How We Got Started in Expediting: Heather and Jason Hutchens

For individuals or couples interested in traveling the country without having to deal with the extra long trailers associated with regular trucking, expediting can be a nice option.  It allows couples to see the country together and make good money hauling time sensitive freight. Check out the interview below to learn more about how a successful couple turned their passion for travel into a great business!




Click here to read the entire interview: How We Got Started in Expediting: Heather and Jason Hutchens:

From the article:"Heather and Jason Hutchens--who you might recognize from their Our Life on the Road video blog onExpeditersOnline.com--were looking for a career that would allow them to work and travel together. And after several months of extensive research in 2012, they discovered the opportunity they were seeking: expedited trucking. So, in January 2013, the Hutchens launched their new career together and haven't looked back."

10 Ways to Improve Your Writing While Thinking Like a Comedy Writer

10 Ways to Improve Your Writing While Thinking Like a Comedy Writer: Do you have the SWEATS: Serious Writer Experiencing Anxiety and Timidity Syndrome? If so, you don’t need medication to cope with your ailment—all you need is a shot of Comedy Writing 101. Here is a 10-part breakdown of how to write better and avoid the SWEATS.

Netflix New Releases November 2016

Netflix in November 2016
November 1st
The African Queen (1951)
Alfie (2004)
Bob the Builder: White Christmas (2008)
Candyman 2: Farewell to the Flesh (1995)
The Confessions of Thomas Quick (2016)
Cujo (1983)
The Doors (1991)
The Heartbreak Kid (2007)
Jetsons: The Movie (1990)
King’s Faith (2013)
Love, Now (2012)
Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You (2016)
Pervert Park (2014)
Ravenous (1999)
Stephen King’s Thinner (1996)
Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990)
Thomas & Friends: A Very Thomas Christmas (2012)
Thomas & Friends: Holiday Express (2012)
Thomas & Friends: Merry Winter Wish (2010)
Thomas & Friends: The Christmas Engines (2014)
Thomas & Friends: Ultimate Christmas (2009)
November 2nd
Dough (2015)
Food Choices (2016)
Meet the Blacks (2016)
November 4th
The Crown (Season 1) – Netflix Original
Dana Carvey: Straight White Male, 60 (2016) – Netflix Original
The Ivory Game (2016) – Netflix Original
Just Friends (2005)
World of Winx (Season 1) – Netflix Original
November 9th
Danger Mouse (Season 2) – Netflix Original
November 11th
All Hail King Julien (Season 4) – Netflix Original
Case (Season 1) – Netflix Original
Estocolmo (Season 1) – Netflix Original
Roman Empire: Reign of Blood (Season 1) – Netflix Original
Tales by Light (Season 1) – Netflix Original
True Memoirs of An International Assassin (2016) – Netflix Original
Under the Sun (2015)
November 12th
Take Me to the River (2015)
November 14th
Carter High (2015)
November 15th
Dieter Nuhr: Nuhr in Berlin (2016) – Netflix Original
K-POP Extreme Survival (Season 1)
Men Go to Battle (2015)
The Missing Ingredient: What is the Recipe for Success? (2016)
November 16th
The 100 (Season 3)
Burn After Reading (2008)
Jackass 3.5: The Unrated Movie (2011)
Paddington (2014)
November 17th
Lovesick (Scrotal Recall) (Season 2) – Netflix Original
Paranoid (Season 1) – Netflix Original
November 18th
The Battle of Midway (1942)
Beat Bugs (Season 2) – Netflix Original
Colin Quinn: The New York Story – Netflix Original
Divines (2016) – Netflix Original
Prelude to War (1942)
San Pietro (1945)
Sour Grapes (2016)
Thunderbolt (1947)
Tunisian Victory (1944)
Undercover: How to Operate Behind Enemy Lines (1943)
Why We Fight: The Battle of Russia (1943)
WWII: Report from the Aleutians (1943)
November 22nd
Mercy (2016) – Netflix Original
November 23rd
Penguins: Spy in the Huddle (Season 1)
November 25th
3% (Season 1) – Netflix Original
Boyhood (2014)
Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life – Netflix Original
Michael Che Matters – Netflix Original
November 29th
Silver Skies (2016)
November 30th
Ghost Team (2016)
I Dream Too Much (2016)
The Jungle Book (2016)
Level Up (2016)
Traded (2016)

Tiny Travels Through Mississippi: Blue Springs, New Albany

Tiny Travels Through Mississippi: Blue Springs, New Albany: New Albany and Corinth were on our agenda when we left Tupelo on Thursday morning, May 19. We had done a quick run-through of Corinth years ...

Work Based Learning Video from Vimeo: Collierville High School

https://vimeo.com/165438824
Collierville High Work Based Learning from Collierville High School on Vimeo.

Joe Rogan Experience: Christine Hassler

Joe Rogan Experience podcast is a consistent educational experience in my daily life.  He picks the greatest guest, and Christine Hassler(life coach and author) doesn't disappoint. She talks about overcoming feeling like a victim and making changes in life to find ways to be happier.
JRE #866 - Christine Hassler from JoeRogan on Vimeo.

Cabover Truck Pictures

http://www.tenfourmagazine.com/feature/2004/JanCvr3.jpg




Zach Beadle from Overdrive has direct customers and has diversity with all his trailers and a dependable 1976 352 Peterbilt

The Inuit Paradox | DiscoverMagazine.com

The Inuit Paradox

How can people who gorge on fat and rarely see a vegetable be healthier than we are?The Inuit Paradox | DiscoverMagazine.com

I was a Cultural Anthropology fan long before enrolling in my first course on the topic at MSU.   I wish I still had the reading list from my Intro. to Anthropology class, but the articles found on a simple online search will have to suffice.  Enjoy the above article on why Paleo isn't just for hipsters anymore, in fact, it was around long before excessive denim, tattoo sleeves, black framed glasses, and neatly trimmed beards.

My favorite excerpt from the article above:
Today, when diet books top the best-seller list and nobody seems sure of what to eat to stay healthy, it’s surprising to learn how well the Eskimo did on a high-protein, high-fat diet. Shaped by glacial temperatures, stark landscapes, and protracted winters, the traditional Eskimo diet had little in the way of plant food, no agricultural or dairy products, and was unusually low in carbohydrates. Mostly people subsisted on what they hunted and fished. Inland dwellers took advantage of caribou feeding on tundra mosses, lichens, and plants too tough for humans to stomach (though predigested vegetation in the animals’ paunches became dinner as well). Coastal people exploited the sea. The main nutritional challenge was avoiding starvation in late winter if primary meat sources became too scarce or lean.

