He’s the new kid on the block. His museum stands next to the monument to legendary truthsinger Woody Guthrie. And down the block another monument against fascism at Greenwood. Bob Dylan’s star shines among Tulsa music royalty. Leon Russell. The … Read More
Gustav Meets Kehde
Just outside Windsor, Gustav’s guts started spilling. Gustav had slammed into Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane, and plowed north through Arkansas into southern Missouri. By the time it reached Sedalia, the storm had devolved into an extratropical depression, which … Read More
The Last Man to Beat Bill Hickok
Bellefontaine Cemetery holds stories that forged America. Good. Bad. Wild, like the story of Captain Bill Massie, the world’s greatest riverboat gambler. His unmarked grave belies his prowess. In the parlors of his riverboats, Captain Bill Massie could read the … Read More
When the Circus Came to Town
In 1933, the circus came to town. And stayed. For a dozen years, the Russell Brothers Circus made its winter home in Rolla. And each spring, the major three-ring extravaganza rehearsed in the fields around the old Civil War Fort … Read More
My Favorite Road
“What’s your favorite road?” That question comes up a lot from people who find out I’ve driven every mile on the map.They’re curious. What’s my favorite restaurant? Favorite bed and breakfast? Favorite state park? The question came up in Trenton. … Read More
Mystery Among Trash
Pumping water out of the ground at 26 gallons a minute, Palm Springs, California, is an oasis in the American desert. And the desert surrounds this oasis like an ocean surrounds a life raft. I hiked out into the desert, … Read More
Georgia on my mind
Stopped in Albuquerque to pick up 400 pounds of floor tile. Passed Sandia Mountain and drove up to Santa Fe’s rarified air. At 7200 feet, we got a boost from a bowl of fiery green chile chicken soup. Then Cheryl … Read More
Spiritual.
It’s a spiritual place, breathing the rarified mountain air in the land of the Pueblos. Nineteen Pueblo tribes inhabit these sacred lands, among the Navajo and Apache. They demonstrate respect for Mother Earth. Traders do well to listen.
Peace. Please.
Outside Santa Fe the mountains begged for snow, and Mother Nature seemed attentive, while in a courtyard St. Francis communed with animals. All of them. It gave us the courage to enter parts unknown.