I’m ‘a Compel Him to Include Women in the Sequel (#65 Revisited: Hudson Valley – Val-Kill)

Look, Eleanor Roosevelt was a boss! I kind of knew that going in, but I didn’t realize the extent of her awesomeness until Val-Kill.

Eleanor was born in 1884, her mother died in 1892 and Eleanor and her brothers were sent to live with her grandmother.  One of her brothers died in 1893 and her father died in 1894.  Her childhood was not happy.  But at 15, she was sent to Allenswood School in England – a boarding school that taught her confidence, independence and a social consciousness.  She called her time there the “happiest time in my life.”  She knew that regardless of holding public office that public service would be a part of her life.

In 1905 she married FDR and for the most part they live with his mother in Hyde Park. Over the next decade she has 6 children, a daughter and five sons.  In 1910, FDR is elected state senator and their official public service begins.

During the 1913 – 1920 FDR is serving as Assistant Secretary of the Navy.  And when the US enters World War I in 1917, Eleanor sets up the US Navy Red Cross Canteen.  After the war, she travels extensively to post-war Europe and supports the League of Nations and World Court.  Women are finally given the right to vote in 1920 and she immediately joins the League of Women Voters.

Through the 1920s she joins the Women’s Trade Union League, builds Val-Kill (as a retreat for her and her two close friends and mentors, Nancy Cook and Marion Dickerman.  She becomes editor of Women’s Democratic News and concerned about the trend of farmers leaving rural areas for city jobs, starts Val-Kill Industries.  VKI trained and employed local farmers in their off season, teaching them to be master cabinetmakers.  There is also a pewter forge, and a weaving shop that employees women.  



Oh yeah, she also nursed her husband through polio, helped him rejoin public life, and worked to get him elected as NY Governor for 2 terms. She travels all over New York State and reports back on the conditions to FDR suggesting improvements.  She’ll go anywhere and do anything and you better not tell her that a women can’t or shouldn’t do something.

In 1929 the stock market crashes and the US enters the Great Depression.  FDR is elected president in 1932. Eleanor uses her new position as first lady to champion social and economic justice and civil rights.  She’s criticized for mistakes associated with New Deal projects.   She makes it clear, “I’m the agitator; he’s the politician.”

Throughout the 1930s she joins National Urban League and NAACP. She urges her husband to create National Youth Administration and promotes fairness across gender and race lines.  Val-Kill Industries closes in 1936, but she turns the old factory into a retreat for family, friends, journalists, and the occasional world leader can swim and picnic.  She syndicates her “My Day” column on national issues and daily observations.  She resigns her membership in the DAR when they won’t let Marion Anderson (an African American opera singer) perform in Constitution Hall and instead helps her get a concert broadcast at the Lincoln Memorial.

On December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor is attacked and the US enters World War II. She addresses the nation saying, “whatever is asked of us I am sure we can accomplish…free and unconquerable people of the United States of America.” Throughout the early 40s she travels to Britain, South Pacific, Caribbean, and South America to visit US troops, and hospitals.  

On April 12, 1945, FDR dies in Warm Springs, GA.  Eleanor tell the press “the story is over.” (Spoiler alert: it’s not; she’s got a lot left to accomplish.)

WWII ends and President Truman names Eleanor as a delegate to the UN General Assembly, where she serves on the committee for Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural Affairs.  She Chairs the UN Human Rights Commissions, and drafts (and the UN adopts) a declaration of human rights. This is Eleanor’s proudest achievement.

Through the 1950s and 60s she hosts multiple world leaders at Val-Kill, visits the Middle East and Asia, urges rapid school integration after Brown v Board of Education, is reappointed to the UN delegation, chairs the President’s Commission on Status of Women, and on November 7, 1962 at 78 years old Eleanor dies, and is buried next to her husband at the Hyde Park estate.

Those are the facts. And she accomplished many amazing things in her time here.  But she was also a vastly complex human being who had personal battles, a falling out with her two best friends, hated (or at least very much disliked) her mother in law, and was overshadowed by a powerful husband. 

She used gas station glasses on her table, and her home at Val-Kill is filled with photos of family and friends.  She wasn’t afraid of going anywhere or meeting anyone (or maybe she was, but it didn’t stop her).  She tirelessly supported equality and human rights. She wrote 27 books. She’s one of the OG Bosses.

I’m a Trust Fund, Baby, You Can Trust Me (#65 Revisited: Hudson Valley – Kykuit)

Listen, it’s pronounced Ky-cut, I need a reminder because even though I’ve been to this place twice, I still want to pronounce it Ky-coo-it. 

We had a very small tour group, just us, and a couple from Connecticut who had dropped their daughter off for a cruise, but didn’t want to just drive back home. They were annoying. The guy, did not understand that the property is a museum and he touched or tried to touch EVERYTHING! 



