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LauraPalooza 2012 Day 2 Video

Posted on by Sarah Uthoff

Day 2 of the LauraPalooza conference was July 12, 2012. There are two videos for the general events of the day. I will also be doing a separate video for the Legacy Luncheon, but since that’s going to be more of a patchwork quilt I’m saving that one to tackle last.

LauraPalooza 2012 Day 2 Part 1

  • T-shirt of the day brand new from the Loftus Store.
  • Amy Lauters – Opening Address
  • Elizabeth Nolan Connors: Laura and Louisa, Little House and Little Women
  • Kay Weisman: What Would Laura Read? Youth’s Companion 1879
  • Merchandise Table
  • Barbara Mayes Boustead: Wilder Weather – What Laura Witnessed

LauraPalooza 2012 Day 2 Part 2

  • Susan Thurlow: Dr. George Tann, Black Frontier Physician
  • Greeting for Julie Williams
  • Helen Gunnarson: The Legalities of Rose and Roger
  • Pa’s Fiddle
    PBS Preview Video
    PBS Preview Video on YouTube
  • Authors Reception
  • Amber Waves

Sarah S. Uthoff blogs at TrundleBed Tales; look for her on Twitter and YouTube and Blog Talk Radio
Laura Ingalls Wilder Legacy and Research Association, Vice-President and Membership Chair

 

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Walnut Grove on TV

Posted on by Sarah Uthoff

Nicole Elzenga of Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Walnut Grove, was featured on TV show, The Women of Sweet Swine County. Go roughly 10 minutes into the video to find Nicole. HINT: Wait until the video loading bar turns blue to the 10 minute mark before sliding the control over.

The Women of Sweet Swine County – Ep 33

This was recorded a little earlier in the season, but talks about the changes at Walnut Grove and Nicole brought in the Beadle Bags made by Charlotte Stewart. The hosts don’t seem to be up on Laura fandom, but it’s a pleasant show and I think Laura fans, especially those who have been to Walnut Grove, will enjoy it.

Sarah S. Uthoff blogs at TrundleBed Tales; look for her on Twitter and YouTube and Blog Talk Radio
Laura Ingalls Wilder Legacy and Research Association, Vice-President and Membership Chair

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LauraPalooza 2012 Day 1 Video | Beyond Little House

Posted on by Sarah Uthoff

A little later than I originally hoped, but here is Day 1 of this year’s LauraPalooza videos.

LauraPalooza 2012 Day 1

I start out Wed., July 11, 2012 driving to Mankato, Minnesota. Along the way I run across a lot of road construction and And One More on the Way sites (or at least information about) Mason City, the SPAM Museum and, one featured in a draft for LauraPalooza 2015, Owantanna, Minnesota. Once we get to Mankato, it’s almost time for the Ice Cream Social. One quick change later, I’m there and we hear Amy Lauters welcome speech, a greeting from Shirley Knakmuhs, and Daniel Rabe weighs in on the ice cream. Finally in one of my favorite people recordings this time with Karen and Kevin Pearce saying how much they liked my LauraPalooza 2010 videos.

Sarah S. Uthoff blogs at TrundleBed Tales; look for her on Twitter and YouTube and Blog Talk Radio
Laura Ingalls Wilder Legacy and Research Association, Vice-President and Membership Chair

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Submit Your Best LP Photos for a Conference Slide Show | Beyond Little House

Posted on by Beyond Little House

What photos best represent the spirit of LauraPalooza?

Is that you, Laura?

 

That’s what we’ve been talking about over on the LauraPalooza 2012 Facebook page. LIWLRA member (and conference attendee) Daniel Rabe suggested putting the best, most representative photos from the event together into a slide show, and we all think this is a grand idea.

We will be looking for someone to assemble the photos in the final collection into a slide show, so keep that in mind if you have that sort of technical expertise.

For now, we will be accepting photos here. To keep the number of photos manageable, please send only what you consider to be your five best. If, instead or in addition, you’d like to recommend someone else’s photo, please provide the url of the photo so we can get permission from the owner.

