… when I am eating red borscht again. Since my daughter is unlikely to inherit any money, this recipe is probably all she is going to get, so she can cook it for some unlucky schmuck who will get me for a father-in-law.

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This time of the year is the apple season around here, the time when we make our annual trip to our favorite apple orchard in Williamsburg, KS. Over the years we’ve done quite a bit of driving in this part of Kansas, visiting small towns like Garnett and Osawatomie, Burlington, Ottawa, Williamsburg  and this year we stopped for a few minutes in Lebo and Osage City.

Nothing makes me stop in my tracks faster than a mural sighting. Of course, the magnificent murals of Coffeyville (click to be amazed) are hard to beat; Burlington comes in distant second.

Here is the mural from Lebo:

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30 years ago today 10-year-old me was sitting in front of our 12-inch black-and-white TV watching the opening ceremonies of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. It’s safe to say that everyone else in the country was doing the same. Even though we had only 3 TV channels at that time and many shows enjoyed close to 100 percent rating, the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Moscow Olympics were probably some of the most watched events in the Soviet TV history. Unfortunately outside of the Socialist-friendly countries not too many people had a chance to see any of the 1980 Summer Olympics and it’s a shame because the USSR, anxious to show the triumph of the socialist system made them some of the most enjoyable and sincere ceremonies in the Olympic history. Since then many countries used complex scenarios and spectacular special effects but none has achieved the level of pure joy and emotional connection the Soviet people managed to build into their Olympiad.

Even today, so many years later, it’s one of the most nostalgic moments in the lives of my generation. Many people remember the games, beautiful opening ceremony and a tearful closing, a rare glimpse into Western life, with the first Soviet-made Pepsi, never-before-seen imported foods, crowds of foreigners, new construction in Moscow. Others talk about the measures the government took to round up and deport the homeless (and prostitutes) out of the city for the duration of the games, or how many parents received heavy-handed suggestions to send their kids to the out-of-town summer camps away from the “danger”. I didn’t know any of that at the time, and probably didn’t care being 10. All I remember is the summer, beach, friends, little cabin we rented near the sea, and a small TV. A happy place, long time ago, far away from here.

Olympic Presentation:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaWsEfQde84

Athletes entering the stadium:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QmRTy3bE9o

Views of Moscow:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z47yTDsDPXY

Moscow getting ready for the Olympics:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65GrUXic2k8

A 25-minute video of the Olympic torch and the Opening ceremonies.

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Recently Shane wrote about his ride to work and how it makes him wish for the public transit system. I’ve been driving my everyday 20.5 miles (one way) for close to ten years now and while it’s not my favorite pastime I think a lot depends on the soundtrack you use for your drive. Since my hectic schedule and refusal to tolerate people other than me farting in my vehicle prevent me from sharing the ride, I grabbed my new camera so I can invite you for a few minutes of virtual carpooling on my morning drive to work.  See for yourself how easy and fun it is.

(I placed the camera slightly lower than I should have, I will try better next time)

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwLV-smsXZ4

See Also: Adding the Benny Hill Theme to Anything Makes it Funny.

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A while ago I was driving through Williamsburg,KS and stopped just long enough to take few photos for my blog. I didn’t write anything especially mean or disparaging, just my usual semi-ironic travel remarks. Then I got a few comments like this:

Wow! Do you get your jollies by going around and finding the worst in every place you go? How sad! Did you bother to look at our new Library or the nice Community building or our school or the many nice houses or the new museum building? I pity you if all you see when you go through a community is the worst – and every community has some. We do have a great community – sure we’re struggling to stay alive – What small town isn’t. But we take care of each other, oh, why am I trying to explain anything to someone like you?

This is what I call a Podunk Effect. Every other town in this country has a library, a school and a great community. It’s the rest of the stuff that makes a place unique, even if it’s a rusty truck, broken-down gazebo or an old sign. Podunk Effect makes you want to prove that your town is much much better than some visiting idiot made it out to be, even though the visitor is long gone and will probably never be back. He didn’t do his research, didn’t shake hands, didn’t sign your museum’s guestbook, and now everyone will see your awesome town as a giant pile of rusted metal and construction trash. Podunk Effect makes you boil with anger and leave angry comments on the offender’s site to set him straight.

Recently an enormous case of Podunk Effect hit Kansas City, when a snarky article about the life of a vegetarian New-Yorker in Midwest was published in the New York Times.

But make no mistake: meat-loving is one stereotype that the region wears with pride. Lard still plays a starring role in many kitchens, bacon comes standard in salads, and perhaps the most important event on Kansas City social calendars is a barbecue contest.

– blasphemed the alleged heretic (none of it untrue) inadvertently creating a tsunami of righteous outrage.

“How dare he! What does he mean by “meat-loving stereotype”? Lettuce is a vegetable!”

One chef and refuter wrote:

My first reaction to the article was confusion. My second reaction was to laugh. My third reaction was anger.

My first reaction to her post was doubt – do people really have three separate reactions in a row?
My second reaction was to wonder – what was the length of time in which these three reactions occurred? Was it really fast like “I am confused! Ha-ha! Boo!” or did every stage take some time, maybe an hour or more?
My third reaction was amazement – did I just have three reactions in a row? Awesome!

The problem with the NYT article is not the lack of research, or the author taking an easy route of propagating old stereotypes instead of portraying Kansas City as an oasis of vegetarianism in Midwest. The problem is the Pavlovian defensive reaction the article prompted on twitter, blogs, Facebook and even in the local paper, reaction which  just like a hurricane in a glass of water is pretty irrelevant in the scheme of things.

Because I went to college I will use a Venn diagram to illustrate my point.

All the reactions, comments, blog posts and rebuttals are staying here, with an exception of maybe this short note on the New York Magazine’s site, where one succinct comment expressed how most New Yorkers feel about Kansas City.

Here is one headline you will never see in print: “New Yorkers are outraged about an unfair article about New York City published in the KC Star“. New Yorkers don’t need our or anyone else’s approval and acknowledgement, so why do we have to get hysterical and make everyone love us just like a podunk Williamsburg,KS? Until we drop small town mentality and just do our thing whether it’s eating meat or tofu, we will always suffer from the lack of self-respect as the city.
No one is flying in here for the local vegetarian smorgasbord, it exists mostly for the people who live here and their occasional meat-hating guest. And, to be fair, the meat-loving stereotype served this city well, financially as well as being known as the BBQ capital of the world in the rest of the world. Recently I watched a clip of a Russian show where a lady presented a host with several bottles of the Kansas City BBQ sauce (ironically with all-vegetarian ingredients). That’s not a bad thing to be famous for.
One thing this city needs to learn from New York: when you say or do something that a New Yorker doesn’t like, he will show you a finger and move on.

We just need to learn to move on. But not before showing the finger.

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