And he kept making just the weirdest observations or speaking as if her were an expert on something, when he clearly wasn’t an expert on anything except male privilege and mansplaining. By the end of the tour even our guide was like, “we’re done” get back on the shuttle or you’re walking.

But the property is beautiful, and I saw some new and interesting details with such a small group. And it was fun to remember bits and pieces from the previous tour. I also feel like they’ve rearranged some of the furniture, but since no pics are allowed in the house (although guess which tour companions still were trying to take them) I cannot confirm that.  

We'll Never Be Truly Free Until Those in Bondage Have the Same Rights as You and Me…. (#65 Hudson Valley Revisited – Philipsburg Manor)

Now, here’s the thing. Philipsburg Manor and Kykuit share a visitor center, so when I went to Kykuit in 2011 there was about an hour before the tour left and they told me I could just wander around. So, I wandered around to Philipsburg Manor and took pictures until someone was like, “hold up, you need a ticket to be here”….oops.

This time I actually bought a ticket and took the tour. It was mostly really interesting (listen I don’t need to hear a list of 200 bean varieties while you pick around a bowl of beans for examples of all 200).

By the middle of the 18^th century, Philipsburg Manor covered over 52,000 acres along the Hudson River and was built as a milling and trading complex. Adolph Philipse didn’t actually live in the Manor (as a primary residence), it was built for business, and to impress and intimidate the vendors, partners, etc. who visited.



Adolph was one of the wealthiest men in New York and the family was also one of the largest slave-owning families in the North. Apparently, it’s easy to accumulate wealth when you don’t pay for labor.

Small plots were rented by tenant farmers of diverse European backgrounds, but the Upper Mills Quarter was operated by enslaved people of African descent who lived and worked there. They provided the skilled labor necessary to operate the milling complex, bakehouse, farm, and dairy, as well as piloting sloops up and down the Hudson.

Our docent for the house portion actually told the story of the house and farm through their eyes and their lives. There were 5 women who worked in the manor house and she repeatedly said their names (Susan, Abigail, Massy, Dina, Sue) and told their story of the house. It was really powerful.

In 1750, 23 enslaved men, women and children lived and worked at the manor. We know this from the “inventory” lists. When they sold property after Philipse’s death that “property” included an 8 year old boy, whose parents were also enslaved and couldn’t do anything to stop it.

In fact, he was likely purchased because his father was a strong worker, and the new owner believed his son would inherit that strength. Here’s the thing, (and I’m quoting from Elizabeth Kostova’s “The Historian” :

“History’s terrible moments were real. I understand now, decades later, that he could never have told me. Only history itself can convince you of such a truth. And once you’ve seen that truth - really seen it - you can’t look away”.

Especially now, when stories of ICE ripping children away from their parents.  Think about that.  Think about how you would feel. And I definitely don’t need to hear any nonsense about illegal immigrants – these are people, real children of God, and history is real, and once you see it – you can’t look away.

They’ve recently built an Enslaved Africans’ Rain Garden to memorialize and “honor, dignify and restore the humanity of enslaved Africans who resided at Philipse Manor Hall”. http://enslavedafricansraingarden.org/vision/





We also toured the mill, and got a demonstration of the still-functional equipment. It has an actual water wheel and everything. I thought I took a video, but turns out…just pictures (unless I can poach some from Cort).

And...I did!

After the mill we talked about beans, beans, beans, and the most interesting part of this section was there was a working farm cat that wandered through and then down to a field where it tried to get a bird or a squirrel.  We were all watching the cat while the lady just kept talking about beans.

Finally, we stopped at the barn, and this part was really interesting. It was fascinating how much science was involved in every part of the farm. The barn for example, was constructed in a place that would maximize wind, and the construction allowed for the breeze to blow straight through.  



This barn wasn’t an animal barn.  Since they were a provisioning depot it was mostly about growing as much wheat (and some corn) as possible so that they could grind it to flour and sail to the Caribbean and trade for sugar, and other European goods. So this barn was a threshing bar.  

The enslaved children were primarily responsible for threshing, first with a flail, and then with a basket (and a wind assist).  The docent demonstrated both and it really is an ingenious method that uses gravity and wind to do a lot of the work.

After the barn, Cort went back to the house garden to take some pictures (I was sitting and resting my back) and the other 4 friends in our group were just kind of standing around chatting to each other.  Right before they left one of the ladies came over and told me that if we were looking to eat lunch there was a great restaurant just down the street called Horsefeathers.  So, that is where we ate lunch, and it was crazy delicious!

#144 Arthur Bryant's BBQ

In Kansas City barbeque is king and prides itself on an anything goes kind of style. You want a bunch of different meats? Ok. You want a tomato, vinegar, sugar, or mustard based sauce? Sure you can get that. There are a bunch of different BBQ places, but when I told the lady at the rental car agency I was there for BBQ, she not only asked if I was going to Arthur Bryant's, but told me I HAD to go to the original location.  Not only already on the agenda, but the entire reason for the trip I assured her.




