Rural community feuds over courthouse theft and town rivalries span generations in small communities. Jenny Russell explores Parks and Recreation parallels with real inter-town grudges and regional cooperation challenges.
“Parks and Recreation workplace parallels real economic development with constant meetings, learning curves, and passionate citizens. Jenny Russell compares the TV show’s accuracy to her actual rural development experience.
Small town attractions can draw major visitors through wacky rules, little touches, and repurposed spaces. Jenny Russell shares five strategies from Seattle’s gum wall to Cawker City’s twine ball for creating unique destinations.
County fair season brings 4-H projects, show cattle, and even community-run carnivals. Jenny Russell shares stories of tradition, hard work, and rural life.
Rural housing faces challenges with blight, demolition costs, and property upkeep, showing why small-town rebuilding isn’t a simple fix.
The LIVIN Project follows two Californians walking across America for charity, discovering Kansas has generous people, beautiful landscapes, and authentic people.
Folk horror movies explore tensions between modern science and old beliefs through rural settings. Jenny Russell discusses Children of the Corn, Blair Witch Project, and how America fears weird Christians rather than paganism like British films.
Rural isolation in horror movies creates fear through empty landscapes and social separation. Jenny Russell explores how distance from help makes rural people self-reliant and why grief amplifies isolation in films like Midsommar.
Rural busy means June brings baseball, harvest, and volunteer work like painting bleachers. Jenny Russell explains why rural people stay active in small communities where residents handle tasks themselves.
Killer hillbillies dominate 1970s horror films like Deliverance and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Jenny Russell explores the origins of hillbilly stereotypes and how economic exploitation shaped rural villain portrayals in cinema.
