"When wine enters, out goes the Truth." -- Benjamin Franklin
I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. Not that this is a new phenomenon or anything, because I ponder things a lot. But in terms of my master's thesis and Project Michigan, the hamster wheel in my head has definitely been spinning overtime lately. It could be that I am almost at a point of sensory overload. Michigan has so much to offer -- four seasons, every kind of recreation imaginable, the people, the sights, the sounds, the food, the eclectic landscapes -- that I feel scattered. After consulting my master's program director (Dr. Linda Benson is a godsend, by the way), I have decided that when it comes time to conduct the paper portion of my thesis, I am going to pull back on the reins and narrow my topic down.
The blog itself will not change focus. I will still post about my travels and musings in the state. But for the paper, I have decided to go with two main factors I have learned in my time on the road. I have discovered that in my experience, there are two major things keeping people in Michigan: one is the rise of the agritourism industry in the state and the other is that people are generally hopeful that things will improve and as a result, possess characteristics such as optimism, resourcefulness and patience.
I think narrowing it down will help me better collect my thoughts and zoom in on a smaller piece of a larger picture. In addition to the psychological and sociological studies of hope, there is plenty of literature on wineries, breweries and farming that I will be checking out in the coming weeks. I'll let you know when I find something interesting. :)
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