More travels in Kansas and Missouri

I've been happily busy this past month, traveling around Kansas and Missouri. I've been to Columbia, Stockton and El Dorado Springs, MO, as well as Topeka, Scott City, Burlingame, Altoona, Fredonia and Overland Park, KS. This has been an eclectic month. Since Oct. 1, I have

• told stories for the public, including a large group from a Montessori school, at a community center, 
• guest taught a community college class in public speaking for my friend Kareen King,
• visited a high school art class for a performance/workshop designed to get the kids to think about how to translate storytelling into visual images,
• worked with four groups of 8th graders for two days on storytelling, oral communications and writing,
• performed for elementary school assemblies,
• joined the Fine Arts Chorale of KC for another fun Halloween concert at the library (program: music, story, music, story, music, story, music, milk and cookies),
• told stories at public libraries for kids and a large group from a nursing home,
• told funny-scary stories at a Halloween celebration for families at a large corporation.

It has been a blast, as always, and has involved a lot of driving. Here is some of what I've seen:

Old School, literally.

I drove past Claflin on my way to Scott City (that's about a 7 hour drive from my house). I always think of storyteller Willy Claflin when I see this sign.

This is in Scott City, KS. I ate at the adjoining Mexican restaurant, where they had a lovely chile relleno. Not roadkill.

This abandoned limestone house is a typical sight on the plains of Kansas. The early settlers built these houses to last! 

I love the colors of Kansas in the fall. The red is a field of milo (sorghum). 

Here's milo close up.

Classic advertising on the walls in Fredonia, KS.

Last month I wrote about Gas, KS and said I regretted not getting a picture of the Bank of Gas. I passed Gas (pardon me)on my way to Altoona and Fredonia for this photo.

Next I'll write about the residency in Scott City with 8th graders.

On the road again

I'm so glad my summer storytelling season has begun! It's nice to be back in the libraries, even with all the driving required. Yesterday I drove to Ponca City, OK for a library show, then drove home, after a nice lunch with the librarian and her daughter (thanks, Janel!). That was about 8 hours in the car. On the way back, going through the Flint Hills, I took a few pictures out the window.  

The Flint Hills cover the central part of Kansas. I know, these pictures don't show them as hills, but they are. Really. Not like the hills of Vermont, where I grew up, but long and rolling landforms, often with cattle grazing on them in the spring. Ask the Buddha.

The view from the driver's seat

I drive a lot, on my way to performances and workshops around the Midwest US. Here's the view from the driver's seat in my car:

This picture was taken while I was parked, of course. The Buddha is facing me. On particularly rough roads, he bounces all over the place and yet the smile on his little plastic face still seems serene.

Peaches from Ponca City

Ponca City, Oklahoma has a great public library. If you go, be sure to tour the Matzene collection of western and Oriental art displayed throughout the library. I learned this a few years ago and was reminded of it on Friday. The library is across from the city hall, a huge and ornate building.


I drove away from my gig in Ponca City OK with a bag of peaches, a generous present from Janel, the children's librarian. She also gave me a wonderfully sturdy canvas library bag. She received the peaches from a patron as I was packing up and she gave me most of them. I ate one on the way from Ponca City to my next show in Arkansas City (pronounce all letters in Arkansas as written) and two on the way from Ark City to Lawrence.

That was the end of a short long trip. Short because it was only three days. Long because I drove over 1000 miles. Here's where I was: Salina, Long Island (north and west of Manhattan...KS), Norton, Quinter, Winfield, Ponca City and Arkansas City.

I thought I'd sleep well, but I had insomnia. On Saturday morning at 2:00, I got up and made a pie crust in the food processor. I put the dough in the refrigerator to chill. Then back to bed until 7:30, when I got up for the day. Before breakfast I made a peach pie for a potluck I was invited to that night. It's well and truly summer here in Kansas, so all baking happens early or late, in order not to heat up the kitchen.

It was a good pie. No pictures. We ate it all.

Dusty Sailor

One of my favorite flowers is Dusty Sailor, otherwise known as chicory. It's a tough plant, often seen on the side of the road. It doesn't last when picked, as my mother just mentioned in her column, Grow it in Maine. This one was at a rest stop between Columbia, MO and Lawrence, KS.

