider web.

Greg and Sharon came over to see if I wanted to go out to Dillon Nature Center and I couldn't resist sharing my discovery with them.

Dillon Nature Center was amazingly beautiful.

I love snow and it has extra meaning for me these days. We all went our separate ways and I think everyone found some great photos.

Finding color in the landscape was a challenge.

It was a day for being thankful to be alive.

2009-12-06T18:17:00.001-06:00

Today was the Houston Whiteside Christmas Homes Tour. And, we got a little snow to set the mood. Truthfully, it was more like sleet, but I'm choosing to call it snow because that is much more atmospheric sounding.

One of the houses had live music from a high school group.

My favorite house had a room decorated with old Santas. I chatted with the guy who owned them for awhile, thinking I should know him. Finally, we figured out where we knew each other from. He was not the home owner, but helped them decorate the "Santa Room."

I loved this Gale Santa, sitting on the bed.

And this one that still works.

He plugged it in so I could get a little video of him moving.

There were others from his collection around the room.

In another house they were using their collections on trees - one was spoons and another was old hankies.

I love seeing these beautiful old homes, but I always want more Christmas decorations. Of course, that's always a given for me at any time. This was the best year as far as decorations. The Santa collection really made the day for me.

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

2009-05-25T13:46:00.001-05:00

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band played in Hutchinson Sunday night as a fundraiser for New Beginnings. Greg, Sharon and I went to see them.

If you're going through the sound clips in your brain, trying to figure out what songs they're famous for, think "Mr. Bojangles." They've won a Grammy and been recognized by the Country Music Association.

Singer-guitarist Jeff Hanna formed the group in California in 1966. He and drummer/harmonica player Jimmy Fadden are constant members for the group. But John McEuen and Bob Carpenter have long histories with the band, too. That's quite astonishing when you consider it has been 43 years since the band was formed.

They wrote the Rascal Flatts hit, "Broken Road," and first released it on one of their albums, sung by piano player Carpenter, who has been with the band since 1977. Last night was the first time I had heard their original version and I like it better than the Rascal Flatts version. Very cool.

The opening act for them was The Cherokee Maidens, that did traditional country music.

________________

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Carolyn's Essenhaus in Arlington Kansas

2009-05-22T23:40:00.001-05:00

Tonight I wanted to have something different for dinner. Something fun. Something unusual. I called Greg and he was game for it, but didn't have any thoughts about what that something was.

I thought about Carolyn's Essenhaus in Arlington, Kansas - about a 25 minute drive from my house. I called and found out they were open until 8:30. So, I called Sharon to see if she wanted to go too, and the three of us headed off for dinner.

Nothing gets a holiday weekend off to such a good start as dinner somewhere cool with friends.

On Friday night they serve verenike - a German treat that generally we only have during the MCC sale.

Carolyn stopped by our booth and visited very briefly, but they were busy. Very busy. They're one of the 24 finalists for the 8 Wonders of Kansas Cuisine. I asked if they were so busy because of the holiday weekend or the content and she said probably some of both.

They served the verenike with your choice of ham or sausage, a trip to the salad bar, and a slice of their fresh baked bread. I didn't eat all the ham because then I wouldn't have had room for pie. And you gotta have pie...

Apparently you also gotta have more bread because I bought a loaf at check out. Along with a jar of sand hill plum jelly.

Guess what I'm having for breakfast.

Hutchinson Kansas: Third Thursday Plus

2009-05-22T01:17:00.001-05:00

Tonight was the monthly Third Thursday art walk downtown. But, there was even more happening tonight, including a walk in the Houston Whiteside Historic District.

It was a walking tour conducted by Amy, who works for the city. That's her in the middle there, facing toward the camera. She was giving information about various homes, much of which would have been gathered by my dear, dear, friend, Pat Mitchell, who died eight years ago. I still miss her.

One of the homes is on the market and the very smart realtors had it open tonight so people on the tour could go in. This beautiful porch was enthralling to me.

This home is on Sherman, in an area where lots of the homes have been restored.

The flowers are just starting to bloom in places. This house is one of the neighbors.

Before the walking tour, we went to an event at City Hall where Steve Harmon and Steve Conard were giving a presentation about historic photos of Hutchinson.

The photos were taken by the Atchison, Topeka, Santa Fe Railway. They, also, were drawing on information that Pat gathered.

Pat single-handedly preserved much of Hutchinson's history through her "Hutch Files," which her son gave to the local historical museum after her untimely death. She cataloged a tremendous amount of information about people, places and events in the community.

She was the one who wrote the original walking tours, and conducted them. She was the one who did the surveys of the homes - going through city directories and figuring out the history of the various spots. She was working on preservation before there was a Landmark's Commission, before there was a "movement," and before anyone else saw any need for it.

I did take time to go downtown for a little bit of the usual Third Thursday events, but just ran out of time to do much. There was music and art and running into folks, which is always nice. We're so fortunate to have this monthly event happening.

2009-05-18T13:58:00.002-05:00

May 9-17 is National Travel and Tourism Week. If you've traveled in Kansas this week you may have spotted these bright shirts commemorating the occasion. This is Britany, who was my server at the Grand Central Hotel and Grill in Cottonwood Falls on Monday.

If you think tourism doesn't matter to you, you might want to reconsider that. In Kansas alone, the economic impact of travel and tourism is 5 billion dollars. That's billion - with a B. I'm sure the figures for your state/country are significant too.

In honor of this week, I thought I'd give you a suggested itinerary of what you could do in Hutchinson, Kansas for a weekend visit. These are some of my top "cool things" in town, and things you might not find unless you have a local direct you. This isn't a complete list, of course, just some suggestions.

Friday night at the Anchor
Arrive Friday night in time to go to the Anchor Inn for dinner. Friday night at the Anchor is a local institution. They're at B and Main Street and have been around since the 70s. They make their own tortillas. Their guacamole is fabulous. I recommend the buffet, which has piles of good stuff - my fave is cheese enchiladas and guacamole. The one thing you can't get on the buffet that's really wonderful is a basket of their chips, made on site and worth the cholesterol.

Hotel suggestions:
The nicest hotel in town is the Hampton Inn. If you want the "best" as far as new and maintained, that's the choice to go with. If you're traveling with kids who want to play in the water, the Grand Prairie is the best choice. If you want a B and B, then Prairie Moon on Main Street is the way to go - all the rooms there are nicely decorated so any choice you make will be good. There are a number of other standard hotels to choose from.

Saturday morning Breakfast at The Dutch Kitchen
Sleep in for goodness sake - it's Saturday! Or, get up and be industrious, but make your way to the Dutch Kitchen for breakfast. They open very early, so if you're not a late sleeper, they can accommodate you. It's about five miles outside of town and worth the drive. They make cinnamon rolls that cover your whole saucer. Their coffee cake is also wonderful. The oatmeal is real oatmeal, as opposed to instant. They're famous for their homemade pie, but I think the cinnamon roll is way under appreciated. The pie's good too, don't get me wrong, but you can't get a huge homemade cinnamon roll for under a dollar just anywhere. Yes, it's eighty cents.

You might want to make a quick stop at Glenn's Bulk Foods as you head back into town. They have some unusual things.

Saturday morning at the zoo
After breakfast, head to Carey Park. You can walk the Martinez Trail if you feel the need to work off that cinnamon roll, and then head to the zoo. We have a terrific zoo that features native animals.

In addition to seeing the critters, you can ride the train, too. The zoo is free. The optional train ride costs $1.50 per person.

My favorite animals are the river otters, Kyra and Willie, who are so darned cute they redefine cute.

Saturday lunch at Roy's Barbecue
This will be your only opportunity to have Roy's this weekend. They're closed Sunday and Monday. Roy's is a local institution and amazing stuff. It's on west 5th street. You'll think you're headed out of town, but go over a little bridge and you'll see a yellow building on the right. You've arrived.

Prepare for some of the best, melt in your mouth, barbecue you've ever tasted. You choose beef, pork, turkey, ham, links or ribs, and then you help yourself to the beans and salad bar. Tell Anne and Ryan you read about it here and they'll treat you extra nice. Okay, really, they'll treat you nice regardless so that's not really necessary. I just wanted to say it.

They open at 11, and close when they run out of food, which is never past 2. On a Saturday things can be getting sparse by 1. Don't miss it.

Take some time downtown
We've got some really cool antique stores downtown you don't want to miss. Also, if you like thrift shopping, don't miss the Et Cetera shop on Main. We also have an amazing kitchen store called Apron Strings and on the same block is Smith's Market - one of my favorite places in town. Pop in there and pick up some treats to take with you.

Saturday afternoon at the Salt Museum
Head to the Salt Museum where you'll ride an elevator 650 feet underground for a tour in the caverns of salt that are left after mining.

You'll take a tram through "the dark ride" and your guide will explain what you're seeing. Then you'll have the opportunity to see exhibits on the mining process, the oldest living thing on Earth (250 million years old) and Underground Vaults and Storage, famous for storing many Hollywood films. Don't miss the newspaper printed right after Lincoln's death. You'll have a chance to pick up some salt as a souvenir of your visit. The last tour starts at 4. Make reservations earlier in the day so you're assured of a spot.

Dinner at The Airport Steakhouse
The attraction at the Airport isn't just steak, it's getting to watch planes come in and take off. The wall facing the air strip is all glass you you have a clear view. I'm not really a steak person, but people tell me this is great steak. I'll have to take their word for it. It is cool to watch the planes come in and take off, but you never know when that will be happening. It's fun for the novelty factor, especially if you're an aviation fan.

Ice Cream at Dairy Queen on Third
If you have room for some dessert, I'd suggest ice cream at the Dairy Queen on Third Street. It's an old-fashioned, walk up Dairy Queen, with benches beside it where you can sit and enjoy your treat.

Sunday brunch at Skaets
Skaets is our local diner where you can get breakfast anytime. They have all the traditional breakfast things. I'm not an egg person, so breakfast is often lost on me. But, what isn't on the menu, is that they'll cook you a burger on the grill at any time of day. (After 5 p.m. you can get it charcoaled, which is my favorite.) So, head there for Sunday brunch - those who want breakfast can get it. Those who want to prepare for the afternoon ahead at the Cosmosphere can get a Moon Burger. The Moon Burger was created in 1969 in honor of the moon landing. In other parts it's known as a bacon cheeseburger, but at Skaets it's just "the moon." I like mine extra well done with grilled onions and extra pickles but they'll fix yours anyway you want it. I go often enough that they just write "Patsy" on the ticket and the cook knows just how I want it.

Sunday Afternoon at the Cosmosphere

The Cosmosphere is a world-class museum, right here on the prairie. It's at 11th and Plum, but you'll know you're getting close when you see the rockets jutting into the sky. They have some amazing exhibits that trace the history of space flight, with artifacts from NASA, as well as a huge collection of material from the Russian space program. You'll want to see Dr. Goddard's lab show, and spend some time in the gift shop where you'll find unique items.

That's a wrap up of what I think is cool to see in just a weekend. If you've got a little longer, come in on a Third Thursday night when downtown is hopping with live music and artists in lots of the stores.

For more outdoor time, walk the trails at Dillon Nature Center or Sandhills State Park. Both are great.

I also love Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, which is about a 35 minute drive from Hutchinson. I've never been there when the sunset isn't amazing. Maxwell Game Reserve is about 40 minutes north and also worth a visit.

More than 125,000 jobs in Kansas are created by travel & tourism activity. That's nearly 10% of total employment in the state. National Travel & Tourism Week is a collective effort to promote the power of travel. If you have a blog, take a few minutes and tell folks what to see in your town - the things that are must-sees and the things that the average tourist isn't likely to find.

See a local calendar of events online and contact me if you have questions about visiting here. Find more things to see and do in Kansas at www.travelks.com.

Cottonwood Falls Kansas: Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve

2009-05-14T02:38:00.001-05:00

The Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve near Emporia, Kansas, contains most of the 4% of the remaining tallgrass prairie left in the United States. Tallgrass once covered 140 million acres in this country, but it's almost all gone now.

Perception can be skewed when we don't have as many landmarks as we're used to. For example, in the photo above, the trees on the horizon are about 18 miles away. It's amazing to see wide open spaces with no phone poles or light wires.

I visited on May 11, and the wild flowers were just starting to come up. Apparently May and June are the times for wildflowers. If you want to see tallgrass, the time for that is September and October.

One of the things you often see in Kansas are fields burning off. It's quite striking to see when you're driving at night. The burning serves to get rid of the dried thatch and all. You can see the difference on either side of the road in the photo below.

What is green was burned. The brown side was not. However, our guide told us within a few weeks they'll look much the same as the new growth will overwhelm the dried old growth.

This area of Kansas is called the Flint Hills. I had never heard that designation until I moved here. I hadn't known the origin of the phrase until the other day. It comes from Zebulon Pike who wrote in 1806 about "hills of flint" and the idea stuck.

Flint is distinctive in that it flakes off in a rounded fashion, a conchoidal fracture, leaving behind something that looks like a thumbprint. You can see that effect beside my thumb in the photo below. It also leaves a sharp edge.

Your tour at Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve is divided into different segments. First stop is the visitor's center in the three story, limestone barn built into a hillside. The outside walls are 20 inches thick.

The National Park Service has provided a number of photo tours on their website.

The barn was built in 1880 and much of the original structure is still there.

I loved the rafters and the floors.

The open doors provide great air circulation and you can look out to see the cattle that now graze on the land.

Soon they will have bison there instead of cattle. Bison are what would have naturally been there and are more suited for the ecosystem. Cattle like to graze on flowers, but the wildflowers and putting a tremendous amount of nitrogen into the soil, which later provides nutrients for the tallgrass. The bison prefer to graze on the grass. It's a prime example of how little things can make a difference.

Right outside the barn, you can board a bus for a ride into the prairie.

The tour takes about 90 minutes and includes a couple of stops along the way. At our first one we had a visitor.

I guess, technically, we were visiting him. Collared lizards are amazingly nimble. This little guy was quite interesting for the whole group, particularly a young lady named Lily, visiting Kansas from Indianapolis with her dad. They had been to a number of places already - Quivira, Cheyenne Bottoms, The Kansas Underground Salt Museum and others - and were having a great time in Kansas.

Throughout your tour, the driver/guide tells you about the prairie and its unique place in the ecosystem. You can find over 500 species of plants and nearly 150 species of birds, including the prairie chicken, which was brought back from near extinction.

You can also tour the home built by the James family in 1881.

They lived in it only five years before moving to Kansas City.

It has some distinctive features, including this newel post.

This skylight with different colored glass, maybe from bottles.

Mr. James was a business man who even had a phone in the house.

They brought cool water from the spring into the spring house where they would cool the milk and other perishables in the trough of cool water.

There are also trails you can walk at the Preserve. The nearly 11,000 acre Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve was established in 1996 and is the only part of the National park system dedicated to the tallgrass prairie. It's a unique private/public partnership between the National Park Service (the primary land manager), The Nature Conservancy (the primary landowner), and the Kansas Park Trust (cooperating bookstore and promotion).

There are many wonderful vistas to be had on the Prairie. At the moment, this is all free.

Kansas Underground Salt Museum in Hutchinson

2009-04-27T02:03:00.001-05:00

Going 650 feet underground is not something most folks think about on an average day, but in Hutchinson, Kansas, it's entirely possible. The Kansas Underground Salt Museum is one of only two museums in the world where you can visit a salt mine.

Your visit starts with a safety orientation and you’ll be issued some safety gear - a hard hat and breathing apparatus. You'll be happy to know that the safety gear has never been used.

Then you line up to get in the German made, double decker elevator that holds about 30 people.

It was originally used in a silver mine and will transport you underground where you’ll emerge into a long, hollowed out salt corridor.

Immediately you’ll notice the salt has layers. These form because of dry and wet times when the salt formation was being laid down. The miners use those layers to keep the mine level.

You’re now surrounded by material that predates dinosaurs. There was a mass extinction at this time – about 270 million years ago – and where you’re standing was an ocean. To give you an idea of the depth, bear in mind that 80 feet of sea water makes about 1 foot of salt.

Two things to notice right away when you get off the elevator. Straight ahead are the restrooms. These are modern engineering marvels because everything has to flush 650 feet. Up. There are two holding tanks underground, one holds water and one holds sewage. The sewage is evacuated into the sewer system overnight when there are no visitors because it’s very noisy.

The other is a giant piece of salt. You'll have time to inspect it more closely after the tour.

You’ll board a tram for your “dark ride,” going underneath Airport Road, which you may have driven to arrive at the museum. You’ll travel down the corridor to an area that's more narrow. This is the only area that was blasted specifically for the museum. On the right wall you'll see where the miners who did that Dec. 20, 2004 left their mark, an old mining tradition.

As the ride continues, you can see some of the antique mining equipment. There are some cars that used to haul salt from the mine. Each of these cars held 3 ½ tons of salt and took 90 minutes to load by hand. The metal ones held four tons.

Explosives were always carried in a separate car, that had taller sides on it to protect from sparks. Now miners use a conveyer system to move the salt, but at one time they used these trains and would move the track as the mine face moved.

The Carey Salt Company opened in 1923 and had the shorted railroad in the country. You may have noticed the train engine topside, before you came into the building. That’s one of only three GE No. 2 engines ever built. It ran between 1928 and 1963, moving the six miles between the mine and the salt evaporation plant. The tracks were used for another 20 years.

Along the dark ride, your guide will point out various items of interest. One of the first things you'll see are a ribbed wall. Each rib is about eight feet deep and represents how deep into the wall they blasted.

Above you are ridges from a machine called the continuous miner. It is a huge piece of equipment bought by the museum and Underground Vaults and Storage. It is made for coal mining, as is most of the equipment used here. No equipment is made specifically for salt mining.

You’ll see places where the walls have a different texture and the salt is very crystal clear. This is recrystalized salt, where water got back into the salt deposit and basically washed out the impurities, which you can see below the white part.

You can occasionally find a piece of salt with a bubble of water in it. It’s this very phenomenon that allowed scientists to discover a 250 million year old bacteria in a New Mexico salt mine. Those same scientists have found DNA in some of the samples from Hutchinson, but it's too soon to know exactly what that means.

Miners had two big concerns - light and air. They used to work with the equivalent of a flashlight, which barely makes a dent in the darkness. In some mines, they used mules underground, including nearby Lyons and Kanopolis, and they would eventually go blind from the lack of light. Mules were never used in the Hutchinson mine.

Air flow in the mine was controlled by "gob walls." You'll see some constructed of dynamite boxes, filled with salt. The first wall you see is two boxes deep and has a purpose. Jute curtains were also used, and the modern version is the plastic you see here and there.

You'll pass under a large deposit of sylvite. It's quite possible there's a large piece of recrystallized salt above it.

You'll drive by three floor heaves. Salt is plastic and very heavy. Imagine a Lincoln log being pressed in to clay. The clay would rise up around it. The same thing is happening in a floor heave. The "overburden" is heavy enough it's causing the floor to rise up like clay would.

In the middle floor heave is a cut out of a miner demonstrating the floor heave is about two feet, but the ceiling is still nine feet tall. This man volunteers for the museum on occasion. At the third one is a 1950s photo of miners standing where a ceiling sag has fallen. You'll also see the scaling bars used to pull down salt that is loose.

When you turn a corner, you'll see what's left of a truck the miners used at one time. It ran on a 300 foot electrical cord. It's actually a conglomeration of parts from various vehicles.

The hoist that used by the miners is much smaller than the one you came down in. Anything that wouldn't fit in it had to be dangled underneath it, or taken apart and reassembled underground. That includes all the massive equipment you'll see in the walking part of the tour.

Miners did not remove things from the mine. It made no sense to use the energy or the time on the hoist to do so. They would reuse them as long as possible, and then abandon them where they were.

Salt mines have what is called a “closure rate,” meaning the rooms and corridors mined out are slowly closing in on themselves. "Slowly,” is an understatement. In the Hutchinson mine, the closure rate is 2/1000 to 3/1000 of an inch a year. That means it would take 500 years for it to close one inch. At one point, the federal government looked into storing nuclear waste in the salt mines, but the closure rate was way too small to make it feasible.

The Atomic Energy Commission came to Hutchinson in 1950, looking for a place to store toxic waste. They used this device to measure the closure rate for ten years. But it was too slow here, so the toxic waste was taken to the salt mines in New Mexico instead.

Carey was the first mine to go all non-emissions and use bio diesel for equipment. They also used electric power. Today they run on bio fuel made of soy or electric power. The tram you’ll ride is battery powered, too.

Prior to 1964, visitors came underground regularly. There were special cars for visitors that took them on tours of the mine. Below is one that would have taken school children on tours.

The workers rode in a car called a "mantrip" that was a little less elaborate. The miners used to refer to the cars as “mules” on occasion, which added to the confusion about the animals never being used here like they were in other area mines.

In 1964 Carey sold the mine and visiting underground stopped, until the museum opened in 2007. This is still a working mine today. The museum is about 1-2 miles from the active mine face.

In the exhibit area you can see some of the massive equipment they use. Remember each one had to be brought underground through a shaft much smaller than the one you came down in.

One of them is the undercutter. This machine allows miners to cut a groove out along the floor of the salt wall they’re getting ready to mine. If they didn’t do this, the salt wouldn’t fall, even with dynamite. Salt is so hard they can’t nail or screw into it without a nail ram set.

They used to mine 40 foot pillars and 50 foot rooms. Today they mine 20 foot pillars and 40 foot rooms. Eight feet is blasted at a time. They use the red lines as markers.

There are 67 miles of tunnels here, and 970 acres that have been mined.

During your visit underground you're surrounded by salt in every direction. About 500,000 tons of salt are taken from the mine every year, about 1000 tons every day they mine. Each blast brings down 300-600 tons. Salt sells for about $16 a ton.

The museum is still finding things they will want to use as exhibits in the future. For example, The atomic energy commission had a tent and equipment underground. When they left, they left everything there, as is customary. When things are brought topside that have been underground for a long period of time, they tend to disintegrate because of the changes in humidity.

Salt is used not only in food, but also in products like plastics, chlorine bleach, pharmaceuticals and lots of manufacturing. More than 70% of the salt mined here is used on roads, with Chicago being the biggest customer. Those buildings you see around cities sometimes where they store salt, that are shaped like piles, are built that way because salt has an “inclination angle” and builds that sort of pile naturally.

The salt you eat on the table is “brine evaporated,” which is a different process than what is happening in this mine.

In the exhibit area you can explore the exhibit about Dr. Vreeland's research into the oldest living thing on Earth.

You’ll also see items from Underground Vaults and Storage. This unique business stores everything from dental records to movies and TV shows. The constant temperature underground makes it perfect for delicate items.

On display is a newspaper from the time of Lincoln's death...

James Dean's shirt from his last movie...

At the moment you can see some Hollywood items on display in a special exhibit, including Clooney's Batman suit and a prop from the Jack Frost movie.

You'll end up in the gift shop and when you're finished can either walk back to the hoist or catch a ride on a tram headed that way.

The Kansas Underground Salt Museum is a work in progress, so plan another visit soon.

