The Roadhouse

Alan J. Carlson is a retired diplomat living in Minnesota who is very active with the “Great Decisions” program, a monthly open discussion group based on the Foreign Policy Association’s Great Decisions program, at many sites across the country, including here in Cook County, that focuses on international issues.  You can learn more about the group here. Alan was recently in Grand Marais to facilitate the Great Decisions discussion on nuclear negotiations. The next local Great Decisions meeting will be held on Thursday, May 16 from noon to 1:30 pm at the Cook County Community Center. The topic will be "Decoding U.S.-China Trade".

On May 3, Foreign Service Day, Alan joined The Roadhouse to fill us in on what the day means and share some of his experiences from his career as a diplomat.

We're all probably a little anxious to get outside and enjoy the sunshine after our long winter, but there are some risks involved with doing so.  To learn more about how we can protect our skin when we're outside, we invited Dr. Megan Rogge on The Roadhouse.  Dr. Rogge is a dermatologist with UTHealth in Houston.

A huge amount of food ends up in school trashcans around the country every day. So, what can be done about it?

Freelance journalist Lela Nargi explored this issue in a recent article in Ensia, which can be found here.  Lela joined The Roadhouse to tell us more about some of the solutions being found across the country. 

Local illustrator Betsy Bowen partnered with author Phyllis Root on a new children's book that tells the story of a lucky error that preserved 144 acres of old-growth red and white pine in Minnesota.  Betsy spoke with Roadhouse host Dave about the story and how she came to be the illustrator for it.

Briand Morrison and Roxann Berglund join The Roadhouse to us what they've been up to recently and what they have coming up.  Briand also brought his guitar to play a few songs for us, including one "impromptu jam".  You can learn more about Briand and Roxann here.

Jessica Hellmann is the director of the Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota.  She joined The Roadhouse just ahead of Earth Day to tell us what we can do to preserve our only home.

Hellmann's article mentioned throughout the interview can be read here.

Local community leader Bill Hansen stopped by The Roadhouse to talk with Julie about how he's fulfilling his dream of becoming a Peace Corps volunteer.
 

Jerry Pushcar recently authored the book, "Waters Beneath My Feet: New Orleans to Nome … My 3-Year Canoe Odyssey.” about his canoe trip that took place over 40 years ago. 

Jerry joined The Roadhouse and spoke with Brian about his adventure. 

Michael Gulezian brought his unique guitar styling to The Roadhouse for a live performance ahead of a gig at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts.  

You can learn more about Michael and his music here.

Easy Riders are a group from Peoria, Illinois playing rock and blues.  They were in Cook County for a number of gigs over the weekend, including stopping by the WTIP studios to perform a set live on The Roadhouse. 

Easy Riders are:
Mike Miller - guitar, vocals
Aaron Miller - bass
Bob Kelly - drums, vocals