Deep Winter Greenhouse U of M Extension

deep-winter-greenhouse University of Minnesota Extension Link

From the site:
A Deep Winter Greenhouse (DWG) is a passive solar greenhouse designed to dramatically limit the amount of fossil fuel required to grow crops in northern latitudes. DWGs are oriented east-west with a south facing glazing wall specially angled depending on the latitude of the greenhouse to maximize solar energy on the shortest day of the year. Solar energy is stored in an underground thermal mass made up of an insulated rock bed that is covered with soil. Perforated drain tile that is laid out in the underground rock bed and distributed through the air through vents and fans that connect the air to the underground heat storage. Crops can be planted directly into the soil and through a system of suspended planters.

DWGs are utilized to grow cold hardy crops that thrive with minimal light throughout the middle of winter providing year-round production capacity for small scale farmers and gardeners. Crops well suited to DWG production include a variety of greens, herbs, broccoli, broccoli raab, kale, collards, Chinese cabbage, bok choy, and pea shoots. While fruiting crops like tomatoes, peppers, green beans, etc.. are not commonly grown in DWGs there is still lots of room for innovation and experimentation.

Trailer Report: Lightweight Flatbeds Allow Heavy Payloads, Help Fleet Grow - Article - TruckingInfo.com

Trailer Report: Lightweight Flatbeds Allow Heavy Payloads, Help Fleet Grow - Article - TruckingInfo.com

Days by Emerson

Days

Daughters of Time, the hypocritic Days,
Muffled and dumb like barefoot dervishes,
And marching single in an endless file,
Bring diadems and fagots in their hands.
To each they offer gifts after his will,
Bread, kingdom, stars, and sky that holds them all.

I, in my pleached garden, watched the pomp,
Forgot my morning wishes, hastily
Took a few herbs and apples, and the Day
Turned and departed silent. I, too late,
Under her solemn fillet saw the scorn.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

This Is Water by David Foster Wallace Full Speech

Charlie Rose interviews David Foster Wallace, 1/4

Land of the Midnight Sun - Vince Gassi

From: http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/2010/07/crow_brings_the_daylight.html

Crow Brings the Daylight

An Inuit Myth

retold by

S. E. Schlosser

Story featured in Land of the Midnight Sun, a concert band piece composed by Vince Gassi!

Long, long ago, when the world was still new, the Inuit lived in darkness in their home in the fastness of the north. They had never heard of daylight, and when it was first explained to them by Crow, who traveled back and forth between the northlands and the south, they did not believe him.

Yet many of the younger folk were fascinated by the story of the light that gilded the lands to the south. They made Crow repeat his tales until they knew them by heart.

"Imagine how far and how long we could hunt," they told one another.

"Yes, and see the polar bear before it attacks," others agreed.

Soon the yearning for daylight was so strong that the Inuit people begged Crow to bring it to them. Crow shook his head. "I am too old," he told them. "The daylight is very far away. I can no longer go so far." But the pleadings of the people made him reconsider, and finally he agreed to make the long journey to the south.

Crow flew for many miles through the endless dark of the north. He grew weary many times, and almost turned back. But at last he saw a rim of light at the very edge of horizon and knew that the daylight was close.

Crow strained his wings and flew with all his might. Suddenly, the daylight world burst upon him with all its glory and brilliance. The endless shades of color and the many shapes and forms surrounding him made Crow stare and stare. He flapped down to a tree and rested himself, exhausted by his long journey. Above him, the sky was an endless blue, the clouds fluffy and white. Crow could not get enough of the wonderful scene.

Eventually Crow lowered his gaze and realized that he was near a village that lay beside a wide river. As he watched, a beautiful girl came to the river near the tree in which he perched. She dipped a large bucket into the icy waters of the river and then turned to make her way back to the village. Crow turned himself into a tiny speck of dust and drifted down towards the girl as she passed beneath his tree. He settled into her fur cloak and watched carefully as she returned to the snow lodge of her father, who was the chief of the village people.

It was warm and cozy inside the lodge. Crow looked around him and spotted a box that glowed around the edges. Daylight, he thought. On the floor, a little boy was playing contentedly. The speck of dust that was Crow drifted away from the girl and floated into the ear of the little boy. Immediately the child sat up and rubbed at his ear, which was irritated by the strange speck. He started to cry, and the chief, who was a doting grandfather, came running into the snow lodge to see what was wrong.

"Why are you crying?" the chief asked, kneeling beside the child.

Inside the little boy's ear, Crow whispered: "You want to play with a ball of daylight." The little boy rubbed at his ear and then repeated Crow's words.

The chief sent his daughter to the glowing box in the corner. She brought it to her father, who removed a glowing ball, tied it with a string, and gave it to the little boy. He rubbed his ear thoughtfully before taking the ball. It was full of light and shadow, color and form. The child laughed happily, tugging at the string and watching the ball bounce.

Then Crow scratched the inside of his ear again and the little boy gasped and cried.

"Don't cry, little one," said the doting grandfather anxiously. "Tell me what is wrong."

Inside the boy's ear, Crow whispered: "You want to go outside to play." The boy rubbed at his ear and then repeated Crow's words to his grandfather. Immediately, the chief lifted up the small child and carried him outside, followed by his worried mother.

As soon as they were free of the snow lodge, Crow swooped out of the child's ear and resumed his natural form. He dove toward the little boy's hand and grabbed the string from him. Then he rose up and up into the endless blue sky, the ball of daylight sailing along behind him.

In the far north, the Inuit saw a spark of light coming toward them through the darkness. It grew brighter and brighter, until they could see Crow flapping his wings as he flew toward them. The people gasped and pointed and called in delight.

The Crow dropped the ball, and it shattered upon the ground, releasing the daylight so that it exploded up and out, illuminating every dark place and chasing away every shadow. The sky grew bright and turned blue. The dark mountains took on color and light and form. The snow and ice sparkled so brightly that the Inuit had to shade their eyes.

The people laughed and cried and exclaimed over their good fortune. But Crow told them that the daylight would not last forever. He had only obtained one ball of daylight from the people of the south, and it would need to rest for six months every year to regain its strength. During that six month period, the darkness would return.

The people said: "Half a year of daylight is enough. Before you brought the daylight, we lived our whole life in darkness!" Then they thanked Crow over and over again.

To this day, the Inuit live for half a year in darkness and half a year in daylight. And they are always kind to Crow, for it was he who brought them the light.

Author's Road interview with Tom Robbins

"A good story is not the same thing as a well told story"
Tom Robbins

From his interview:

The Best of Liszt | Classical Music for Studying and Concentration | Pia...

The Best of Liszt | Classical Music for Studying and Concentration | Pia...

