Let's Talk About Indianapolis, Muncie, History and the Brighter Lights

 While Trump spends our historical capital like a crackhead on a binge, let's not forget about some better things about this country.

The food in Indianapolis, for instance.

Several Hoosiers named James Beard Award semifinalists  

The James Beard Awards are perhaps the most prestigious awards in the food world. On Wednesday, the James Beard Foundation released the semifinalists for this year’s awards, which included seven different Hoosiers.

Hoosiers in the running for the so-called “Oscar of the food world” include an Indianapolis restaurateur, a pastry chef, and a husband-wife chef duo.

In 2025, only two Indianapolis restaurants were named as semifinalists. These restaurant owners say that’s a testament to Indy’s evolving food scene 

The semifinalists represent different cuisines and come from Indianapolis, Carmel and Clark County in southern Indiana. They say as the area grows, so does its food scene 

Or our arts scene.

Meet the Maker: 2025 DeHaan Artists of Distinction (Axios Indianapolis)

The inspo: Every year, the DeHaan Artist of Distinction awards Hoosier contemporary artists grants of up to $10,000 to pursue aspirational projects.

• The 2025 winners chosen by a panel of visual art professionals were announced last week.
• Their final projects will be shown later this year during a special exhibition at Gallery 924.

Zoom in: Meet the 2025 DeHaan Artist of Distinction winners.

Or the beauty of model railroads, Muncie Edition.

Muncie's 34th Annual Model Train Show Feb. 28 

Delaware County Fairgrounds will host Muncie and Western Train Club's 34th Annual Model Train Show from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 28. 

The event is "Indiana's largest and longest-running single-day train show," according to a Jan. 9 event flyer.

Some weirdness from Muncie. Funny how I see art work in town saying "Keep Muncie weird".

Delaware County inmate charged over bid to kiss corrections officer 

An investigator who viewed a surveillance video reported Johnson "wrapped his arms around (the officer's) upper body from behind, then grabs her face in an aggressive manner attempting to kiss her."

Close out with a little history lesson from Indianapolis.

Blue Line crews uncover tracks from city’s electric railway  (Mirror Indy)

The first electric streetcar line in Indianapolis was built in 1890 along Illinois Street from Union Station to Fairview Park, a former 246-acre park that is now the site of Butler University. Traveling from one end of the line to the other took about an hour.

Over the years, the railway tracks expanded throughout the city and by 1920, the city’s streetcar system carried about 126 million passengers a year.

***

The first car was built in Germany in 1886 and by the early 1900s, companies throughout the world were competing to build their own cars.

In Indianapolis, companies like Nordyke & Marmon, Duesenberg Automobile and Motors and Lafayette Motors worked to produce luxury cars on the west side.

City railways brought workers to manufacturing plants, like the American Foundry at 565 S. Warman Ave. and the General Motors Stamping Plant at 340 S. White River Parkway W Drive.

As the use of cars grew, fewer people used railways. By 1933, ridership had decreased to 52.9 million passengers a year.

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In 2014, the Indiana General Assembly passed a mass transit bill that prevents state funds from being used on certain light rail projects. In 2018, some legislators attempted to repeal it in order to make the city more competitive for Amazon’s second national headquarters, but that bill failed.

IU Health closed the People Mover in 2019, citing high costs, and replaced its functions with shuttle buses. Its elevated rails are still visible downtown.

That article led me to this notice of an exhibit at The Indiana Historical Society: The Electric Railway: Indiana’s Interurbans  

Yes, we once had a real public transportation system in Indiana.

 What we have to look forward to in the coming days:

 

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Slipping Behind On Time

 Yesterday, I spent five hours working on one chapter for "One Dead Blonde". Then I caught the bus to the grocery - 90 minutes there, more or less. But I was tired when I left and tired when I returned. I napped for like three hours. I spent the night on a Link Wray kick and working on another chapter.

 

Wednesday, it was around 7 hours working on a chapter. A few changes in the plot, having to deal with incomplete copies from an OCR's version of the original typescript; these take more time than I expected.

Not that I also did not pay attention to politics, but I have another post pending on that. It has been pending for days.

Awaiting snow and cold. Hard to type with cold hands.

I have a research project to start; a novella to revise. And the quotidian tasks of washing the dishes and cleaning up the apartment.

I have about 30 minutes before I need to catch the bus that will get me to the group session.