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These photos were taken in November of 2007 by Greg Holmes when we went on a special tour, specifically to take photos and notes for a story. Subsequently, I was there during the blogger fam tour and have also volunteered at the museum.

Excursion Train in Hutchinson Kansas

2009-04-26T16:09:00.001-05:00

This train on the trestle in Carey Park in Hutchinson may look unassuming, but there's something very different about it. It's carrying passengers. Including my friend, Greg Holmes.

Lets see what happiness looks like close up...

It has been a rainy day, as you can see on the window, but that has not diminished Greg's fun. Or that of other folks riding the train. I snapped these photos as the train was blocking Main Street in Hutchinson for folks to load for the trip back to Wichita, after having lunch at the Anchor Inn.

According to their website, this excursion train was operated by WATCO companies, Inc., the Kansas & Oklahoma railroad, and the Heart of the Heartlands Railroad Club. Yesterday there was a ride from Wichita to Yoder and back, and today from Wichita to Hutchinson and back. Today's ride is on the K&O's Hutchinson Subdivision (former Missouri Pacific lines) via Maize, Colwich, Mount Hope, and Haven, and Yoder, KS.

I picked Greg up after he had lunch to drive him to his house for a couple of things, then took him back right before the train boarded for the return trip to Wichita. I couldn't resist taking photos and even a video of the train leaving Hutchinson. You can see Greg in the video, including that distinctive jerk when a train starts pulling out.

Then I headed to Carey Park and walked up on the levee to get a shot of the train as it passed over the Arkansas River. (That's pronounced "R-Kansas" if you live in Kansas, but it's still "Ark-an-saw" if you live in any of the other states it runs through.)

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All text and photos on this website are copyright Patsy Terrell, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. None are to be used without permission. Thank you.

Hutchinson Kansas: Guenter Wendt Appreciated at the Cosmosphere

2009-04-21T00:54:00.001-05:00

Last week during the blogger fam tour, we had a tremendous tour of the Cosmosphere by the CEO, Chris Orwoll. During our behind the scene tour, he showed us a photo of Guenter Wendt, known as the "Padleader" during the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs.

When he showed us this photo I was instantly reminded of how important so many people are to any project of this magnitude. Those of us outside the industry may not know their names, but they play a critical role.

It was Guenter Wendt who closed the hatch. That, alone, should be enough to put anyone in the history books. He was the last person to see the astronauts before they rocketed off to space. Wendt was there for their last few seconds being Earth-bound, before they undertook what would be life-changing - and sometimes life-ending.

In those early days of space exploration, fires and explosions were not an unusual occurrence. Everyone knew the risks involved, but I doubt that awareness kept the normal human emotions at bay. No doubt Wendt saw excitement and fear at various times.

The Cosmosphere has one of the "White Rooms" used for the Apollo missions, as well as others, where Wendt was stationed during launch. They have a photo shot through the open hatch door from the Apollo 10 mission of May, 1969. That view of Stafford, Young and Cernan strapped to their couches, preparing to go to the moon, was Wendt's view.

You can walk into the White Room on display and be where Wendt watched history being made. Where he was participating in history being made.

The White Room was suspended more than 300 feet above the launch pad, attached to a 60 foot long swing arm connected to the rocket. About four hours before liftoff, the astronauts would walk across the swing arm and enter the White Room where Wendt and his crew were.

Right before lift off, the White Room swung away from the space craft, leaving the astronauts alone on top of the 36 story tall rocket that would send them into space. Astronaut Wally Schirra is quoted on Wendt's website as saying, "So it came to pass that when the white room was closed out for Apollo 7 and his smiling face disappeared from the window, Donn Eisele asked, "I vonder vere Guenter vent?" I stole that line and and made it famous." He also referred to Wendt as the "dictator of the launch pad."

The particular White Room in the Cosmosphere's collection was from Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad Complex 39. There were three white rooms, and no records were kept regarding which missions used which room, but it stands to reason that you can stand where roughly a third of the astronauts in the Apollo Lunar program made their final preparations.

In another part of the Cosmosphere, outside an upstairs meeting room, is a whiteboard where celebrity visitors to the museum leave their signatures.

It's good to see the Cosmosphere recognizes Wendt's contributions.

Wendt has written a book, "The Unbroken Chain" about his experiences at Padleader.

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Hutchinson Kansas: Third Thursday

2009-04-16T23:06:00.001-05:00

Tonight was the Third Thursday art event in Hutchinson. It was the end of our blogger fam tour we've been doing the last day and a half. I'm impressed that a group of folks in town decided to do something different - and they did it well. Kudos to Logic Maze, The Cosmosphere, the CVB and The Downtown Hutchinson Revitalization Project.

I'm very, very impressed that the Cosmosphere CEO took time to give us a private tour yesterday. That tells me he understands the power of social media, or he's at the very least open to the power of it. Those things matter.

Well, I'm tired from the many hours we've spent touring and talking in the last 36 hours. Such an exciting time!

So, tonight I'm sharing some photos from the Third Thursday event - something I love - and something I'm so thankful to Jennifer and Danny for making happen.

Come join us next month! May 21 - 5 -9 p.m. in Downtown Hutchinson.

Hutchinson Kansas: NPR's Jackie Lyden

2009-04-15T01:47:00.001-05:00

Jackie Lyden, host of "All Things Considered" each weekend on National Public Radio was in Hutchinson today for a presentation. She spoke at the Hutchinson Town Club as part of the Prairie View Food For Thought Series.

She read from her book, "Daughter of the Queen of Sheba," and told stories about growing up with a mother who was suffering from a mental illness. She said, "Long before radio existed for me as a vessel in which to pour all these life experiences, I was a daughter." And that relationship shaped her world view in many ways.

Lyden said she was a diarist from the time she could write, and that she wrote on anything. I asked after her speech if she still wrote by hand, and she said yes, that she doesn't go anywhere without her journal. She said, "My leather notebook goes everywhere I go. I believe in pen and paper."

Lyden said part of the appeal of writing this book about her mother was, "I wanted to fix her on the page." She said she felt if she could get down to the tap root of what was wrong, she could pull it out.

She said her mother's delusions would eventually turn dark and her mother kept a notebook about them called, "The Evil Account." While not knowing how her mother would be from one day to the next was difficult, Lyden said the experiences taught her, "Nobody's imagination is garbage. It tells you where people are."

Working as a foreign correspondent, Lyden has interacted with people in many different kinds of situations. She told the story of a man telling her he couldn't leave a dangerous situation because, "If I leave now I will lose all my family history." She said that stuck with her, and reminded her people are similar everywhere. Holding her fingers a couple of inches apart, she said, "The line between Hutchinson, Kansas, and Fallujah, Iraq, is this big." She said, "When I tell stories on the radio, I'm looking to make that human connection."

Lyden said that no matter where she went, she had something no one else had, a faded photograph of her mother in a dress made specially for her in Hong Kong in 1950. Lyden has the dress and wears it on special occasions. She said, "I don't know where I'll be, but wherever I go, I will carry the photograph of the woman in this dress. Then I think what you carry the most is their story."

She said when she discovered NPR, she saw there was an opportunity for creativity and imagination. She said, "Radio entered me like a wave." And on the radio, as a host, she could be the voice of all the people she had had conversation with.

When asked about why mental health still has so much stigma attached to it, she said, "Until we understand that we are just molecules and that brain chemistry is chemistry and we are a little more humble about being human ... then we are going to have difficulty with something like stigma. Because to not be in control of your faculties is to not be perfect. And we are a culture that believes in perfection of the mortal."

She said she's very close to her mother and this is probably the happiest time they've ever had together. "My mom is fun. My mom is funny and smart." She said the great tragedy of her mother's life was not that she had a mental illness, but that she didn't have an education. Last year her mother read four dozen books, and is currently reading "My Antonia."

She said her mother's view of the book Lyden wrote about her has changed depending on her mother's mental state. She said now that her mother is better, the book is painful, but she is proud of it because, "She feels her struggles are not for nothing."

One of Lyden's sisters asked why they couldn't just move on and try to forget all of this, leaving it in the past. Lyden answered that, "Memory is what makes us human. Memory is the human connection. It's what gives us soul."
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Check www.patsyterrell.com for the blog, art, and more. Friend me on facebook.com. Follow me at twitter.com.

All text and photos on this website are copyright Patsy Terrell, unless otherwise noted. None are to be used without permission. Thank you.

Chigong in the Park

2009-04-08T22:44:00.001-05:00

Terry called this evening and asked if I wanted to meet him in Avenue A Park and do some Chigong. It's an ancient form of exercise/meditation, similar to tai chi but less strenuous. Terry teaches it at a couple of local centers. He and Sharon both teach tai chi, too.

At first I was hesitant because I had already worked in my back yard and was feeling it. But, Terry assured me it wouldn't require a lot of the things that still make me hurt - like bending. So, I decided it was a wonderful way to spend some time with a friend, and be out enjoying the sunshine.

I called Greg to see if he wanted to go and Sharon was at his house so we all went.

Terry gave Greg and me a private lesson, and Sharon did it along with us, which was great because we had two people who knew what they were doing to watch. I really liked it.

We did the "Eight pieces of silk brocade" series - at least I think I've got the right name. There are eight series of movements and you do each one eight times. Terry explained each one and then did them so we could follow along. I was able to do all of them except one that involved bending over and touching your toes then slowly coming upright again. I did one of those and decided that was not a way my body wants to move quite yet.

I'm hoping we can do it again soon. I guess there are lots of different practices you can do, but this is one of the common ones and pretty easy to do. I don't think I could do anything much more complex than this one. It stretched my limits on coordination.

Avenue A Park is such a cool part of our city. The water flows under Main Street and the park is beautifully landscaped. I love the fact that some long-time businesses, like Midwest Feed, are part of the scenery there.
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All text and photos on this website are copyright Patsy Terrell, unless otherwise noted. None are to be used without permission. Thank you.

Doggie Easter Parade

2009-04-05T01:07:00.001-05:00

This photo of my friend, Julie, sums up today's Doggie Easter Parade I think. It was windy. (see Julie's hair) People were having fun. (see Julie's smile) Dogs were generally uninterested, but accommodating. (see Gracie)

This afternoon Cause for Paws had their first ever Easter Parade and Egg Hunt for Dogs. Although I'm not a dog owner, I couldn't resist going. There was mention of dogs wearing Easter bonnets, but with the gale force winds today it was impossible.

There was one dog doing her best for the occasion, though.

There were little dogs like Max, whose ears could have made him airborne had his humans not held him tight.

And big dogs, who were affected by the wind, too.

The event got started with a dog parade...

Led by none other than the season's most important celebrity...

After the parade, Mayor Trish looked over the assembled troops and chose a king and queen. Some of the dogs understood the significance of this event and did their best to schmooze with the mayor.

Greg wanted a photo with one of the winners, Miley, who's royal subject is Pam Paulsen.

Miley could not be bothered to pose, having important royal functions to perform. We're not sure exactly what those are, but they precluded her from taking time out for a portrait sitting. Greg pursued her like a paparazzi for awhile, but finally gave up.

Photographers were finding much to interest them. Not only the Hutchinson News photographer, but also Bob and Greg, were trying to capture the memorable moments. Connie Johnson and I were snapping away too.

All of the festivities today were held at our new dog park. Every time I drive by there are lots of people there with their doggies, letting them run free. Even being uneducated about the ways of dogs, this seems like a really cool thing to me. I was happy to contribute my $2 at the door today.

The dog park is something Trish really wanted, as well as some other folks in town, including Donna Hessman.

After the parade, and the King and Queen coronation, there was an egg hunt. Of course, step one is hiding the eggs. We're taking some poetic license with "hiding" in this case. Kelly was one of the expert egg hiders, with the wind assisting in spreading them about.

The eggs had doggie treats inside. But, as you might expect, it was the job of the humans to procure the eggs for their dogs. Some were more patient than others.

All were "Blowin' in the Wind" all day long.

Once the humans had gathered the eggs, they had to work to keep them from blowing away. In this case, the dog was rushing in to make sure all the doggie treats were safe.

This family perfected the wind-blocking technique to search to see if they had any prize eggs.

It was a really fun afternoon, despite the wind.

Afterwards, we went into the new animal shelter to see the kitty condo decorating contest entrants. We stayed long enough for me to fall in love with a four year old kitty, Portobello, being held here by Hazel.

I did not bring him home, because I'm gone too much and a kitty would get lonely. But, if you are in need of a feline companion, he is adorable and a sweetie. He's playful and was content being held - the best of both worlds. I want him to have a wonderful, loving home.
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Check www.patsyterrell.com for the blog, art, and more. Friend me on facebook.com. Follow me at twitter.com.

All text and photos on this website are copyright Patsy Terrell, unless otherwise noted. None are to be used without permission. Thank you.

Blizzard

2009-03-27T18:13:00.001-05:00

We're having an honest to goodness blizzard. This is the sidewalk in front of my house. You just can't tell because no one had walked in the snow that had accumulated for the four hours it had been snowing.

This is the tree Bob and Ruth planted for me a few years ago. It is already green - what with it being spring and all.

These are their lions in front of their house. As you can see, the snow is intense. It started about noon. I took these photos about four. It's now six and still coming down fast.

This is my front door... come on in... I'm about to fix a pot of tea and settle in for the evening.

I love having all four seasons, although we are a week into spring and this isn't what one might expect this time of year. But, it's certainly beautiful.
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Check www.patsyterrell.com for the blog, art, and more. Friend me on facebook.com. Follow me at twitter.com.

All text and photos on this website are copyright Patsy Terrell, unless otherwise noted. None are to be used without permission. Thank you.

Nancy Pickard author of The Virgin of Small Plains

2009-03-26T22:48:00.001-05:00

Monday evening Nancy Pickard gave a presentation at the library about her book, "The Virgin of Small Plains," which is the Kansas Reads book this year. This is her seventeenth novel and the first one set completely in Kansas.

Hutchinson is the 35th library she has visited in conjunction with her book being chosen for the statewide reading program. She said the smallest was in Richmond, which has a two room library.

She said she loved visiting the small communities in Kansas and saw hope in rural Kansas. She said, "You can see in many places the town is struggling. But it is alive in the library." She said each library had a great spirit and, "I want to believe that because there is such hope for these libraries, there is hope for these towns."

She said in Hugoton, a town of about 500 people, as she was driving into town she saw a pyramid sign in the road and stopped to see what it was about. It was promoting her appearance that evening. She said she watched for awhile as cowboys stopped to see what the sign was for. She was just a tiny bit disappointed that none of them came to her presentation that evening.

Pickard said she wanted to write a book set in Kansas because she thinks it's beautiful and she wanted a book written by someone who thought that. She said she was concerned about the reaction she might get from her editor, but she was positive.
She said she realized that, "There are people who think our state is exotic." She explained saying that "The Virgin of Small Plains" was a finalist in the Mystery Writers of America contest. About 500 books were submitted from all over the world. There were six finalists; two from Italy, one from Eastern Europe, two from the UK, and then her book. She was the only author living in the US. That's when she realized her book set in Kansas was a novelty to some people, and that something unusual often stands out.

Pickard discussed that Kansas is the setting for two of the most famous books of the last century - "The Wizard of Oz" and "In Cold Blood." She said they are both structurally the same, both are about ordinary people's every day lives and something violent drops in and destroys that. She said she realized her book is much the same and joked, "Funny what you don't know about books when you write them."
She said she fell in love with Kansas when her then husband, a rancher, took her to the Flint Hills for the first time. "To this day I remember the instant the landscape changed," she said, remarking on when the hills became noticeable. "I fell in love with it and that has never changed."

She said it never occurred to her that not everyone would feel the same. But, she took a friend from New York on a tour one day. It was a gorgeous day with wildflowers blooming, cows dotting the landscape, and warm enough to have the window down. Eventually, her visitor asked if they could raise the windows in the vehicle because she was afraid something would get them. Pickard says it's different for her. "I could drive on these isolated Kansas roads for years and feel serene."
Pickard says she likes the idea of the apparent serenity of the pastoral landscape contrasted against the emotions surging underneath. She said some people feel comfortable here and some don't. Her next book is set in Gove County with the chalk monuments. She said that is scary to some people because it's more isolated and a more dramatic landscape.

Always looking for ideas, Pickard says she loves to visit small town cafes, which is where you hear the best stories. She also shared listening to a panel of law enforcement officers speaking once and remembering one of them saying, "If you want to commit a murder do it in an underpopulated county because they can't afford more than one major crime a year. A big trial will break the county." She said he went on to say they often railroaded the likely suspect because they need a suspect.
She summed up her experience traveling through Kansas by saying it was "the most amazing journey."

She spoke briefly about the writing process and said, "The greatest joy of writing is when mysterious things happen." She was speaking of a situation where one of her characters took over the writing and when Pickard saw a photo through her character's eyes she knew the motive for the murder that was central to the book.
Pickard ended her speech by saying, "It's a very strange thing I do for a living. But I think I like it. I've been doing it for a long time."

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Check www.patsyterrell.com for the blog, art, and more. Friend me on facebook.com. Follow me at twitter.com.

All text and photos on this website are copyright Patsy Terrell, unless otherwise noted. None are to be used without permission. Thank you.

Writer's Workshop with Author Nancy Pickard

2009-03-23T01:36:00.001-05:00

Author Nancy Pickard gave a writer's workshop today at the library. She will be speaking about "Mysterious Kansas" Monday evening at 7 at a free presentation. Pickard is the author of "The Virgin of Small Plains," the Kansas Reads selection. Kansas Reads is a statewide project to encourage adults to read and discuss the same book. She said this is the 35th library she has visited since her book was chosen.

But, this afternoon was geared to writers and it was very useful. She spoke about the important of not just conflict and action, which we always hear about, but also about other elements like using all the senses.

I had taken the first few pages of my novel and one of the things I learned through the various exercises was that I'm very good at using surprise in my writing. I'm not very subtle about it, but at least I'm doing it. I'm just going to take that as a positive.

One of the things I've been struggling with is the beginning of my novel. I like it, but I know it needs to be stronger. I just haven't figured out how to make it that way. Yet. But, one of the things Pickard did today was read the first sentence of a few books to illustrate how to start strong. I'm still mulling it all over, but I know that was meant for me.

I really enjoyed Pickard's workshop. I recommend it heartily if she's doing a presentation in your area. I'm going to buy her book, "Seven Steps on the Writer’s Path," because I'm sure it will have great advice. In addition to that book, she has published 17 novels. She writes mysteries, but the advice she gave today is applicable to any genre.

At the end of the presentation today I asked if anyone was interested in a writing group and passed around a sheet for people to sign up if they were. There were about 20 people there and six indicated interest in a writer's group. One person is part of a writer's group that already exists, which I had no idea about. But I think there's virtue in more than one group.

I don't know anything about that group except they meet on a regular schedule and they have a president. I think that will really speak to a lot of folks, but I'm not interested in anything that formal. So, maybe this group will go and there will be something for everyone.

I'm interested in sharing writing and also about connecting with other people who understand the process. However, I'm not interested in using the group as a way to pretend I'm writing when I'm really not. That's the great danger of such things, and an easy trap for me to fall into. Groups sometimes give the illusion you're working on your project when you're really just talking about it. But, I'm willing to give it a go, with the understanding I need to guard against that.

All in all a great afternoon. This was a free workshop. We're so fortunate the library offers events like this.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T20:38:00.001-05:00

Greg, Sharon and I went to Roy's for lunch today. Of course, we always love Roy's - and Anne was in the spirit as you can see from the shamrocks she was wearing on her head - but we knew Anne and Ryan would appreciate Greg's holiday ensemble. Naturally, The Lope was decked out too.

Roys is always delicious, and today we were there early so I was able to have the beef cut just the way I love it. Ryan takes such good care of me.

Vegetarians, look away...

Hope you're having a great St. Patrick's Day!

Sandhills State Park

2009-03-07T02:23:00.001-06:00

It was a sunny day today and I wanted to take advantage of it. So, I took a late lunch and drove out to Sandhills State Park north of town for a walk on the trail.

This time of year there isn't a lot of color in the landscape yet, but there is plenty of texture. Today I was struck by the different kinds of tree bark you could find on a quick walk.

As is often the case, I had the whole place to myself, even on a gorgeous day.

Quiviria National Wildlife Refuge

2009-02-16T14:34:00.000-06:00

This was sunset at Quiviria National Wildlife Refuge Sunday afternoon. I love going down there and it's only about a thirty minute drive from Hutchinson, where I live. In these days when eco-tourism is of such great interest, I wish we promoted this facility more. It's an amazing place to be, but it's hard to express to people who cool it is without they actually going.

I think you also just have to be a person who appreciates nature in all its forms. Quivira is a huge bird watching area. The birds were settled down by the time I took this photo, but you can see them dotting the sky above the horizon. I don't think I've ever been to Quivira when the sunset wasn't gorgeous.

We saw three beavers yesterday. At least we think they were beavers. This one and another swimming, and then one on land as we were leaving.

I loved the ripples this guy was making in the placid waters. It seems appropriate for a calm afternoon that he would have the place to himself as he glided through the water.

All of these photos were taken on the last mile and a half of the Wildlife Drive at Quivira. I am enchanted with this photo of the three birds silhouetted on the grasses. It was rare to see only a few of them at a time.

Something like 95% of migratory birds in the US move through Quivira at some point during the year. I'm not a bird watcher, but I appreciate the diversity that offers. In the autumn even Whooping Cranes become temporary residents.

I don't know my birds, but I'm guessing these are a very common variety considering how plentiful they are. I love this photo where you can see the blur of some flying while others are settling in for the night.

Earlier, they were swarming every which way. The sky was just black at times.

I don't know that I've ever shot so many photos directly into the sun before, but I wanted to capture that moment. The beginning of sunset, when twilight is coming, is my favorite time of day when I'm in nature. I love that beautiful pastel you only see at sunset.

Rebecca Ryan Speaking at Chamber Dinner

2009-02-10T11:53:00.001-06:00

Rebecca Ryan was the featured speaker at the Hutchinson/Reno County Chamber annual dinner tonight.

Ryan is the author of "Live First, Work Second," which gives insight into the mindset of the next generation. She has researched the material through interviews and focus groups. She has her own firm called Next Generation Consulting that aims to help communities attract and keep people of all ages.

I just reread the book and it's a quick, concise read - well worth the effort. For the purposes of discussion, the generations are roughly divided into:
Silent Generation born 1925-1942
Baby Boomers born 1943-1960
Generation X born 1961-1981
Millennials born 1982-2002

In her initial comments this evening, Ryan told the group that a "Leader's job today is not to have the answer. A leader's job today is to midwife the answer." She told people to consider if when they go to meetings they pretty much know what is going to happen. If so there's not enough new voice in the meeting.

I've never thought of it that way, but she summed up why I generally hate meetings - we have the same conversations over and over again. I can anticipate what's going to be said next, which means there's no reason for me to be there. But I think for some people, they see value in that because meetings are a way for them to "hammer home" their point of view by repeating it. I just don't want to be involved. But, then, of course, I'm one of those Gen X people who has no patience with such things. We like things to move quickly. So, there you go.