Words of Wisdom by Tom Robbins: From Still Life with Woodpecker

“How can one person be more real than any other? Well, some people do hide and others seek. Maybe those who are in hiding - escaping encounters, avoiding surprises, protecting their property, ignoring their fantasies, restricting their feelings, sitting out the pan pipe hootchy-kootch of experience - maybe those people, people who won't talk to rednecks, or if they're rednecks won't talk to intellectuals, people who're afraid to get their shoes muddy or their noses wet, afraid to eat what they crave, afraid to drink Mexican water, afraid to bet a long shot to win, afraid to hitchhike, jaywalk, honky-tonk, cogitate, osculate, levitate, rock it, bop it, sock it, or bark at the moon, maybe such people are simply inauthentic, and maybe the jacklet humanist who says differently is due to have his tongue fried on the hot slabs of Liar's Hell. Some folks hide, and some folk's seek, and seeking, when it's mindless, neurotic, desperate, or pusillanimous can be a form of hiding. But there are folks who want to know and aren't afraid to look and won't turn tail should they find it - and if they never do, they'll have a good time anyway because nothing, neither the terrible truth nor the absence of it, is going to cheat them out of one honest breath of Earth's sweet gas.”
― Tom Robbins, Still Life with Woodpecker


“Don't let yourself be victimized by the age you live in. It's not the
times that will bring us down, any more than it's society. When you
put the blame on society, then you end up turning to society for the
solution. Just like those poor neurotics at the Care Fest. There's a
tendency today to absolve individuals of moral responsiblity and treat
them as victims of social circumstance. You buy that, you pay with
your soul. It's not men who limit women, it's not straights who limit
gays, it's not whites who limit black. what limits people is lack of
character. What limites people is that they don't have the fucking
nerve or imagination to star in their own movie, let alone direct it.
Yuck....It's a wonderful time to be alive. As long as one has enough
dynamite. --pg. 116-117”
― Tom Robbins, Still Life with Woodpecker

More great quotes from
https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/1105809-still-life-with-woodpecker

Toyota Truck Sleeper Cab

Money Saving Tips for Truckers, Nomads, and Road Trippers

Life on the road can really add up.  For people living the lifestyle everyday, like OTR truckers, having great tips for saving money can put more money back into your savings, wallet, and for covering the truck note.


Here are some links for modern day nomads:

Best info. I have found from Trucker's Wife: http://atruckerswife.com/articles/savemoney.asp


https://greatcdltraining.com/blog/money-saving-tips-for-truck-drivers



Check out his site:
http://www.truck-drivers-money-saving-tips.com/index.html



http://www.cardlog.com/money-saving-tips-for-truckers/
via Cardinal Logistics:
Making a successful living on the road is easier when you utilize the tricks of the trade, truckers often say, especially when it comes to saving money and time. There are several ways drivers can pinch pennies and still live a comfortable life. Here are Greatwide’s best tips for saving money on the road

How To Write a Novel on Your Commute | WritersDigest.com

Great points on how to write a novel:How To Write a Novel on Your Commute | WritersDigest.com

Summer Fishing for Sunfish

Minnesota's lakes are filled with many varieties of fish, and with so many options, most people fish for the popular walleye.   Panfish can be just as fun to catch, and even better tasting than walleye.  Most people think of catching sunfish as a child's activity, but when the walleye bite slows down, it can be a lot of fun to target sunfish and crappies.

An evening's catch of sunfish

perfect setting for sunfish

The only gear needed for catching panfish is a lightweight rod and reel, bobbers, and a hook with a crawler. Most of the panfish we have been catching lately are up in the lily pads in 4-6 ft. of water.  The best part of catching these fish is they are usually more abundant than walleye, and fight a great deal even if they are not as large as most targeted species of fish.

I like to dip them in Cajun Fry Magic and fry them in hot oil.  I make a homemade tarter sauce and put some butter on the hot fillets. They go well with a cold beverage and some deep fried home fries.   The enjoyment of catching and cleaning panfish has me hooked!

JB's Louisiana Cajun Cooking and Meat Thermometer

I am a subscriber to JB's Lousiniana Cajun Cooking channel, and have followed his cooking advice on a number of recent recipes.  JB is serious about smoking food and keeping his thirst quenched with some cold pops.  He is articulate and humorous, but a warning about his page....it is addictive.  He recommended a decent thermometer for cooking meat, so I posted a link to it above.  For 40 bucks, I will own one in a few days.

Netflix New Releases: June 2016

TELEVISION


June 17 Cutest Animals (Season 1)
72 Dangerous Places (Season 1)

Breaking the Magician's Code: Magic's Biggest Secrets Finally Revealed(Seasons 1–2)

Gentlemen and Gangsters (Season 1)
The Good Witch (Season 1)

Off Camera (Series 1)
Pokémon: XY: Kalos Quest (Season 2)


June 2Beauty & the Beast (Season 3)

Pretty Little Liars (Season 6)


June 10LEGO Friends: The Power of Friendship (Season 2)
Voltron: Legendary Defender (Season 1)


June 11Scandal (Season 5)


June 14The League (Season 7)


Jun 16Being Mary Jane (Season 3)
Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 3)


June 17All Hail King Julien (Season 3)
Orange is the New Black (Season 4)


June 18Cedar Cove (Season 3)

Grey’s Anatomy (Season 12)


June 19Bunk’d (Season 1)


June 20Life Story (Series 1)


June 21Best Friends Whenever (Season 1)


June 24Dragons: Race to the Edge (Season 3)


June 30A Very Secret Service (Season 1)


MOVIES


June 17 Chinese Brothers (2015)
A Walk to Remember (2002)
Big Stone Gap (2014)
Bob Ross: Beauty Is Everywhere (1990)
Cold in July (2014)
Conspiracy Theory: Did We Land On The Moon? (2001)
Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution (2015)
(Dis)Honesty: The Truth About Lies (2015)
El Libro de Piedra (1969)
Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007)

Extraordinary Tales (2015)
The Fear of 13 (2015)
Gabo: The Creation of Gabriel García Márquez (2015)
The Great Alone (2015)
Hadwin's Judgement (2015)
J. Edgar (2011)
Jaco (2015)
Janis: Little Girl Blue (2015)
Jurassic Park (1993)

Jurassic Park III (2001)

Lion Heart (2013)

The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)

Meadowland (2015)
The Odd Couple II (1998)
Pokémon the Movie: Hoopa and the Clash of Ages (2015)
Portrait of a Serial Monogamist (2015)
The Resurrection of Jake the Snake (2015)
Rock the Kasbah (2015)
Sam Klemke’s Time Machine (2015)
Second Coming (2014)

Tab Hunter Confidential (2015)
UFOs: The Best Evidence Ever (Caught on Tape) (1997)
Underdogs (2013)
What Our Fathers Did: A Nazi Legacy (2015)
Wildlike (2014)


June 2Hibana: Spark (2016)


June 3Bo Burnham: Make Happy (2016)


June 6Darkweb (2015)


June 7Every Thing Will Be Fine (2015)
Jarhead 3: The Seige (2016)


June 11Me Him Her (2016)


June 12Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong (2015)


June 15After The Spill (2015)
Boom Bust Boom (2016)
The Giver (2014)
In the Shadow of the Moon (2007)
Naz & Maalik (2015)
Night Owls (2015)
Poverty, Inc. (2014)
Top Spin (2015)
TransFatty Lives (2015)


Jun 16The Unborn (2009)


June 19I Am Thor (2015)


June 20The Making of Life Story (2016)


June 22Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014)
Spotlight (2015)


June 24The Fundamentals of Caring (2016)
Justin Time GO! (2016)


June 27Cronies (2015)


June 29Life (2015)


June 30Palio (2015)
(T)ERROR (2015)

Course of Food Video: Free Range by Christopher Hunt

Course of Food "Soo-ee" from christopher hunt on Vimeo.