Please note: By submitting your photo(s), you are granting permission for the LIWLRA to use it/them for promotional purposes.

Posted in Administrivia, Announcements, LauraPalooza 2012

Butler’s Laura Documentary in General Release

Posted on by Sarah Uthoff

As was announced at the LauraPalooza conference, Dean Butler’s documentary Little House on the Prairie: The Legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder is now in general release. Although it will continue to expand its distribution, for right now you can order your copy through the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Walnut Grove, Minnesota. I checked with Nicole Elzenga of the Walnut Grove Museum and she reports “We should have it online by Friday. Toll-free is also better for pre-orders.” After Friday find it at their online store. Call them toll free at 1-800-528-7280.

I would also like to thank Dean Butler for all his work making sure this general release happened. Funding and distribution are the two biggest problems facing documentary film makers and most documentaries made are NOT ever generally released on DVD. It was only because of Mr. Butler’s efforts of exhausting every possibility for distribution until he made a deal with PBS which guaranteed a certain number would be purchased that made this further release possible.  So thank you Mr. Butler and PBS for making this happen.

Sarah S. Uthoff blogs at TrundleBed Tales; look for her on Twitter and YouTube and Blog Talk Radio
Laura Ingalls Wilder Legacy and Research Association, Vice-President and Membership Chair

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What Is Your China Shepherdess?

Posted on by Beyond Little House

Guest post by Kelly Ferguson

For years my dream was a proper house with proper furniture. When I turned thirty, I shook my fist at the heavens and proclaimed, “As God is my witness, this is my last used futon!” Over time, I eventually put together a real house. A dining room set. Framed prints for the walls. And finally, the sofa that meant I was a real grown up.

Then my dream changed. In 2006, I moved 2600 miles west to Montana to begin a MFA in creative writing.

I was going to be a grad student, not a banker. I trimmed down to what could fit in a U-Haul trailer and sold or gave away the rest. I’ve moved four times in six years, and when I finish my PhD I’ll be moving again. My furniture is now all freebies or from Big Lots. I’ve considered changing my name to Kelly Particleboard Ferguson. The lugnut is my friend.

So, how does this all this tie back into Laura?

It was move number two when I fully understood the role of the china shepherdess. I’ve learned that when you move often, sometimes just this one thing can be all you need as symbol of being home. Like the Ingalls family, my list of little things has quietly grown from one or two objects to a short paragraph. My Whatnot runneth over. But I can, if necessary, pack everything up for a move without renting a truck.

That is, if we don’t count all my books.

The idea for this post came when I arrived home from Laurapalooza after having been gone over a month, and gazed upon the first object that meant I was home— Maneki Neko cat.

Maneki Neko means "Beckoning Cat." The waving cat is a traditional symbol of good fortune in Japan, and is often seen in the windows of businesses there, welcoming customers inside.

Maneki Nekos are common as a “we buy gold” signs in Chinatowns. We are not talking Fabergé eggs here. But the cat is special to me. I’ve had her since I was fifteen years old and my family lived in Japan for a year. I think, actually, my parents bought the cat for themselves, but right away we all knew she was mine. Since then she’s been bringing good luck and waving hello for twenty-seven (yikes!) years. I had Maneki Neko in my room at my parents’ house, moved her to the dorms, my first college apartment, my first post-college apartment…and most recently, my latest little white house in Athens, Ohio.

The Ingalls family knew they were home when Ma unwrapped the china shepherdess. I know I’m home when I see my waving cat. What about you? If you had to pick one item that said, “home,” what would it be?

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Wisconsin Public Radio Laura Episode

Posted on by Sarah Uthoff

The Joy Cardin Show celebrates all the Laura events going on in Wisconsin. Wendy McClure (author of The Wilder Life) is interviewed. They also talk with a representative of Old World Wisconsin about their Laura Ingalls Wilder Days. Stick with it through the polka radio station bit because after the break the first caller gives what I’ve found to be the more typical response of native peoples to the series.

