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 How did your life collide with the headlines in 2007? What's your holiday performance story? 
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Professional Uncertainty
It's been a frightening and frustrating couple of days for people traveling by air. The terror alert has also been difficult for the people whose jobs center on flying. What is it like going to work each day, when there's an imminent threat looming over your head? Bill and Barbara talk with Karen Sullivan, a flight attendant for a major airline, and her husband Kerry, who flies planes for an international cargo service, about how they cope with the dangers of their jobs. Online resources:
Music Bridge: A Little Something - Artist: Aeroc
CD: Idol Tryouts Two (Ghostly)
Road Trip
Weekend America continues with our summer road trip across the Lincoln Highway, America's first coast-to-coast road. This week, we pick up in Utah, the roughest, most unforgiving part of the route where the "Highway" is often nothing more than an unpaved trail. Online resources:
Music Bridge: Ploy - Artist: Giant Sand
CD: Is All Over The Map (Thrill Jockey) 
Classical Music Pick: Claudio Monteverdi
In 1610, Claudio Monteverdi bent over backwards trying to get a job. It wasn't just any gig: Monteverdi had his eye on the Papal Court in Rome. So he put a composition together and dedicated it to Pope Paul V, with hopes of being appointed Maestro di Cappella. He even hand-delivered it. Sadly, he didn't get the job. But he did create a sacred musical masterpiece. Barbara takes a listen with music critic Steve Smith. Heard:
The PC at 25
This Saturday is the 25th birthday of IBM's pc 5150. It marked a turning point in the growth of the Personal Computer. We talk with usability expert Don Norman about the design flaws of modern computers, and what we can expect in the next 25 years. Online resources:
That Obscure Object of Desire
In this age of personal computing, some of us have developed deep attachments to our machines. Commentator Ethan Lindsay will tell us about his long love of computers. Online Resources:
Music Bridge: Cold (Funckarma remix) - Artist: Plaid
CD: Refurbished One: Funckarma Remixes (n5MD) 
Weekend Weather
Weekend America's John Moe takes a look at the weather and Saturday happenings all across the country. » Event information Music Bridge: Beat Connection (Disco Dub Version) - Artist: lcd soundsystem
CD: DFA compilation #2 (DFA)
Harry and the Potters
Brothers Paul and Joe DeGeorge have found a way to combine rock 'n' roll with getting kids to read. For the past three summers, they've been touring with their band, Harry and the Potters. Wearing Hogwarts colors, they perform original songs based on the famous series of books, at libraries, donut shops, bike stores and churches. They call it the Summer Reading and Rock Tour and they are attracting a growing fan base. Online Resources:
Peak Oil?
There was a lot of discussion this week about the availability of oil, with the shutdown of a BP pipeline in Alaska. So, are we on the brink of running out of available oil? And what will happen to civilization as we know it, if we do? Barbara talks with Bryant Urstadt about the phenomenon of "peak oil" which he wrote about in this month's Harpers magazine. Online resources:
Whale Oil
With high oil prices and fears of a shortage in the air again, we think back to the time of whale oil. Did blubber from the likes of Moby Dick ever go through the kind of spikes, shortages and speculation that we see today over oil that comes from the ground?Weekend America's Krissy Clark tracks down a whale expert to find the answer. Online resources:
Music Bridge: Modul 35 - Artist: Nik Bartsch's Ronin
CD: Stoa (ECM)
High Brow, Low Brow
Is America high, low or middle brow this week? Each month Weekend America's Bill Radke gathers together a panel to take a look at the latest developments in American culture through its brows. The panelists include: Amy Hungerford, a professor of American Literature at Yale, Dana Gould, co-executive producer of The Simpsons, and our very own weather guy, John Moe. Online resources:
Music Bridge: Older Summers - Artist: Portastatic
CD: Who Loves the Sun (Merge)  Jim "E" Curtin as Elvis. Photo courtesy of Lucky Records
Elvis Obsession
With the 29th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death approaching, independent producer Peter Crimmins brings us the story of Philadelphian Jim Curtin. Curtin's enthusiasm for Elvis borders on the obsessive: He has collected 50,000 items of Elvis memorabilia, including a jump suit that was a personal gift from Elvis himself. According to Curtin, building his collection has brought him inexpressible joy. But is there room in his life for both his collection and love? Online resources:
Music Bridge: King of the Whole Wide World - Artist: Jim "E" Curtin
CD: Rockin' King (The Movies) (Lucky Records)
Bugging Out
Bedbug infestations are on the rise across the country and no one knows exactly why. Not only are the bites itchy and painful, but the apple seed-sized critters are incredibly hard to get rid of. We talk to a bug-control expert, Andy Linares, about the kind of havoc-physical and emotional-bedbugs can wreak. Online Resources:
Music Bridge: The Sitcks - Artist: Burnt Friedman and Jaki Liebezeit
CD: Secret Rhtythms 2 (Nonplace)
A Weed Grows in Brooklyn
Weekend America's Amanda Aronczyk has been putting her urbanite green thumb to the test. We hear how the greenery is growing in Brooklyn with the help of British garden designer Matt James. Online Resources:
Music Bridge: Rio - Artist: Dub Spencer and Trance Hill
CD: Nitro (Echo Beach)
Weekend Weather
Weekend America's John Moe takes a look at the weather and Saturday happenings all across the country. » Event information
Song and Memory
Is there a song that brings back a strong memory from your childhood? In this installment of our ongoing series, "Song and Memory," we meet musician Jules Shear. He was in the cult band, Jules and the Polar Bears, and he conceived of and hosted MTV's Unplugged. He recalls his first taste of stardom, which involved a song by Chris Kenner, and a very unlikely audience. Online resources:
Music Bridge: Something You Got - Artist: Jules Shear
CD: Sayin' Hello To The Folks (Universal Imports) 
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Listen
For the August 12, 2006 broadcast:
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... on our December 15 broadcast:
» Weekend America
 Enhanced Podcast:
Skip back and forth through stories, see images on iTunes and on your iPod, all with better sound quality.
» The Huckabee Mystique: See video of Mike Huckabee and Chuck Norris.
» Another Great Moment in Small Talk: Read how Charlie Schroeder became an unpopular "tool" because of Borat.
» Listener Letters: Renewable Christmas Trees: Read listeners' alternate endings to "Puff the Magic Dragon."
» Sign Up for the Weekend America weekly newsletter: Find out what's on the upcoming show, and listen to the most popular previous segments.
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Weekend Weather
From the July 5 broadcast
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Awful Car Night
Auburn, N.Y.
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National Brewery Museum Opening Ceremony
Potosi, Wis.
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Sand Sculpture Contest
Bruce, S.D.
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Oregon Coast Geezer Games
Newport, Ore.
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Annual Coolest Fourth of July Celebration
Fort Davis, Texas
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Maui Invitational Band Festival and Blues Fest
Wailuku, Hawaii