Onto other items for the day.

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Update for Today From the Weekend

1/17:

Went to church for our first baptisms. Not much accomplished this afternoon, evening, night. Except to get things organized for tomorrow.  

"Agnes" went to New Ohio Review, Sequestrum, and Story Bottle.

Wreck Your Heart reviewed by Larry Sweazy- Indiana Writers Book Reviews 

1/18

Headache, I think it is from my dental work. One of the temp caps got broken. 

"Going for the Kid" rejected:

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to read and consider your submission. We regret that we won’t be able to publish it in Arcturus. We realize a lot of time and talent go into every piece, so we appreciate you trusting us to read and discuss your work. We wish you best of luck with this submission and the rest of your creative work and hope you will keep Arcturus in mind as a future home for your writing.

Thanks again,

Rachel León
Arcturus Fiction Director  

Everything You Need to Know About the True Origins of the Everything Bagel 

The Minotaur’s Muses: The romantic cruelty of a brilliant artist 

Submissions: 

Baubles From Bones - "Lessons Learned From A Green Meadow"

"Thomas Kemp Went Missing" - The Phantom Pulse 

(I was going to submit to The Tonic, so I read Time and Time Again).

(PULP Literature was going to get  "Going For The Kid" only submissions are closed - how did I get the idea it was open? And I forgot I submitted it to Escape Pod.)

Ink Alchemy Publishing  - "Going For The Kid"

Polyamory, regrets and revenge: changing the story on infidelity 

Seven by Joanna Kavenna review – a madcap journey to the limits of philosophy 

Worked on a project for MW. Working on "Chasing Ashes". 

 1/19

Working "Chasing Ashes" again. I went to the grocery.

Rejections came in:

Thank you for sending "Going For The Kid" to Escape Pod. Unfortunately, this story wasn’t a good fit for us. Choosing stories is a subjective process, and we have to reject many well-written stories. Please note that we do not accept revised versions of stories previously submitted to us, but we wish you the best in finding this one a good home, and we look forward to your next submission.

We wanted a greater sense of narrative cohesion throughout.

Best Regards,
Kevin Wabaunsee & Phoebe Barton
Assistant Editors, Escape Pod
http://escapepod.org

***

"One Dead Blonde" 

Thank you for submitting to our 2025 Novel Excerpt Contest, judged by Nick Fuller Googins. This is one of our favorite contests each year, and we're grateful you trusted us with your work. 

I am sorry to say, however, that your excerpt was not chosen to move on to the next round. We're sorry we're not able to provide personal feedback on everyone's submission. We hope that you'll continue submitting your work. We truly believe the right home for your excerpt is out there. 

Thank you again for submitting "One Dead Blonde" to The Masters Review. We could not exist without your support! Be sure to check back later this year for this contest's shortlist.

Best wishes,

The Masters Review

 

1/20:

Working "Chasing Ashes" again. I meant to spend the day in Indianapolis while I had a car. Nope. Left early enough to eat at Umi in Castleton. Great food - but dinner is $30.

Got my friend and wife at the airport, back here I piddled with the news.

 1/21

I woke a t4 am. Worked on "Chasing Ashes" for three hours. My eyes were tired and I went to bed. Got up around 10, went back to work on "Chasing Ashes". I did that for until around 3 pm. I was going to see a movie, I was too far into my writing to do so. Meant to grab a bus and get smokes and caffeine. Too tired for that. Up around 6 pm, started work on finishing this post.

Rejection for today - "Coming Home" -

Thank you so much for submitting your work for review. It is not quite right for SPANK the CARP so I've decided to pass at this time. Please consider submitting other material for review.

 

Ken, Editor

 

 No submissions.

Now, I am out of energy for another post.

At least, Trump did not make things worse at Davos.

I still think he will be the death of America, and of Americans.

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YouTubing! Football -Laying Eggs - Going to The Dogs -Russians In Alaska - Indiana - Paris!

 Some of the stuff that I have been listening to while writing.

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Recent Rejections

 1/4:

Thank you for sending us "Learning The Passion and Control Twist". We truly appreciate the chance to read your work, and we are grateful that you thought of Pinyon as a potential home for it. 

Unfortunately, this submission isn't a great fit for us at this time, but we wish you success in placing it elsewhere.

Thanks again. 