Trip to North Shore of Minnesota

North Shore Trip 2016

North Shore, MN

After living in Minnesota for so long, I wasn't surprised to see a few snow flurries leading up to the fishing opener on Friday.  Since the weather was so cold, my mantra for opener is that it is for amateurs, much like New Year's Eve.  

I prefer to spend my time on the water in less crowded conditions, so I wet a line on this beautiful Monday, and will continue to fish all days except opener.  I have been catching a lot of fishing lately, especially on Lake...sorry, I can't remember the name.

The prey I am after include crappies and sunfish, but I will eat most types of fish.   I am pretty sure after being doused in breading, and fried, covered with butter and lemon, all of them taste about the same.

So, back to the cold weather, which is a Minnesotan thing to talk about....
Well, the cold front seemed to get worse heading to Duluth on Friday, so I stopped at the Cromwell Liquor store, and was pleasantly surprised to have stumbled upon a meat raffle.  I bought two tickets, won during the second round, and left before being beat up by a Finlander, who teased me for setting my meat up on the bar.

 Upon my arrival on the North Shore of Minnesota, I was greeted by seasonal allergies and blond Finnish women in the sauna. 

You see, the leaves hadn't even popped out on the trees up on the shore, and the pollen was killing me. The best way to deal with allergies is to wash down some Zyrtec and Flonase with micro brews, surround oneself with hipsters, and guzzle down some nine dollar beers made of cage free organic hops and served by tattoo-sleeved outdoorsy types.
 I don't know if the beer helped my allergies, but after a few I really started chatting up the Portland fashion influenced Duluthians and Two Harborites.  Turns out, they are friendly, fashion conscious, bearded (males), and love to drink micro brews, too!
 If you ever head up the north shore, be sure to check out the HUGE maple tree slab, and tasty brews at http://castledangerbrewery.com/.

Weekend in Bismarck, North Dakota

Well, the Memorial Day weekend was pretty uneventful, but despite the long drive from Brainerd, MN to Bismarck, ND, the overall trip out West was great.   Saturday morning was cold, cloudy and rainy when I left Brainerd, and all went well until the traffic was squeezed down to two lanes in the small town of Wadena, MN.  A pickup truck, license number LP8689, was following so close on the pothole ridden two lane road, that I was afraid he was going to hit me.  I  turned around to suggest he back off, and he sped around me right in the middle of the town's streets by passing into oncoming traffic.  He proceeded to speed away at high speeds and endanger his young daughter sitting in the front seat with no seat belt on.   I thought about calling the highway patrol, but the stupid I phone was no help in finding any contact information, and I wasn't going to call 911.  Along with this episode, one thing that is very prevalent on today's highways is people forgetting they are driving while talking on their cell phones.

Hang up and drive is my only message to dealing with all the frustrations associated with distracted and impatient driving.

The speed limit driving across North Dakota is 75 on the interstate, and this helps to make a quick trip, along with little to no traffic to contend with after driving through the Fargo metro area.


Bismarck, North Dakota is the capital of the state, and has calmed down in terms of business after the recent decline in the oil industry.   All of the restaurants and shopping still remain, and the small city is seemingly devoid of business and crowds.  This wasn't the case during the oil boom.  At one time, my relatives waited in a line of 27 cars just to get a Starbucks, but now the city is returning to a slower paced and relaxed vibe.  It is a good place and surprisingly scenic in the spring with the low bluffs, prairie lakes, abundance of pheasants, and the clean and inviting Missouri  River.
It turned out to be a long drive, but it was well worth it in terms of getting to spend some quality time with friends enjoying good food and excellent, sunny weather.

The drive back was uneventful, and we spent the rest of the weekend in the sun and water.

Hopper and Bulk Materials Transport Opportunities

I went up north last weekend to spend time with my family for Mother's Day.  Shortly after leaving the Brainerd Lake's Area, I started to notice all of the semi-trucks pulling hopper trailers and open deck trailers hauling agricultural machinery.  Agriculture is big business in western Minnesota, especially as you get closer to the North and South Dakota borders.   I have included some companies below that specialize in transporting agricultural commodities and equipment.

Foltz Trucking-Hopper and Bulk Carrier out of Detroit Lakes, MN:
http://foltztrucking.com/customers-2/

Jobs:http://foltztrucking.com/driving-for-foltz/

507-663-9006 | Fax: 507-663-9007
PO Box 177 - Randolph, MN 55065
garlan@gdubbelstrucking.com

Jobs: http://gdubbelstrucking.com/employment_coverage_area.php

 A free service with tons of info. for carriers and shippers specializing in bulk loads:

http://www.bulkloads.com/

 Minnesota based Freight Broker Online Training:

https://logisticsacademy.org/contact-logistics-academy/



Other areas of the United States:



Florida Truckers Coop (hoppers in the Southeast)
http://fltruckers.com/our-services/ 



Cleveland, Mississippi: http://ptbrokers.com/carriers/

Netflix New Releases May 2016

Netflix New Releases for May 2016: 

May 1

A Study in Sherlock (2016)

Admiral (2015)

Ava's Possessions (2015)

Bring It On (2000)

Bring It On: All or Nothing (2006)

Easy Living: Seasons 1-3

El Crítico (2013)

FernGully 2: The Magical Rescue (1998)

Finger of God (2007)

Gary Gulman: It's About Time (2016)

Great Expectations (1998)

I Am Road Comic (2014)

Jesus Town, USA (2014)

Just Friends (2005)

Kevin Hart Presents Keith Robinson: Back of The Bus Funny (2015)

Kevin Hart Presents Lil Rel: RELevent (2015)

Kevin Hart Presents: Plastic Cup Boyz (2015)

LoliRock: Season 1 (2014)

My Last Day Without You (2011)

The Nutty Professor (1996)

Off the Map (2013)

Palm Trees in the Snow (2015)

Pleasantville (1998)

Shark Lake (2015)