I knew I would like Ryan when I read the book and she brought up Maslow. If you've read here for any amount of time, you know I'm a big fan. I really think Maslow had us all figured out. She looks at it from a generational perspective - the greatest generation wanted basic needs, the boomers moved up to affiliation, the gen xers value independence and the millennials are working their way up to the top into self-actualization.

A real shift is that people used to have one job their whole lives. I was on my 7th job before I was 40 and I felt like I'd stayed in some of those for a long time. She said in the coming generation, that by age 32 people will have had nine jobs. I think it's great to do different things - you move in different circles, meet different people, learn different systems - and take all of that with you into the next thing, making life a richer experience. Ryan said younger people "know they will have multiple jobs, but they may not necessarily want to have multiple homes or zip codes."

She discussed the seven indexes she lays out in the book. These are the things that matter to young people when they're considering moving into a community.
Vitality - health and well being of a community - are there trails for example
Earning - can I make a living here and are there knowledge-based jobs. The 30% of people engaged in knowledge based jobs make more than half of the income in the US. If you want to raise the standard of living for everyone in your community, you need to increase your knowledge-based jobs and entrepreneurs
Learning - not just traditional learning, but are their writer's groups and lectures and other ways to keep the brain engaged
Different Talent - does the community incorporate all different kinds of talent? She uses the Irish Potato famine as an example to illustrate this - the famine happened because they had no genetic diversity in the potato. She asked the group tonight, "Are you growing only one kind of potato here?"
Cost of Lifestyle - can I afford to have a life here
After Hours - what is there to do after work and on weekends - this may not necessarily mean a big party scene - not everyone wants that
Around Town - How easy is it to get around. The national average commute is 22.6 minutes. We can get from one end of Hutchinson to the other in that amount of time and that is something I like about living here. I do not ever again want to spend my time sitting in traffic.

She talked a bit about networks - what kind of opportunities are there for people to connect. You know this is one of my great concerns - how we connect with other humans. This seems very lacking in our world today and we are less for it. She challenged us to think about how we create a space to connect.

A really important point she made was that if you have people talking about ways to improve a community, it doesn't mean that what's there is bad. It just means there's a new way to look at things.

One of my favorite comments was, "I don't care if you put young people or young thinkers at the table." I've noticed lately that regardless of the topic, the answer often seems to be age related. We hear, "Well, we need to get young people involved..." or "Well, people over 40 don't do this..." This can be used to explain everything from texting to newspaper readership.

The problem is, these things are far deeper than age and if you stop with an explanation of age, then there's nothing that can be done. We can't create more people under 40. But, of course, age is not the answer. I'm closer to 50 than 40 and text more than some people I know who are half my age. It's not age and if you explain everything away with age you don't ever get to a real answer that you can actually use.

Overall it was a very interesting evening. I'm so glad I went.

Afternoon at the Hutchinson Zoo

2009-01-17T23:45:00.000-06:00

On the spur of the moment today Greg and I decided to visit the zoo.

We had been to lunch at Roy's, then out to pick up another prescription of after-surgery pain pills for me. I didn't really want to go home yet, but wanted to enjoy the sunshine. We both independently arrived at the idea of driving through the park.

Then we saw the Prairie Thunder Rail Road was running at the zoo. It's similar to the train at the State Fair. Of course, we couldn't resist and went for a ride.

Greg and I are both like children, sometimes. Of course, we're both happy a large part of the time, too. Like children. Find joy in simple things.

The engineer is Bob Kirby, who I know from events like Food for Thought and the Dillon Lecture Series. Greg took these great photos of him.

Bob is apparently a fan of rail roads.

Of course, Greg was taking photos along the way during our ride, too.

Greg took some video of the train, too. I didn't know he was doing it when I was clapping excitedly at the end.

We met Steve Russell, another railroad fan, and enjoyed a lively conversation with him. One of the things I love about living in a smaller city is that people will strike up a conversation pretty easily.

One of the things I learned when I was a journalist is that almost everyone has an interesting story to tell. Mr. Russell is a prime example of that. He was once a railroad engineer in Durango, and is now a rancher who splits his time between three locations, including one here. He breeds Jacob Sheep, an ancient breed that probably originated in Syria about 3000 years ago. The breed has been successfully preserved thanks to careful handling of the genetic pool.

We meandered on, stopping along the way to visit with some other animals. Greg took this great photo of a Bald Eagle.

We discovered that we had arrived just at feeding time for the pelicans.

Marcy, who's a new zookeeper at the Hutchinson Zoo, was feeding them fish. They're a good catch. She tossed each of them a fish in rapid succession so they didn't fight over them.

We chatted with Marcy for quite awhile. She's a wonderful addition to the zoo staff. She comes here from Illinois and has worked at the St. Louis Zoo and volunteered at the Denver Zoo.

Greg took this video of her feeding the pelicans.

Marcy said she's enjoying living in Hutchinson and that she really loves that the zoo is geared toward native animals. She mentioned something I didn't know, that some of these animals we think are plentiful are actually endangered species. We invited her to get together for dinner sometime and visit more. Very interesting young lady.

We visited the otters and then went to the petting zoo where we saw a baby llama. Is that not the cutest face?

We wrapped up our visit with a stop in the reptile house. This is the best way for me to see snakes - with glass separating us.

It was a fun afternoon. The zoo is really exceptional and they have plans to expand - including laying more track for the train.

I also loved getting to meet a couple of new folks. Greg continually teases me that I know a lot of people. I'm not sure why that is, exactly. I think I know an average amount of people.

We wrapped up the day with dinner at Marcella's, which we really enjoy - good Italian food downtown. All in all it was a fun day. And we both needed a fun day.

Christmas at My Home

2008-12-14T23:41:00.000-06:00

I thought it would be fun to participate in this online open house at www.boomama.net, while sharing photos from my real life open house this past Saturday. See how that all works together? Nifty, huh?

Saturday night was really fun. There were a little more than 60 people here over the course of the evening. About half of them were folks who had never been to my house at Christmas. It was great to see people, although I didn't get to chat with everyone as much as I would have liked to. In fact, I never said more than "hello" to quite a few folks. I don't know how to address that because, even though I love to talk, I can only talk so much so quickly. Yes, even me. Besides, I think people come to see the main tree as much as anything.

In the sunporch I have three lighted trees this year. The full size one is the Santa tree. When I sit in that chair I can see the main tree in the living room.

It was inspired by this ornament...

To the left of the santa tree in the sunporch is the red and white tree...

This Santa is on the writing desk beside the red tree.

On the other side of the sunporch, in front of the piano, is the pink and green tree.

Under the living room tree, the main tree is where I have all the presents.

There's a theme every year. This year's blue, purple, silver and white was inspired by a ribbon.

The tree looks different exposed for the lights.

Also in the living room I have the copper and gold tree.

In the dining room this year I have a white tree with blue, silver and crystal ornaments.

Beside this tree, on a chest, I have some of my Santas.

I also have this tree in the dining room...

And near it two of my favorite Santas...

This is right behind the table, where I spread out the goodies when I had my open house Saturday night. I love to bake, so I cooked up a number of sweets.

If you want to see it all in context, I took some video. Just click on the arrow and it will play automatically for you.

Greg took some photos of folks Saturday night. Some included Ace Jackalope.

I didn't include photos of all the trees or collections, because this post would be even longer. You can see some of the things on the shelves here.

I was so touched Saturday night that Mark and his mom, and Carl and Kris came down from Kansas City for the party. Mia came from Joplin. And, some folks brought me hostess gifts Saturday night that I was so touched by.

Today I relaxed and didn't do a whole lot. We all went to Newton for lunch before they headed to their respective homes, and Greg and I came back to Hutchinson. We had hoped to be able to stop by Teresa's on the way back and see her Christmas tree. That woman can decorate a tree, let me tell you. But, it just didn't work out to do that.

So, I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning up a bit and trying to stay warm. This is our first really cold day/night here. It is 9 degrees here now, with a windchill of -23. How can anything be 23 below zero?

Fortunately, I'm not in the wind, although my office, which is on the north side of the house, feels a bit colder than one would expect when storm windows are in place and plastic in addition. I bought some more plastic today to do a couple more windows. This is a price one pays to live in an old house but I just adore my old house so I'll get out the hair dryer and shrink wrap my windows in plastic. In fact, I think the last time I used the hair dryer was for that very thing.

A quick thank you to everyone who came Saturday night and shared the holiday season with me. And to everyone who's sharing the Christmas season with me online. I just adore Christmas and love to share it. Come on over, lets have a cup of tea and watch the lights!

Lunch with Jade at Country Rose Gifts and Tea Room

2008-12-09T23:38:00.000-06:00

This is Jade, who I met this spring. We've gotten to know each other a bit over the past year and I've really enjoyed it. She is a hard worker, a wonderful volunteer, and a terrific person. She just started a new job at the chamber recently and they were so smart to hire her. She will do amazing things there.

Jade just returned from England, where she was part of a Rotary exchange program. I was so thrilled she got to go. Going abroad is always life-changing, and it certainly was for her.

She arrived at lunch today with a package. Well, we both did. I had bought a little ornament for her some weeks ago. I love to give people Christmas ornaments. She handed me her package and said, "this is just a little something." I said, "well, so is this - a very little something."

But, Jade was not telling the truth! What was in the package was a treasure. A beautiful, incredible treasure - not just a little something. It was this...

... a Wedgewood teacup and saucer she bought when the group toured the factory in England. Isn't it stunning?!?!?! I'm so in love with it that I haven't even begun to consider drinking tea out of it. So far I've only photographed it. I had to rush to do that when I still had daylight so it would be shown off as beautifully as possible.

It was all the more perfect that we were having lunch at Hutchinson's new tea room, The Country Rose Gifts and Tea Room. It is perfectly charming. The food was good, the decor great and the service pleasant.

It's at 519 North Main, and well worth a visit.

The owner has done a great job with making it cozy and attending to the details.

They had a tree decorated that I just loved, with real tea cups. I have a tree with tea ornaments, but it just never occurred to me to create one with real tea cups. How could I possibly have never thought of this? Theirs was just beautiful.

They have a brewed tea ready each day, or you can choose the tea bag of your choice and they'll bring you your own pot of hot water, with a warmer underneath. I went with that since I can't have caffeine.

Tea always tastes better in a pretty cup. I can't wait to see how it tastes in the Wedgewood cup Jade brought me from England.
________________
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Christmas Parade in Hutchinson Kansas

2008-11-22T21:03:00.000-06:00

Today was the annual Christmas parade in Hutchinson, Kansas. It's always the Saturday before Thanksgiving and Santa makes his arrival as part of the parade. It's almost as if he is the Grand Marshall of the parade. And who better, really?

I watched from about Second and Main, near my office building. Of course, the Hutchinson High School Marching Band played. Our marching band has an angel playing.

And, at least two elves...

Later in the parade was one of my favorites - this dance group. They were so cool. I didn't see a banner indicating what group they were representing, but I loved it.

I'm not sure if the appropriate term for this dance is stepping or not, but it's the only term I know. They were a dance drill team, essentially, but with the movements you expect in stepping. There was also a caller, that you can see in the background here in the black outfit.

Maybe someone will correct me if I'm wrong about the terminology. I loved their presentation. I could have watched them all day.

This little guy was standing a few feet away from me during the parade and was loving everything. He kept wanting to run out into the street. His adults had to keep corralling him. But, I love that sort of enthusiasm.

He was so cute people were coming over to give him and his sister/cousin/whatever candy.

Kathie did an entry for the democrats, as usual. She is so devoted. And she's very artistic so she comes up with some great entries. That's Nancy on the left and Cam on the right.

I loved year's entry...

Trish was walking with them, along with Rocco, who's name these days is "Ba-Rocco." I guess Rocco is the official first-dog in Hutchinson. His duties include walking in parades, greeting residents and sniffing things.

Any parade has to have a selection of unusual vehicles...

I was taken with this little Shriner's vechile...

And real men do drive pink cars...

The phone number on this one was four numbers.

Bill Drews, who owns D and D Honey, which stands for Drews and Daughters, has the honey-mobile.

And there were tractors...

And this unusual moving present - I assume this is an ATV under there.

I appreciated the D and D Towing motto - When Santa Breaks down he calls them.

Antique firetrucks...

The Phoenician Salon and Day Spa had a great float, which included Lelani there under the hair dryer. She's one of our favorite Applebee's servers. It was fun to see her in a different environment.

If you can find them... unicycles add another dimension to the parade.

Greg took this photo of me at the parade.

You can tell a few things from it...
1. It was a little chilly today
2. I didn't put on any makeup - that is natural color in my cheeks, otherwise known as "wind burn."
3. I really am like a four-year-old. It's just that I can drive my own vehicle and pack my own bag of toys when I go somewhere.
4. I should learn to put on makeup or, alternately, learn to not put my photo on the world wide web.

Of course, parades always end with horsies. At least here.

And this one came complete with jingle bells.

If you were in the parade and want to see the raw photos, go to www.patsyterrell.com/2008parade.htm

Deborah Raney Speech at the Library

2008-11-14T00:01:00.000-06:00

Christian author Deborah Raney spoke at the Hutchinson Public Library tonight. I am so glad I went to hear her. She gave us an inside look at the publishing business, and answered questions.

There were a number of aspiring writers in the audience, including some people I know from various things, but didn't know were writing. There were also some folks there I was surprised to see.

It strikes me, again, that there's a real need for a writer's group in Hutchinson. I've considered starting one, but I think my time is better spent writing. However, I would make time to go to one if it existed. I just don't want to be responsible for making one more thing happen on a regular basis. I wouldn't mind organizing it initially, if someone else would keep it going. Anything like that requires some time and attention. I did wish we had a signup sheet tonight so we could see if there was interest in such a thing.

Someone asked me afterwards if I still had my full time job and when I said yes the next question was, "So, when are you writing?" "Nights, weekends, vacations, anytime I can," I replied. I think this is how most people do it until they can make a living writing. I guess I have made a living writing at various jobs, but not as a novelist.

I've been writing since I could, really - journals, newsletters, articles, cookbooks, this is my second novel, and of course blogging is an almost daily practice for me. But the business side of this is a stumbling block to me. I'd like to have an agent to handle that for me. I would happily give them their 15%. It would be money very well spent.

I know I can write. I know I can market. I just don't want to be solely responsible for either. I want some good editors and some good marketing people working with me. I want to find a literary agent and build a new career with them.

I've veered away from Raney's talk, but I will sum up by saying the most important thing I think she said all night is that step one is, "Write the Book." So, I'd best get back to doing that. But, if you have an opportunity to hear Deborah Raney talk about her experiences, it's well worth it. Do check out her website.

Hutchinson Happenings

2008-10-17T03:11:00.000-05:00

I realize not every town has a giant grasshopper - much less one wearing a hand-knitted hat and scarf. What can I say? Hutchinson is special. And so is our grasshopper in Avenue A Park.

The folks at Yarn decided to have a public knitting event tonight as part of the downtown art walk on Third Thursdays. They were making scarves to donate to those who need them.

Of course, Andrea (on the left) was there since she's one of the instructors at Yarn. Andrea is a knitter extraordinaire. This is the same Andrea who won first place for her knitted piece at the State Fair this year.

Lots was going on downtown - including free carriage rides...

Greg and I ate dinner at Brooks, then ran into Sharon and visited with her a bit before wandering around more. Just a few doors down from Brooks the HCC art instructor had set up a large Day of the Dead display in a translation place. There were lots of sugar skulls decorated and displayed in a traditional manner.

One of the things I love about living in a town this size is it's small enough I bump into lots of folks I know whenever I go to something like this, and yet it's large enough to have events where you can see Day of the Dead sugar skulls. The best of both worlds.

Mark Russell at the Fox

2008-10-12T03:11:00.000-05:00

Tonight we went to see political comedian Mark Russell at the Fox Theatre. He was fabulous, as you might expect. Greg, Mark, Teresa and I went.

Greg, Mark and I were in the second row, which was good and bad. We were very close, but when he was sitting down at the piano, it was positioned such that we couldn't really see him well. But, he stood up and moved around the stage a large part of the time.

It was a really nice evening - the kick off to the Fox season. They bring some great events to town. Mary Hemmings, the Executive Director, is a dynamo. I really like her.

And it's always great to be in this amazing place. It's an Art Deco masterpiece. We are so fortunate to have it. We owe a great debt to Martha Slater and Greg Payton who spearheaded saving it a few years ago, and Andrea Springer who was its first Executive Director.

Mark Russell was hilarious. At the end he did a poll and was surprised to find a lot of Obama support in the audience. I think it was about half and half. He joked, "In Kansas? Did they ship you all in from the east coast?"

I asked him afterwards if he was genuinely surprised by the Obama support and he said he was. He was very personable and signed autographs and took photos with the few people who stayed around.

He also posed for a photo with Ace Jackalope. I'm sure we'll soon be able to read more about that on www.thelope.com.

Thanks to Greg, as usual, for all the photos!

Fried Green Tomato Demonstration

2008-09-20T22:18:00.000-05:00

This afternoon I did a cooking demonstration on Fried Green Tomatoes at Apron Strings, our new kitchen store, downtown.

I was wishing these were a bit more complex, because people had come out to see me make them and I wanted to make it worth their time. But, fried green tomatoes are very easy.

Fried Green Tomatoes
green tomatoes
yellow corn meal
salt
pepper
oil (I used vegetable oil, but bacon grease is much better!)

Wash and core the tomatoes, and slice. Mix salt and pepper into cornmeal to taste. Dip tomato slices in cornmeal and then fry.

I made three batches today and used the same oil. This was the last batch and you can see the crumblies in the skillet. Turn them with a fork or egg turner until they're brown on each side.

Greg came to take photos for me. I swear, he's the best ex-boyfriend a girl could have.

I always put paper towels on the plate to drain the fried green tomatoes a bit before serving. Needless to say, they are greasy!

Lynette, who I've met there before, said she had been waiting for this demonstration. Her parents are both from the south so we had much to talk about after the demo. I'm looking forward to getting to know her better. I think everyone enjoyed the goodies.

Apron Strings has regular cooking demos. You can sign up for their free newsletter or check their website for what's on tap.

Fair Coming to a Close

2008-09-14T03:11:00.000-05:00

The fair ends on Sunday, but Saturday we spent the whole afternoon and evening out there. I hadn't had a chance to do all the things I wanted to do so took time to do that.

I looked at quilts in the domestic arts building...

I visited the "Little Man" at the Women's Christian Temperance Union booth. He turns his head, rings the bell, and points to the pages as they turn.

Hypnotist Ron Diamond suggested to this young lady that if she spun her hair around she could take off like a helicopter. Trust me, she gave it her all. She did not, however, take flight.

Tonight was the Joe Nichols and Jason Michael Carroll concert I won tickets to at the United Way event. I'm just not used to trying to take my own photos at such an event. I needed Greg.

Jason Michael Carroll was up first...

He reminds me of a rocker gone country, as do many folks these days. I don't mind that at all - he was fun.

There was quite a long delay inbetween while they reset the stage for Joe Nichols.

He does that song, "Tequila Makes her Clothes Fall Off." When he sang it at the end, someone threw a black bra up on the stage. Eventually he picked it up and hung it on the mic stand. I knew women flashed a lot at concerts these days. I didn't know anyone still threw their under-garments on stage. I thought that had ended in about 1981, but apparently I was incorrect. I guess it's all part of the fun for some folks.

If you're planning to see him in person and really want a good seat, he seems to like to sit on the edge of the stage on his right hand side. I don't know if that was just tonight, or if that's a pattern. He tends to crouch down on both sides a lot while he sings.

I was surprised at how many songs he did that were not his own. Well over half the concert I would guess. The most surprising to me was Nickelback's "I wanna be a rock star." He did it fine, but I love the original version. However, anyone who can play Merle Haggard and Nickelback in the same concert and keep the audience attention gets credit.

I met Julie at the concert and we had a good time. Afterwards, I went and met Greg and Mark and watched the speed painter for awhile.

I finished off the night with a Pronto Pup - not something I eat every year - but they are a classic.

A few nights ago I went to see Alice Cooper at the fair. You can't say there's not some variety there.

A Look at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson

2008-09-08T03:11:00.000-05:00

What's a State Fair without a giant pumpkin? This one is 652.7 pounds, and grown by Douglas Heathman, who also won in 2005 and 2006. There were only three entries this year. I'm not sure if that means it was a bad year for giant pumpkins or if it's a specialized thing and that accounts for the fact that some of the same names show up on the winner's sheet year after year.

Other, normal sized pumpkins and gourds were decorated in various ways. I wonder if Michael Phelps has ever seen himself rendered in gourd?

There were fictional characters like the tin man.

And penguins and pink flamingos and other things.

These are all in the Pride of Kansas building, which houses many agricultural goodies

There's something I just love about seeing blue and purple ribbons on grain and corn and soybeans. I'm not the only one who enjoys it either.

I'm guessing this gentleman may have interest beyond the ribbons that hold my fascination.

Kansas boasts one of the last true agricultural state fairs in the country and I love that. I have to admit I don't know beans about soybeans or corn or wheat, but I always wander around the exhibits, pretending like I do.

Pride of Kansas also has multiple tourism booths, and one of those is for the Kansas Underground Salt Museum (KUSM) in Hutchinson.

Linda, the director, was there talking to lots of people about this great attraction.

The KUSM is one of the coolest things you'll ever find. You can go 650 feet underground to a salt mine and get to see everything about such an operation and even a peek at the famous Underground Vaults and Storage that is where many movies and TV shows are stored for safe keeping.

They even let you take home a little chunk of salt as a souvenir at the end of your tour.

KUSM was recently named one of the 8 wonders of Kansas. A well-deserved honor.

I haven't covered nearly all of the fair yet, but I wanted to go to the Domestic Arts Building tonight. I heard through the grapevine that my friend, Andrea, won in a knitting category. I wanted to see for myself. Sure enough, there it was.

Andrea is a knitter extraordinaire and says this beaded lace cowl is the "Ice Queen" pattern from knitty.com. I'm a person who can only knit scarves, and doesn't do those particularly well, so this is all pretty much above me but I can certainly appreciate this kind of work, even if I can't do it myself.

I love looking at the jars of jams and jellies and veggies. It's very homey and one of the things I love about the Kansas State Fair. I'm very spoiled because it happens a few blocks away so I can go and enjoy it for a few hours here and there and not have to do one of those 9-9 full days of wandering the fair grounds.

A regular stop for me is going to see Ron Diamond, the hypnotist, do his show, too. He does three a day generally and I've never been to one that wasn't great. Today he suggested to the guys on stage that were hypnotized that they were in a body building competition.

The fair has something for everyone.

There are jams and giant pumpkins. Honestly, does anyone really need anything else to have a good time?

The Prairie Close Up

2008-09-04T22:23:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I got to Newton, about thirty minutes away from Hutchinson, about 5:30. My thought was to hit the thrift store and some antique stores but nothing was open. So, I went to neighboring North Newton and walked at the Kauffman Museum. It, too, was closed, but they have some natural prairie in front of the museum, with trails mowed in them.

