Return to Banta 2 (Unsupervised)

In today’s world, children exist in a bubble. Practically everywhere they go and everything they do is supervised; if not a helicopter parent there is some adult within their line of sight tasked with watching over them. Rarely are kids trusted to travel even short distances alone now. Even the walk to the corner to catch the school bus typically involves an escort. Is it any wonder Millennials feel entitled? Most have spent their entire lives with a personal security detail with them whenever they leave the house.

As kids of the seventies, we were largely unsupervised, so our opportunities for fun, adventure and potentially fatal incidents were more frequent than my own daughter would encounter thirty years later. In this post I’ll share a few tales that illustrate what I’m talking about. Continue reading “Return to Banta 2 (Unsupervised)”

Return to Banta 1 (Bloomington, Indiana)

When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man… well, not much really changed I guess.

Before continuing North from Bean Blossom, I decided to take a brief day trip Southwest to Bloomington, Indiana. I’d not visited the college town in decades, and besides I told myself I needed to restock the pantry at a market a bit larger than a Dollar General or IGA anyway.

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Bean Blossom

Welcome to Bean Blossom!

There are three bluegrass festivals on my bucket list: Telluride, Merlefest and Bean Blossom. I’ve been to Telluride twice, once with my wife & daughter just for a day in 2001 and for the full week with my buddy Jim Medley 2012. Since it dovetailed nicely into my desire to visit the state of Michigan this year, I signed up for a full 8 day pass to Bean Blossom 2018. The central Indiana location is only 3-4 hours from Springfield IL, so I invited Jim to join me once again, thinking he might be able to drive over for the weekend. To my surprise, he took the entire week off work, so I had the pleasure of the company of one of my oldest friends for the whole festival. What a treat!

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