She's Beautiful When She's Angry (2014)

Sixteen Candles (1984)

Sugar Coated (2015)

Terra (2015)

Things We Lost in the Fire (2007)

To Catch a Thief (1955)

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Runnin' Down a Dream (2007)

Who’s Driving Doug (2016)
May 2 
The Replacements (2000)
May 3
Submerged (2015)
May 4

The Keeping Room (2015)

Shanghai Knights (2003)

May 5

Fourth Man Out (2015)
Marseille
May 6
Ali Wong: Baby Cobra
Baby Daddy: Season 5
Grace and Frankie: Season 2
Young & Hungry: Season 3
May 8
The Chosen Ones (2015)
May 9
A Stand Up Guy (2015)
May 10
Eisenstein in Guanajuato (2015)
May 11
Chelsea
Goosebumps (2015)
They Look Like People (2015)
May 12
Bleeding Heart (2015)
May 15
We Are Still Here (2015)
Yo Soy la Salsa (2014)
May 17
American Dad!: Season 10
Kindergarten Cop 2 (2016)
Slasher: Season 1 (2016)
May 18
A Girl Like Her (2015)
May 19
Benders: Season 1 (2015)
May 20
Lady Dynamite: Season 1
May 22
David and Goliath (2015)
The Letters (2014)
The Ouija Experiment 2: Theatre of Death (2015)
May 23 
Electricity (2014)
May 26
Graceland: Season 3
The Last Man on the Moon (2016)
May 27
Bloodline: Season 2
Chef's Table: Season 2, Part 1
The Do-Over (2016)
Mako Mermaids: Season 4 
May 28 
Hell on Wheels: Season 5

Leaving Netflix in May 2016

May 1
The Animatrix (2003)
Anna Karenina (1948)
Author! Author! (1982)
Beware of Mr. Baker (2012)
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)
Broadway Idiot (2013)
Bus Stop (1956)
Election (1999)
The Good Life (2012)
Holiday Engagement (2011)
Kiss of Death” (1995)
“Mad Hot Ballroom (2005)
Mona Lisa Is Missing (2012)
Ralphie May: Austin-tatious (2008)
Terms And Conditions May Apply (2013)
That’s What I Am (2011)
Thérèse (2012)
Truth or Die (2012)
Young & Handsome: An Evening with Jeff Garlin (2008)
May 2
Slightly Single in L.A. (2012)
May 3
JFK: The Smoking Gun (2013)
May 4
Stealing Harvard (2002)
May 6
Finding Normal (2013)
May 7
JFK: A President Betrayed (2013)
May 9
Cheerful Weather for the Wedding (2012)
Cracks (2009)
Tears of the Sun (2003)
May 10
The Score (2001)
May 12
The Ladykillers (2004)
May 13
Is the Man Who Is Tall Happy? (2013)
May 14
The Master of Disguise (2002)
Offender (2012)
May 15
A Pope For Everyone (2013)
Bratz: BFF: Best Friends Forever (2007)
The Greatest Places: IMAX (1999)
In Her Skin (2009)
Inhale (2010)
The Quest (2014)
Search for the Great Sharks: IMAX (1995)
Tiger Eyes (2012)
May 16
Blade Runner (1982)
The Last Tycoon (2012)
May 19
Peep World (2010)
May 21
Struck by Lightning (2012)
May 22
Ida (2013)
Stand Off (2012)
May 23
Black Hawk Down (2001)
May 27
Escape from Tomorrow (2013)
Run & Jump (2013)
Vanishing of the Bees (2009)
May 28
Barfi! (2012)
May 29
These Birds Walk (2013)
May 31
Clerks (1994)

See related

Articles on Bar Culture in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan

The rules of bar culture are different depending upon location. Check out these article below on bar culture in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan:


NY Times: Touring 109 Bars of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan

By JOE RHODES
Great description and writing on why there are so many bars in the UP:

There aren’t too many perfect days in Sault Ste. Marie.

The second-biggest city in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, it’s almost always too cold or too gray. In winter, which seems to last an average of eight or nine months, there is too much ice on Lake Superior, too much snow on the ground. Even in summer, which seems to last an average of eight or nine days, chilly winds blow in from the water. If the wind miraculously abates, the black flies and mosquitoes will have their way with your flesh. More often than not, it’s better to be indoors.

This is why there are so many bars in “the Soo” as everyone there calls Sault Ste. Marie (population 14,000 and shrinking), 13 of them within three blocks of one another in a downtown cluster known as the BARmuda Triangle: shot-and-a-beer joints, college bars, places where the Jägermeister and cinnamon whiskey flow and snowmobile trails lead right up to the door. It’s hard to get a suntan in the Soo, but it’s easy to get a drink.

Yooper Bars Travel Guide:
Yooper Bars Book Review 

 

Starting a Trucking Company: Info. and Links

Building a Foundation for Your New Trucking Business Suggested building blocks of knowledge for your new trucking endeavor

 '



Small Business Adminstration:

Starting a trucking business link



From the site:
Due to the growing marketplace, its a common necessity for commercial goods and products to be moved to a new city or state. This need creates a great opportunity for new transportation businesses and as a result the trucking industry is an extremely competitive field. Because the competition is steep, save yourself time, money, and energy by thoroughly researching the industry before you jump in. If yo-re considering opening a trucking business, use this guide to help you get started.

Determine how your trucking business will operate.
Trucking businesses operate by bidding on and fulfilling transportation accounts and contracts. Most trucking businesses usually operate in one of two forms- the difference lies in how they acquire drivers to fulfill their accounts and contracts:

• Sub-contracted drivers: Under the first option, you run your business using sub-contractors as drivers. Although you, as the business owner, run the business and receive the contracts, your drivers are not actually employed by your company. This option cuts down on start-up costs, insurance costs, and required equipment. On the other side, this option gives you less control over your drivers and cuts into your profits.
• Privately-owned drivers: Under the second option, you privately run your business and all operations. You use your own equipment, pay higher insurance prices, and hire a fleet of private drivers as employees. This option gives you total control over your business and its employees, and promises the most return on profits. On the downside, this option requires a great deal more start-up capital and operating costs.

Single Axle Truck Pictures: What Can Be Hauled with Them?

Single axle Kenworth pulling livestock pups


---The benefits of a single axle truck will be a tighter turning radius, but they are also rougher riding due to the smaller wheelbase.   I saw an LTL single axle pulling a single axle van trailer on my way home from work yesterday, and I started thinking about the options for finding work for that kind of rig. 



Here is a Mack pulling a van


I know the market is overrun with companies like FedEx, UPS, and other LTL Carriers, but I wonder if any opportunities exist in this segment of the transportation industry for LTL owner operators running intrastate?