I was completely taken with this seed pod. I don't know what it is, but I just really love the look of it. When I was taking the photos in the rain, with an overcast sky as it was approaching 6 p.m., with a slight wind blowing, I didn't even notice the actual seeds. I just knew the shape of it was really cool.

This one is just starting to split open, as you can see.

It took me a long time to appreciate the prairie. It can be very colorful like the thistle I showed a few days ago, or the wonderful sunflowers we expect to find everywhere in Kansas.

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The prairie is a unique ecosystem and has its own beauty.

A Long Walk at Dillon Nature Center - Thistles, Rainbows and More

2008-08-31T03:11:00.000-05:00

This afternoon I took a walk at Dillon Nature Center. Greg was out shooting cicadas and called telling me it was really moody because rain was impending. I rushed right out because I didn't want to miss anything.

I spent at least 20 minutes photographing this thistle. I was enchanted with the various stages represented on the one plant.

We were on a trail and we never saw another person out in that area. We saw an amazing rainbow. There had been one when I was headed out there but it just lasted a couple of minutes. This one lasted more than 30 minutes.

At times there were two rainbows visible.

In the last few years I have been treated to lots of rainbows - most recently in Sedan, Kansas. I've seen them at Jackie and Mary Ann's in Kentucky, at Susan's farm, and here. It hasn't been very long ago that Greg and I saw one when we were leaving Skaets. Am I just leading a charmed life or are there more now than there used to be?

I was so glad Greg called me. He said this is one of the things he loves about me - that I'll just drop what I'm doing when something like this comes up. One of the things I love about him is that he'll call me when something like this is happening so I don't miss it.

One of the things I love about a walk like this is that you get little glimpses of life you would miss any other way. I thought I'd share some of the little moments of today with you.

It seems fall is starting to arrive, too.

When we walked back up toward the pond it was closing time for Dillon Nature Center. I was struck by the reflection of the trees and clouds in the pond.

I even took a little video of the reflection with the ducks passing by.

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This is a 360 degree view of a statue up by the visitor's center and pond.

All in all it was a wonderful way to spend a few hours - in nature - with some moody rain. The bugs were serenading us as we left. Just lovely.

Michael Broome

2008-08-28T03:11:00.000-05:00

Tonight was the United Way kickoff and the theme was "Live United." I run an agency that gets support from United Way and all the agencies were there with information. Afterwards was a dinner with motivational speaker, Michael Broome.

I had not planned to attend the dinner. But, as luck would have it, Julie had bought an extra ticket and invited me to stay for dinner. I was glad I got to hear Mr. Broome.

His overall theme was that humor is key to life. I would certainly agree with that. In the process of getting his point across he noted a number of different facts. I jotted down some of the ones I found particularly interesting to share with you. I'm not going to try and blend them logically, as he did.

One thing he said, which I've heard before is that "irritation plus time equals humor." That's so true. When you're angry about something, as time passes you can tell the story and it becomes funny.

He talked about how the chemical makeup of happy tears is different than that of sad tears. That is true. He also mentioned that laughing increases red blood cells. I had not heard that, but I'm not surprised.

He spoke for a while about how you should become a master of the small, sincere things. He said to never underestimate the power of a handwritten note. I know this is a powerful thing. He used as an example Abraham Lincoln, who wrote thank you notes, notes of condolence and letters. He mentioned that other than Jesus Christ, more has been written about Lincoln than anyone else - more than 5000 biographies. Part of the reason is that he left behind so many writings.

In the arena of personal relationships, he said to learn to say two things to your loved ones: "I'm sorry" and "I love you."

He also talked about reading a book about love languages and how there are five ways to show love. Some may combine them, but that all fall into these categories:
physical
verbal
acts of service
quality time
gifts

He talked about "Amazing Grace" being the most recorded song of all time, and how it was written by a former slave trader.

All in all a nice evening.

Osage Nation Traditional Textiles

2008-08-21T22:27:00.000-05:00

Jerry Shaw of the Osage Nation spoke at the library tonight as part of the "Native Threads" exhibit of quilts created by Native American quilt makers in Kansas. It's on display on the mezzanine of the Hutchinson Public Library.

Shaw is an instructor in the Department of Ethnic Studies at Wichita State University and spoke on “Understanding Native Identity.” He covered a wide range of topics - everything from gaming to the appropriate terminology to refer to Native Americans. He says "American Indian" or "Native American" is appropriate, as well as "Indigenous People."

His wife, Beth Shaw, a former school librarian and longtime student of Native textiles came with him. They brought some of the items in her and her husband’s collection, and it was fascinating to see them.

Jerry modeled this while Beth told us that the mustard and burgundy beads are not really seen anymore, unless someone had them saved back.
Notice the selvage edge running in a stripe down the back. That tells you it's a man's blanket. A woman's blanket has the selvage around the top.
This belonged to Jerry's grandfather who died in 1921.

The Osage are known for their ribbon and yarn work instead of beading. This is a great example of the ribbon work. She said this is done by laying down all three colors, then snipping and turning and stitching with a hidden stitch to make the design. His mother did the work on this piece.

The belt on this really significant because it's unusual.

There were items made for the War Mother's Society that featured flags and Palamino horses.

Jerry's aunt had these made for her and her husband.

Note the selvedge differences - around the top on the one she's wearing and down the back on his.

Women also wore blankets as skirts. They are folded over, with the design over the left leg in the Osage tradition, then the excess is folded on the right side and the whole thing secured with a belt.

This belt was made for another member of their family who is six feet tall, so it was a bit long on Beth. Traditionally, the ends would be even with the skirt at the floor.

If you look closely, you can see it's tied at the top of it and the other bits would be hanging free. She was just holding them up to keep them off the floor.

This belt is a great example of the Osage yarn work.

It was quite a striking ensemble. Note the selvedge on the edge that is folded over. That's what makes the stripe in the middle of the skirt. It would be important that all the designs lined up when finished.

This pink belt is modern, not vintage.

This purple, yellow and green belt is about 90 years old. It's made of Germantown yarn, which was not available after 1918 due to WW1 blockades. Most of the things they showed us were pre-1932, but there's very little fading.

This is a blanket shawl made to Pendleton. Jerry's grandfather bought it for his wife on June 13, 1913, the day she gave birth to Jerry's mother. These are still manufactured and you can date them by the stripes. This is called "plain stripe" because it's the same on both sides.

The red fringe has been redone, so they don't know what it looked like originally.

This lavender is made on the reverse - each side is different.

These are made of wool, but they call it broadcloth. She said it's sometimes called "Trade cloth" too. This purple with the blue binding above was traded with the Navajo.

This blue with the purple binding is one Jerry has sat on during ceremonies, but he has never worn.

The blue one he has sat on during ceremonies and this lavender one were made in Europe, specifically for trade with the Osage Nation. Because they had some land with oil on it, the Osage Nation had money and were an important enough trade partner that some companies made products specifically for them.

This one is made in reverse. The blue on this side is purple on the other. It was made in Europe, too, as was the one below with the fringe.

This is made of a lighter weight, as you would think from looking at it. At a previous speech they did, an exchange student from Czechoslovakia said those were made in his village. Unfortunately, they never got to garner more information from him.

This cream colored with the embroidery is Spanish silk.

This one was once black, but is fading to a green color. It had very long, extravagant fringe on it with beads.

These beads are faceted Czech cut and the more they move, the more they sparkle. The fabric is wool gaberdine.

These silver buttons were ones Jerry's mother had as a child. Beth sewed them on when they replaced the fabric on this. They didn't want to lose the fringe, of course, so cut it as closely as possible and put new fabric on.

This red coat is a wedding outfit. It is the military garb worn by Napoleon's army. He asked for representatives of the Osage nation to come to France. They did, and when they left, he offered them a gift, and they chose this. This particular one belonged to Jerry's Aunt Nora who died in 1815.

These plumes were secured upright in a hatband as part of the costume.

She also showed some leggings. The Osage never had traditional trousers, their pants were three pieces.

She pointed out how the beading stitches do not show. She said this is an indication of age because these were brain-tanned, which you can't do today. The way tanning is done today you can't bead with a hidden stitch.

They both talked about the fringe, and how it goes back to the creation story that God sent an eagle ahead of them. Because of that, the feather is one of the most important symbols and the fringe is symbolic of the tarsal feathers of the eagle.

A feather in the headdress indicates a boy is now a man. The last thing they do with their dead is put a feather in their hand.

She showed this little vest, and I was struck by all the hand stitches inside it.

It was a fascinating evening with topics that jumped from one to another in the question session.

He said he thought "Dances with Wolves" is the most authentic film made about Native Americans.

He talked about the different qualifications for various groups. The Ute of Utah require 5/8 blood. The Osage and Cherokee accept anyone with any amount of blood. He said DNA may soon be used to determine such things. I was always told my great, great, grandmother was Cherokee. The place is right, the timing is right, and she certainly looks like a Native American in the one photo I have, but I have no actual proof. We have always accepted it as truth because we have no reason not to, but it would be wonderful to claim such a proud heritage with no doubt.

One of the most interesting things he mentioned was that in 2004, of 16,000 people in the Osage Nation, only five of them spoke the language. FIVE. So, they started language schools and now there are 1200 people who have studied. In 2004 they started with 25 students. It's amazing to think about how close they came to losing their language. That would have been a tragedy.

Of course, there have been plenty of tragedies visited upon plenty of indigenous peoples in plenty of places. I hope that one has been avoided. It would be a loss to the world to lose a language that has been spoken for centuries.

An amazing evening. I was trying to take photos and notes, and they were going really quickly, but it was a fascinating.

Rudy Love and the Love Family Band in Hutchinson

2008-08-02T03:00:00.000-05:00

Rudy Love and the Love Family Band kicked off the weekend long Emancipation Day Celebration in Hutchinson Kansas tonight. It was a free concert, sponsored by the Hutchinson Reno Arts and Humanities Council. There was free music, free hotdogs, free lemonade and ice water. What more could you want on a summer evening?

I've seen Rudy and family perform before, but it's always a treat.

A musical prodigy Rudy formed his first group, the “Junior Canaanites” at his home church when he was in the 5^th grade, by the age of 18 he was touring with Little Richard and in the early 1970s was an established studio artist working for Motown Records and the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section appearing on records with such luminaries as Marvin Gaye, Ray Charles, and the Temptations.

In 1975 Love became the musical director for Sly and the Family Stone touring the world with that popular group. Later as a soloist and leader of his own band Rudy extensively toured Asia and Europe developing a loyal following of fans that help make his 1997 disc “Out of Rhythm” go platinum.

Rudy has recorded with some of the greatest. This list includes Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Carlos Santana, Marvin Gaye, Chaka Kahn, Van Morrison, Little Richard, Billy Preston, Buddy Miles, Herbie Hancock, Tower of Power, Bill Wyman, Little Richard, Sly and The Family Stone and Isaac Hayes.

Returning to Kansas, Love has kept performing, recording and writing music. Examples of Rudy’s more recent work can be found on the sound track of the hit movie “American Gangster” and his collaborations with hip hop impresario Jay Z.

With Wichita as a home base Rudy Love has continued the family tradition of musical performing excellence began by his father Robert Love Sr. who recorded for the Chess Record label and toured the country as a performing musician with noted gospel and R & B artists. Now the next generation is performing as well.

One of the fun things about an event like this is bumping into friends and acquaintances. It was great to see Jocelyn...

When I looked at Greg's pix, I noticed he also had a photo of her family.

That's Jocelyn's mom in the salmon, and that's Theda in the white. With her back to us is Aunt Joyce. I didn't get a chance to visit with any of them tonight, but I know I've mentioned Theda on the blog, so now you get to see a photo. I'm sure you can tell these ladies all come from an amazing gene pool - look how great they look!

Diana was there too...

I also saw Scharlotte, although I didn't get much of a chance to visit with her. That's her on the right. With her are Mark and his wife, Gail. Mark is director of the HRAH council.

I sat with Elsie for quite a while and visited...

Greg got some great pix of these kids dancing... it was hard to choose a photo to use...

I love, love, love this park - right in the heart of downtown. It changed the face of Hutchinson. It's a real jewel.

Of course... almost all of these photos are courtesy of www.thelope.com. It was a really fun night - not only for the free music and entertainment but having a chance to visit with people you bump into.

2008-07-27T20:47:00.000-05:00

Elk Falls, Kansas is in the southeastern part of the state, about a 2 1/2 hour drive from Hutchinson. Trish, Teresa and I spent the weekend at the Sherman House Guesthouse there, so we could have some time away for a creative visioning process. It was the same process I did at Ramona with some friends in April.

I didn't do a new collage because I haven't fully delved into the one I did in April. I took it along, and Trish had some good insights into it.

Elk Falls is an interesting community and we enjoyed meeting Steve and Jane Fry, who own the Sherman House B and B and also operate Elk Falls Pottery. They were lovely folks and invited us to also visit their rock garden. I'll have more photos of that in the coming days.

I went out early this morning to the falls, where I spotted this heron enjoying the breaking day.

I then took a lovely drive out into the country. Trish loaned me her car as I didn't have one with me. Greg headed to Joplin on Friday so he just detoured and took me to Elk Falls. It was nice to have his company on the way down and Trish's on the way back.

Teresa met us there, coming up from Oklahoma where she had been to watch her granddaughter, Kylie, play in a national softball tournament. Her team came in fifth!

Friday night Teresa and I headed out for dinner and decided to go to Sedan. We did not enjoy our food at the Rack Shack (BBQ) very much - I'm sorry I can't recommend it - but we saw a beautiful double rainbow.

I couldn't resist taking a photo of downtown Sedan with the rainbow stretched over the main street. Of course, those power lines detract, but otherwise it's a lovely chamber of commerce shot. To top it off, Sedan has a "yellow brick road," where people buy bricks, which I had stepped on to take the photo.

It was an incredible weekend. We want to do it again very soon.

Harvey Houses Remembered at Tea in Arlington Kansas

2008-07-21T20:49:00.000-05:00

Sunday Teresa, Julie, Jan and I went to tea in Arlington, Kansas. Arlington is part of Reno County and about a 20 minute drive from Hutchinson. This is a fundraiser tea and it's just completely lovely.

Verna is one of the ladies who organizes it. They transform their church basement by carrying in tons of wonderful decorations. And, the food is always very good.

This was just one of the little desserts they served. Yummy.

Their program this year was about Fred Harvey and Harvey Houses. Joanne Stanley came from Topeka to give the program.

Fred Harvey developed a system, in conjunction with the Santa Fe Railroad, to serve food to rail passengers. The first Harvey House was in Topeka in 1876. For 35 cents you got eggs, bacon, hashbrowns, pancakes, coffee and apple pie. It was served on real china on real linens. It was a revolution in the industry.

Within seven years, Harvey had 17 places in operation.

The lady in the blue, over to the right edge, was a Harvey girl herself.

Her name is Evelyn Nunnemaker. I went over afterwards and asked if I could take her photo. She was just lovely and have a great smile, but I couldn't get her to show it to me when I was taking a photo. She worked at the Harvey House at the Grand Canyon. She taught school and was looking for a summer job and got that one.

She was hired on the spot and sent the next day, which was unusual. Many girls trained in Newton, Kansas (about 30 minutes from Hutchinson). All the laundry for the whole chain was done in Newton, too.

Fred Harvey started out with men serving, but in 1883 when the male waiters had been in a brawl the night before and didn't show up for work, a manager in New Mexico suggested using girls instead and Fred Harvey liked the idea. He started advertising for women 18-30, attractive, educated and of good character.

The speaker, Stanley, brought some items to show, as well.

Harvey bought his first hotel in Florence, Kansas, a few years after he started. He hired the chef from the Palmer House Hotel in Chicago and paid him $5000 a year. No doubt he was the best paid man in Florence, Kansas, at the time.

Harvey girls worked hard - usually 6-7 days a week from 12 hours a day. They lived in dormitories as part of the Harvey system.

We all had a good time...

That's Julie in the hat, and Teresa...

And this is Jan. It was a great afternoon with wonderful food and a very interesting program.

I hadn't lived in Kansas long before I heard about Harvey Houses, and have been lucky enough to meet a few former Harvey girls over the years. They always have great stories to tell.

Saturday Night on the Plains

2008-07-21T03:44:00.000-05:00

Saturday night was a concert downtown Hutchinson, Kansas, organized by Jon Dennis, on the left in this photo. It was a free concert with about a dozen different performers, and an art auction.

All the performers were donating their time so all proceeds from the auction were going to the Central Kansas Tenants Association, a group Jon formed. I'm sorry to say Jon was leaving town later that night, after the concert. I'm really going to miss him.

One of my favorite things about an event like this is running into folks I know and having a chance to visit a bit.

No sooner had I arrived than I saw Greg, and Jade popped over to say hi.

Kate, Lovella, Ron and some others were talking about the Wiley Building.

Jason (left) and Mason (right) were there...

As was Mikaela, who found a young friend.

To top off the night, I won the auction for this beautiful watercolor.

Deadman Flats and an afternoon in Hutchinson Kansas

2008-07-12T20:53:00.000-05:00

Deadman Flats was playing a concert today in Avenue A park. Some of these guys are originally from Hutchinson, but now live in Lawrence. They refer to their music as, "Bluegrass at its most inbred."

Even puppy dogs were enjoying the music.

We were under the gazebo at Avenue A park. We're so fortunate to have this beautiful space in town.

You may notice the raindrops in the water. They were followed by many, many more. And it was in the lower 60s. A little nippy - particularly for July.

They are obviously very talented guys.

I had gone with a hat to keep the sun off my face, and neglected to get a jacket or umbrella. Fortunately, when Greg came later he grabbed a sweater out of my car for me, and I was thankful for it.

Despite the weather, there was a good crowd for them, and for Tallgrass Express String Band, which started the concert. That group was formed through meetings at the Friday night jam sessions at the Emma Chase Cafe in Cottonwood Falls.

This is another great example of the large number of things going on in Hutchinson. Sometimes people say there's nothing to do. I think those people aren't looking very hard. Today I missed a cooking demonstration I wanted to go to because I was at the concert. Seems to me there's usually more than one thing to do at any given time.

Oh, by the way, this was free. Completely free. Show up was all people had to do.

Tonight there's another free concert with nearly a dozen bands performing.

Tallgrass Writing Workshop in Emporia Kansas

2008-07-01T02:59:00.000-05:00

I spent the weekend at Emporia State University at the 23rd Annual Tallgrass Writing Workshop. Emporia is about a two hour drive from Hutchinson. It was great to be engaged in learning, and with other writers, for a whole weekend. I know I'm going to want to go back again and again. I was very impressed with the level of instruction, as well as the other folks attending.

Max McCoy, who read at the library here a couple of months ago, organized this year's event. The HRAC, one of the boards I'm on, brought him to Hutchinson. It was one of those things I intended to blog, but never got around to, other than a quick mention, although I did promo it. However, Greg did blog it, in his usual exquisite way.

One of McCoy's presentations this weekend was about the Hero's Journey, a reference to Joseph Campbell's writing. It has been a long time since I read the "Power of Myth." I think a rereading is in order. I obviously need to read "The Hero with a Thousand Faces." If you haven't read any of Campbell's writing, I encourage you to give it a try. Really. Reading him is life changing. It's not the easiest reading I've ever done, but it stays with you.

Max McCoy writes both fiction and non-fiction, including some of the Indiana Jones books, which are a hot topic now with the movie out. He also teaches journalism at Emporia State, and if the one session I was in with him this weekend is any indication, he's a great teacher. It was almost enough to make me want to go back to school. OK, truth be told, I always want to go back to school. It's just that part where they pay me to go to work and I have to pay them to go to school that stops me.

McCoy just won the 2008 Spur Award from the Western Writers of America for his novel, "Hellfire Canyon." This is not just a nice, little award - it's a real honor. He has written a number of books, as well as tons of articles. Read about all things McCoy at www.maxmccoy.com. His blog has been one of my regular stops online since I met him in April.

This weekend he shared something else I found completely endearing - he loves Halloween. This came up when we were drawing names for door prizes out of a plastic pumpkin. Those of you who are regular readers know of my love of holidays - Christmas being my favorite, and Halloween my second favorite. Besides, keeping a plastic pumpkin around all year demonstrates a certain quirkiness you might expect from someone who spends a large part of their life engaged in creative work. I love quirkiness.

Joining us for Saturday was Cotton Smith, who writes westerns. He was a very engaging speaker and his advice went far beyond the genre where his work is focused. He gave us 12 points to consider in any work. It was valuable information. I came home with a stack of notes from his presentation as well as others.

Julianne Couch spoke to us about using "found stories" and also about travel writing. Her book is called "Jukeboxes and Jackalopes." I was tempted to buy many, many books this weekend but I resisted because I'm in the process of weeding through books and giving them away. Until that's done, and I know how much space I have on my library shelves, I'm going to be a devoted library user. Oh, but the temptation was strong.

The press info on her book says, "Jukeboxes & Jackalopes is an apt description of this collection of essays in which the author shares her impressions of some of the unique bars scattered throughout small towns in Wyoming--some so small that the bar may be the only business at a location named and noted on the map but perhaps only claiming two residents. Regardless of size or remoteness of location, these watering holes often serve as community centers and living rooms away from home for those folks who populate the neighboring ranches and energy industry camps and offer a delightful experience for travelers who dare to leave the Interstate in search of a unique experience." Read more at Pronghorn Press.

Another faculty member was Don Coldsmith. I'm sorry I didn't get to attend any of his breakout sessions. It was difficult to decide what session to go to at times because there was much from which to choose. I did have an opportunity to chat with him a little bit. I am certain he's a man who has a million stories he hasn't yet told. Even during introductions he had us all laughing.

There was a book signing Saturday night during a reception at the local Arts Center. I snapped this photo of Don visiting with a participant that night.

I found this bit about him on a Random House website. "Don Coldsmith served as a World War II combat medic in the South Pacific, graduated from Baker University, and received his M.D. from the University of Kansas. He has been a rancher and a horse breeder, among other professions and avocations, and currently teaches at Emporia State University when he is not writing his award-winning novels. There are nearly six million copies of Don Coldsmith's books in print."

Antonia Felix spoke about the power of dreams in the creative process, as well as her own path in the publishing world. She is a multi-talented woman. In addition to being a writer, she is an accomplished musician, and also studied psychology. I knew I was going to like her the first time I heard her mention Jung.

She has written a number of non-fiction books, including "Condi" about Condoleezza Rice and "Laura" about Laura Bush.

It was interesting to hear her talk about her life. I'm always amazed at how some people can accomplish so much with the same number of hours the rest of us are given in a day. She is an example of someone who must use every single second.

The remaining faculty member was Phillip Finch, who shared his personal story in publishing. I'm not going to go into details, because it's not my story to tell, but suffice it to say it was fascinating.

He is the author of 13 books, the latest of which is "Raising the Dead," which will be released in the US in November. It's the story of divers Dave Shaw and Don Shirley. I saw a documentary about these divers and it was fascinating. I'm sure this book will go into far more detail and be a wonderful read.

