Author: Barrett Golding/Archives

Pin Pia cast

The latest of our HV Podcasts is:

Manop Thammadoonpinij, music teacher and luthier, specializing in traditional Lanna music, playing the Pin Pia, at the street market in Chiang Mai, Thailand.Pin Pia by Jack Chance (2:46)
In a Thailand market, Manop Thammadoonpinij, a music teacher and luthier, performs traditional songs on a haunting little-known ancient stringed instrument, the Pin Pia. (Collected along the travels of the Mountain Music Project).

We put new noise up every Monday. Tomorrow a piece by Ceil Muller.

We’ll Kick Your Ass

I’m from Montana; don’t mess w/ us…

Jess Ren and Tim Kleppen,Casino Patrons Thwart Robbery
Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Friday 02 Mar 2007, FOUR CORNERS -- A man and a woman were arrested Thursday after a botched robbery attempt at the Grand Slam Casino at Four Corners [Montana USA]. Witnesses said a man armed with a shotgun burst into the casino, located off U.S. 191, at about 6:30 p.m., but he apparently didn't get much farther than the front door before being tackled and disarmed by several casino patrons.

"I saw the gun and thought it was a toy at first," said Tim Kleppen, one of the men who tackled the alleged robber. "Then I saw he had on latex gloves."

Kleppen and Ren, who were walking around the casino drinking beer, realized, "This guy's serious. He's going down," Kleppen said, recalling what he was thinking at the time. "You don't do that in my bar," Kleppen said.

Within seconds, another man named Tyrone, whose last name no one seems to know, grabbed the shotgun, pointing it into the air, while Kleppen and others tried to pin the man to the floor, eventually tying him up with duct tape. The attempted robbery occurred during happy hour, when dozens of construction workers were gathered to drink beer and play keno after work. "Every construction worker's in that bar," Kleppen said as he held a beer and smoked a Marlboro. "This is construction folk. We'll kick your ass."

"We didn't do nothing out of the ordinary. I'd do it again," Kleppen, 45, said in an interview at his home. "This is Four Corners, USA. We take care of our own."

Jake’s Vid of Jen in Ethiopia

Jake Warga made a slideshow of his radio story “The Person I Admire the Most” (NPR All Things Considered). It’s been viewed 18K 19K 23K 29K times on YouTube; who’s gonna make it 18,001 19,001 23,001 31,001:

9/11 Live: The NORAD Tapes

Michael Bronner wrote this real-world drama from 9/11 Live: The NORAD Tapes (August 2006 Vanity Fair). This web version is accompanied by mp3s from tapes labeled “Northeast Air Defense Sector—DAT Audio Files—11 Sep 2001.” Here’s an excerpt, a conversation between NORAD’s Senior Airman Stacia Rountree, Tech Sergeant Shelley Watson, Master Sergeant Maureen Dooley:
ROUNTREE: A plane just hit the World Trade Center.
WATSON: What?
ROUNTREE: Was it a 737?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (background): Hit what?
WATSON: The World Trade Center–
DOOLEY: Who are you talking to? [Gasps.]

NORAD: Is this real-world or exercise?
BOSTON CENTER: No, this is not an exercise, not a test.