Kelsey Timmerman's Blog, page 77
October 1, 2009
I don't say this often…
Watch Oprah today.
Why?
This is why…
Click here to view the embedded video.
I watched that video last night with my 9-month-old girl on my lap and nearly started crying. I'm such a sap.
September 28, 2009
"Missing their son" on the World Vision Report
My latest contribution to the World Vision Report aired this weekend. It's about my experience with the workers who made my flip-flops. Here's the official description:
Many people from rural China have migrated to cities in the country's coastal provinces, in search of steady jobs. Travel writer Kelsey Timmerman met one such couple in the city of Guangzhou. Three years ago, they left their son with his grandparents, and haven't seen him since.
September 25, 2009
September 24, 2009
A new reason to listen to me yap…
Earn college credit!
Tonight I'm speaking at Manchester College and students who attend can earn Values, Ideas, and Arts Credit (VIA). Here's what the college's calendar says:
Thursday, September 24 7 p.m.
Kelsey Timmerman on Where Am I Wearing?What's it like to go undercover as an underwear buyer in Bangladesh? Kelsey Timmerman can tell you. In 2007, he took out a second mortgage on his house so he could travel across the globe to meet the people who make...
September 22, 2009
The World's Craziest Traveler
As someone who has had to answer the question, "So what brings you to Bangladesh?" by holding up a pair of Jingle These Christmas boxers and saying, "My underwear were made here," some might think I could vie for the title of The World's Craziest Traveler.
But there's a whole level of crazy that can't be matched by underwear quests funded by second mortgages.
I was working at an adventure outfitter in North Carolina, when I encountered the craziest traveler I've ever met.
"I need a sleeping...
September 20, 2009
Weekend Update
1) I'm speaking at Manchester College in West Manchester, Indiana, Thursday in the Wine Recital room at 7:00 PM. I'll be visiting a few classes during the day. (here's a list of other places I'll be in the near future).
2) Philadelphia's libraries are staying open! I hope other struggling libraries around the country can say the same thing.
3) Harper bit me in the back.
4) If you'd be interested in having me speak at your school, church, organization, business, or cult, I made this handy page
September 18, 2009
Talking with Ted Kooser
Do you ever feel like a dog in your indecision? You know those times when you are trying to convince your dog to do something new and they start to whimper and walk circles. That's how I felt yesterday.
I was driving and listening to one of my favorite talk shows on NPR "On Point". There are bigger and more popular shows on the radio, but there are few hosts I would rather sit down and chat with than Tom. I sent Tom a copy of "Where Am I Wearing?" with a note expressing how much I enjoy...
September 16, 2009
Give me libraries! A call to action
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I thought I was a pretty cool little boy growing up.
I was tough. I jumped off the high dive at the pool when I was five.
I could take a hit. I beat up a girl on the bus. This might sound lame until I tell you that the girl was in third grade and I was in second and everybody knows that a third grade girl is like double the size of a second grade boy.
I learned to cuss at an early age, which of course strikes fear into the hearts of sissies and forces adults to suppress laughter and feign...
September 14, 2009
Grameen Bank: Small loans, a big difference
(This weekend I got into a conversation on Twitter with @sloane about microfinance. The Grameen Bank is a shining example of how giving women access to credit can lift families out of poverty. Here are a few photos I took when I visited the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh in 2007 . Below that is an excerpt from "Where Am I Wearing? about the experience. )
Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohammad Yunnus believes in Bangladesh, too. He formed the Grameen Bank, which gives microcredit loans to people who...
September 11, 2009
Best Mental Attitude Awards are for Losers & Me
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From a distance my trophy shelf might've looked impressive. Unfortunately there was no distance to put between you and the shelf in my small childhood bedroom.
You wouldn't be impressed by the gold and silver trophies of varying height. None were that big, but some were embarrassingly small. Half of the trophies were from Spelling Bees. From 5th-7th grade I dominated the Mississinawa Valley Spelling Bee. The entire middle school would assemble to watch their peers spell words. How awful. As...