He sold his first book over the transom, which is publishing speak for selling it by just sending it to a publisher and they pick it out of the big pile of things that have been sent to them. He said the year his book was published there were only two books published by major houses that had come in that way. The other one was "Ordinary People."

Finch apparently had been writing a blog for awhile, but has discontinued it because of the time it takes. I'm sorry to say he has removed it, so we can't even read the older entries.

Blogging certainly does take time, but I've been writing a chronicle of my life for most of my life, so I think I'd be spending this time anyway. I still do the more personal things in handwritten journals, but blogging simplifies the non-personal aspects. And, so far, I enjoy sharing these sorts of events with readers, just as I like to read about such things on other people's blogs.

Saturday night I mentioned there was a reception at the art center. It was very nice, although I left a little early to go write.

I'm not sure how I've missed this wonderful event all this time. But, my friend, Cynthia, sent me the info on it some time ago. I didn't pay any attention because I knew the timing wouldn't work for me - I was supposed to be on a "Food Coma Caravan" trip this past weekend.
Well, as fate would have it, Cynthia sent it to me again on June 11. Something told me I should pay more attention. When I looked at it more closely, I knew I needed to go to it instead of going on the FCC trip. I hated to miss that fun, but this was definitely the right thing for me to do.

One of the highlights for me was a critique of the first few pages of my novel. Max McCoy was the faculty member who critiqued my pages. He gave me some things to think about, but overall he was very positive and encouraging about the project. I asked him to be brutal - and told him if I cried I'd get over and for him to keep being brutal. He laughed and said he had seen people cry, but he didn't think he was going to say anything to me that would make me cry. There were no tears, for the record.

Tonight when I was searching for info for this post, I ran across this on McCoy's site:

"Q: What advice do you have for young writers?
A: Believe in yourself and have something to say. Then, write. If you must take classes in how to write, that’s okay, but don’t let it stand in your way of actually writing for publication instead of a grade. Ditto with teaching writing instead of actually writing. Teaching writing is fine, but I see so many writing teachers who have no credentials – they’ve never sold anything, they’ve just earned grades for their work. There are exceptions, of course, but the best writing teachers I’ve had were writers first. Reaching an audience is important. And, I think so many people are waiting for somebody to give them permission to write. Their teachers, their family, an agent, a well-known novelist. This is deadly, because the only one who can really give you permission is yourself. Also, when you start regarding yourself as a writer, and acting accordingly, it shakes up the status quo. When it moves from the realm of just a hobby, this is going to bug the hell out of your family and friends, because it is threatening the status quo. Stick to your guns. Write with your heart. Also, in the sense of the word “young” writers, I’m addressing all beginning writers, no matter what age. Writing is one of the most democratic of pursuits. It doesn’t matter how old you are, or your education, or what you look like. What does matter is what you get down on the page, and expect to write around half a million words before you start writing publishable material."

I'm happy to say I'm way past the half a million words mark. I'm sure I've written far more than that longhand, much less what I've written on the keyboard. Thank goodness. Otherwise I'd find that pretty daunting. However, I'm sure he's not too far off the mark.

Dr. Vreeland Coming Back to Hutchinson

2008-06-26T01:56:00.000-05:00

Dr. Russell Vreeland, one of the scientists who discovered an ancient bacteria still living in salt in New Mexico, will be conducting similar research in Hutchinson.

Vreeland was here a few weeks ago for the opening of an exhibit at the Kansas Underground Salt Museum featuring his work. The bacteria he and his colleagues discovered is the oldest living thing on Earth.

Vreeland recently received a grant from the National Science Foundation to sample salt in several mines to look for fluid inclusions that might contain bacteria. He will be coming to Hutchinson about once a month to research at the Kansas Underground Salt Museum.

The salt under Hutchinson is about 270 million years old, about 20 million years older than what was sampled in New Mexico. So, if bacteria is found here it would be even older than what was discovered earlier.

The exhibit at the Kansas Underground Salt Museum includes the original piece of salt from which the bacteria was taken and the petri dish in which it was "revived." If you're in the area, I urge you to go see the exhibit if at all possible. It's fascinating just to lay eyes on such things.

In the weeks since I interviewed Dr. Vreeland after his lecture here, and have had more time to think about it, I have come to appreciate him even more as I remembered him saying, "The feeling we had when we saw it was humility. ... That is the oldest living thing on earth. Here's an organism that was alive 100 million years before the dinosaurs, you've got to respect it."

It's wonderful to see someone who still has a sense of awe about their work. I'm so thrilled he will be conducting research in Hutchinson. What a great opportunity for this community to have the chance to interact with a mind like his.

Museum staff are also talking to Dr. Vreeland about hosting some kid's dig camps next summer. They will probably be 3-5 days long and would entail mine safety training, digging for salt samples underground and classroom and lab instruction.

Details are still being worked out, but it would possibly mean 1-2 days in class covering safety and mine layers, one day to examine crystals to see what they're looking for, and then a day to dig and another day to break the rocks and select some for samples.

Oh to be a kid... I wonder what the age limit on that is going to be...

(Photos from www.thelope.com - taken during Vreeland's visit a few weeks ago)

Marian Madonia

2008-05-15T22:54:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago I went to see Marian Madonia speak during a Food for Thought presentation. She gave a speech titled, "Tell Me Something Good" and made some wonderful points, which I'll highlight here.

She said people don't leave their current jobs for more money and opportunity. She said that's what they're going to, not what they're leaving. What they're leaving is the real question.

Another point she made is that we can only control two things - what we think and what we do. Otherwise, we can only influence things.

She said in every situation there are five options: get by, get out, get info, get help or get going.
Her suggestion was to ask "What concerns you about this situation?"

The biggest take-away message for me was when she was giving suggestions for what you could say to someone if you felt under attack. The first one was to say, "you could be right," but what really struck me was in the explanation of that she said to remember, "it's not your job to prove someone wrong." Wow. So simple, but so powerful. And very appropriate for me.

I sometimes have a need to make sure people understand something, even if it's not a right/wrong situation - I want them to understand. How can they make an informed decision if they don't understand everything? That's the same sort of thing. So, I've adapted this to be that it's not my job to make someone understand. Sometimes it would be much simpler to just accept that people don't understand something and let it go. This seems to be especially true when it comes to technology things.

I often seem to be around people who mistakenly view me a technological wizard - that is not true, at all, even though I love technology. I always feel it's my "job" to make people understand something so they can see how beneficial/useful/fun it would be for them. I've decided to adopt this concept that it's not my job to make people understand. I think it will be easier of everyone concerned.

Her secret weapons included saying:
You could be right
You're right
Have you seen the new PT Cruiser (or something else off the wall)
Tell me more
I've never thought about it that way...I'll have to consider it
I need some time to think about that, give me an example

She also said that when you're dealing with people and they're doing something you don't like to remember that they are clueless about that and that it's not about you - it's about them. They're doing what they're doing because it serves them, not because it doesn't serve you. It's not your job to prove them wrong and curiosity is your best secret weapon.

She suggested asking lots of open ended questions. "What" and "how" are the most important of the 5Ws and H. She said to stay away from "why" because it feels like judgment.

Obviously, I came away with some things to think about.

Window Workshop Shows How to Repair Old Windows

2008-04-25T22:51:00.000-05:00

This afternoon I took time off to attend a window workshop being given as part of the State Historic Preservation Conference being held here in Hutchinson. The workshop was a hands on experience and it was great. Really, really, great.

Left to right, Dennis Brown of Lawrence, Lloyd Armstrong of Armstrong Antiques in Hutchinson who lent his building for our workshop, and Mike Goans of Lawrence.

They applied liquid wood to strengthen it where it had started to rot and break away. Then they used wood epoxy to finish building it out. Cool process.

I was really fortunate that I got to do three different things they demonstrated. I was trying to hold back when they asked for volunteers but it seemed most of the people didn't want to get dirty. So, I got to mix wood epoxy and apply it, and to give window glazing a try. I think I can get that eventually. Greg tried that too.

We both own old houses. This is a skill we need! I especially need it since I had a window pane come out during a big wind storm this winter. Greg helped me do a quick jury rigged fix, because it was way too cold to deal with it then, but this summer I must get it handled. For real. I also have a window that's broken. Fortunately, it's not an old wavy glass one.

Another thing they showed us today was why we want to keep our old growth wood. I just KNEW I didn't want them replacing old wood, but I didn't know why. Now I do. Because when you look at the grain in the old versus the new it's a world of difference. Greg took tons of pix, which I'll hopefully get to share with you later.

I love hands on projects. That's how I learn. Monkey see, Monkey do. Monkey no get it when someone just tells me.

These guys were really good - obviously very good at their jobs.

I was so fortunate to get to take this workshop without even having to travel. I'm sure I will press this into service at some point soon.

Book Group Successful

2008-03-27T03:11:00.000-05:00

Tonight was the first ever "Ad Hoc Book Group Gathering." There were six of us - Teresa, Diana, Cleta, Kathie, Julie and me - and it was a good experience. We all agreed we enjoyed, "Eat, Pray, Love."

It's good to hear other people's perspectives. People pointed out things I had missed or forgotten.

This is one of the ways I think we can create a new way of social connection. When Dr. Robert Putnam spoke here he challenged us to come up with new approaches, and I think the relaxed scheduling is appealing to people. I know it's appealing to me. I just can't add one more thing to my schedule that is "every fourth Tuesday..." or whatever. It's just too much.

I'm not sure when or if we'll do another book. I don't have anything on my list right now that I think would be good for discussion. Julie suggested "Middlesex," which she just finished. I'm just not interested in discussing that - it's too dense for me. I read it a year or so ago and remember very little about it as far as details. It does have one of the best opening lines of any book I've ever read.

I'm sure something else will come along that seems like a good book for discussion. I'd like something similar to "Eat, Pray, Love," but there's a reason it's so extraordinary. There aren't piles of books like it out there, waiting for us to pick up.

If you have suggestions, I'd love to hear them. I'm always on the hunt for good books. Thoughtful books.

Rene Godefroy Speech

2008-03-20T22:57:00.000-05:00

Wednesday morning I had the pleasure of hearing motivational speaker, Rene Godefroy, at the Prairie View Food for Thought series in Hutchinson, Kansas. This series brings some wonderful folks to speak, but this was exceptional.

Godefroy was born in Haiti, and lived in a small village with another lady while his mother went to Port au Prince to work. He said when he got to see his mother some years later and she hugged him for the first time in ages he, "felt like a giant."

He went to Canada with a theatre company and came into the US illegally 25 years ago praying, "If you help me make it to the US, I promise I will not waste my life." He dreamed of living in the US and still feels blessed to be living here.

Unable to speak English, Rene arrived in Brooklyn with just five dollars, two shirts and one pair of pants. Knowing there was a large Haitian population in Miami he went there. He joked Miami was not a good place to learn English - that he learned Spanish before he learned English.

He worked at a variety of jobs, one of which was washing cars in a bank parking lot until a new maintenance person told him he couldn't do that anymore. He talked about how he used to imagine what went on on the top floor of the bank and thought maybe one day he could empty the trash up there. But he said eventually that experience played into his first rule by teaching him that "Life is a series of rejections."

He also realized later that to reach his eventual dreams he had to be a different person than the one who was thinking about emptying trash. And, he became that person and was invited by the bank president, years later, to come up to that top floor for a gathering. He mentioned the Einstein quote, "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them."

This quote really resonated with me. I had read it before, but had forgotten it and there is some real wisdom in that.

For some years he worked as a doorman at a hotel in Atlanta. When he was parking cars he would notice the books people had in their cars and go get a copy and read it so he learned about some of the great business strategies. Now he has his own book, "Kick Your Excuses Goodbye."

He would carry the bags of speakers who were coming in for events and at night when he was doing set up he would visualize that he was the speaker. Eventually, that came true and he was.
He has five strategies he shares that took him from poverty to living the American dream.
1. Stop rehearsing the past.
2. Always go the extra mile.
3. Decide and act.
4. It's a process. Not an event.
5. Have a Honey attitude (find the sweetness in everyone).

These really resonated with me. Some of them reminded me of my own Rules for Living. My number three rule is almost the same as his.

When I read his first one - stop rehearsing the past - it suddenly struck me that maybe this is why I don't like to look at old journals or photographs. For reasons I don't understand it makes me sad, even if the events are not sad. So, I don't do it. Why would I do something that makes me sad? Maybe it's one way I don't rehearse the past.

The idea of it's a process, not an event, is one I really need to grasp. I have been working on this for awhile now, although I didn't have it phrased this way. I decided a few months ago to "Let go of the 'how' and Prepare for the 'when'," trusting the universe to provide the "how" if I was ready for it "when" it came along.

The concept of just being nice and going the extra mile is something I've been working on for a few years. I've learned to just be pleasant to people as much as I can muster, even if I don't feel it, because there's no point in not being. I had an opportunity to do that very thing tonight and I failed so I'll try to do better tomorrow. It's most difficult for me when I'm frustrated, and that was the situation tonight. Alas, perhaps the next time around I'll do a better job, although I hope it's not with this particular thing again.

Godefroy's speech left me with much to think about and I absolutely love that.

Window on the World

2008-03-16T03:11:00.000-05:00

I snapped this photo in Kingman the other day. Kingman is in Reno County and about 35 minutes from Hutchinson. There were three of them in a row on the second floor of a downtown building. Each had matching window boxes. The orange of the late afternoon sun was bathing the upper floor in light and I was struck by the whole scene - the box, the brickwork and the curtains.

Don't those curtains say something about what you expect to find inside? I expect this person is probably someone I would like knowing. I'm guessing they have knick knacks sitting around, maybe on top of doilies. I'm thinking they have some antiques. I'm guessing they are homebodies in the sense that they like to be home, but are always ready to go out to a gathering with friends. I'm thinking the bathroom has fluffy towels and there's some wonderful smelling soap, maybe made locally. I'm guessing there's a teapot at the ready for the evening and a coffee pot for the morning hours. I would bet they're sentimental.

Now, am I right? Who knows? This is all speculation. But, it's a great example of the assumptions we make about people and places based on very little real information. Some research indicates our assumptions are often correct - at least about these sorts of somewhat superficial things. The problem comes in when we try to apply these to more indepth personality traits, which we're not so good at predicting.

2008-03-06T03:12:00.000-06:00

Three scientists who discovered a 250 million year old bacteria still alive in an inclusion in a salt crystal were in Hutchinson Saturday afternoon for a lecture at the Kansas Underground Salt Museum.

Dr. Russell Vreeland and Dr. William Rosenzweig from West Chester University in Pennsylvania were the biologists. They worked with geologist Dr. Dennis Powers to look at the layers of salt and make sure the area where they were collecting from had not been penetrated before they gathered it. As Vreeland said, "he reads layers like I read a book."

In an inclusion in a salt crystal from a site near Carlsbad NM, in less than a drop of water (12 microliters), they found a bacteria that was alive but essentially in hibernation. Bacteria have an ability to form spores and be dormant for a long time, but no one had an idea they could be dormant this long.

As Vreeland explained, the bacteria could not reproduce in the water where it was because the waste generated would have killed it. They put it into fresh nutrients, including a 20% salt solution, and Vreeland said they, "woke it up." It took four months for them to see growth in the bacteria.

"The feeling we had when we saw it was humility," Vreeland said in an interview after the lecture. "We're in the presence of an organism that has survived 250 million years in a crystal. You've got to respect that."

Their research was published in "Nature" in 2000. Before they published the research, "Nature" required even more stringent verification than usual. The researchers isolated the organism in 1998 and published in 2000. The museum here now has an exhibit about the discovery, including the crystal the organism was found in.

The scientists were surprised by the initial interest in the project. Vreeland said that "Nature" put out a press release on the wire and fifteen minutes later the college switchboard was getting calls for interviews, and was almost instantly jammed. The two biologists did interviews every half hour for the next two weeks. Vreeland said he started at 7:30 in the morning and was doing his last one at 11:30 that night on the BBC Coffee Talk Show. He joked, "Here it is eight years later ... and I'm a museum artifact."

He said one of the great things about the experience was that it has "given us a chance to give science back to the people who paid for it."

Prior to this, the oldest bacteria discovered was in a piece of amber and it was 25 million years old. Before that the oldest was a 10,000 year old spore found in a mummy.

Minerals can be dated radiometrically, and the ones where this sample was taken are 253-254 million years ago, right at the end of the Permian Period. They looked at 100 crystals, and found two organisms.

The dating of this has been one of the breakthroughs of this research. As Vreeland said, "You can only date an organism based on geology, not on DNA." This was dated like any other fossil.

"The key to the exhibit is the techniques, not the organism." They combined microbiologists, a geologist and a high level of sterility.

All of their work was done in very sterile conditions. Vreeland says that "sterility is never a given, it's a probability." The protocols they were working under produced a sterile environment that is 1000 times better than that of an operating room. The chance of contamination for Vreeland's system is 1 in a billion. By comparison, the Mars Rover's chance of contamination was 1 in million.

Vreeland said the crystal is a great preservative. Oxygen would kill the organism, but none gets to it in the crystal. Also, when the crystal is forming, the heavy metals that would kill the organism are being pushed away. Then, it gets buried where it's dark and cool, creating an ideal, stable environment.

They are also working with 400 million year old samples, as well as 125 million year old ones.

Vreeland said we know that microbes can withstand the acceleration to get off planet Earth, and they can survive the deceleration of meteor hits, so it's likely microbes from Earth are on Mars. "When man goes to the stars, our microbes will be waiting for us," Vreeland said during the lecture.

A surprise with this organism has been that when the microbes are exposed to an environment where salt is forming, first thing they do is look for an inclusion and then recruit others. They then allow themselves to be closed up.

Vreeland said in an interview after the lecture that while there's no proof the organisms are affecting crystallization, there are indications of it. The higher the microbe population there is, the faster crystals form and those crystals are slightly different than those that form without microbes present, including the shape and rate they grow.

Vreeland says, "Somehow they are doing things we don't expect them to be doing." They've proven that microbes can navigate mazes, and the mazes the organisms pick are the same size as the inclusions in the salt.

Other work looking at microbes in volcanic glass says it looks like they create openings in the glass.

"It's a fascinating idea and it's an idea that we as humans really need. We've bought too much into our own propaganda saying we're the pinnacle of evolution, that we're complex and they are simple," said Vreeland in an interview after the lecture.

"The feeling we had when we saw it was not pride. It was humility," Vreeland said in the interview. "We've given it its opportunity and that's all. I feel humble everytime I look at it."

"I don't care what your beliefs are, there's no way we can look at ourselves and thump our chests looking at that. That is the oldest living thing on earth. Here's an organism that was alive 100 million years before the dinosaurs, you've got to respect it."

Photos courtesy of www.thelope.com.

________________
Check www.patsyterrell.com for the blog, art, and more.

2007-12-15T03:07:00.000-06:00

The snow is still coming down at 1 a.m. It's supposed to continue until a bit before noon. It's a beautiful snow. I snapped this photo of the new municipal Christmas decorations - this wreath outside of Fraese Drug in the Wiley Building - with the snow still coming down.

The other night when the ice storm started, Greg took this magnificent photo of one of the decorations on Main Street.

Greg's a professional - I'm an amateur - as these two photos make crystal clear. You can see more of Greg's work at www.thelope.com.

Polk's Market in Medora

2007-11-25T00:15:00.000-06:00

Polk's Market in Medora, Kansas, is an old fashioned fruit and vegetable market. It's run by Pam and Earl, who met 44 years ago while working in the Dillon's Apple Packing Department. Medora is just about ten minutes north of Hutchinson.

Earl said Ray Dillon taught him a lot about merchandising and groomed him to work at Dillon's. But, Earl couldn't stand being inside so he followed in his grandfather's footsteps. His grandfather ran "River Banks" market on 30th Street in Hutchinson for many years.

Polk's has fresh fruit and vegetables - mostly from Kansas. They also sell some nuts and candies. And... one of my favorite things... apple cider slushies.

Earl says they sell more apples in slushies than any other way these days. He said 50 years ago his grandfather would sell tons more apples than he does today - partly that's because he is competing with the big stores, but it's also because people just don't eat as much fresh produce as they once did.

This time of year, Polk's is well stocked with pumpkins and gourds, of course. And he says those sell much better than they used to. He said 25 years ago he would sell about 100 pumpkins during the season, now he sells close to 4,000.

Polk's is a great little place. Earl says they try to give you the feeling of going back in time 50 years - much like his grandfather's place was.

Occasionally you find a pumpkin that has a little something extra - a little bit of wisdom tossed in.

In case you can't make it all out, it says "Life is like a Pumpkin Patch. You never know what you'll get."

I guess that would fall into the category of life truths.

Edgewalkers by Judi Neal

2007-11-08T00:16:00.000-06:00

Thursday morning I went to see Judi Neal speak at a Prarie View Food for Thought event. Neal is author of the book, "Edgewalkers." This is the term she uses to define people who help bridge different worlds by being on the edges of them.

On her website, www.edgewalker.org, she says, "they are often people who have pursued unusual educational and career paths... these unconventional people often clash with more traditional, rule-bound colleagues, and they are often frustrated by organizational systems that emphasize quantitative results over creative impulses. And yet in today's fast-changing, globalized business environment, organizations must recruit and support these people in order to stay competitive."

She started and ended her speech this morning by singing. She has a lovely voice, and plays guitar quite well. She seems to be a woman of many talents.

She said she first came up with the phrase "Edgewalker" when she was reading an article and Malcolm Gladwell was quoted in it as saying that most people who cause positive social change live on the edge of town. They don't want the judgment of people who are interested in maintaining the status quo. He was talking about it in the context of quantum physics and the idea that the edge is where creativity happens. Neal thought that was interesting and she came up with the word, "Edgewalker," to describe people who are the ones who live on the edge where this new thinking can occur.

She listed three things that are hallmarks of Edgewalkers.

1. Self-awareness
Awareness of your thoughts, values and behavior and if you're living that way now, and a commitment to spend time in self-reflection.

2. Passion
Edgewalkers have an intense focus on purpose and the use of gifts in a way that adds value to their life and work.
*Nothing is half-hearted about Edgewalkers
*Intense
*Commitment to something bigger than themselves
*No tolerance for small talk
*Life histories often include traumas or life threatening events; near-death experiences; alcoholic, abusive or mentally ill parents; being inspired by a saint-like person

3. Playful
Joyful sense of fun and creativity. An ability to keep everything in perspective.

Obviously, as you know if you're a regular reader here, those things describe me. The question, as always, is what to do with that information. It is much like reading "The Creative Class" by Richard Florida. It's interesting. I can identify myself. But what do you do with that information? The difficulty is getting "the establishment" to appreciate those of us who are "different."

She had a little test for us to take to see if we were Edgewalkers. There were 20 questions. I said yes to 19 of them. Her cut off was if you answered yes to 12 or more you were an Edgewalker. There were a couple of them that really, really resonated with me.
I frequently feel different from most people.
and
People often see me as a risk-taker, but the things I do don't seem risky to me. Somehow I just know they will work out.

