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Sam Shepard's Bloomington Drinking Den

Pulitzer Prize-winner, actor, writer and director Sam Shepard was picked up by cops early Saturday morning in Normal, Illinois, 133 miles southwest of Chicago and next door to Bloomington, one of the country's most theatrical cities and host of the Illinois Shakespeare Festival.

According to police, Shepard was clocking 46 mph in a 30 mph zone at around 2 am after making a stop at Fat Jacks in Bloomington. (Featuring $2.75 Jack Daniel's drinks every Friday night!) From the sound of this review on Citysearch, though, he should've known that calling a cab would've been a better idea than driving:

This is usually the place all the college kids go. Cops are always lurking within the building and around it, waiting for drunks to make a mistake.

Shortly after last call the bouncers are quick to get people out, even if you are trying to close your tab or as a designated driver they will make you wait outside.

The "Right Stuff" and "Assassination of Jesse James" actor posted bond and was released a few hours after his arrest.

Related Stories:
· Fat Jacks [MySpace]
· Sam Shepard Arrested for DUI [Boston Herald]

Tags: C.R.E.A.M. / Weird / Money / Middle America / → All Tags

Fistfuls Of Foreign Currency... In Milwaukee?

Two neighborhoods in Milwaukee have had it with the US dollar--and are planning to print up their own cash to be used at local businesses. Amazingly, it's totally legal as long as they don't mint coins.

Community organizer (ewww!) Sura Faraj tells the Chicago Tribune:

You have all these people who have local currency, and they're going to spend it at local stores. They can't spend it at the Wal-Mart or the Home Depot, but they can spend it at their local hardware store or their local grocery store.

But why would you want to use locally grown cash if you can just as easily spend US dollars in Wisconsin? Shops in Riverwest and East Side, Milwaukee might build in favorable exchange rates, so an item that would cost, say, US$11 would go for just $10 worth of local scratch.

Related Stories:
· Milwaukee Neighborhoods Could Print Own Money [Chicago Tribune, via]
· Dollar-Euro Exchange Rate Totally Killing Us [Jaunted]

[Photo of funny money: sixsixsixismoney]

Tags: Halloween / Middle America / Fall Travel / Fall Festivals / → All Tags

Fall Festivals Travel: Plenty of Pumpkins

Even though they're a little early, the residents of New Hampshire are ready to celebrate Halloween this weekend at the Keene Pumpkin Festival.

Things start at 10 am on Saturday with a craft fair and all kinds of food, but the real fun starts at noon with the pumpkin seed spitting contest. More entertainment kicks off in the afternoon with musicians spread out across three stages. If you're up for more eating, or were impressed by Joey Chestnut's recent feat, then get a good spot for the pumpkin pie eating contest.

The day's events culminate when the official count of lighted jack-o-lanterns takes place. That's right, the whole festival is centered on trying to break the world record for the most candle-filled pumpkins in one place: Last year the festival got close with 25,644, but nearby Boston still holds the record with more than 30,000!

Related Stories:
· The Keene Pumpkin Festival [Official Site]
· Fall Festivals coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: jmwests]

Tags: Art / Museums / Middle America / → All Tags

Third Coast Art: The Heartland Exhibition

What exactly is the "heartland" of America? Usually mentioned in passing as that vague area between the East and West Coasts, Heartland is the name and focus of an extensive exhibition at the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven, Netherlands.

The show highlights the variety of art coming out of the area of America that roughly follows the Mississippi River, from New Orleans to Minneapolis, including Omaha, Kansas City, Detroit and Chicago. Heartland aims to give a better picture of the often overlooked middle of the country by questioning traditional definitions of cultural centers by demonstrating that cultural creation can happen anywhere.

The show runs till January 25, when it will move (in a slightly smaller scale) to the Smart Museum of Art in Chicago.

Related Stories:
· Heartland Research Blog [Official Site]
· Heartland, a Walk into the Art Scene of the "Third Coast" [WMMNA]
· Art coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: President Bush / Presidential Travel / Middle America / → All Tags

Regime Change Travel: Sorry, Crawford

Whoever ends up taking the White House this fall, one thing's for sure: He won't be hosting meetings in Crawford, Texas. That has the dusty town a little teary-eyed after eight years in the spotlight.

Says the Washington Post:

Wednesday marks the final day of Bush's last Crawford summer vacation, a prospect [that] has left longtime residents marveling at the changes that have come to their dusty, 700-person town about 20 miles west of Waco--and wondering what comes next.

Tourist (and journalist) traffic is already drying up, and plenty of storefronts on the main drag are empty. And though the president's presence spurred a bit of development, plans for other projects have dissolved.

At least we'll always have the movie!

Related Stories:
· Ready or Not, Crawford May Soon Resume Normalcy [WaPo]
· Presidential Travel: W Loves Road Trips [Jaunted]

[Photo: mari.francille]

Tags: Labor Day Travel / Summer Travel / Music Festivals / Middle America / → All Tags

Labor Day Travel: Banjo Bonanza in Missouri

If your Labor Day to Missouri don't inclue sumo wrestling, then you're probably headed to the 40th Annual Bluegrass Pickin' Time. (Hard to believe that it's already been 40 years!) About 130 miles outside of St. Louis, the small town of Dixon is definitely ready for this year's fun.

Things kick off on Wednesday evening before the holiday weekend with a fish fry, and you're even encouraged to bring a dish to share. Starting Thursday night, the festival will start kickin' with the Bluegrass Pickin' Time Band. After that, things start around lunchtime every day and don't stop until about 10 pm.