Sincerely,

Ashley Bollinger, Managing Editor

Rory Davison, Assistant Editor

Pinyon

1/5

Thanks so much for your submission. We appreciate the chance to read your work, but unfortunately won't be publishing it in our next issue. Best of luck with finding a home for it elsewhere. 

– The Banshee team

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bansheepress.org | Bluesky | Instagram

Issue 20 (autumn/winter 2025) out now

Filly by Rosamund Taylor out now

 

 

1/11

Thank you for sending us "Learning The Passion and Control Twist"." We appreciate the opportunity to read and consider it. Unfortunately, we could not find a place for your piece at this time.

We wish you the best of luck placing it elsewhere.

Take good care,

The Editors
The Idaho Review 

1/13:

Thank you for trusting us with your work. We appreciated the opportunity to consider "Agnes," but have decided not to accept it for publication.

We wish you the best of luck in placing it elsewhere!

Sincerely,

Redivider

And that is all the blogging for tonight. The email has been whipped!

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YouTubing Politics

Some of the political stuff I have been listening this past week.

Trump accidentally confesses why he is antagonizing Minneapolis

 

 

 Movement of jah people:

 

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For Your Reading Pleasure

 Some items I have read and do not have time to more justice to:

Acid Blues (Slight Return): The music of Jimi Hendrix continues to strike a chord
by James McManus   (The New Republic)

These Are 10 Local Pizza Restaurants In Indiana Loved By The Community - but no Pizza King!

Why Indiana Democrats are running for office. 

Competition And Corruption (Sheila Kennedy) - what is wrong with Indiana's politics = lead me to Independent Indiana.

What Would You Do Alone in a Cage with Nothing but Cocaine? A Philosophy of Addiction by Hanna Pickard

 Two Short Novels by Colette: “Break of Day” & “Duo” (Thornfield Hall) - because I like Colette.

In Pursuit of Peace, Ancient Athens Created a Goddess (JStor Daily)

After decades of war, the Athenians decided peace would no longer be an abstraction. Instead, it would be personified as a deity, the goddess Eirene, and worshipped as such. To be clear, religion in ancient Greece was not “faith” in the way we understand it today. It did not necessarily guide individual’s private thoughts or provide a moral compass. Instead, it was deeply embedded in public life. Practicing religion was a social and civic duty, aimed at maintaining harmony between mortals and the divine. Religious acts such as prayers, libations, and dedication of votive offerings were typically performed at public shrines and altars. These were visible, communal gestures, often tied to festivals, civic events, or transitions in life, such as marriage, war, or death.

 ***

An idea of desirable, all-abiding, permanent peace was a new concept in the fourth century BCE Greek political thinking. Peace agreements had been concluded before, but they were not meant to be permanent and none of them lasted long. Eirene was the embodiment of a newfound hope for a more lasting peace that could unify the country. However, despite the hopes Athenians placed in Eirene to deliver on this goal, appeals to a divinity could not prevent war. Worshipping a deity did not create practical mechanisms for diplomacy or conflict resolution.

Lift A program supporting films that elevate Hoosier stories and raise the spirit of Indiana

A Brief, Disturbing History of Universal Monster (Crime Reads)

Monica Lewinsky: I was called a bimbo and abused on a world stage (London Times) - a little shocked she is now 52 - where did the time go - but a reminder that deserved better, and it is very good to see that she has survived.

 “And Ye are Witnesses of These Things” Revisiting “Worship in a Secular Age”: Part Three (Public Orthodoxy) is a series I have been reading in the context of creativity, and I get glimpses of a way forward.

This series of essays attempted to revisit and extend Fr. Alexander Schmemann’s sacramental critique of secularism. Christian life in a secular age requires an askēsis of epiphany—a disciplined way of seeing and living out the sacramental continuity between worship and world-facing witness, fulfilled in the joyous recognition of Christ always in our midst. John the Baptist, St. Maximus notes, leaped for joy in his mother’s womb at the first sight of His Lord. And even now, “just as if He were enclosed in a womb, the Word of God appears only obscurely, and only to those who have the spirit of John the Baptist.”[viii] This spirit of joy, this askēsis of epiphany, leads us to truly grasp the perennial relevance and promise of his resounding proclamation, issued to a world shrouded by darkness and the shadow of death: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” (Mt 3:2). 

Christ, Epiphany, and the World’s Essential “Sacramentality” Revisiting “Worship in a Secular Age”: Part Two 

One more post  and I am done for the day.

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