If you've been reading this blog for any amount of time, you know both of those are things I've talked about here multiple times. The archives of this blog would illustrate all of these 20 questions, actually.

The one question I didn't choose was, "People often see me as a leader, even though I am different from most of the people who have been leaders in that organization." I guess that would also be true if I consider my current job. I am very, very different than the people before me. They were trained clinicians and I'm not is an obvious difference. So, maybe I had 20 out of 20.

I have often described my life as living in two different worlds. That was even one of the questions I posed for the Sunday morning dialogue sessions in August - what double lives do you lead. It's something that I have pinpointed as a difficulty for me when relating to other people. I will always be a farm girl at heart and am so thankful for that background, but I spend more time these days doing things like serving on boards and going to chamber breakfasts - neither of which I ever did in the farm world. I like having both perspectives, but I don't really, fully, fit into either one. And it's difficult for people to relate to me as well.

Of course, the chamber breakfast involves something I despise - chit chat. Peggy was sitting with me this morning and looked over at me and laughed when that one came up because she has heard me say dozens of times that I hate chit chat. I just see no point in it. It's a waste of time. I'm not going to find out anything about you and you're not going to find out anything about me while we're engaged in mindless prattle about the weather. So, why bother? Idle chatter is boring and I'd much rather be by myself and quiet than listening to it. I can meditate, read, think or create in that time that would otherwise be wasted with small talk.

My favorite questions to ask people are, "What are you afraid of?" and "What have you always wanted more of?" because those two questions give you a sense of who a person is at their core level right away. And if we aren't people who are going to bond, then why waste our time? We'll both be better served by finding different people who are on the same wavelength.

I had to learn that you just couldn't ask people things like that the first conversation you have with them. It took me a long time to learn it. I'm still known as "the question person" among my friends. I have always thought it's a leftover from my days as a journalist. One of my best talents as a journalist was interviewing people. I was always good at that. You have carte blanche to ask almost any question you wish.

You may remember I mentioned recently that in Salt Lake I met someone I knew I was supposed to meet. One of the reasons I knew that - other than I just knew it the second we exchanged hellos - was that I knew I could ask him those questions in our first conversation and that he would have an answer. I did. And he did. Just as I expected. So, instead of having chit chat, we had real conversation - such a pleasant change of pace from the normal experience of someone you meet by happenstance.

I really enjoyed Judi Neal and her lecture about "Edgewalkers." It would be wonderful if the corporate world would listen to her, but it's hard for me to imagine such a thing. The mere structure of the business world is designed to crush creative souls - rigid hours, bare cubicles and white walls with mission statements posted on every available surface should keep everyone from having an innovative thought. Should one occur, however, there's always a middle manager nearby to contain it before it infects anyone else. OK, I'm being overly dramatic for effect, but only by a little bit, and bear in mind I've spent most of my career in "creative" fields.
As I used to joke with coworkers, "Dilbert isn't funny when you're living it." And there's a reason so many people can relate to Dilbert.

I don't know this to be true, but I'm guessing that expanding new media companies don't demand that people punch a time clock, keep their work areas pristine white, and spend endless hours in meetings where they watch powerpoints of the company handbook.

I'm really fortunate in my current job that I get to do things on my own schedule, in my own way, but that's because I don't have any coworkers, so I don't have to conform to anyone's standards. And, my board is very supportive - as long as the work is getting done they don't care how it happens. I'm blessed. And I'm thankful for it everyday.

My dream remains to make my living being me.

The Spoils of Fall

2007-11-02T00:17:00.000-05:00

This afternoon I took a nice long walk at Dillon Nature Center recently. There's some color in the landscape, but not as much as I'd expect this time of year.

I decided to take some close-ups of leaves, just to preserve this moment in time. There's a tiny little stream, too, which is also full of leaves.

Chili Cookoff Downtown

2007-10-30T00:14:00.000-05:00

I went downtown for the Chili Cookoff today. There was a great turnout - even at 1 p.m. when I arrived to help with clean up for the HRAH (Hutchinson Reno County Arts and Humanities) booth. There were people everywhere.

I guess multiple times the HRAH booth had a very long line of people waiting for their chili samples. People pay $2 and can get samples from each of the booths. I think there were about 25 this year. Then they get to vote on what the best chili is.

I did see something funny, which I wish I had gotten a photo of - a black lab with his own arm band, meaning he got to sample the chili too. He trotted right over to me to be petted so it's my own fault I didn't get his photo. But, suffice it to say, it was cute that his three guys got him his own armband.

Bob Woodward

2007-10-23T00:15:00.000-05:00

Bob Woodward spoke at the Dillon Lecture Series this morning. Woodward and his colleague, Carl Bernstein, wrote a series of articles for the Washington Post about the Watergate break in that ultimately led to the resignation of President Nixon. For those of us who are journalists - past, present or future - Bob Woodward is huge. As my friend, Alan Montgomery, who introduced Woodward this morning, told me when I asked if he was having a fun day said, "If I were a minister this would be like Billy Graham being here." I understood perfectly. Perfectly.

I've never met anyone who went into journalism who didn't want to right wrongs through a "robust, free press," as Alan put it this morning, was the way to do it. We become journalists because we want to give voice to important things in the world. We want to expose corruption and fight injustice through the media. If investigative journalism had a face, it would be Bob Woodward.

Woodward spoke about interviewing President Bush for his recent books. Bush spent more time with Woodward than any sitting president has ever spent with a reporter. Over the course of those seven hours, Woodward asked 500 questions.

At one point while talking about the war, Bush said, "I believe we have a duty to free and liberate people." Woodward related this to us today and said, "'Duty' is the biggest word in the English language for a president."

Another time Bush was talking about how he and other leaders wanted to spread freedom and said, "We have a zeal to free and liberate people." Woodward said today, "'Zeal' is the second biggest word in the English language for a president."

Woodward said he would like to hear from all the candidates what they saw as their duty and what they felt zeal for. I had to agree that those were two excellent questions. At the luncheon for patrons following the lecture, someone asked if he was going to pose those questions to candidates and he said he would like to, and that he would probably send them in advance because those were questions you wanted people to have time to ponder.

He said Bush is idealistic, without a doubt - that idealism is "at the spine of George W. Bush." But, he said, "I am sincere in my view that it accents the reluctance, the outright stubbornness, to adjust the war strategy, and that rests on him alone."

Woodward also talked about doubt. He said, "doubt is an important quality. You have to be skeptical. You have to have doubt." But he said the president told him he had no doubt going to war was the right thing to do.

Woodward asked Bush what his father said when he talked to him about going to war. Eventually, after dodging the question in multiple ways, Bush said he didn't talk to his dad about it. He also didn't ask Donald Rumsfeld or Colin Powell what they thought about the idea of going to war - not in the sense of going to them for input. He talked about this at the luncheon - how Bush didn't do what most leaders would do - ask their team for their input.

In the introduction at the luncheon, Richard Shank mentioned that when Ben Bradlee spoke at a Dillon Lecture a couple of years ago he said Bob Woodward was the best reporter of our time, maybe of all time. I didn't get to see Bradlee when he was here, unfortunately. Alan mentioned in his intro that Woodward is "relentless," and Woodward alluded to that as well. He said he was calling Mark Felt, "Deep Throat," all the time when they were writing the Watergate stories.

Woodward related a story about Al Gore. He said he saw Gore at a dinner and asked him how much the public knew about things of consequence that happened in the eight years he was Vice President. He asked what percentage people knew from the various articles, books, memoirs and interviews. Gore responded about 1%. Woodward then asked how much they would know if Gore wrote a tell-all book. Gore said 2%. Woodward thinks Gore was being provocative, and that we probably know 50 - 60 - 70%.

This is of concern to Woodward because he believes the number one thing to worry about is "Secret Government." He said, "Democracies die in darkness." You can tell from his passion that he probably loses sleep thinking about what we don't know.

The other thing he said we should worry about is hate. He referenced the televised meeting Nixon held with his staff the day after he resigned in which he said, "Always remember, others may hate you, but those who hate you don't win unless you hate them, and then you destroy yourself." Woodward said he saw at that moment that the teary-eyed Nixon, who had been the "hater in chief," realized that "hate was the poison that did him in."

At the luncheon he went into more detail about the Nixon resignation and what followed. He said when Ford went on TV Sunday morning and gave Nixon a full pardon that he was in a hotel room and knew nothing about it. He said the phone rang and it was Bernstein who said, "The son of a bitch pardoned the son of a bitch." Woodward said he instantly knew what had happened.

He said there was much talk at the time that a deal had been struck, that it was fishy. Many years later he asked Ford about it and Ford took out his wallet and pulled out a piece of paper that had written on it part of the supreme court statement that accepting a pardon was admitting guilt.

Woodward said that experience taught him that sometimes a decision may seem one way, but years later may look different. Ford said he pardoned Nixon so the country could move on. In retrospect, it seems it was the right decision, but at the time it was very unpopular. Woodward summed it up by saying, "You take snapshots." That what appears one way today may look very different 25 years later.

He said journalists need to give us more in-depth pieces about candidates, that too much of campaigning is an endurance contest. We have quick bits on cable news and what we need are details to get to know these people. As he said, "Anyone who has hair and teeth - or once did - is a mixed bag."

Kansas State Fair 2007

2007-09-10T00:14:00.000-05:00

The Kansas State Fair is well underway. It happens in Hutchinson, where I live, so I go every year.

It's one of the last great agricultural fairs left in the country and there are canned goods, and hand work, and livestock to be judged.

My friend, Andrea Springer, told me she was entering some knitted items and I see she won Second Place in one of the categories. Andrea is an exceptional knitter. It's her favorite hobby and she even works part time at a yarn store, called, appropriately enough, Yarn.

I try to stay out of that store because I am attracted to all those cool bits of fiber in all those cool colors. And I already have a stash of yarn that is still in it's fresh-from-the-store, pristine, condition. I do not need to add to my pile of yarn until I use up some of what I already have. I am not nearly as talented as Andrea when it comes to knitting needles. She has a real gift.

While I was in domestic arts I took a quick look around at the Governor's Cookie Jar and also at the cake decorating, cookies, breads and cakes. I was impressed with this cake designed to look like a folded quilt. I would never have the patience for this, but I think it's cool looking.

Greg and I went to see Ron Diamond, the hypnotist, tonight. I think this is his 4th year at the Fair. Ron Diamond puts on a great show. It's fun for all ages.

On our way back to the car we stopped off at the Hedrick's Petting Zoo. Their farm is in Nickerson, about 10 minutes from Hutchinson, and they bring some exotic animals to the fair for a petting zoo every year. Some of them are more exotic than others, of course.

We tried to feed various critters, but late in the day we didn't find too many takers. Except the goats. Goats will always eat - two at a time.

I found myself quite taken with the giraffe this year. I swear he started to pose when I got out the camera.

I think the following is what would be called "truth in advertising." In case you can't make it out, the sign says, "Careful! I can bite. (I have top AND bottom teeth.)"

And, yes, Mr DeMille, I'm ready for my close up.

Seventeen Things

2007-08-31T12:13:00.000-05:00

Today was a day in which I had seventeen things to do - appointments, meetings, commitments, etc. I managed to complete them all and get home by 10:07 p.m. The day ended with the United Way kickoff dinner, at which Bush impersonator, John Morgan, performed. Morgan was one of the runner ups on "The Next Best Thing" show. I didn't see the show, but Morgan was funny.

He was also incredibly pleasant afterwards, chatting with anyone who wanted to talk with him and posing for photos. Although I'm certain he would have kindly done it, I didn't stop him to get a photo for the blog because he is leaving the hotel at 4 a.m. to catch his flight. But I noticed he was talking to lots of people at the front of the room, including hotel staff.

I like it when celebrities are gracious - some are, some aren't - and it often has nothing to do with their popularity. My very limited experience has been that it's the people who have a little bit of fame suddenly - i.e. they're starring in a TV show after struggling for years and don't know how to handle their sudden popularity - that are the most obnoxious.

I won't be specific about who it was, but a certain actor from LA Law when it was at its height is the most obnoxious celebrity I've ever had occasion to interview/meet/be around. He had signed on to do an event before he got famous. He wasn't happy about being held to his contract and sitting in the back room of a mall talking to a bunch of reporters was not his idea of fun. You'd be hard pressed to think of his name now, so you know it wasn't Harry Hamlin or Jimmy Smits. It was one of those other guys. Frankly, I'd have to look up the show to find his name.

This is in contrast to The Judds, who performed on the Kansas State Fair free stage in the hot sun years ago, even though they had the number one song at the time. I don't know how gracious they were behind the scenes, but they were giving people a good show. They had been booked a year or two earlier and in the meantime had had two big hits. It's what you dream of when you're a promoter. We left the free show they were doing to get to the show Loretta Lynn was doing at the grandstand. We had been given tickets and I figured one should always take advantage of seeing a legend.

That was years ago, of course, Oddly enough, I ran into Bob Gottschalk, the former director of the state fair, tonight. He would have been the one who booked the Judds all those years ago. I haven't seen him in ages. I interviewed him many times when he was with the fair and I was a reporter. He was always very pleasant and helpful. His daughter was in my leadership class last fall, and she did the Coming Home table for the tea. Yes, it is a small town!

Kindness

2007-08-31T00:11:00.000-05:00

The number of times I an on the receiving end of kindnesses is astronomical. It says something good about the human race when you think about it, and heaven knows we sometimes need to find something good about our fellow man and ourselves.

An example is tonight. I went to Home Depot to get some boards cut for an art project I'm working on. The gentleman who was cutting it for me explained everything might not come out exactly as I had written down - they weren't precise. I assured him that was OK - I'm just going to paint on these and they'll be individual pieces so they don't need to be exact. When I went to pay he didn't charge me for the cutting - only the piece. I said something to him and he just smiled and said, "you're OK, don't worry about it." It was just a little kindness in exchange for my little kindness.

I was reminded of an experience years ago at the State Farm Claims office after my car was hit in a little fender bender. I was waiting my turn and watching the person before me being obnoxious to the claims person, for no reason other than they just could. The claims officer told them they would mail the check and the person left in a huff.

It was my turn and I went out where the car was to explain what happened. The claims officer was a pleasant as could be, we chatted about nothing in particular, and he said, "OK, take your paperwork to the desk and they'll write you a check." I was a bit puzzled, but then realized it was just a little kindness for my kindness. Admittedly, the person before me probably made me seem like quite the charmer.

A couple of months ago, Greg and I drove outside of town a few miles after a late night snack, to see if we could find a darker area from which to see meteor showers. We headed back into town in just a few minutes, realizing there was nowhere near town without light pollution anymore. We were talking and I wasn't paying much attention, and after stopping at an intersection, turned back toward town. I had barely turned when I saw flashing lights behind me. A sheriff's officer pulled me over for not using my blinker. Internally I was thinking - "good grief, it's almost midnight and there's not a soul anywhere around." Externally I just politely got out my insurance and license and smiled nicely. He came back in a few minutes and said he wasn't going to give me a ticket and that it would have been $135 if he had. I thanked him profusely. He said, "no problem. I appreciate you being so polite." The lesson? Politeness pays. To the tune of $135 in this case.

Kindness is one of those chicken and egg things - which kindness comes first? Does the world treat me kindly because I expect the world to treat me kindly? That's what "The Secret" and all the similar books that came before it would say. I don't know. I just know that kindness begets kindness.

In the interest of being completely truthful, I am not always kind - not by a long shot. I get frustrated. I get overwhelmed. I get unkind. I like to think I have learned to control it much better than I used to. My impulsiveness that can take many forms - from saying things you should have thought about first to doing things others might consider idiotic. Fortunately, I've learned to control it a bit more than I used to.

A few years ago, the RAK movement was started - Random Act of Kindness. It's the idea that we should make a point of doing random acts of kindness every day - not expecting anything in return - but just because it makes the world better for all of us. I can't say that I make a point to do that every day, but I have learned that a little kindness can go a long way. And kindness is often repaid with kindness.

It's easy to take these kindnesses for granted because they happen so regularly. But, for today, I'm making an effort to recognize them and realize there may indeed be hope for us - the human race.

We Could Live Anywhere

2007-08-24T00:12:00.000-05:00

Well... it's live... My little profile is on www.wecouldliveanywhere.com. This is one of the pix Greg took that they used in it. See more of Greg's pix at www.thelope.com.

St. Mary's Church in St. Benedict Kansas

2007-03-27T03:10:00.000-05:00

A friend recently took me to St. Mary's Church in St. Benedict, Kansas. It is just outside of Seneca, which is about a four hour drive from Hutchinson. It was an amazing place to be.

Because I love stars, of course I was enchanted with this bit of a stained glass window. There are many, many, many stained glass windows and lots of hand painted decoration on the walls. Stunning. Completely stunning.

The church was completed on November 13, 1894, three years after construction began. It is 162 feet by 60 feet, with a tower of 172.5 feet. The limestone came from the Schneider and Hurley farms about three miles north. This is actually the fourth building to serve the parish, which was founded in 1859.

The church has the traditional, Roman style, layout. Inside the front doors is a small vestibule. When you walk into the sanctuary, the organ is overhead in the loft, which was open when we were there. The vaults are 52 and 35 feet high, with cast iron columns bearing the weight of them and the roof.

The ribs in such structures are always amazing to me.

The painting on the walls was done in 1901 by G.F. Satory of Wabasha, Minnesota did the decoration in the church. He used stencils to create patterns, bands and friezes in a variety of colors. He did the columns, vault ribs, window openings and other areas. The designs incorporate many Christian symbols. It was this ornamentation that got the church placed on the National Register of Historic Places on Dec. 5, 1980.

Around the church are the 15 mysteries of the Rosary. This one, "The Finding in the Temple," is in the choir loft.

If this all looks very fresh for more than 100 years, you're very observant. It was restored beginning in 1979. It took three years to complete the job, but was done with painstaking accuracy to the original as far as color, blending and design. It is the only known Satory-painted church to be preserved. All the others have been lost to modern paint jobs over the years.

The choir loft has two angels, one pink and one blue, holding lights. They are magnificent pieces. In this photo you can also see more of the painted decoration.

You may notice some color differences - that's because of where I was in relation to the sunlight in the church. The choir loft was one of the best areas for photography.

In 1984, the pipe organ was fully restored by the Quimby Organ Company of Warrensburg, Missouri. It is all mechanical. It was manufactured by the Hinners Organ Company of Pekin, Illinois about 1916. The sound is styled on the Romantic Period of organ building. It has 17 rans with 932 pipes. Most of the pipes are constructed of wood, but the larger pipes in and behind the case are made of zinc. The smaller ones are made of an alloy of fifty percent lead and tin.

Of course, the stained glass is spectacular.

I couldn't resist some close-ups in the one place I could get close enough - the stairs and the choir loft.

Structures like this are built with attention to detail. One place where it's obvious is in the light that hangs near the altar. If you put yourself right under it, the decoration is made to the perfect size to frame the light itself.

It's a beautiful place to spend some time. There's also a grotto to the side, with some fascinating rocks to enjoy.

St. Mary's is worth a drive to enjoy.

2007-02-25T00:18:00.000-06:00

I have it - that precious little piece of paper - that lets me in to the lecture on Friday by President Bill Clinton at Kansas State University. It required a night of no sleep - and I mean none, a long drive during the night/morning of no sleep, and waiting in line in the cold, but I have it.

They were distributed at 10 a.m. Friday morning, which I found out at about 11 p.m. Thursday night. So, I had to do the work I had slated for Friday in the overnight hours so it was done. I left for Manhattan, about 2 1/2 hours from where I live, about 5:00 a.m. Greg came up separately since I was not coming directly home. We were expecting the line to be very long, but it wasn't too bad. Greg got there before I did so we're not sitting together, but that's OK - we both get to go.

We bought our tickets for the Topeka event, but I'm thinking Clinton may talk more in Manhattan and I really wanted to do both. The last time he was in Kansas - in Lawrence - I did not get to go. I couldn't go stand in line the day they were handing out tickets that time and I didn't get to benefit from any friends' extra tickets. So, I missed out. I was really disappointed then, and I didn't want to be disappointed this time.

I have been calling everyone I thought might have any connection to K-state for weeks, since this was announced, trying to get details on how to get tickets. K-state didn't seem to want to share that information. Finally, late Thursday afternoon Greg got word from someone he knows who is a student that after the student distribution there were still tickets left for the public - then it was a matter of how to lay our hands on them.

It wasn't as smooth as I would have liked it to be, but we got them.

2007-02-23T03:08:00.000-06:00

Tonight Greg and I went to see Lemuel Sheppard at the Flag Theatre in Hutchinson, Kansas. He was here as part of the Gordon Parks events in conjunction with the state reading, "The Learning Tree."

Sheppard did a fantastic job of weaving together poems, information and song. It was a really interesting evening.

Sometimes when you go to events like this they're fabulous - like tonight. Other times they end up being a scholar reading the equivalent of a term paper to you, and not with much feeling.

Sheppard had the perfect blend. I could have listened to him for another hour or two, which is something for me. I tend to get pretty fidgety pretty quickly. To top it off he was very personable, which is not always to be expected either.

He had a Langston Hughes poem set to music that I just loved:

The Negro Speaks of Rivers

I've known rivers:
I've known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow
of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.
I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.

I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.
I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln went
down to New Orleans, and I've seen its muddy bosom turn
all golden in the sunset.

I've known rivers:
Ancient, dusky rivers.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

-- Langston Hughes

Being a person of rivers, myself, I love that poem. (http://www.patsyterrell.com/2006/01/home.html)

I must read more Langston Hughes - I have obviously missed some spectacular writing. I used to have a copy of Harlem Sweeties on my bulletin board where I saw it every day. The first time I heard it outloud was when I saw Maya Angelou speak, so whenever I read it I hear it in her voice, which is an incredible gift.

Excerpted from Sheppard's website (www.lemuelsheppard.com):

Lemuel Sheppard is a folk musician who has gained a reputation as an authority on African-American folk music. He feels his cultural heritage is his greatest asset as a performer.

Lemuel began playing guitar at the age of nine in Kansas City's rich jazz and blues atmosphere. The self-taught guitarist developed many natural abilities to perform this music. Lemuel is not only an interpreter of African-American folk music, but composes much of his own repertoire. Lemuel states, "So much of the blues is about personal expression, an artist should be able to connect with the audience and share something about their life and time."

In 1999, Lemuel Sheppard was nominated by a congressional committee to represent the state of Kansas in a solo performance at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. That performance was presented live over the Internet and can still be viewed there on the Kennedy Center's Web Page.

Lemuel prefers to define some performances as "short-term diplomatic duties." Whether one is representing a discipline, one's background and training, or a presenter, the audience should leave with an understanding of the kind of artist one is, as well as be entertained.

The U.S. Embassy in Brazil referred to Lemuel as "the perfect touring artist...talented, flexible, interested in the local culture, and knowledgeable of his own." The Eisteddfod International Music Festival in Johannesburg, South Africa, referred to Lemuel (the first American to perform there) as an example of inter-cultural relations.