Download

It’s a good time of year to be a Laura Ingalls Wilder fan in Wisconsin, with several events commemorating her life taking place. Joy Cardin’s guest discusses her “obsession” with Wilder and the “Little House on the Prairie” series, her experiences with churning butter and grinding wheat by hand, and welcomes your favorite Wilder story. Plus, get a preview of “Laura Ingalls Wilder Days” at Old World Wisconsin in Eagle. Guests:
– Wendy McClure, a columnist for BUST Magazine, children’s book editor, and author of several books, including “The Wilder Life: My Adventures in the Lost World of Little House on the Prairie.” www.wendymclure.net
– 6:20 – Jennifer Van Haaften (HAF-ten), Curator of Interpretation, Old World Wisconsin. Laura Ingalls Wilder Days: http://wpr.org/r/?794

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LauraPalooza ON the news! | Beyond Little House

Posted on by Beyond Little House

Joanne Cleaver’s recent article in the Chicago Tribune prompted this little story on Chicago’s WGN Morning News “What’s Happening” segment.

Be patient as it is the second story in the segment. They seem to be a little confused about what really happens at LauraPalooza, but we’ll forgive them! :)

You may just see some familiar faces (some of the pictures are from LauraPalooza 2010)!

Posted in LauraPalooza 2012, Little House in the News

Manuscripts Relocated to a Temporary Home

Posted on by Beyond Little House

Guest post by Barb Mayes Boustead

The Detroit Public Library long has been the home of the handwritten original manuscripts of The Long Winter and These Happy Golden Years.  As a part of my Hard Winter research for my Ph.D., viewing the manuscript for The Long Winter was high on my list of research necessities.  The University of Nebraska’s Center for Great Plains Studies was even kind enough to bestow on me a travel grant to cover the expenses of traveling to Detroit to conduct this research.  I planned my visit to Detroit in the midst of a long summer trip that took me to LauraPalooza, then to eastern Iowa for a friend’s wedding, and finally to Michigan to do research and then visit family.

I was expecting to view the manuscript on the Tuesday after LauraPalooza.  I called ahead on Friday, as a courtesy call and to see if I needed to set an appointment.  I almost drove off the road, though, when I heard these dreaded words from the librarian in the historical collection:

“The manuscripts are out on loan…

… until September 2013.”

What?!  They’re manuscripts!  They can’t just be loaned willy-nilly!

Upon further investigation, I learned that the manuscripts had been sent to the Michigan Historical Archives in Lansing to be used in a museum display.  I asked the librarian in Detroit if I would be able to view the manuscripts up there, and he said I’d have to get in touch with them.

I scrounged around online until I found the Archives of Michigan, which oddly is now a part of the Department of Natural Resources.  I called the number and spoke to a young lady who gave me the name of the person who has been charged as the keeper of the manuscripts – a Julie Meyerle.  I left a message for her on Friday afternoon and hoped that she’d be around to return a call.

And I waited.  The weekend passed with no word.  I tried to call her again on Saturday and Monday and still had no success.  Hubby and I spent our time in Detroit at the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village to get a taste of history.  We even watched a Laura presentation at Greenfield Village (not bad, if you ever catch it there!).  But it was no replacement for the deep research I needed to do for my dissertation and writing.  Our trip continued on to Higgins Lake, Michigan, as we still had no word on whether it was worth our time to stop in Lansing.

Finally, on Tuesday at about 1 p.m., I got a call from Julie:  Yes, I could come down and view the manuscripts in Lansing!  I got her message at 1:30 p.m., and we were on the road by 2 p.m.  It was a 2-hour drive from Higgins Lake to Lansing, with my husband graciously speeding to save me a few precious minutes while also allowing me a chance to prepare my mind.  I was going to see Laura’s own words, in her own handwriting!

I know that museums and archives have rules and standards for handling and viewing manuscripts and other historical documents.  I had a vague sense that in Detroit, it’s OK to take non-flash pictures, but I wasn’t sure if handling the manuscripts was allowed there.  And I had no idea what the Archives would allow.  Hubby and I checked in with our drivers licenses, put all belongings in a locker (except for an iPad that they allowed, without its case), and sat at a desk.  We were sternly lectured to not take any photographs (even non-flash) of the manuscripts, which I had actually been counting on doing.  Hubby did coax them to let him take a couple of pictures of me, hard at work.

