Midwesternish

Avery Jackson was the first transgender person in the world to grace the cover of National Geographic. That's a huge responsibility for a nine-year-old girl from the Midwest. But, through her journey, Avery's learned to deal with the haters. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Milkwood ," " Waterbourne ," " Paper Napkin ," and " Felt Lining " by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

You might think it's easy to define the Midwest...it's just a collection of states, right? Wrong. On this episode, we explore our regional identity and attempt to answer the question: what is the Midwest, really? Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: Manele , Tiny Putty , A Rush Of Clear Water and Outside The Terminal by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited.

There's something a little sad about returning to your favorite childhood amusement park as an adult. That pinch of nostalgia for certain rides connects us to the places we grew up, and the people with whom we grew up. Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: Tiny Putty , Felt Lining , Algea Trio and Feathered by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited.

Every city has that one bookstore, the irreverent corner shop where literary types plot revolutions. In Kansas City, that bookstore is Prospero's, owned by Will Leathem. Leathem took a surprising path to becoming a used book salesman. Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: Balti , Begrudge , Filing Away , and Paper Napikin by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited.

At one point in history, Atchison , Kansas was positioned to be one of the main connecting points for the railways between Missouri and Kansas. It's said there were more millionaires there than anywhere in the world. Can Atchison hold onto its grand past but carve out a new identity for young residents? Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: Steadfast , Heliotrope , Balti and A Rush of Clear Water by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited.

Malls used to be "cool" places to hang out. But now, more and more malls are becoming abandoned structures, rotting inside and waiting for the wrecking ball. What do these hollowed-out shopping centers say about where we are as a country? Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: Algea Tender , Collecting Samples , In Passage and Diatom by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited.

Suddenly, everyone seems to be using the word "y'all." But what do we mean when we use that word? Is it a bad case of appropriation? Is it racist? One thing's for sure, "y'all" is far more interesting than you think. Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: Manele , Silent Flock and Dropped Ticket by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited.

Anthony Ladesich never got to buy his dad a drink. He died when Anthony was only 19. But after listening to his father's old reel-to-reel tapes, Anthony discovered a dad he never knew, and what he heard blew his mind. Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher

As more young people identify as Nones (as in "no religious affiliation"), are they still making room for rituals in their daily lives? Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: The Zeppelin , City Limits and On Belay by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited.

As a kid, Ed Dwight never dreamed he might one day go to the moon, but he did fantasize about escaping life in Kansas. And it was that idea of escape that was so powerful for a young black man in the 50s. Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: Cat's Eye , Manele , Transit Vidal and Hundred Mile by Blue Dot Sessions and Fats Waller and His Orchestra live at the Yacht Club from The Public Domain Review ; all have been edited.

A shooting in Olathe, Kansas that left one Indian man dead and another injured has captured national and international attention. How does violence like this change South Asian immigrants' perceptions of the Midwest and the "American Dream?" Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher

There's no question that the McDonald's Happy Meal was invented in Kansas City, Missouri. The question is...who invented it? To find an answer, we go on a journey from 1950's Lebanon to Salina, Kansas. Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: The Silver Hatch , Rally , Manele , and Heliotrope by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edit.

When you hear the words "Conservatory of Music" what do you see ... pianos, violins, brass in padded rooms? What about a guy sitting behind a computer screen? Meet the first student to be admitted to a Missouri music conservatory to study and play the computer. Subscribe

In 2016, the homicide rate in Kansas City, Missouri, was the highest it had been in a decade. Twelve of the people killed that year were under the age of 16. Meet some of the people whose lives have become intertwined with this ongoing violence. Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: Emmit Sprak , Scalloped , Cobweb Transit , and A Calendar Spread by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edit.

Artist and pastor Dylan Mortimer has cystic fibrosis, a disease that fills the lungs and other organs with a thick mucous, eventually clogging airways and limiting the sufferer's ability to breathe. When Mortimer was growing up, the life expectancy for someone with cystic fibrosis was the late teen years. Now, thanks to advances in medicine, it's 37. Mortimer is 36. Subscribe on iTunes , Google Play and Stitcher Music: When The Guests Have Left , Paper Napkin , Filing Away and Threads and Veils