Another song he did tonight was "Sunny Kansas," a tune I've never heard, despite living here more than 20 years. You learn something new every day and if I had 11 Rules for Living instead of only 10, that would be one of them.

2007-02-19T03:05:00.000-06:00

Beverly Morgan Welch, director of the Museum of African American History in Boston, spoke at the Dillon Lecture Series this morning. She presented some fascinating information about the contributions of African Americans from the 1700s on.

Some of it was information I already knew, but much of it was new to me. I intend to profile some of the people she talked about here in the coming months. I hope you'll be as interested as I was.

The African Meeting House in Boston is one of my favorite places. I can't recommend it strongly enough. It was built in the early 1800s and is the oldest black church still standing in the country. It is one of the sites that makes up the museum.

If you've been a reader here for any amount of time you probably know of my interest in African American history. I don't view this as history for just some of us, but for all of us. And as Morgan-Welch said today, "this is American history and if this history were known we would have a different kind of America." May I just say, "amen?"

This is an interest I've always had, but grew tremendously when I started doing family history research. Right there, on the first census record I looked at, was a line under my ancestor's household that said, "Slaves - 12." I was revolted. I was embarrassed. I was curious. I was a hundred other emotions all at one time. And, in that moment I became something I didn't want to be - a descendent of a slave owner.

My experience isn't any different than that of many people who have ancestors in the south, but in all the conversations I've had about geneaology, this is a topic that is skirted around, avoided, and discussed only in hushed terms if at all. Morgan Welch summed this up today in the most beautiful way I've ever heard. She said, "Slavery is an x-rated conversation."

She is absolutely correct, but it is something we have to come to terms with. Do you think I like knowing that my ancestors on multiple sides of the family were slave owners? No, I do not. But can I deny it? No. So what choices do I have? I have to accept it as what "was," and try to make sure it never "is" again.

I wanted to know who those "Slaves - 12" in the census records were. Obviously, they had names, spouses, children, relationships and wishes just like every other person. Finding out who they were was not easy. In fact, I still don't know all of them. I have found the names of some of them - Sarah, Pleasant, Hannah, George - listed in wills. I'm at once happy to see the names, and at the same time horrified to see them enumerated along with horses and houses and other property - given to the heirs of the owner. Of course, I know that some of the children listed as slaves were no doubt biological children of the owner, with as much right to the land and houses as their half brothers and sisters.

I have no proof that my ancestors were using their slaves for their personal pleasure, but would there be any logic in believing that my ancestors were people who would never do such a thing? No. No logic in that. It would be folly.

One of the guiding principles for my life is that the truth can always be spoken. It can be spoken with kindness, but it can be spoken. And this is one of those cases where truth is the only thing I can imagine will ever heal a rift in this country that we're unwilling to even admit exists.

I was contacted through my family history website by someone a few months ago who believes they are descended from the slaves that my ancestors owned. She delicately broached the subject that we might be blood related. I assured her I was completely open to finding out the truth - and I would like to meet cousins of all colors - and add them to the family tree. She was shocked because she had not gotten that reaction from others she had contacted. That breaks my heart. I so want us to be past the point where we have these divisions. I want us to be open to the truth being spoken.

Of course, I don't like the truth of my own family history in many ways. I'd much rather focus on my ancestor James Hunter Terrell who freed his slaves at his death. Admittedly, I'd much rather he have not had any in the first place, but at least there's something redeeming in his story. But, that's not all of my story. My personal story includes slave owners, and all that goes with that. My ancestors, and by extention I, have benefitted from the labor of men and women who were kidnapped, enslaved and held against their will.

Words can't express how much I hate to write that, admit that, accept that. But, I can't figure out what to do except deal with the facts. And the facts are there in black and white - in census documents and wills. It's an ugly part of our history as a country, and it's an ugly part of the history of my family. But, we don't get to choose which parts of history we accept. It's a mixed bag.

But, the truth. The truth. We must know the truth. We must speak the truth. Even if it's uncomfortable, we must speak it.

2007-02-17T00:57:00.001-06:00

Monday evening I attended the Hutchinson, Kansas annual chamber dinner. Frank McGuire was the speaker and I thought he gave a great presentation.

McGuire is known for his history with corporate America - he launched the careers of Charles Osgood and Ted Koppel at ABC Radio, worked at American Airlines, was with the company when Kentucky Fried Chicken went public, and one of the founders of Federal Express. He was also involved with communications in the JFK whitehouse.

He said when he was approached about founding FedEx, he went down to talk to the gentleman who had the concept and he said to him, so you want to bring packages to Memphis in the middle of the night, sort them and fly them out the next morning. The guy said yes. McGuire said that's just a dumb idea. The guy asked him, "Any dumber than selling chicken in a cardboard box?"

Both, of course, were innovative business concepts. Selling chicken in a box was a radical idea when The Colonel pioneered the concept of fast food.

McGuire's overall message was summed up with, "The best way to predict the future of Hutchinson is to invent it."

He said business boils down to three things:
1. FEELINGS - how passionate people are about the community, project or whatever
2. ATTITUDE - how to connect the head with the heart - attitude comes from the head, but passion comes from the heart
3. RELATIONSHIPS - find the unifying things such as one problem everyone has trouble with

He spoke about attitude and communication. He said, "The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. What happens to you is 10 percent, and how you deal with what happens is 90 percent."

He made some excellent points, one of which was, "I don't know what your company does, but I'll tell you one thing - you do business with people." He is so accurate in that assessment, and unfortunately our people skills are what seem to be most lacking these days.

He said there are three ingredients of creating a culture:
1. Share the vision
2. Share the information
3. Share the responsibility

He told a couple of great stories about "The Colonel" at Kentucky Fried Chicken. When the company went public and a new CEO came in, one day he asked The Colonel to bring in the secret recipe for the 11 herbs and spices. The Colonel told him that didn't matter, that it was the 12th ingredient that made the company successful. The CEO asked what that was. The Colonel's response was, "You're looking at it."

The other story was that shortly after coming in, the new CEO called management together and told them they were going to start making the gravy with water. The Colonel wasn't in the meeting but walked by the closed door. As McGuire put it, "Do you know what a closed door means to a 70 year old man?" "Nothing." So the colonel walks in and asks McGuire what's going on. McGuire tells him and the colonel says, "Don't F*** with my gravy." The CEO reminded The Colonel that he's now running the company. The Colonel starts to walk out and the CEO asks him where he's going. The Colonel said he was, "going on the Carson show to tell them that s--t is not fit to eat." Needless to say, the gravy was not f'ed with.

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life," he said. "What happens to you is 10 percent, and how you deal with what happens is 90 percent."

Near the end of his speech he sang, "This little light of mine, I'm going to make it shine," eventually getting the audience to sing and even hold hands. I found this a great exercise, particularly for a lot of the people in the audience who would never imagine doing such a thing.

McGuire spoke at length about how employees need to be validated and what an impact that can have. He used some old adages, like people will forget what you do and what you say, but not how you made them feel. He also said, "People don't leave companies, they leave supervisors."

Truer words were never spoken than those. I can't think of anyone I've known over the years that left a company because of the company - they all left because they couldn't stand a supervisor. OK, I can think of one situation - where the company was about to go belly up - because of bad management. So, I think that's all the same difference.

He said Ted Koppel told him at his 25th anniversary that when he started at ABC he never felt like he was doing a good enough job, but that when Frank would come around every day and tell him "you're the greatest," that it made him believe he could do it. As McGuire was leaving the event that night, Koppel asked him to say it one more time and McGuire obliged.

As McGuire summed up, "People who feel good about themselves produce good results."

He challenged the audience to get in touch with people who've made a difference in their lives and tell them. He said, "If you love me, tell me now. Don't wait until I'm in a box."

I encourage people to do that. Years ago I sat down at my writing desk and penned letters to two teachers who had a huge impact on my life - Mrs. Chandler in third grade and Mrs. Griffin in fifth grade at Barlow, Kentucky elementary school in the 1960s. They were both adamant about using good English and I could never have worked in broadcasting or become a writer without their guidance.

I also wrote to Dr. Birkner who had been a visiting professor at the University of Kentucky when I was there and who totally changed my perception of history. He was inspiring.

I'm so glad I wrote those letters then because Mrs. Griffin and Mrs. Chandler are both gone now. I'm happy I told them they truly made a difference in at least one life, and I daresay many lives.

Whether or not anyone in that audience the other night will heed Frank McGuire's challenge is unknown, but I hope at least one person does. The rewards from doing so are great.

I thought he had some insightful things to say to the people of Hutchinson, things that could make a difference in this community.

2007-01-20T18:27:00.000-06:00

Roys on a Snowy Day

Yes, it's true, after getting groceries I met Greg at Roy's Barbecue. He snapped a pic of me making my way in through the snow. We're either devoted or stupid. It was good, as always.

2007-01-20T00:09:00.000-06:00

An Inconvenient Truth

This weekend is Global Warming Awareness Weekend in Hutchinson, Kansas. Officially Global Warming Awareness Weekend - city proclamation and all.

One of the central parts of the weekend is three showings of "An Inconvenient Truth," Al Gore's documentary. It's free all weekend, showing at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Sunday afternoon they're having some additional programs, including a lecture.

Tonight Teresa, Diana, Brad and I went to see it. We were supposed to meet Cleta there, but I never found her. We ran in to lots of people we knew, of course.

Brad had seen it, but the rest of us had not. It was interesting, but also terrifying. Good grief, what a mess we've made.

I emailed about 60 people about the movie. About a dozen had plans at one time or another this weekend to go see it so hopefully they'll have a good turnout each time. There were plenty of people there tonight.

James and Betty Taylor have been instrumental in making this happen. They are so devoted to the projects they're interested in. I'm very impressed with what they've done in this case.

Teresa and I went to get a bite to eat afterwards and we were both in shock from all we had learned. Although I knew the basics, there was plenty of new information for me there.

What can you do?
1. Replace all your regular lightbulbs with energy efficient ones - if we all did that one thing we'd make a huge difference.
2. Recycle as much as you can.
3. Get others to see this documentary.

Well, I'm going to go turn my thermostat down and go to bed.

2006-12-21T22:56:00.000-06:00

Tree

The Lope came by to take in the Christmas Tree. Read more about his visit at www.thelope.blogspot.com.

2006-12-10T22:37:00.000-06:00

Prairie Nutcracker

Greg, Mark and I went to see the Prairie Nutcracker at the Fox Theatre today. It was really good. The idea of the show was hatched right here in Hutchinson, Kansas.

It was a great way to spend part of the afternoon. We ended up sitting just a few seats from Mike and it was good to see him again.

There were lots of people there I knew - obviously it was the place to be this afternoon.

Otherwise, I have relaxed most of the day, as I generally do the day after the open house. I did do the dishes, aside from one cake plate which is still soaking.

I love it when the house is all clean - apparently not enough to keep it this way all the time, but I enjoy when it's like this for the briefest of time during the holiday season.

2006-12-10T13:37:00.000-06:00

Christmas Open House

Last night was my annual Christmas Open House. About 40 people came and it was a nice gathering. I love mixing people from different areas of my life.

My friend, Susan, came early yesterday afternoon and helped get ready. She was a God-send! It made my day go much smoother and I could be much more relaxed. She also brought me the most beautiful Christmas gift - a beautiful Czechoslavakian glass tea set. It is stunning. I will try to post some pix later. She even brought blackberry sage tea to go with it. That's what I'm having tonight to cap off the weekend.

Sondra came, and as always was delightful company. We have known each other a long time. I was noting last night that there were people here I've known the whole time I've lived in Hutchinson and also people I just met this past year.

I got to know Kris at Kansas Dialogue in August and really enjoyed her and her husband John. They are tons of fun. I was so thrilled they came last night.

There were some people missing that are always here, including Teresa who had to be out of town last night. But there were also a number of people who came for the first time last night. It was a nice mix.

I had a big crowd for awhile and then there were just a few of us left, but it all worked out perfectly.

I made a few different kinds of sweets and also had some things for those who can't eat sweets. I even made a sponge cake from scratch, with Julie in mind. She didn't come, but others enjoyed it. I sent the rest home with Jesse - his dad is diabetic so I thought maybe he would enjoy it.

Of course, Mark was a huge help as he always is. And Greg was taking photos and helping out in a variety of ways. He even took out my trash and recycling the night before. Mark did tons of things for me - from grocery shopping to carrying things to the basement and on and on and on.

I'm blessed to have great friends.

2006-12-03T23:55:00.000-06:00

Houston Whiteside Tour

Today was the Houston Whiteside Tour. There were four houses and one was Sharon's house. I had hoped to see her and say hello but she wasn't there.

I love old houses and going on the tour reminded me of how much I need to do in my own house. I guess that's how it always is.

Next year the MHA will have a homes tour the first Sunday of December. We alternate with them so next year will be our turn. I have three houses but am still hunting for more.

2006-11-25T20:03:00.000-06:00

Congratulations Salt Hawks

OK, I'm so not a sports person, despite the fact that the UK Wildcats played a large part in my choice of a university. However, the local High School Football team just won its third state championship in a row. That's impressive, even if you're not a sports fan. So... Congratulations Hutchinson Salt Hawks.

I can't tell you a darned thing about the season - I've been barely aware of it - but even I know a state championship is very cool - much less three in a row. What a treat for the guys who have gotten to play in all three of those games.

2006-11-21T22:53:00.000-06:00

Christmas Parade

Saturday we were in the Christmas parade, with Clarence the dino, as usual. Greg really makes this possible for us to do every year.

He and Terry and I put Clarence on top of the van the night before. At the moment, he's still up there because we haven't been able to coordinate our schedules for 10 minutes to take him down.

I drove in the parade and Greg handed out candy canes. Also helping with distributing candy canes were the Briebiesca clan - Jesse, Joey and Christopher, and Peggy and Gary helped for the first time.

Greg took pix, which I'm sharing here. I tried to take a few during the parade, but you really have to pay attention to what's going on when you're driving. People are not very smart and will let their kids run out to get candy.

A few years ago a girl got her foot run over doing that so people are not supposed to throw candy anymore. We don't, but we are about the only ones. However, I'd just as soon a candy cane with a tag with the MHA on it not be what someone is after when they get run over. So, we hand them out, like we're supposed to.

The parade is always fun but it is some work. Next year we'll have the homes tour to promote so we'll be doing it again.

2006-11-17T01:12:00.000-06:00

Leadership Graduation

Leadership Graduation was Wednesday night. Each of the five project groups made a little presentation about what we did.

I don't have any photos of my group, of course, since I was in it. But I did get a chance to snap some pix of three of the groups, and our instructors, Lynette and Kris.

One of our class members was thoughtful enough to spearhead getting bouquets of flowers for them as thank yous. (Thank you, Jennifer, for taking care of that!) They both put a lot of themselves into the class and it is appreciated.

One group did a logo for Leadership Reno County, which was great.

Another group took on putting up a sign for Lincoln School. Janice, with the kids in this photo, has been instrumental in working on that area. Curtis, who has the mic, has been a delight to get to know. He is a contractor with Heib Construction and has an amazing sense of humor. He did a great job making their presentation fun. Of course, kids always help that a bit.

Curtis also helped with another project where they built a shed for Big Brothers/Big Sisters. Connie, who was in that project group, did a whole power point presentation about that and it was great fun to watch.

Our group delivered brochures about watering to the homes where the city has planted trees. And the final group also did a "green" project.

They identified all the various green spaces in the area, and linked them into a map online. There were some I wasn't aware of on their list.

All in all, it was a great experience to do the leadership class. I really enjoyed getting to know these folks.

They asked us early on if we had a sinking feeling when we saw the list of, "oh, no, not that person..." but I didn't because I didn't really know any of these folks. There were three people that I knew who they were, but I didn't know any of them well - two of them just to know who they were and nothing more.

At the end of the class, I can honestly say that I like everyone more than I did at the beginning of class and would not hesitate to get together with anyone from class. There are some folks I'm really going to miss seeing every week.

2006-11-11T11:34:00.000-06:00

Jason from ATT

I had a great Random Act of Kindness this week.

I was walking into my office building after a late lunch on Thursday and my cell rang. When I answered a guy said, "Patsy, this is Jason with ATandT." I thought it was a marketing call but thank goodness I didn't cut him off.

He went on to say, "I found your name tag in the Ken's Pizza parking lot. I had a ticket near your office so thought I'd drop it by but I see you're not in." I told him I was just coming into the building and so he waited for me upstairs and gave it back to me.

I thanked him profusely. It was so sweet of him to pick it up, track me down, come to my office and return it to me. The timing was great, as well.

It was the epitome of a Random Act of Kindness.

2006-11-07T02:32:00.000-06:00

Garrison Keillor in Lindsborg

Tonight I went to Lindsborg to see Garrison Keillor at Bethany College. It was part of the Johnson Lecture Series, named for Charles and Lucy Johnson who endowed it. Mr. Johnson is gone, but Mrs. Johnson was seated just a couple of rows in front of us.

We weren't really sure what to expect - if it would be a serious lecture or more like a "News from Lake Wobegone" or something inbetween. It was more like a "news" segment. He had everyone laughing multiple times throughout the program.

He also had the entire group sing on more than a couple of occasions. There are many talented musicians in Lindsborg so we sounded pretty darned good as a group.

Greg took lots of photos and was generous enough to share them with me.

We went to the book signing afterwards and I got my photo taken with him. I'll have to dig up the one from sometime in the 80s when I saw him in Minnesota and have a matching set.

He was quite charming to everyone in line waiting to get books signed.

Of course, this is the second time he has been in the area in just a little over a year. He was here for the Kansas State Fair in September of 2005, and did a live show from here. Governor Sebelius played herself on the program and was quite a hit. He was singing her praises to people tonight.

Of course, Garrison is a democrat. Yet one more thing about him to love.

And, this is a good time to remind you to GO VOTE!

I ran into a bunch of people I know. Greg is always teasing me that I know someone everywhere we go and tonight we were waiting for the doors to open and I heard someone say, "Patsy Terrell!" It was Susan, who I used to work with years ago. She said she had seen my website and found a photo of her mom on it from the Christmas parade last year.

Greg had a good chuckle. He looked at his watch and said, "OK, we're 45 miles from home, and within 12 minutes you've run into someone you know." Later I ran into Trish. She was there with Judy and Ellen who I just saw in passing. I also ran into Don from Kansas Dialogue. And, the capper of the night, I saw Lew - someone I adore that I worked with many years ago. We only had a moment to chat but he asked for my contact info so hopefully we'll get together soon.

As we were waiting in the line for autographs, we were chatting with this nice couple. We later learned it was the president of Bethany and his wife. We had a great conversation with them about everything from Gorbachev's visit last fall to population trends. I just love being around smart people!

2006-11-05T23:44:00.000-06:00

Michael Kelly Blanchard

Wednesday morning I went to see singer/songwriter Michael Kelly Blanchard. He was brought in by Prairie View's Food for Thought series.

His presentation was about telling our stories, and how important it is to do that. He suggested various categories we could look at - home, heritage, animals, work and fun.

He used some beautiful turns of phrase in his brief bits of conversation between songs. One of the first was that "we have an art gallery in our soul" that we're walking around with every day, those things that we carry with us all the time. It caused me to think about just how true that is.
He did a number of songs with incredible phrases in them. One I made note of was in a song where he was talking about the house he grew up in. "Where souls are grown and then they're set free. Wood and stone 'round flesh and bone, call it home to me."

I spent my growing up years in the same house. It stands empty now that my mother is gone, and it breaks my heart a little every time I drive by it.

2006-11-03T20:49:00.000-06:00

Dr. David Franz at Dillon Lecture Series in Hutchinson Kansas

The Dillon Lecture Series on Tuesday, Oct. 31, was by David Franz. He's a bioterrorism expert who served on weapons inspection teams to Russia and Iraq. He's originally from Buhler, just outside of Hutchinson, so it was a homecoming for him.

He told us about being in Russia in early 1994 as part of a team working to hammer out an agreement. At one point the leader of the team turned to him and said, "Col. Franz, you and the Russian Colonel go and work out the wording on this section here. After all, it's only science." Franz said that they were able to agree in about 20 minutes, which they felt good about. It was a turning point for Franz because he realized that science could be a common language. And he has been thinking of it that way ever since.

Franz said he thinks the first time the US really thought about terrorism was the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. He reminded us it was Oct. 2001 when the anthrax letters were sent. He said overnight the budget for bioterrorism went from the 1997 level of 137 Million to the 2001 level of 6 Billion. Overnight.

Franz joked about his role as an "expert." He was preparing for an interview with Mike Wallace on October 4, 2001. Wallace came in and said the story was breaking about someone in Florida being ill from breathing anthrax. Franz said his comment was, "No way. We haven't had a case of inhalation anthrax in the US since 1978."

He is also working with K-State to develop a major research facility there. Being a trained veternarian, he has a particular interest in animals. He said the biggest threat to Kansas is probably foot and mouth disease, which doesn't hurt humans, except economically. He said it's very easy to use and hard to trace - the problem with lots of these things and the reason five years later we don't know who sent the anthrax. He estimated the cost to Kansas of one foot and mouth disease outbreak would be $30-40 Billion.

He offered some really interesting figures from various research about how our stance on the world stage affects us. For example, in Indonesia, in 2003, support for the US was 23% and support for Bin Laden was 58%. After the tsunami and the US sent aid (albeit small), in 2005, support for the US rose to 40% and support for Bin Laden dropped to 23%.

Similarly, in Pakistan, in 2003 support for the US was at 23% and support for Bin Laden was at 51%. After we sent aid for the earthquake, support for the US rose to 46% and support for Bin Laden dropped to 33%. And 81% of those said the earthquake relief was important in their decision.

What does that mean? It means we could do a whole lot more for ourselves - and others - by sending aid. And it's far cheaper than war. It's far more effective in changing public opinion.

Franz ended his speech with an Edward R. Murrow quote, "It's the last three feet between people that count."

2006-10-31T23:21:00.000-06:00

Halloween

It has been a very busy Halloween day. Mark and I attended the Dillon Lecture this morning. It was really good, and I'll be posting more info on it. Of course, I got to see a number of people I know, including Alan Montgomery. We chatted with him for awhile after the lecture. He and Mark used to work together and we've all known each other for more than 20 years - hard to believe, but true.

Tonight Greg brought over lots of Halloween goodies and he and Mark decorated the house. Susan, Jesse and Terry all stopped by. It has been a fun night, although a bit chilly. The weatherman said yesterday that it would be "breezy" today and unfortunately, he was correct.

2006-10-31T01:20:00.001-06:00

Governor Visit

Governor Kathleen Sebelius was in town today for a reception. This was an event open to the public at no charge. We had a couple hundred people come, which was great.

There were lots of other candidates there, including John Doll and Jack Wempe, who both have major races on their hands. I'm not going to try and list all the candidates who were there because I know I'll miss someone.
Mark Treaster and Jan Pauls are both running unopposed, but they were both there.

Kathie Moore did an incredible job of organizing. Lots of people brought food, but someone has to take on the organizing and that was Kathie. She did it beautifully.