Single Axle Car Haulers

Solution to the Trucker Bomb Problem with a portable loo:

Videos on Effective Communication

Effective Communication Skills: https://youtu.be/JwjAAgGi-90



Nonverbal Communication--https://youtu.be/ihKXQbYeV5k

https://youtu.be/e4hQ9FY6F8Q

The Power of Team Work::https://youtu.be/xql3BKJMscI


----Penguins: https://youtu.be/DI4zp7yeuMU

-----Blue Angels: https://youtu.be/U-iyBsaehn8

Robo Trucking Could Be Even Less Fun?

http://www.wired.com/2016/04/autonomous-tech-make-driving-semi-trucks-even-less-fun/
My response to the article above:

The trucking industry has a problem finding and retaining quality drivers because it is a lifestyle, not a job. At some point in the recent past, technology was integrated into trucks to help large companies track their drivers, and to micro manage the industry (sound familiar?), and many professional drivers don't like to spend weeks away from friends and family while being micro managed and treated like an emotionless robot while they are doing the brunt of the work for the mega carriers. Drivers are confined to trucks, but the one joy of working in the industry is getting to be in control of the large rig, to feel the power of the engine while rhythmically moving through eighteen gears with the precision of a classical musician.

 The toughest parts of the job include not being able to even have a cold beer after a long day of driving, and making split second decisions to avoid distracted four wheelers.   Most of the mega carrier companies own the drivers 24-7, and the profession can be terribly confining.

The Elogs and Hours of Service have been imposed on professional drivers, and to make any money in the industry, most drivers lives revolve around eat, sleep, and paperwork.   

The Simpsons had an episode showing driverless trucks, and it was highly amusing.   The video below shows a driverless truck test in Nevada.

 I think taking the actual driving out of the profession would only it more mundane, and highly controlled by the micro managers reaping all the profits in the home office.  
The Wired writer of the article above should have spent some time interviewing actual drivers, and talking to them about their thoughts on the industry.  In its current state, the drivers need to go on strike, and shut down the trucks driven by hard working men and women, to show the public how dependent our society is on trucking. Driverless trucks are a non issue, as this industry needs less technology, and micromanaging, but even I know this will only happen if truckers take drastic steps to achieve the levels of freedom and independence this industry once enjoyed.  I don't think the next great American novel will be written behind the wheel of a driverless truck, but the trucking industry would make a great topic for a nonfiction book on the way workers in this country are being made into indentured servants providing profits to the one percent...the one percent only interested in exploiting other to turn a profit, and avoiding taxes on their millions. 
For independent drivers....keep on trucking and safe travels.  Appreciate ya! 10-4, over and out.

Query Letters, Red Sofa Literary and Tons of Links for Millenials, Hipsters, and even Trump Followers!

Quote from her interview:

"I do believe the marketing departments play a huge role, in that they may focus more on some titles than others. We’ve all seen this internally in publishing. Yes, it can affect the rise and fall in the marketplace. Yet, there are steps any author can take to also keep a buzz around his/her book. Social media is extremely accessible, and once a person meets the right people in the social media – good things can happen as those relationships develop. In the pre-internet days, one had to depend on the marketing departments to help in the promotion of a book. Now, there are multiple outlets and ways to reach out to readers and fellow writers. My theory is that it’s in the best interest of any author to come up with a detailed marketing strategy and execute it, along with the publisher’s plan. Additionally, authors need to be prepared to promote that book for at least three to five years [after publication]."

–Dawn Fredrick, Red Sofa Literary

From Writer's Digest: Read more than 60 examples of successful query letters. Study queries that worked, and hear from literary agents on why they cut through the slush pile.
http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/successful-queries

2016 Internship Opportunity (deadline 4/30/16)

April 2016 – INTERNSHIP posting (for Red Sofa Literary)

Meet interesting people! Discover new authors! Build your publishing street cred! Chat on social media about things other than my breakfast! If you’ve ever wanted to the learn the ins and outs of life at a literary agency, we sure could use your help.

Red Sofa Literary is currently looking for two interns (unpaid) to join the summer/fall staff. Duties include but are not limited to: beta reading manuscripts, promoting authors on the @teamredsofa Twitter account and Facebook page, and maintaining the RSL calendar and Wiki page. A keen eye for great books, Excel and Word proficiency, and strong social media skills are a must.

Hours: 5-10 hours a week.

Location: Minneapolis/St. Paul, Northern Virginia, remote if available by Skype.

Please send your cv/resume and cover letter toTeamSofa@redsofaliterary.com to apply.

Deadline: April 30, 2016.

  Check out their publishing boutique here:  https://redsofaliterary.com/


https://redsofaliterary.com/internship-opportunity/

Free Classes in Digitial Marketing and Coding with Links

For students interested in avoiding the boring work world of dealing with bosses and overpaid paper shufflers, coding and digital marketing may allow a career at a decent employer like Google, which has a carnival like setting for the up and coming millennial, concerned with thousand dollar fat tire bikes, longboarding, growing beards, micro brews, and acting like hipsters. (I am a jealous, Gen. X dude myself). 

Notice the ear plugs, beard, and hair jelly.   I smell a dirty hipster!

Sure, I like fat tire bikes, but I can't afford them because of my choice to go into education.   Well, fellow idealists, let me tell you.... the world of education hasn't become any more interesting or devoid of political garbage...it is a microcosm representative of the current U.S. system of good ole boy political tactics and little intelligence to back up major life changing decisions affecting tax payers and students. 

So, forget about changing the world and go into something working with technology.  In the near future, all education will be virtual, and the money pit education system will go the way of the dinosaurs.




Should-you-learn-python-c-or-ruby-to-be-a-top-coder-infographic Free courses and a great deal of information, along with....wait for it....
An infographic for those of us too lazy to read the article. "Ah...the beauty of the ADD generation."


Free Online Digital Marketing Courses  TONS of information on how to learn digital marketing and get some credentials in the topic for free!

Eating on the Road While Living in a Semi, Van, or RV: Trucker Tips

Posts from :
http://www.thetruckersreport.com/truckingindustryforum/threads/how-much-a-week-do-you-spend-on-food.310869/

Responses to eating on the road:

"-------Those truck stops are always trying to squeeze the truck driver, but I recently discovered how to eat at the T/A Petro buffet for $1.25 a meal. That's Right ! The Buffet is $12.95 to $14.95 if you sit there and eat all you want.

BUT, you can ask for the buffet to go. They give you a to go container and charge $5 a pound.

A pound is a lot. Most ppl can survive on a 1/2 pound = $2.50. Some can survive on a 1/4 pound = $1.25.
--------------Invest in a lunch box cooker - $20. They're great for slow cooking meats while going down the road and they plug right into a 12 volt outlet. I would use those for my dinners with a bag of frozen veggies or rice thrown in, about $6 a day. Breakfast a box of cheerios or oatmeal $5 for both, PBJ,a loaf of wheat bread, lunch meat or canned tuna for lunch - $7. A case of water or seltzer $4, bag of apples and a bag of almonds $10...all in for a week about $60.00!