In addition to all the music, there will be craft vendors scattered about the park and even a quilt show. [Ed.: Now *that's* Midwestern.] Instrument workshops will also be held so you can get some tips and tricks from the pros to improve your own bluegrass skills. Tickets for the full four days will run you just $35.

Related Stories:
· Bluegrass Pickin' Time [Official Site]
· Labor Day Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo of the 2007 Event: Bluegrass Pickin' Time]

Tags: Corn Maze Travel / Brett Favre / Packers / Fall Travel / Middle America / Rural Travel / → All Tags

Corny Travel: Get Lost, Brett Favre!

This week, NFL quarterback Brett Favre created a firestorm by asking to be released from his Packers contract so he could un-retire and play for another team. Now a Wisconsin couple has honored the twists and turns of the quarterback's career with a corn maze thanking him for Packers glory.

Corn mazes are a traditional Midwestern early-fall entertainment created by trimming stalks in a pattern and then allowing children to run around inside until they cry. (We would know!) Carlene and Duane Schultz of the western Wisconsin town of Eleva do a corn maze every year, but they started planning this 5.5-acre masterpiece when Favre announced his retirement in April after taking the Pack as far as the NFC Championship game.

When it opens on September 1 we fully expect to find Ted Thompson inside, muttering about how things could have gone so, so wrong.

Related Stories:
· Wisconsin Family Creates Brett Favre Maze [AP]
· Hotel Sierra Opens In Green Bay; Packers Fans Will Be Pleased [HC]
· A-maize-ing Utah: Get It? [Jaunted]

[Photo: Schultzscountrybarn.com]

Tags: Summer Travel / Fourth of July / Fireworks / Rural Travel / Middle America / Competitive Eating / → All Tags

Fourth of July Travel: Independence Day in Independence

The weekend's finally here! By now you should've finalized some sort of holiday action plan, but here's one last Fourth of July suggestion: Independence, Iowa. With just over 6,000 residents at last count, the town is certainly small, but as they say, "Everybody observes the Fourth of July, we celebrate it!"

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Tags: Missed Connections / American Idol / David Cook / Celeb Travel / Bars / Middle America / → All Tags

Missed Connections in Tulsa: American Idol Winner Edition

David Cook, the winner of the seventh season of "American Idol," may have been born in Houston, Texas, but when the 26-year-old graduated from college he decided to pursue his career in music in... Tulsa, Oklahoma. (To be fair, he didn't audition there but in Omaha.)

We hope the city's borders are prepared for an onslaught of shaggy, sideburned dudes with a weakness for rock ballads. If you are one, or want to meet one, you might do well to look in these hot spots:

Club Maverick :: Maybe leave the mustache at home when frequenting this bear-friendly gay bar. 822 S. Sheridan Rd.

Four Aces Tavern :: Live local bands stop by this watering hole every weekend, but you and your friends can also do karaoke there and live your local-stardom dreams. 11035 E. 41st St.

River Park :: Desert, schmesert! Wander along the city's source of fresh water alone or with man's best friend. Hwy. 44 and Riverside Dr.

Related Stories:
· Missed Connections coverage [Jaunted]
· Tulsa Hotels [HC]

[Photo of a statue on the Arkansas River: Tulsa Topics]

Tags: Film Festival Travel / Film Festivals / Restaurants / Bars / Middle America / → All Tags

Back of the Envelope Travel Guide: Wisconsin Film Festival

Don't confuse Madison with the rest of Wisconsin. A small, blue dot amidst a sea of Republican reds on the election maps, this liberal outpost has more going for it than cheese. Home to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the city also boasts its own film festival.

The Wisconsin Film Festival, now in its tenth year, features 150 films and runs April 3-6, 2008. The festival takes over ten downtown theaters, with genres such as documentary, shorts, narrative and experimental. Organizers even throw in restored classics, as well as the work of Wisconsin filmmakers. Events, like Star Wars stormtrooper invasions, are also part of the fun.

Festival organizers claim attendance numbers are growing--nearly 30,000 last year--and more well-known entries keep coming in. Last year, for example, the festival featured Wristcutters: A Love Story and Fay Grim, starring indie darling Parker Posey.

Our Back of the Envelope Guide

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Tags: Fall-Festivals-Map / Fall Festivals / Rural Travel / Middle America / → All Tags

Best Fall Festivals :: The Great Pumpkin Show

Nothing says fall like ridiculous harvest festivals in small-town America. This week, we'll be mapping the best.

Not much happens in little ol' Circleville, Ohio, a town of 12,000 about 25 miles south of Columbus. You'll find a bunch of OSU Buckeye fans and maybe some Skybus devotees, but other than that, it's farm country. Which is what makes it so perfect for a giant pumpkin shindig.

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Tags: County Fairs / Middle America / → All Tags

Carny Travel: Touring America's Fairs

It's fair season. Across the country, carnies are screwing together old ferris wheel parts and hanging tarps over squirt gun games. Throughout the month of August, while families along the coast lounge on beaches, Americans in the middle flock to county and state fairs.

Up until Labor Day, you can find a place to check out prize livestock, gorge on fried dough, and win a giant stuffed SpongeBob SquarePants within about five miles of any landlocked town. Our personal favorite: the Erie County Fair, near Buffalo, NY.

Most of us ridicule America's gypsies--even if we take advantage of their handiwork. But carnival workers are living the life we can only blog about. They get to travel the country, meet new and interesting characters, and earn a living with nary a cubicle in sight. Where do we sign up?

Related Stories:
· Erie County Fair [Official Site]

[Photo: tkinter]