Trish was there, of course. It's always so good to see her. She was chatting with Pat Potucek. I told Pat how much I was enjoying getting to know Scott, her son, in leadership. In fact, I think I just had his photo on here a few days ago from our Kincaid tour. Ever a mom, she said, "Does he talk too much?" I assured her he did not. It made me laugh because moms always worry about us.

One of my contributions to the day was a decorated cake. I hadn't done one in a really long time. It's fun to do every once in awhile. People kept asking if I did them professionally. I'm starting to think maybe I need to go into that business. However, the amount of money I'd want to do it is probably prohibitive. I certainly wouldn't do it for Walmart prices. But I bet mine tastes better than the Walmart ones do too.

2006-10-29T00:09:00.001-05:00

Saturday

It has been a stunningly gorgeous day - in the 70s with just a slight breeze. Cool enough to wear long sleeves but warm enough to be outdoors.

I snapped this photo yesterday. Fall has definitely arrived.

I have accomplished a ton of things so far this weekend. I decided I should take advantage of the beautiful weather to do some outdoor things that may become difficult as temperatures drop.

Yesterday I cleaned out my car, which was no easy feat. I still need to go vacuum it, but at least I gathered up the things that were lying about and delivered them to where they belong.

Today I went and got some Roy's. I ran into Alan, one of the guys in my leadership class, while I was there. So, I ended up chatting with him while we ate. He's a neat guy, who's also an artist. He was in my visioning group the first night of our retreat and I enjoyed getting to know him a little bit.

The nice weather prompted me to wash off the front porch. It's quite the project because I have to move the many rocks I have by the front door in order to do it. When I was cleaning out the car yesterday I ran across a really cool rock I had picked up somewhere and forgotten. It had gotten lodged underneath the seat, but I rediscovered it yesterday. So, I added it to the stack of rocks by the door.

My recycling experiment has been successful so far. My bag of glass, plastic and aluminum is almost full, as is the paper one. But, my actual trash is very minimal. Unfortunately, they only take recycling stuff every two weeks so I'll have to hang onto it until Friday.

2006-10-25T22:32:00.001-05:00

Leadership today was in Haven, Kansas. It's a town of nearly 1,200 people about 15 minutes away from Hutchinson. Despite their size, they have a lot of manufacturing there, not the least of which is at Kincaid.

Brad Stephenson, the manufacturing manager, gave us a tour. They make equipment geared toward seed producers. A large part of what they make is sold to universities.

They have agreements with a company in Finland that provides a combine that they then modify to work for seed producers.

Because test plots are done in 20 feet rows, and the seed can't be mixed, special equipment is required to harvest that so it can all be tested.

Some of the folks in our tour group were really knowledgeable - namely Pam, Dan and Brad. They all have experience with manufacturing and/or farming.

Scott also seemed to know quite a bit about all of this. He was asking lots of great questions.

That's one of the things that's always interesting on these tours - the questions people bring up.

Our host was very patient with us and explained how they've built their business over the years.

Part of the way is by adding to their products. They now make these machines that spray a water mixed with wood or paper cellulose that makes a covering over exposed soil to cut down on erosion, such as at road construction sites. It's also used at landfills and such.

It was an interesting way to wrap up the day. The topic today was economic development, which I enjoyed.

2006-10-23T02:32:00.001-05:00

Quivira National Wildlife Refuge

Today I decided to get out and enjoy the nice day. It was a little chilly, but sunny and nice.

I took off to Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, which is about 30 minutes away from Hutchinson, and is an amazing place. It is a place I can go to here that I really connect with.

One of Patsy's Rules for Living is that when you've lost your way you have to go to some place where you can reset your compass. That place for me is the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers in Cairo, Illinois. But, Quivira has become a place I can do that here.

It has taken me a long time to grow to appreciate the prairie. It's a subtle kind of beauty. But once you take time to see it, you find it has many layers of color. And the sound of wind on the prairie is unlike anything else.

I took time today to walk a nature trail called "Migrant's Mile." It is pretty short - about 3/4 of a mile - but at the furtherest part of it there's a bridge that spans a marsh.

There are cat tails on each side. I've never seen so many in one place. You can also witness the effect of "Plant Succession."

Underwater plants die and as they decay form a matted covering called humus. The humus provides a place for larger plants - like cat tails - to anchor so their roots can get nourishment. Grasses and other plants along the shoreline will gradually grow into the fertile drying humus left behind when the aquatic plants decay. Over time the shorelines will meet in the middle of the marsh and the marsh will disappear.

Marshes provide habitat for a host of plants and animals, and are disappearing because of being drained for development.

The ones here are not in danger of that, of course, because it's a federally protected area.

I'm often surprised at how well such things can be organized. There is a plan in place here so the neighboring farmers work in partnership with the government. They grow crops on a share basis and the farmers harvest their share and leave the rest for food or habitat for animals. It's a great system and benefits everyone.

Quivira is known for birds. It's a major area for that. However, what I saw lots of today were deer. At one time there were eight in one place.

There's always plenty to see in nature and I think it's good to be outside in the sunshine and seeing nature work. There is a cycle to things that we can easily lose sight of because of the way we live our lives, in very artificial circumstances.

I believe this is the plant that monarch butterflies feed on that makes them toxic to predators.

At one point on the trail there were lots of trees with mushrooms growing on them. The different colors and shapes were extraordinary.

October skies are the bluest of the whole year, and I always make it a point to appreciate them.

Like I mentioned, Quivira is known for birds.

2006-10-20T02:15:00.001-05:00

Beautiful Day

When I first looked at weather bug this morning it said it was 29, so I guess it finally really froze, no question about it. However, as the day wore on it got to be a beautiful day. By late afternoon it was wonderful - still cool, but nice enough with just a light jacket.

I had a lunchtime meeting, but went to eat with Julie after that. We went to the Airport Steakhouse. It has been redone and is much nicer than I remember it. Our food was good and it was cool to watch the small planes landing and taking off. I had no idea the Hutchinson airport was this busy, but there were lots of people coming through - most carrying either briefcases or golf clubs or both.

After lunch Julie and I went to Dillon Nature Center for a walk. It was just gorgeous out. Things are starting to look like fall around here.

2006-10-19T00:10:00.001-05:00

Collins Industries Tour

Today was Leadership Class and it was city and county day. So, we had visitors from the governing bodies.

Afterwards, we went on tours to three different businesses. My tour was to Collins Industries, where they build school busses. Bryce, the gentleman giving us the tour, gave me permission to take some photos. I've never been to a manufacturing plant, so it was interesting.

One of the most interesting things he said was that the side panels on busses are actually glued on. The rivets don't really hold them in place. It's a glue made my Loctite, and they use about six tubes for each small bus. The tubes are about the size of caulk.

There were nine people in our tour group, including Wanda on her crutches. She was quite the trooper and there was a lot of walking inside a large plant.

They make different kinds of busses - from small ones to large ones. The white ones are generally used by child care facilities. They customize them to order - nothing is built in advance. They make 23 different kinds of busses, but there are 1300 different kinds of customization they can do.

They have a sophisticated system to keep track of how much effort goes into each part of the process. Just an aside, the yellow paint is more expensive to do than the white, but they don't charge extra. You just can't charge extra for yellow paint on a school bus. It wouldn't be right.

2006-10-11T15:54:00.000-05:00

Books I Made This Weekend

I promised I'd post pix of the books I made at Susan's farm this weekend. Here they are. The one with the Monticello material on it is not full yet, but the others are bulging. I like the look of them when they're like that.

2006-10-10T22:51:00.001-05:00

Slim Goodbody at Dillon Lecture Series

This morning Slim Goodbody was at the Dillon Lecture Series. I didn't know who he was, but the hundreds of school kids in attendance certainly did. I guess he's been doing this for 30 plus years and was a fixture on Captain Kangaroo.

I always go to the lectures if possible, even if I don't know anything about the person, because I figure it will be interesting. And this was, although it was certainly not my favorite by a long shot. It was all geared toward kids, but it was neat to see them so interested.

They bussed in kids from all over and invited them to come sit on the floor so it was kind of cool - I was surrounded by kids and they were really enthusiastic about him.

At one point he had kids come up on stage who could do something unusual with their muscles and have them demonstrate. We saw kids walk on their hands and a chest roll and other fun stuff.

He did share some neat facts that I made note of:
Only two creatures live longer than humans - tortise (200 years) and a tree that is 4,900 years old. That means it was growing when the pyramids were built.
Two creatures have bigger brains than humans - elephant is 13 pounds and whale is 17 pounds while humans are 3 pounds. But compared to body weight ours is largest.
Heart is the hardest working muscle in the body - the diaphragm is the second hardest working muscle.
Every mammal has 7 bones in their necks - humans, mice and giraffes all have 7.

One of the most interesting bits he did was have five kids come up and he gave them each a word - I Will Never Smoke Ever. He then tapped them on the head at various times and used those words in a variety of ways to get across that message. I thought that was really effective.

I had to leave the luncheon early to get to the marketing training that was being put on by the Hutchinson Community Foundation. It was really, really, really good. I was glad I went.

2006-10-10T00:00:00.001-05:00

Exhibits and Experiments

Tonight was the Arts and Humanities board meeting. It was also the opening of an art exhibit we're doing at Stringer Fine Arts. It's a neat exhibit called, "How the Ink Feels."

It's a travelling exhibit of letterpress broadsides by distinguished artists and writers. The exhibit features sixty-four matted and framed letterpress broadsides, which illuminate prose and poetry selections by well-known writers. Most pieces were printed using manually operated letterpresses a technique which has changed very little since the Middle Ages. The pieces are collaborations among the printer, the writer, and the artists, printmaker, woodcut illustrator, calligrapher or paper maker.

Some of the artists and writers whose work is included in the exhibit include Max Heim, James Agee, Maurice Lapp, Wendell Berry, Hui-Ming Wang, Rita Dove, Patrica Waters, Naomi Shihab Nye, and William Stafford.

I didn't get to stay for the official opening reception because I needed to spend time working on some MHA and personal projects tonight.

Tomorrow I'll be tied up all day with a Dillon Lecture Series and then an HCF marketing meeting. And Wednesday will be leadership all day, so my time to devote to projects is minimal this week.

Tonight on the way home I stopped by a restaurant Mike at Roy's recommended to me. It's on east fourth and is an unassuming place. However, he told me the food was really good, and he was right. My favorite part was the homemade pineapple turnover I had. Man, that was good.

I like to try the local places and this one had escaped my attention.

2006-09-18T00:21:00.001-05:00

Tea in Arlington Kansas

Today I went to one of my very favorite events - the fundraiser tea at the Methodist Church in Arlington, Kansas, less than a 30 minute drive from Hutchinson. This is the third year I've been and it's just wonderful. These five ladies who organize it do an amazing job.

They transform their church basement by bringing in dishes, furniture, pictures, and all manner of decorations. I'm always amazed by the work they do. Everything is beautiful.

These ladies also do a great job with food. It's tasty and very pretty - just like tea food is supposed to be.

They had new tablecloths this year, and the settings were more streamlined. I have liked all the ones I've been to, including this one, it was just a little different.

The program this afternoon was about aprons. Interestingly enough, the lady giving the talk was Susie Haver. I know Susie from way back - she used to be involved with the Brown Grand Theatre in Concordia, Kansas - and I interviewed her when I was with the radio station.

Since then I've bumped into her at various times at various things. I guess we move in some of the same circles. She's also a Kansas Explorer, so that's another connection.

She had a number of aprons as examples of various sorts, but this was one of my favorites - one that the lady on it was wearing a little skirt that you could lift and see her pantaloons.

Teresa (yellow shirt), Susan (black) and Jan (beige) and I went today. Peggy was supposed to go but couldn't at the last minute. I asked for a take away plate for her and took it over to her and Gary tonight. We chatted for awhile and it was an interesting talk.

2006-09-12T02:55:00.001-05:00

A Sheep in Sheep's Clothing

Tonight I was leaving the fair a little after 10 and noticed a sheep was being sheared. Greg had gone to shoot some other things, but I called him on the cell and said, "Hey, there's sheep shearing going on." He trotted right over. Why? Well, because neither of us know anything about sheep or shearing them. So, obviously, we needed to learn.

For the next hour to ninety minutes, we questioned this very nice lady, Carolyn, who was working to get the sheep ready for judging in the morning. Carolyn lives near Newton, so didn't have too far of a drive tonight, but it was after 11:30 when we left and she wasn't done cleaning up yet so I'm sure it was a late night for her.

Technically, the sheep belongs to her son, Aaron, but he's in college so mom is helping out. And it takes awhile to complete this process.

First is the shearing with a clipper that has 20 teeth, so you're less likely to cut the sheep. Professionals use ones that have 9 teeth and are flared, so they are quicker to use.

After shearing they "card" the sheep, which is somewhat like brushing out the hair that's left on it. The sheep really likes this. He was vocalizing his displeasure at the shearing, but when Carolyn and Larry, a neighbor farmer from Oklahoma who was helping out, were carding the sheep he was standing still and enjoying it.

After that, they did what's called "blocking," which meant they were doing a lot of hand trimming with these large scissors. The sheep's left side is where they stand when holding the sheep and the right side is what they consider the "show side" so they are paying very close attention to it.

This is a Dorset sheep, named for the place in England where they come from. This is a common domestic breed. When they are judged, they look for a variety of physical characteristics about the sheep.

And, lets just say that "all" the parts get sheared.

I was commenting that I knew some knitters who would love to have this wool. But, don't despair. I'm told this particular wool wouldn't be of any use because it's too short.

Last, he got his face groomed - sheared, carded and trimmed.

He was then covered, as were many of the other sheep already in the pens. While the irony that jumps to mind is that we're shearing their wool, and then giving them new "clothes," the reality is that it's just to keep them clean for the judging tomorrow. Because before the shearing, the sheep has to be bathed. And just like with a kid, you want it to last a little while.

In many of the livestock barns, people camp out to be with the animals. Some are more elaborate than others.

2006-09-10T00:07:00.001-05:00

Saturdays are for Fairs

Saturdays are for the Kansas State Fair in early September.

What really prompted me to head out to the fair today was using Greg's pass since he wasn't using it, and seeing Ron Diamond, the hypnotist. His show is always funny. There was a guy in it tonight that I think did it last year too. Of course it was fun.

After the hypnotist I went over to domestic arts to look around. There were less than a half dozen entries in the Governor's cookie jar contest and considerably fewer canned goods. But I think the number of needlework entries has gone up. I could be wrong, but it seems like there's more of that.

The cooking things continue to decline and I hate to see that. There are a few contests sponsored by companies where there's actual money to be won and those seem to be generating a significant amount of entries.

I don't know what to think about our society. We obviously love to watch people cook, otherwise the Food Network wouldn't be on. But, apparently, few of us can actually cook. Maybe I've been approaching the tea all wrong. I should sell tickets for people to watch me cook instead of to eat the food.

But, there was lots of needlework from crochet to cross stitch to knitting. And, of course, the quilts.

As I was looking at knitting I wondered if Andrea had submitted anything and then I spotted it, complete with ribbon on it. Congratulations, Andrea!

They have a whole section just for people like me - a Christmas area. You gotta love it. There were some beautiful pieces. Leah should enter some of her cross stitch stuff. I am so honored to have some pieces she made for me, including some Christmas ornaments and an incredible stocking she did.

I really treasure those things that people make for me. I'm already thinking about how fun it will be unpack all the Christmas things and enjoy the memories of them. A month from now I'll be getting serious about getting going on that.

2006-09-09T00:37:00.001-05:00

Politicians, Pumpkins and Pillsbury

The Kansas State Fair opened in Hutchinson today. I went out for a couple of hours tonight, just to look around a bit. I enjoy the fair, and it's especially fun during an election year.

I ran into a ton of people I knew, including Robert and Marcella from Ellinwood. That was an unexpected treat. I was chatting with John Doll, who's running for congress, and who I wrote about on the blog previously, when I ran into them.

I went over to John's booth later, and got to meet his wife, who is just delightful.

Jan Pauls was working the democrat's booth. It was good to see her. I visited with her a little bit but there were a lot of people stopping by so I didn't want to monopolize her time.

I also visited with Sue Darby who was working the HCC booth. It was really good to talk with her.

I also stopped by the Governor's booth to see what her schedule is for the fair. I know she's going to be there tomorrow for a debate, but don't know if she will be sticking around much after that - hopefully so.

Of course, there was the usual assortment of fun stuff at the fair - including a giant pumpkin weighing 680.5 pounds.

I just love the fair where you see everything agricultural thing you can imagine. That's something I love about the Kansas State Fair - it still honors its roots. Those that do are few and far between now.

But, you can look at sorghum varieties, champion tomatoes and rye seed. It's all a bit of Americana and I love it all. Just in case you weren't able to visit tonight, I thought I'd share some pix so you can enjoy it nonetheless.

There are also scarecrows of various sorts - some of them quite inventive. I'm not sure where the Pillsbury Doughboy fits in, but when you see a giant Pillsbury Doughboy you have to take his photo. It's a rule.

2006-09-03T18:43:00.001-05:00

Coming up

One of the things I've been doing recently - besides digging out from the tea - is preparing for the next month. I've got a lot of things on the agenda for September - some fun and some work.

Although it hasn't been announced officially yet, I'm going to be part of the Reno County Leadership class this fall. This is the first time they've done a fall one and it is better for my schedule. We have an overnight retreat so I'm making plans for that.

I'm also teaching a journalling class later this month. Although that's largely straightforward, it does require some preparation. I'm wondering what, exactly, I want to do for the class. It's hard to know what to focus on, but obviously I have to do some planning for it.

Also, Greg and I are going on a trip to Seattle and Portland next month so I need to plan for that a bit too. We haven't traveled together for awhile and I'm really looking forward to going. It will be interesting to see if we still travel well together. Neither of us has been to that area of the country, so it will be good. With just some preliminary reading I know I'm going to want more time there.

The State Fair starts on Friday and runs for 10 days. I haven't committed yet, but I will probably help work out there a bit. Other than that, we will just be out there a lot enjoying the fair.

And the last weekend of the fair is the Arlington tea. I enjoy that tea so very much. It will be so nice to have tea instead of creating tea.

2006-09-03T18:32:00.003-05:00

Dutch Kitchen Visit

A couple of nights ago Greg and I went out to the Dutch Kitchen just outside of town. It seems whenever we travel that direction we are blessed with an interesting sunset and Friday night was no different.

Dinner at the Dutch Kitchen was good, and they're famous for their pie. We both had some pecan pie to top off the meal.

Sometimes I go out there for breakfast very early and right before a holiday once I heard the pie baker talking about making dozens of pies people were picking up that day. So, you know they make them on site.

And, I'll admit, I still get a thrill out of the young ladies in their bonnets serving the food.

2006-08-28T01:51:00.001-05:00

Mental Health Association Victorian Tea

Yesterday was our annual Victorian Tea for the MHA in Reno County (Mental Health Association). Grace Episcopal Church let us hold it in their facility and it was just perfect! I'm so thankful for their generosity.

I do all the cooking for it, other than the scones, which Nancy Murry makes for us every time. I just ate a leftover one and it was delicious. I hope all the things I made were good. I realized last night that I never sampled anything, other than as I was cooking.

Something new this time was trifle in individual punch cups. The church has snack trays and punch cups we could use, so that worked out great.

I had a volunteer who agreed to make table cloths for us, and I used fresh flowers on the tables. The theme was Lavendar and Lace. I also used some of the linens I've collected over the years. For some reason I seem to think it's my purpose in life to preserve such things. But, I just cannot imagine wanting to let go of embroidery or crochet work that had been done by my loved ones.

Some of the people who were there are friends, and some are people who come everytime. We also have new people everytime. Some of my regulars were occupied with the United Way workday on Saturday and couldn't come. I was really sorry to learn that was scheduled on the same day as our tea, but it's just the way it worked out. It was a nice group overall.

Teresa brought her granddaughters. That's Kylie sitting all prim and proper having tea with her grandma, and Kenzie is telling grandma a secret.

I really enjoy planning tea, and thinking through all the details, but it is a lot of work. I cannot imagine doing this for a living. It's great for a once a year fundraiser, and at the moment I'm all excited about doing it again. But I'll be happy to just think about it for a bit, and go to other people's teas.

In fact, I'm going to one in Arlington next month. This is one of my very favorite teas. They didn't have it last year and I really missed it. I generally attend the St. John's tea in November, but they're not having theirs this year. I think I'm going to make a website for fundraiser teas in Kansas. Frankly, they're much nicer than the typical tea you get in a tea room - and no wonder - there's no way anyone could make money paying for all the labor that volunteers donate for us to put on tea.

Three of my board members, as well as Nancy, helped pour tea yesterday. We had multiple comments that the tea was hot, which they liked. And people loved it that their cups were always full. That's one of my big deals - keeping people's cups full.

Susan came, along with her friend Kathleen, who I met when we all went to tea in Hiawatha. I wish I could find other fundraiser teas to go to.

I think people are eager to have a reason to dress up a little bit and do something out of the ordinary. I'm always struck by how much people are enjoying just talking with each other. I think it's because we don't do it very much anymore. I almost hate to talk because I interrupt their conversation. But, people like to have a little program of some sort.

All in all I think everyone had a good time. Now I just have to get everything reorganized and then I can start thinking about another one.

Because it is summer I was able to use some things from my garden for the tea, including some fresh herbs.

The Menu from the
Lavendar and Lace Tea
August 26, 2006

Cucumber Sandwich
Egg Salad with fresh royal pepper
Tuna Salad on Seven Grain Bread
Bacon - Basil Tomato Bites
Prosciutto and Rosemary on Carrot Chips
Calla Lily with Herb Filling

Traditional Scones and Clotted Cream
Pumpkin Bread

Butter Cake with Cherry Topping
English Berry Trifle
Chocolate Heaven
Lemon Tart
Sugar Cookie
Raisin Walnut Fudge Cookie
Frosted Petite Grapes

2006-08-16T00:52:00.001-05:00

Cathedral of the Plains at Victoria, Kansas

On Sunday when we were coming back from Kansas Dialogue in Colby, I asked Martha - our chauffer extraordinaire - if we could stop at Cathedral of the Plains in Victoria. She, Andrea and Teresa love it just as I do, so we stopped.

I'm not Catholic, but this cathedral is an amazing place to be, regardless of your religious affiliation, or lack thereof. It is truly a sacred space. I generally stop on every trip that direction, and I am always moved to tears.

The other day when we were there there was a brief thunderstorm, complete with thunderclaps, while we were inside. We came out to find everything freshly washed from the rain and the temperature a bit cooler. That was certainly welcome because there is no air conditioning in the building. They have fans around, but no AC.

It was started in 1908 and finished in 1911. The German immigrants who settled this area sacrificed much to bring this building into being. Stunningly beautiful bits and pieces were gathered from Europe and moved to the site from railroad some distance away. Our forefathers were made of much stronger stuff than most of us are.

Victoria is right off of I-70 and a little less than a three hour drive from Hutchinson. It's worth the trip - a great way to spend a weekend. You'll be close to Hays and can stop in for the Sternberg Museum while there.