Dan Thurmon’s new book, Off Balance On Purpose – Embrace Uncertainty and Create a Life You Love, shows us that maintaining our balance in today’s off-balance world is a never-ending challenge.
That’s why he tells us to give up trying to live our life “on balance,” and start livingOff Balance On Purpose
This, he maintains, is the only way we will experience true happiness, accomplish meaningful goals, and lead a life which has lasting significance.
Homemade hard “likker”, moonshine, is still made in many parts of the country. But are these moonshiners the cartoonish Appalachian hillbillies with patched genes and corncob pipes or are they romantic rednecks like in Robert Mitchem in Thunder Road? Writer and correspondent MAX WATMAN set out to meet some genuine bootleggers and thus begins a wild tale of dangerous nip joints, the “Andy Warhol of hooch” and something called “turbo yeast”. Along the way, Waxman tells the complex history of homemade liquor in America, the Whisky Rebellion, the coming of the “Revenooers” and the “The Big Lie” of Prohibition. He also cooks up some of his own illegal white lightening for good measure. Tune in for a very unique and wild Inquiry when we talk with Watman about his book CHASING THE WHITE DOG: AN AMATEUR OUTLAW’S ADVENTURE IN MOONSHINE.
Tonight Inquiry welcomes staff writer for the New Yorker, DAVID GRANN. Grann’s latest collection of short non-fiction pieces focuses on intrigue and people who are obsessed. There is the twisted tale of the crazed expert on Sherlock Holmes who is found mysteriously killed while trying to uncover a legendary cache of material left by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Another piece follows a tireless and single-minded researcher trying to get a glimpse at a live Giant Squid. Yet another chapter reveals the dangerous life of the sandhogs who labor deep under New York City trying to complete Tunnel Number 3 before the city’s aged and leaking water supply meets an inevitable disaster. All these essays reveal a human but flawed search for the truth and the often-thwarted human desire for the neat and tidy ending to a mystery. Grann’s book is titled: THE DEVIL AND SHERLOCK HOLMES: TALES OF MURDER, MADNESS AND OBSESSION.
On April 12th, officials will announce their annual selections for one of the most coveted prizes in the world – the Pulitzer Prize. After nearly a century of prize giving, the name “Pulitzer” has become synonymous with quality journalism, book writing, and the arts. Yet the story of Joseph Pulitzer remains mostly unknown. Just as today’s modern media industry is rapidly changing and evolving, in the late nineteenth century, journalism in America was undergoing another type of transformation, with Pulitzer leading the charge toward an unprecedented media era.
Several years back, two nurses administering palliative care at a local hospital to a terminally ill patient were shocked to learn that they were being investigated for murder by police. This was definitely not a case of euthanasia or physician assisted death, but instead these nurses were doing something that was both legal and ethical in easing a patient’s pain and making her more comfortable. DR. LEWIS M. COHEN, Professor of Psychiatry from Tufts University School of Medicine and clinician-researcher based at the Baystate Medical Center in Springfield MA, decided to investigate what precipitated this case. This began a years long investigation on how caring for the terminally ill was perceived in America and the world. 85% of 24 MILLION deaths in the United States medical system are preceded by a structured decision to limit life-sustaining treatment. Yet, Dr. Cohen discovered, there were still vocal and organized groups who believed this palliative care was akin to “murder”. Dr. Cohen’s important and caring book takes a reporter’s calm and fair look at all sides of feelings about end of life care and sheds much needed light on this very emotional subject that effects us all. Dr. Cohen’s “must read” book is titled NO GOOD DEED: A STORY OF MEDICINE, MURDER ACCUSATIONS AND THE DEBATE OVER HOW WE DIE.
Today, animals like cats and dogs are part of our family. Larger mammals like cows, horses, pigs and goats have also been tamed and domesticated. We often develop a close bond with our pets and their presence seems to have a calming effect on our behavior. But these were all once wild animals that in nature would never allow the close approach of a human. Tonight’s guest on Inquiry MEG DALEY OLMERT, writer and documentarian, has for many years now been trying to unravel the mystery of the human-animal relationship and how it evolved over the millennia. She believes part of the answer lies in the hormone Oxytocin, a powerful chemical produced in all mammals. But this is only the beginning of the story. If you are a pet owner, be sure to tune in tonight to find out more. Olmert’s book is titled MADE FOR EACH OTHER: THE BIOLOGY OF THE HUMAN-ANIMAL BOND.
Guest:Professor, Ellen Fitzpatrick
Book: Letter To Jackie
Within seven weeks of President Kennedy's death, Jacqueline Kennedy
received more than 800,000 condolence letters. Two years later, the
volume of correspondence would exceed 1.5 million letters. For the next
forty-six years, the letters would remain essentially untouched. Now
historian Ellen Fitzpatrick has selected approximately 250 of these
letters for inclusion in Letters to Jackie, a remarkable human
record that perfectly preserves the heart-wrenching grief and soul
searching of the nation in a time of crisis. Capturing the extraordinary
eloquence of so-called ordinary Americans across generations, regions,
race, political leanings, and religion—in messages written on elegant
stationery, scraps of paper, in pencil, type, ink smudged by tears, and
in barely legible handwriting—the letters capture what John F. Kennedy
meant to the country.
In Germany wurst, what we call “sausages”, are a symbol of the national character. There are 1500 varieties of German wurst. The creation of wurst is a complex art in Germany, an fine art to be savored and celebrated at every turn. To be a butcher in Germany used to mean that you were a “made man”, part of an ancient, noble and revered profession. But things have changed recently. The number of butchers in Germany has fallen dramatically as more and more people get their meat from chain grocery stores. Tune in tonight, when we talk once again with author and reporter ANDREW BLECHMAN about his recent piece in the Smithsonian Magazine :”For German Butchers, a Wurst Case Scenario.” While doing his research for this piece, Andrew spent time at the unique German Butchers Museum, sampled some of the many meat treats including Mett (made with raw pork) and even hung out making blood sausages with a vegetarian butcher. Tune in tonight for a unique and tasty look into German culture.
In 1987 Evan Goldstein became the eighth American and youngest ever at the time to pass the prestigious Master Sommelier examination. He has served two terms as chairman of the American Chapter of the Court of Master Sommeliers, served as an advisor to the National Restaurant Association Education Foundation, and received finalist nominations four times for the James Beard “Outstanding Wine & Spirits Professional” award in 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2005. He is the author of the critically acclaimed book, Perfect Pairings: A Master Sommelier’s Practical Advice for Partnering Wine with Food.
For more information go to: inquiries@fullcirclewinesolutions.com
Native New Englander Michael Terrien left his home state of Maine and headed west to fish.Fortunately for consumers he ended up getting a degree in wine making from the University of California in Davis. Since the 90's Michael has consultated for many prestigious wineries in addition to running his own winery Tricycle Wines, where he excells in the production of Cabernet, Pinot Noir and Chardonny. Tune in and here how this east coast guy has found bliss on the opposite coast.
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