Festivals and car trouble

What a wild month! I began with the Kansas City Irish Festival, then performed at the Choctaw Oklahoma Oktoberfest (say that five times fast!) and next week will go to the Moonshell Storytelling Festival in Nebraska. Sounds like I'm always performing at festivals, though in fact schools, libraries and museums are my main bread and butter. I've got some of those this month as well.

As I backed out of my driveway on the way to the Irish festival, the car had a little hiccup. It didn't improve with driving. Fortunately, I had friends going to the festival about an hour after me, so if I got stuck on the side of the road, I could call for a ride. I did arrive at the festival and also got home (thanks for the escort!). I was relieved that I could borrow a car from my sister for the next day.

At that festival, I was booked for two ghost story sessions, one on Saturday night for older kids and adults and one on Sunday for all ages. Saturday was the better set, with stronger stories and less sound bleed from the main stage. The second night, I could barely hear my own voice. I knew that the audience could hear me (good microphone and speakers), but it was a struggle. This was the first time this stage was in that location--hope they change it next year. The organizers of the children's activities seemed as frustrated as I was with the sound.

I got the car fixed (new distributor cap wires and a new valve cover) and figured I was set. On Friday I got in the car for the five-hour drive to Oklahoma, only to find that it wouldn't start. Got a jumpstart from a friend and a new battery and off I went. Whew.

I didn't know what to expect from the Oktoberfest. I was pleased that there was a tent for the children's activities well away from the music stage. While I could hear the occasional oompah or yodel from the beer tent, it was not loud enough to distract. I told a mix of stories to kids and adults, some of whom were also doing crafts at the same time. The German Club from the high school helped with the crafts and I had great support from Debbie from the Chamber of Commerce, who ran the tent. I officiated at the sack races, hula hoop competitions and egg-and-spoon races. These were impromptu affairs, as in fact were my sets--I had no schedule for my four performances each day. It was steamy hot in the tent both days, especially after it rained. I don't think I've ever sweat that much during a performance. I had to borrow my puppet Trixie's handkerchief to mop my face. Never mind, I was having a good time.

After the first day, I sat with a beer and a bratwurst, listening to the music and watching people. Lots of men in lederhosen and women in dirndls. I would have danced if I hadn't been so tired. I went back to the hotel and slept.

In the morning, the car wouldn't start again. A kind man in the breakfast room jumpstarted it for me. Though I don't like being a damsel in distress, I confess to being afraid to jumpstart my car. I drove across the street to a mechanic. The fellow there diagnosed a dying starter. He suggested that I keep it running as much as possible.

At the festival, I parked in a way to make jumpstarting easy. After another fun day of performing, I had a half beer and a brat. Still too tired to dance. I turned the key in the ignition with trepidation. It started up. Good.

Not so good the next morning as I tried to start it to drive home. Another kind man from the breakfast room jumpstarted it, also thumping on the starter to encourage it. I was deeply relieved when it came to life. I didn't turn it off, even the two times I had to get gas and the one stop at a rest area. I drove it directly to my mechanic's shop. The next day I had a new starter. All is well.

Next week I'll drive to the Moonshell Festival in Nebraska. I'm looking forward to the performances and hoping for a calm and uneventful drive up there. My mechanic reassures me that the car is in good shape and should last for a long time, despite this little spate of repairs. Hope so!

Last week's busy-ness

It's a nicely quiet week at home. Last week was busy.

Tuesday was Wonderscope Children's Museum (second and fourth Tuesdays at 9:30, though in September it will shift to the first and third). I really appreciate having that regular gig, getting to see some of the same kids every week. Having structure gives me the freedom to try out new stories for little guys and audition new puppets.

Wednesday I went to two schools in Olathe, KS. One was an older school right near downtown. There were some 5th graders in the gym when I was getting ready, so I warmed up with the circular story, A dark and stormy night. This was one of those great schools where the teachers and kids join in. Even the principal did the call-and-response song My aunt came back with the kids. I love that!

From there, I went on to a newer school with a rock-star principal. Huh? At some schools, the principal is so well-liked by the kids they treat him like a rock star. This was a particularly good day: as a fundraiser, the principal had auctioned his job off, so the acting principal was a 2nd grader. She did a fine job introducing me and thanking the students for listening so well. The performances were the real principal's way of thanking the kids for doing their best for the standardized tests.

