Rabbit Holes ad Infinitum: Musings and Research

Pioneering Spirit: My Antonia as a Representation of Midwestern Fiction Jim Rogers . . .      In some way, humans are all drawn to novel concepts. The pioneer that dwells within us longs for the spark of discovery and enlightenment. Novelty comes in many forms, some small, such as the first person to eat a raw oyster, and others large, such as Lewis & Clark discovering the Pacific shoreline. Much like Lewis & Clark, the early settlers of the American Midwest were possessed by wanderlust, striking out into a little-known land with nothing more than a sense of purpose and direction. The stories of these familial journeys have in many ways become part of the foundation of Americana, providing guidance and curiosity for generations of future farmers and their growing families. By providing a detailed vision of Jim Burden's maturation from youth to adulthood, Willa Cather invokes in us that familiar urge to look out the window and think of sacred places untou...

  Southern Sorrow : The 1918-1919 Spanish Influenza Pandemic in Pensacola, Florida Jim Rogers . . . “Influenza Has Come To Town,” the Crystal Pharmacy proclaimed in bold print upon the “People and Events” page of the September 29 th edition of The Pensacola Journal. [1] Below the eye-catching line a list of therapeutic medicines promised to help “give him the reception that will run him out,” with items like tasteless castor oil , fever tonic , and grippe cure , all representing the front line defense against the incoming germ offensive. [2] Adjacent snippets detailing the personal comings and goings of townsfolk display an alarming amount of parsimony, with most disclosing descriptions of ill persons or those recovering from recent ills, and all affirming in print the spreading truth that the need for grippe cure was on the rise. While Rev. L. Jackson Adams canceled the evening service for his church on the “corner of Chase and Cervantes Street,” due to the contraction o...