Midwesternish

Ever been to a squirrel cook-off? How about the demo derby? Well ... that's ok. Here in the Midwest we eat all kinds of food, play all kinds of sports and maybe aren't exactly what you thought — particularly if you identify as a Midwesterner yourself. Midwesternish is a podcast that explores (and sometimes explodes) what it means to be Midwestern. Stories of triumph, identity and casseroles.

Reporter Laura Ziegler reflects on what bringing her family and her father under one roof really meant. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Feathered ," " Silent Flock ," and " On Belay " by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

For his day job, he smoked ribs at a barbecue joint. But his secret identity was a playwright. Hear Nathan Louis Jackson's journey to becoming a writer for television and stage, including the Netflix series Luke Cage. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Set The Tip Jar ," and " Balti " by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

When you start a show called "Midwesternish," at some point there'll be an episode about The Wizard of Oz . If this film defines Kansas for the entire world, what exactly does it say and do we believe it? Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Filing Away ," " In Passage " and " On Belay ," by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

2015 was the most successful year since 1969 for the nation's largest cassette tape manufacturer. We meet the founder of that company, based in Springfield, Missouri, and try to figure out why people are returning to cassettes. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Pulsars ," and " Jetsam " by Podington Bear, and " Manele ," and " Heliotrope ," by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

The Garden of Eden isn't as far away as you might think. It's in the small town of Lucas, Kansas and it's filled with art. On this episode, a grassroots art project and it's unexpected caretaker. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Home Home At Last ," " Drifting Spade ," and " City Limits ," by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

What happens when a state regulates a tradition practiced on stoops and living room floors for generations? Missouri hair braiders say you could end up disenfranchising a community. On this episode: African hair braiding in the Midwest. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Home Home At Last ," " Sunday Lights ," and " One Needle ," by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

It's one of the hardest conversations to have: the conversation about abortion. But what if we tried to just talk about it without all the politics. We sat down to hear two women share their stories, they stand on opposite sides of the issue, politically, but they've both had abortions. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Denzel Sprak ," " Cobweb Transit ," " Headlights/Mountain Road ," and " One Needle ," by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

Roger Thomas wants you to move to his hometown, Orrick, Missouri, in order to save a small town that's only getting smaller. But can he convice you to see what he sees in Orrick? Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: " Milkwood ," " Paper Napkin ," " Algea Tender ," and " On Belay ," by Blue Dot Sessions; all have been edited for length.

The story of how one Kansas City man's DIY fireworks display got completely out of hand. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts , Google Play and Stitcher . Music: Gentle Marimba by Alastair Cameron, The Stars And Stripes Forever by John Philip Sousa