h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It was an honest mistake. In a segment of the Hooverville NaJoPoMo project, I mentioned walking along the river, where pin oaks and red maples were growing. Just now I checked to see where Pin Oaks grow, and they wouldn't be in Hooverville (which is based on Clarion, Pennsylvania).

So, I'm sorry about that. That segment is going to be regarded as a dream anyway, but still.....

We don't have the capacity for going back and making changes, the way we might if we were submitting a manuscript to a book publisher, or working on a Guide Entry. So, we make mistakes and try to figure out how to deal with them after the fact.

There are misunderstandings, too. Maybe I shouldn't talk about those. I sometimes think that other people will be delighted with things, and it turns out that aren't . Okay, I've talked about moroe than I should have. get me started, and I go on too long.

I remember reading "Winesburg, Ohio" by Sherwood Anderson. It's a collection of interrelated short stories based on Anderson's memories of growing up Clyde, Ohio (There really is a Winesburg, but that's not the town this is based on).

The stories deal with loneliness and isolation. I grew up in a small town in Massachusetts, and I remember loneliness and isolation there, too. People would wave and smile at you, but who knew what was really going on in their heads, let alone their lives?

Rumors of all kinds might circulate. Petty crimes like sneakily moving valuable history books from the public library into the (private) historical society collection went on. People would harbor hostile feelings toward the town's biggest developer. Out church's minister got in big trouble for writing a scathing letter to the town paper about someone or other. He was lucky he never got sued!

The chief of police drove much too fast, and sometimes he was not actually on the way to some emergency.

The principal of the elementary school was mistrusted because (it was claimed) she ate goodies that were dropped off for the whole staff. And where did she go in midmorning when the kids were at recess? She was removed from her post shortly before she would have retired anyway, and some townspeople thought that was terribly unfair, even if they agreed hat she should go.

In a fictitious location I'm sure we have some artistic licence...it's not a documentary! Keep on keeping on mate.

Thanks, FWR. Things are never blissful and serene anywhere, whether urban or rural. People annoy each other.

Something that surprised me about Clarion was that it hasn't got any choral societies. There are two groups that come close, though: a community choir sponsored by the First Presbyterian Church, and the New Bethlehem Barbershop Harmony Group. New Bethlehem is in Clarion County.

So, a Clarion Choral Society could be formed if someone wanted to stick his/her neck out. Heck, Clarion University doesn't even have a large choral group (it has a concert choir).

At some point, someone might want to talk to members of the areas smaller groups and invite them to join a large ensemble that could do large-scale works.