Drive-Thrus: American Ingenuity or Laziness?

by Justin Glow on

There are few things more American than a drive-thru, and to a foreigner visiting this mecca of car-bound businesses, where every conceivable meal or service is offered via the comfort of your car, it may seem that we, as a nation, are lazy. There is a difference, however, between ingenuity and laziness — I mean, if you can go to Sunday service without doing as much as rolling down the windows of your Buick, why not?

But laziness breeds ingenuity, you might say. We would not have invented the drive-thru church without the constant hassle of having to get out of the car and walk into a building to worship. We know what we want, and we want it fast and with as little struggle as possible. God included.

Drive-thru church? Check.
Drive-thru weddings? Check.
Drive-thru liquor store? Yep.
Drive-thru strip club? Sure enough.
Drive-thru funeral? Um…check.

What other strange drive-thrus am I missing?

America: Favorite Architectural Landmarks

by Neil Woodburn on

Architectural landmarks are the cornerstone of any great city. But which are the best? Which works of architecture are the most beloved and worshiped by ordinary people walking past and admiring them?

In honor of the American Institute of Architects 150th anniversary, the organization commissioned a poll of 1,800 Americans to determine the nation’s most beloved buildings and structures. The survey was limited to 150 predetermined structures nominated by AIA members.

The results weren’t terribly surprising, but are nonetheless an impressive list of architectural must-sees in America. Here are the top ten. To see the whole list of 150, click here.

1. Empire State Building
2. The White House
3. Washington National Cathedral
4. Jefferson Memorial
5. Golden Gate Bridge
6. U.S. Capitol
7. Lincoln Memorial
8. Vanderbilt Residence
9. Chrysler Building
10. Vietnam Veterans Memorial (Washington DC)

Black History Month: First African American Baptist Church

by Jamie Rhein on

The Silver Bluff Baptist Church in Beech Island, South Carolina has the distinction of being the first African American Baptist church in the United States. As with any firsts, discovering what makes it so involved following a lead. The lead was an NPR radio story that caught my attention. See, James Brown is from Beech Island so a reporter went there to follow up on the town’s plans to build a James Brown museum. What became the point of interest on this occasion was the church.

It’s been in operation since 1750, 1773, 1774 or 1775. I’ve come across all three dates, but what is clear is that it first existed on the land of a man named Galphin who owned the plantation. Minister #1 was Wait Palmer, a white guy from Connecticut. Minister #2, who helped minister #1 was George Liele, the first ordained black minister. When the Revolutionary War broke out minister #1 hightailed it out of there and minister #2 became minister #1 and ordained another minister before he left for Savanah to form another church which was a spin off congregation of the first. Therefore, if you do a web search on the “first African American Baptist church like I did, The Springfield Baptist Church, will also come up. There’s more history about these congregations on BlackPast.org.

You can visit the Silver Bluff Baptist church in Beech Island, although the building is not the same building. The current building was built in 1883 and has been altered through the years. The Beech Island Historical Society offers details of other points of interest as well. Beech Island is just a short hop to Aiken County in Georgia with other historic points of interest.

Listen to the NPR story.

Bikini Bandits: Denmark’s Speed Control

by Jamie Rhein on

There are traffic circles. There are red light cameras. There are speed bumps. Getting people to slow down when they are driving comes in many forms. Denmark came up with a rather unique solution. This is a little test to see if you can tell the difference between a real news story or a fake one.

Bikini Bandits was created by the Danish Road Safety Council to slow down speeders. That is true. This video was part of an ad campaign. The story, though, is a made up news segment about these speed control gals. Bikini Bandits don’t really exist. I have to admit, though, when I first saw this video, I thought there really are such traffic police and I’ve been to Denmark. I even lived there. Also, according to Duncan’s TV Ad Land, Spotlight on the World the news show featured is a made up show as well. Seriously, I’ll believe about anything.

Film Shot in Senegal is an Oscar Pick

by Jamie Rhein on

For any of you gadling travelers in love with Africa, here is a film to see. Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y La Gran Idea) is one of the Oscar nominated short films this year, and it’s wonderful. Not depressing. Not war torn. It is sweet and poignant, but not sugary sweet. It has also won 69 awards to date. If you take time to watch it, (see link below) you’ll see why.

From the first shot of a man paddling a dug out canoe on a river lined with mangroves, I said, “I know this place.” At first I thought it was The Gambia, but it turns out it is Senegal. The village in the film could have been my village, N’Jowara when I was in the Peace Corps. I did travel to Casamance where the story takes place. The Gambia divides Senegal in half with Casamance to the south and the section with Dakar to the north. A small part of the film is shot in Ziguinchor, the capital of this particular province, however most of it is on location in a small village that looks like any other small village in West Africa. The compounds with their thatched roof buildings, the thatch fences between each family’s compound, the simple village school, the trucks with their colorful artwork all look just like I remember them.

It’s interesting to read Luis Manso’s discussion about making this film. He is the producer and Javier Fesser is the writer/director. Made in collaboration with UNICEF, the profits are to go to UNICEF, I think.

Here is a link to the film on ifilm.com. http://www.ifilm.com/video/2771644