Shopping for an Editor

   Something must be missing in one of my X chromosomes.  I’m a female, yet I don’t really like to shop.    I don’t believe that’s the cause of our current economic challenges – there are plenty of women who make up for my lack of purchasing passion.

  But I do admire writers who incorporate their passion for shopping with a passion for writing.  My gal pal Sally Walker Davies does.  She writes a column in the Memphis Commerical Appeal called “Great Finds.”  It’s a shopping column of sorts, but she successfully weaves in her travel as well.  And it’s a good fit.  The Travel Industry Association tells us that shopping and eating are the top two activities we participate in while traveling.

   When we were in Spain last November, Sally bought red toilet paper and some wool scarves that, when placed next to the light bulb in the trunk, nearly caught the vehicle on fire. But the story was linked around the world and red toilet paper sales soared.  

   When we were at Mount Rushmore, she bought a vintage cafeteria tray.  I’m not sure I understand the purpose of that one, but she says it has a great home in her bathroom.

   And when we were in Indianapolis last week, Sally bought a number of unmentionables that I’m sure she will mention in her column.  We shopped on Mass Avenue, a really cool, trendy district with lots of independently owned boutiques and gift shops.  While I was purchasing wrapping paper that looks like maps of the world’s great cities at Mass Avenue Toys, she was carried away with farting fingers.  Shall we say, the store appeals to a diverse group?

  But I most enjoyed a shop called Global Gifts, a non-profit store that carries the work of improverished artisans in developing countries.  The store guarantees to the consumer that the products have been made in an ethical manner and the purchase truly benefits the individual artisan.  Employees do a great job of educating the public about the culture and traditions of the country represented by the product.

   Global Gifts carries hand-made products from about 50 countries, but it changes seasonally.  They say Christmas is crazy because this is where you can find authentic ornaments and nativities from all of these countries.

       

Anyway, I loved Global Gifts, so now I’m pitching stories about it and hoping an editor will love the idea as much as I do.  But the first rule of writing is “write what you know,” so I might be handicapped by pitching this as a shopping story.

   It’s just a good story,  a great find, looking for a home.

 

Little penguin ornaments carved from a Tagua nut in Equador.

That’s the Way It Was

   Depending on our ages, we all remember where we were went we learned John Kennedy had been assassinated, John Lennon murdered, the Space Shuttle exploded or the twin towers went down.

  For many of those events and more, I was in a newsroom.

  I add to my list of memories where I was when Walter Cronkite last assured us that ”that’s the way it is.”  I was working at the CBS affiliate in Cape Girardeau that night when Uncle Walter signed off for the last time.  I had anchored the 9:25 p.m. newsbreak, that 30-second little teaser for what’s coming up on the 10 p.m. local news. 

   At that time, I had aspirations of replacing Uncle Walter, but life called me down a different path, I guess the road less traveled, and I have no regrets.

   I’ll also always remember where I was when I heard that Walter Cronkite had died.  Technically, I was on a ladder repairing holes in a wall in preparation for painting while listening to Rachel Maddow’s take on the day’s events.

   But earlier in the day and the week, I had written a couple of stories about the upcoming 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

 

Pieces of the Berlin Wall can be seen in prominent places around the world, but my stories focused on that at Memorial Park in Rapid City South Dakota and at the Winston Churchill Museum and Library in Fulton, Missouri.

  In talking with the director of the museum, I asked him about his favorite part of the museum and that which he believes all visitors should not miss during their visit.

   His answer:  the movie on Churchill’s life, narrated by Walter Cronkite.  He talked about the integrity and sincerity and authoritative but folksy charm of Cronkite’s delivery, bringing the rather stuffy Churchill into focus for middle America.

  My stories about the Berlin Wall sites will appear in a couple of publications:  AAA, Show-Me Missouri, Suite101.com.   I’ll let you know where they are available.

   My hope is that just one word of my stories reflects the depths of honesty and awareness of social responsibility that Walter Cronkite, a Missouri native, breathed into each word he wrote.

  My fear is that no journalist will ever again reach, attempt to reach or even understand why reaching Walter Cronkite’s level of truth and resulting trust is important.

   And sadly, that’s just the way it is.

Dreams: the Key to Economic Recovery

  I was talking with a guy the other day - self-employed like myself – about how the economy is affecting his business, my business, life in general.

  His response:  “I refuse to participate in the economic downturn.”

   Intrigued, but thinking he must be living in lala-land or at least in a homeless shelter, I asked him to explain his unique philosophy.  Perhaps we could share it with Washington and Wall Street and this whole news cycle could just go away.

  He explained that he was just doing what he has always done as an entrepreneur:  work hard and smart and keep focused on his dreams.

   I like that!  That’s the entrepreneurial spirit that, in my farm girl vernacular, separates the wheat from the chaff.

   And that’s why I responded to an ad on a writer’s forum a few months ago about a new travel e-zine launching. To paraphrase, the call for writer’s submissions admitted that the publication couldn’t, at this time, pay the writers what their work was really worth. 

   I believe the word “horrendous” might have been used to describe the economy, but the ad also promised writers who would hang in there and accept a lower pay scale at this time, would be treated quite favorably when the economy turns around.

  I corresponded with the editor a bit and found her to be inspired.  She expressed that entrepreneurial spirit that keeps people working toward their dreams even in the face of overwhelming obstacles.

Read my story from the Turks & Caicos, under Caribbean Travel, to find out about this little guy.

   So I submitted five stories on Egypt, one from Costa Rica,

one from the Turks & Caicos, one about kayaking, and maybe a few more, I can’t remember.

  The editor has been good to her word, paying quickly and even a little more than first offered.  She’s taking a chance and following her dreams.  You gotta like that!

   The site is www.travelersanonymous.com and subscribe now for free.  Eventually, when the economy turns around, new subscribers will be charged a fee, which will then help pay the writers better. 

  But the first 1000 subscriptions are free and by signing up, you support this woman and her dreams – and her pledge to pay her writers better.

From my story on the Nubian Villages of Egypt. But click to the site to see what it's about.