Afterwards, I drove to Jefferson City for the Mid-Missouri Storytelling Festival. It's a funny festival, with lots of driving to schools in the area. I went to New Bloomfield and Mokane on Thursday, driven by my friends Sarah and Angela from the Daniel Boone Regional Library. I'd been to Mokane a few years ago, not under the aegis of the library. When I was done with the show, I said the usual, "Stay sitting down and look at your teachers. They'll know the order you're going to leave the gym." The principal made a little hand motion for the kids to wait, and then she asked if I could tell one more story--one of the teachers had requested "Chickens!" No problem!

Thursday was gray and drizzly. Friday was absolutely beautiful. I was at two schools in Columbia, MO, hosted by Hilary from the library--she drove me around one day last summer, so it was old home week. I know I'm with the right people when it's okay to swap camp songs in the car on the way to a gig. These schools were the two in town where they don't always get the best test scores. Too bad they don't measure how kids listen to stories--they were excellent audiences at both schools.

That evening I shared a performance at the Columbia Public Library with Tom McDermott from Texas. I've performed at this library many times (they have a performance space in the shape of a big green egg!) and knew it would be a good show. Before the show, Tom and I played a bit of "Name that tune" with the audience--Tom's an excellent musician as well as storyteller.

On Saturday I hung around, having a relaxed breakfast with Sarah and Thom at the Cafe Berlin, then going down to Ashland to see Beth Horner perform. I love hearing Beth tell stories--she's always wonderful. Eventually, after a long and leisurely lunch, I made my way back home.

Now I'm puttering. I plan to tackle the pile of papers on my desk and kitchen table soon, and I may even vacuum. I spent some time this morning planting tomatoes and peppers. I'm always so optimistic this time of year, even knowing that I have a packed schedule and may not get time to weed or water.

Oh, and my new mower finally arrived! I splurged and bought a cordless electric mower, a Bully. I'm looking forward to mowing without so much noise and smell, and to being able to start the darn thing right away. It's charging now.

Driving, driving, driving...

I've been in the car a lot lately. In the shower this morning I figured out that I've driven about 35 hours in the last week.

It began last Tuesday when I drove in to Wonderscope Children's Museum in Shawnee, KS. It's not that far, but as long as I'm counting, I'll add it in. By the way, I've been loving these regular gigs at Wonderscope. I'm there on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month, at 9:30 a.m. Most of my audiences have been tinies, so we've done a lot of fingerplays, songs and puppets.

On Wednesday, I didn't drive much, due to freezing rain. Good day to stay inside by the woodstove. I have a garage so I didn't have to chip the ice off my car on Thursday (before this house, I never had a garage). After the rain we had snow, and the streets here were slick. Thursday morning, I drove carefully out to the interstate under gray skies. The storm hadn't hit the whole state--by the time I was an hour from home, the roads were completely clear and there was no longer snow in the fields. I continued on to Quinter, about four hours from home, where the sky was clear and the sun was shining.

In Quinter, I performed at the newly-renovated Jay Johnson Public Library. Beautiful and welcoming! If you're ever going past, do stop (Sharon, the librarian, mentioned that lots of folks driving through stop to use the library). It was part of their Holiday Celebration. I always think I don't have Christmas stories, but it turns out I do, just a few of them. The audience was a mix of kids and adults. Even the older kids joined in on the little-kid stories. Very fun. That baby puppet was once again a hit.

When I was done, I got back in the car and drove home. The predicted snow here didn't happen, though thirty miles to the east they got eight inches.

The next day, after erranding around for a while, my sister and I took off for Iowa and Wisconsin. No, not a work trip for once! We stopped to visit my nephew at college in Iowa (very fun to see him!), and then the next day continued on to Madison, WI for a sister retreat. All four of us were there for a couple of days. Ostensibly we were there for a workshop on Yamuna Body Rolling, but really we just wanted to hang around with each other. We talked, ate, read, shopped, and of course went to the workshop, which was wonderful (I wonder if anybody else is still sore). I love spending time with my family!

It was a short visit. On Monday, we drove back home. I've got to go to the grocery store today, but I'm avoiding getting in the car until I really have to.