The List tells me "there's no decor to speak of....but that just means there's nothing to distract you from the signature half-pound of slow-cooked brisket slapped on plain old white bread, with a gritty herbs-and-spices-flavored barbeque sauce and the best skin on french fries in America."

Listen, real-talk here....those fries were marginal.  They were fine, but definitely not in top 10, let alone best in America.

5 things about Arthur Bryant's Barbecue:

1. There is no decor; it is pretty much just a collection of tables, and a school lunch line of meat windows.  There also seemed to be no air-conditioning because it was HOT in there.

2. It was packed.  Even at 2pm on a random Saturday.  I waited in line around 20 minutes to order. 

3. I knew I was ordering waaaaaaay too much food, but I wanted to try a couple of kinds of meat.  I really though about ordering an extra side, but was glad I refrained.  About half of my meal ended up not being eaten.

4. The actual order:  The combo with burnt ends (obviously) and sausage, and fries. Like I said the amount of food was overwhelming.  The burnt ends were delicious.  So, so, very delicious.  I ate pretty much all of that part of my plate.  The sausage was also good, but I was expecting it to be, you know, sausage-shaped, but it was sliced like roast beef.  But it tasted like sausage - it was good, but ultimately too weird for my brain/palate to reconcile.  The sauce, though, well, they have a bunch - but the original was all I needed. I thought it was insanely good.  (Maybe tied with Melon sauce.)

5. While it was very good, I was surrounded in line by folks who had never been there before.  I don't know if they live in the area or were visiting, but as with many of these Local Royalty Restaurants (Pat and Geno's in Philly, for example) - they are legendary examples of a local food genre, but you probably won't see a lot of actual locals there.

#143 Superdawg

There was a PBS program many years ago called A Hot Dog Program that I've watched every time its aired, and love. (Even though I don't really like hot dogs.) It was Food Paradise, and Diners, Drive ins, and Dives before Food Network existed for me, and I loved it.  It made one of my least favorite foods look totally irresistible, and even now, if I am anywhere in the vicinity of one of those joints, I try out their hot dog.  



All this to say, I was eating at Superdawg in Chicago regardless, and what a happy coincidence that it is on The List.

Their names are Maurie and Flaurie


Superdawg is an old-fashioned drive-in where car hops will deliver food to your car on a tray that attaches to the side.

 



We Ubered out to their original location, ordered at a window and ate at a picnic table.  






When you order a Superdawg, you get a contentedly lounging dog with Superfries snuggled around it.




I'll be honest, I pretty quickly took that pickle off, though!






The Superdawg was pretty good for a hot dot, I think I'd still rather have a ripper from Rutt's Hut.  And I definitley want to do a proper dog-off next time between Portillo's and Superdawg.  

But for good, nostaligic dawgs, and kitschy fun - I definitely recommend a stop at Superdawg!

#142 Arun's (Taste of Thai Town)

Y'all know I'm not above a little fudging on The List if the situation calls for it, and this was one of those times.  The actual List thing is Arun's, a super fancy, fine dining Thai restaurant with a really lousy website.  

Sidenote: it in 2017, how do you run a business without at least a moderately user friendly website.  How?!

Anyhow, in looking at the website, it seemed like you could only get a prix-fixe menu and there was a LOT of shellfish.  Since, that would literally kill me, epi-pen or not, I was not sure I'd be able to cross this place off The List.  However, in Googling around, I discovered that Arun (the owner and chef at Arun's, unsurprisingly) had open a slightly more casual restaurant called Taste of Thai Town.





The food was really, really good (especially the coconut ice cream), and the name was too punny not to go.











Our Lyft driver back into downtown had a lot of questions about how we found this restaurant because we were tourists purposefully going to a Thai place out in the 'burbs that he had never even heard of.  But he did say, he might have to try it now.

#141 Chicago Blues Scene

My original itinerary called for visiting three Blues Clubs, two after full days of site-seeing, and one for lunch.  Ultimately, though, we only made it to Kingston Mines.  (The other 2 were Buddy Guy's and House of Blues.)  

We hit up Kingston Mines after Hamilton, on a Friday night.  It was dark, it was loud, it was crowded, and it was Blues-y.  Anyone who knows me, knows why this ended up being our only stop on the Blues Tour.  

"Two pints of Sam Adams, but I'm workin' on three"

Kingston Mines has a kitchen, and I did eat some really good Mac 'n Cheese, since we hadn't had dinner yet.  But ultimately was too loud and crowded for me to really have any kind of fun at all.  I am not a club kinda girl.  That said, next time I'm in Chicago I really want to hit up House of Blues for dinner, and Buddy Guy's for a lunch show!