---I go to walmart twice a week. I buy a 5 dollar fully cooked chicken and Ramen noodles. I break the chicken up and put it into bags and make soup throughout the week. Sometimes I'll buy a premade salad or some crackers. Once a week I might stop for some fast food, usually at wendy's and usually a triple stack.

I grew up with very little money throughout my 20's and have realized that the next day will come no matter how much you spend on food. Everyone used to tell me, "when you start making more money you will change your habits out there". Rubbish I say! I'm just as hardcore as ever!

On a side note, I still do buy sugar drinks. I'd say they cost me double a week what I spend in food, hahah. Pick your poison I suppose.

-I typically BBQ a large family pack of chicken breasts, I take fajitas, lettuce, tomato, apples and pears. Couple of frozen dinners (for a change) and yogurt and granola. Typically less than $50 a week.

------Uncle Ben's microwave rice pouches $1.84 @ Walmart
Whole chicken $5.99 @ Walmart
Bag salads on sale 2 for $3.99.
Barilla 60 second microwave Italian entrées $2.50...guess

-----------Corn dog or mac and cheese @ Pilot, figure $80,000 heart procedure

-----Peanut butter and bread and crackers.
Inverter + kettle to boil water for oat meal or instant soup.
Disposable bowls and spoons for cereal in the morning (buy the milk daily)
Cases of pop or water.

Saves a lot. Even with all this I still eat in the truck stop too often. I still enjoy a hot meal at the counter of knowledge. Or subway. Or good fried chicken. I am not a peasant. I spend probably $120 a week while I am on the road by a combination of the above meals and the restaurant meals."

Today, Allergies SUCK!

Today, I have reached a weird threshold of shitty weather and some kind of
allergic reaction I am having to mold spores due to the slow onset of spring.

So, I went and bought Flonase, Claritin, and some Naphonol eyedrops, and I started to think....

What did dudes do fifty years ago when they were being affected by allergies?


I think the answer is...they were too tough to get allergies, or maybe allergies didn't even exist.

Or, maybe they just guzzled vodka and rubbed dirt in their eyes until they became immune.

I am going to blame hand sanitizer, and living indoors for nine months out of the year, to my sensitivities.   I hate allergies!

Screenwriter Robert McKee Interview

Storylink Interview: Robert McKee


His discussion of "Inciting Incident":
In terms of Inciting Incident, to name just two of its many principles, Placement and Effect are interrelated, mutually influential, and dependent on the writer's subjective sense of function.
One, Placement: The Inciting Incident radically upsets the life of an empathetic protagonist. Therefore, do not waste the audience/reader's time. Bring the Inciting Incident into the story as soon as possible.
Two, Effect: But do not introduce the Inciting Incident until it will have its full emotional and intellectual effect on the audience/reader.
When is that moment? Who can say? In every story it is different. How much understanding of setting, history and character does an audience/reader need to know prior to the Inciting Incident so that when it arrives it will have its full effect? In some stories nothing; in some stories a lot. How and when will an audience/reader fall into empathy with a protagonist? In some stories immediately; in some stories never; in some stories somewhere along the way. The answers to all these questions require the writer to develop a rich intellectual understanding of their story world and its characters as well as a deep subjective sense of the feelings, textures and emotions flowing within the story and outward to its audience/reader. There are no rules. All artists who wish to write must stop thinking that way.

Roll Off Truck 10 Yard Dumpster Pictures

A Herradura Toast to author Jim Harrison

I was at a  grocery store in southern Arizona last Saturday, staring at bottles of tequila, when I spotted and purchased a bottle of Herradura. It was a tequila I'd heared about through a interview with Jim Harrison. 
The Herradura reminded me of the author, and I thought of him as I did a shot (way too early) in the afternoon.  This was on the same day that Jim Harrison died while writing his last poem at his winter grounds in Patagonia.

I also thought about the author later than same day, when my dad and I flushed a covey of quail on the bumpy, winding desert road to an off the grid watering hole simply called, The Desert Bar.  It is a remote place. The electricity is generated by solar power, and the open air structures were tacked together from recycled scrap metal, by the former welder who followed his dreams and built this remote libation encampment. I believe Harrison would have loved to drink a cold beer at this place. and to be  surrounded by the deserted gold mines. In this remote place, I expected to spot a mountain lion around every switchback on the boulder strewn wagon trail leading to the outpost.

  There is something comforting about the expansiveness of the desert and the soothing dry heat, especially to a person who spends nine months of the year fighting the harsh winter climate of Minnesota, or northern Michigan.


 I knew Harrison's wife passed away six months ago, and decided to buy a bottle and toast to the greatest author alive. It wasn't until a few days, later, when I returned home to Minnesota, that I read the news about Harrison's passing on that very Saturday, at his winter home in Patagonia, Arizona.
 I read the news of his passing on CNN.com and my head started to spin, and when I followed a link to a New York Times interview from last week, my mind started to swim with thoughts of his passing, and the poem at the end of the article was difficult for me to finish.

 I knew Herradura was a favorite tequila of the author Jim Harrison from an  interview conducted at his home in Patagonia, Arizona. 

Harrison grew up in Michigan, and once had a cabin in a place I too, cherished....the upper peninsula of Michigan.

I was introduced to the author five years ago by my friend, and fellow bibliophile, Kevin.  I immediately connected with Harrison's prose and themes of hard living and stubbornness... traits essential for living and surviving in places like Northern Minnesota and Michigan.  Harrison's writing is filled with sisu, a hearty, stoic determination, which transplanted Finns often speak of in regards to the harshness of these forgotten northern lands that share more traits with Canada than the United States.

I was strangely drawn to the UP, and found comfort in Harrison's themes about the binges in life;  booze, smokes, and feasting on local game. 
 The profound comfort found in a double track road to nowhere, and the chaotic and vivid noises found in the rare and disappearing wildernesses we both love.  His writing on the Upper Peninsula made me appreciate and visit the place much more, and I find comfort in his appreciation of fishing to eat, and living to feast.

Interesting Articles from the Spectator on Authors and Culture in UK

writing-a-bestseller-on-the-verge-of-a-stroke/ -An interview with the chain smoking and prolific Lee Child, author of the Jack Reacher books


what-makes-the-white-working-class-angry-twits-like-hsiao-hung-pai/-An article about the angry white people in England, and their love of all thing football AKA soccer, for people in U.S.

Information for Writers: Great Resources

http://writershelpingwriters.net/resources-for-writers/

The link above contains some very helpful information for promoting, writing, and organizing your writing life.

