By Today’s Flyover People column as seen in The Emporia Gazette: 2012 Kansas Notable Book Award winners EXPLORER RESEARCH VOYAGE Sometimes the evening news from the Statehouse discourages me. I hope for and expect better things for Kansas than are sometimes decided for us. I had been feeling down, so I was delighted recently to …
Portrait of an Artist
Today’s Flyover People column as seen in The Emporia Gazette: PORTRAIT OF AN ARTIST For a while now, I had been hoping to interview Erika Nelson – because she drives a vehicle with dinosaurs tarred onto the hood, has taxidermy forms in her living room, and because she seems like one of the coolest kids …
Pancake Flipping
At the Kansas Sampler Festival which was held earlier this month in Leavenworth there was some pancake flipping going on. The Sampler Festival moves around Kansas every two years to expose a different area’s audience to the event and also as a way to get people to travel to other regions of the state. The …
150th Birthday Cake
A birthday “cake,” decorated with sunflowers and Kansas Explorers Club buttons recognized Kansas’ sesquicentennial. This was on display at the Kansas Sampler Festival in Leavenworth earlier this month.
Marci Penner at SouthWind Gallery
Marci Penner greeted fans yesterday at SouthWind Gallery in Topeka. The baby in this mother’s lap is named Astra. As in ad astra per aspera. What a great name for a Kansas girl. Marci Penner, director of the Kansas Sampler Foundation, has recently published a guidebook with 216 of the best places to visit in …
From Marysville…
A black squirrel from Marysville made an appearance at the Kansas Sampler Festival in Leavenworth.
What We Love About Kansas
Today’s Flyover People column as seen in The Emporia Gazette: WHAT WE LOVE ABOUT KANSAS Fireflies, cows, and being able to see the stars. Those are just a few of the things that residents appreciate about our state. At the Kansas Sampler Festival in Leavenworth earlier this month, festival-goers were provided a large map of …
Kansas Explorer Bling
Every year in the Kansas Explorers tent at the Kansas Sampler Festival, explorer members can pick up their annual button. This year’s button celebrates 150 years of Kansas and says “happy birthday, dear Kansas!” If you love Kansas (and who doesn’t?), you can join the Kansas Explorers Club. It’s a fun and easy club to …
Washboard
A washboard in the foreground and other instruments in the back belong to the Alferd Packer Memorial String Band of Lawrence. They were one of the groups who performed at the Kansas Sampler Festival this past weekend in Leavenworth.
Hula girls
Onstage at the opening ceremony of the Kansas Sampler Festival, two local girls did some fantastic hula-hooping to music.
Baan Thai
On Saturday evening, I looked down the Kansas Sampler Festival list of locally-owned restaurants in Leavenworth County and spotted Baan Thai. So, that’s where I headed. After I was seated, a group of Kansas Explorers/Sampler Foundation peeps came in and asked me to join them, so I had a great time. Unfortunately, when my red …