The archivist brought out the manuscripts and laid them on the table in front of me.  Breathless and shaking, I opened the tablets and read her words, her pages.  I noted differences from the published version, including many juicy tidbits that may help me identify the weather events a little more specifically and have given insight into how the family coped.  (I will not be revealing the details on those… you’ll have to wait for the book!) [Editor’s note: WHAT BOOK, Barb?!]

 

Barb hard at work on the manuscript review. Photo by Josh Boustead.

 

I had arrived at 4 p.m., and the Archives closed promptly at 5 p.m.  It was nowhere near enough time to page through the Hard Long Winter manuscript and take all the notes I needed.  I was only about two-thirds of the way through, and that had been rushed and frantic.  I’d have to come back the next day, sacrificing a trip to the wineries of northwest Michigan with my mom to do so.  From opening time promptly at 1pm until around 3pm, I continued to diligently take iPad notes.  I even left myself enough time to glance through These Happy Golden Years for some of my favorite weather events, with a few more juicy tidbits that you’ll have to wait to hear!

Thus ended my research time with the Archives.  I’ve since learned that the Detroit Public Library only allows handling with gloves, and that mainly by their own people.  I have to admit that I was pretty shocked about being able to handle the manuscripts myself, bare-handed.  Actually, when I mentioned it to Julie after my visit, she also was surprised.  (The archivists seemed more concerned with being able to see that I wasn’t pocketing the books – I was asked a couple of times to move items to the side so that they could watch me from their desk unimpeded.)  Take heart, historians – I washed my hands and used the utmost of care when handling those books.  And perhaps the group will be more careful to ask any viewers to use gloves from here forward, now that they are aware that my viewing was without gloves.

I learned from Julie after my visit that the books will be a part of the display called “Put it on Paper,” which celebrates the process of taking creative vision (art and writing) from the mind to the paper.  The exhibit will be on display in Lansing from September 29, 2012, through the fall of 2013, and a link will be posted from the Archives website once the exhibit is up.  During the display, the manuscripts will not be available for private viewing and research.  If you had designs on doing research on either of these manuscripts, this will certainly affect your timeline!  I am lucky that I viewed the manuscripts in the nick of time.  And I’m thankful that I did, because some of my findings are just THAT good!

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10 Things to Do Now that You’re Home from LauraPalooza | Beyond Little House

Posted on by Sarah Uthoff

1. If you’d offered to volunteer in any capacity at the conference (especially the people who said you had experience with non-profit status) please, e-mail Beyond Little House as a follow up.

2. Follow up with any colleagues you met at the conference.

3. Share something you learned at the conference with coworkers or friends.

4. For purposes of documenting your professional development, mark which programs you attended in the conference program and save it for future reference.

5. Follow up with any questions about LIWLRA or Laura Ingalls Wilder in general,  that may have come up during the conference.

6. Start planning a blog post for Beyond Little House. It doesn’t have to be anything big. It can just be something interesting that you found out, a primary source you like to quote, a good comparison that clicks with others talking about Laura, or an exploration of your most annoying myth might be useful to others in the field. Something that is old hat to you, might be brand new to somebody else.

7. If you attended don’t keep it to yourself, what session did you get the most out of? What is the best thing you learned? Share with friends, family, colleagues and online! 😉

8. Write up a couple of paragraphs about attending the conference for your local paper.

9. Check back for videos once I finish editing them on Trundlebed Tales YouTube site.

10.  Follow us on Facebook, Follow us on Twitter, Read the blog, Join our group on LinkedIn

BONUS.  Try to hold on to that conference rush a little while and try something new now you’re home.

 

Looking forward to seeing you at LauraPalooza in July 2015, mark your calendars now!

Sarah S. Uthoff blogs at TrundleBed Tales; look for her on Twitter and YouTube and Blog Talk Radio
Laura Ingalls Wilder Legacy and Research Association, Vice-President and Membership Chair

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