I was especially fond of the article: "Marketing for Introverts" by Angelica Ackerman.  Her well composed introduction contains a great description of the challenges faced by introverted writers when it comes to self promotion:
The introverted author is by no means an unusual creature—far from it. The introverted nature works very well within the creative fields; it often accompanies a vivid imagination and attention to detail, which are fantastic for an author. Unfortunately for introverts, traditionally, that same nature went against the idea of marketing and sales. - See more at: http://writershelpingwriters.net/2013/08/marketing-for-introverts/#sthash.wHiaI56b.dpuf

On Becoming a Writer: Lee Child Interview

Lee Child is a minimalist on the page.  His Jack Reacher stories are some of my favorite books to take along when traveling. They are page turners and Reacher is a hero with few faults. I like reading more about Lee Child, and have included an interview with the author below on his late start in writing:

From the interview:
You came to writing fairly late in life. How important is it to have lived some life before getting the words to come out right?
I think it's vital. I know that's true in my own case, and by looking at my colleagues. All of us did something else first. I think writing is truly a "second-phase" career. I know there are occasional successful books by 20-somethings ... but how many of them do successful second books? I was 40 when I started, like Raymond Chandler, Robert Ludlum and all kinds of other people. I don't personally know any successful writers who haven't worked half a lifetime doing something else first.


From: http://www.januarymagazine.com/profiles/leechild.html

Live Music in Brainerd Lakes Area: March 17-23, 2016

from the Brainerd Dispatch:
For week of March 17-23; bands perform from 9 p.m. to close with no cover unless otherwise noted.


BRAINERD

Eagles Club

124 Front St.

Cuyuna Rhythm, 7:30-11:30 p.m. Friday

Last Turn Saloon

215 S. Sixth St.

Open Mic, Wednesday (sign-up begins at 6:30 p.m.)

Bluegrass Jam, 6:30-8 p.m. every first, third and fifth Thursday of the month.

Liquor Pigz

718 Laurel St.

Karaoke, 10 p.m. every Wednesday

Jam session/open mic, 9 p.m. every Sunday

Shep's on Sixth

315 S. Sixth St.

DJ, every Friday-Saturday in Elbow Room

St. Mathias Bar and Grill

4640 County Road 121

Soundtrack DJ, Friday-Saturday


BREEZY POINT

Commander Bar

30279 Airport Road

Drama Queen, 9:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday

JJ'S Pub

Downstairs of the Commander

Soupbones, 5-9 p.m. Saturday

CROSBY

The Bridge Tavern

26929 Highway 6

Live music every Friday; Classic Country Dinner Theater, 4-8 p.m. Sunday

Anthony Bourdain's Advice on Writing

The best lines from his new interview with Biography.com

from http://www.eater.com:

It's hard not to hang on Anthony Bourdain's every word. He's gone from a chain-smoking line cook to a best-selling author, and then from a celebrity chef to a globe-trotting television host, filling up passport pages at breakneck speed while broadcasting it all to the world on his smash-hit CNN series Parts Unknown. Throughout it all, the straight-talking Bourdain has retained an endearing humility that's made him the fantasy BFF of basically every food obsessive in America (and beyond). In a new interview with Biography.com, Bourdain talks about life before — and after — becoming famous, the writing process, and drug addiction.

On life before Kitchen Confidential propelled him to fame: "I was in horrible, endless, irrevocable debt. I had no health insurance. I didn’t pay my taxes. I couldn’t pay my rent."

On the writing process behind his first book: "With Kitchen Confidential, I just didn’t give a shit at all what people might think. I didn’t think anyone was going to read it, so what did it matter. I just told the truth on every page."
On writers who inspire him: "It’s useful to pick up an Elmore Leonard novel to see how a real professional does it. Nobody gets in and out of a scene cleaner, quicker, or better than that guy."
On his former drug addiction: "All I can tell you is this: I got off of heroin in the 1980s. ...There are a lot of guys that didn’t get that far."
On how different his life is post-fame: "To climb a dune in the Egyptian desert and look out over the desert as the moon’s rising, surrounded by friends that I work with, a belly full of some food that no one outside that time zone ever gets to experience, that’s a 'pinch me' moment for sure."
On living a "charmed life": "I should’ve died in my 20s. I became successful in my 40s. I became a dad in my 50s. I feel like I’ve stolen a car — a really nice car — and I keep looking in the rearview mirror for flashing lights."

Kettlebells Workout!

Working out with kettlebells is one type of exercise I enjoy.  The movement, balance, and conditioning of working out with this type of weight is tremendous!


More info. from Amazon.com:

Kettlebells extend mass beyond the hand, building strength, flexibility, and athleticism in a wholly unique way

Long-lasting cast iron coated with corrosion-resistant enamel. No logos, no rubber accents, no nonsense, just quality

Flat bottoms enable upright storage as well as renegade rows and other floor-based drills

Textured, wide handles suit most hand sizes and ensure a secure grip mid-workout. Machined smooth for superlative comfort

Never too thick for a proper grip, our maximum handle diameter is 1.58"

Brainerd Lakes Area Live Music: March 10-16, 2016

Live Music


For week of March 10-16; bands perform from 9 p.m. to close with no cover unless otherwise noted.

Brendan Flynn
Grandview Pub on Friday

Friday - Pizza & Pitcher Night
$3 off Pizzas
$3 off Pitchers of Beer or Pop



Log Cabin in Emily, MN on Saturday

BRAINERD

Eagles Club

124 Front St.

Swinging Country Band, 7:30-11:30 p.m. Friday

ADVERTISING


Last Turn Saloon

215 S. Sixth St.

Open Mic, Wednesday (sign-up begins at 6:30 p.m.)

Bluegrass Jam, 6:30-8 p.m. every first, third and fifth Thursday of the month. (Previously at Coco Moon.)

Liquor Pigz

718 Laurel St.

Karaoke, 10 p.m. every Wednesday

Jam session/open mic, 9 p.m. every Sunday

Shep's on Sixth

315 S. Sixth St.

DJ, every Friday-Saturday in Elbow Room

St. Mathias Bar and Grill

4640 County Road 121

Y-Knott, Saturday

BREEZY POINT

Commander Bar

30279 Airport Road

Hitchville, 9:30 p.m., Friday-Saturday

JJ'S Pub

Downstairs of the Commander

Platinum FM Acoustic, 5-9 p.m., Saturday

CROSBY

The Bridge Tavern

26929 Highway 6

Live music every Friday; Classic Country Dinner Theater, 4-8 p.m., Sunday

FAIRFIELD

The Wolfhound

21427 County Road 36 (north of Crosby)

Cuyuna Rhythm, 5-10 p.m., Saturday

MERRIFIELD

Harpos

County Road 3

Old Glory, 8-11 p.m., Saturday