Today we are in for a fun data dive into deserts and desserts.
Deserts and desserts, so often misspelled. Desserts spelled backwards is stressed, and so I now use that trick to remember people eat desserts when stressed, not deserts.
Hopefully you are not stressed, and are eating desserts for fun. This article I stumbled on today https://stacker.com/stories/4448/signature-desserts-every-state has the signature desserts in every state. I have not tried them all but can vouch for the wonders of many: Smith Island Cake in MD, ice cream, key lime pie, cream puffs…ok most of the list. But for all UT fans, the state’s signature dessert is Jello, and that would be a strike against it for me 😊, and so Salt Lake is out of the running for today’s comparison.
As for deserts, let’s compare a few known for being near highly creative places. I list precipitation in the Selection Tool, and less than ~20” of rain/year is a dessert threshold, but I also cross referenced the list of deserts on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_North_American_deserts and decided it would be fun to look at
1. Reno, NV, close to Black Rock City, the home of the inspiring Burning Man art
2. Tucson, AZ with the Sonoran desert
3. Las Vegas, NV with its surprising gem of Red Rock Canyon 20 minutes outside of town.
The art and stories coming out of the Burning Man festivals https://burningman.org/ have inspired me for years; I’ve only seen smaller events near DC. The ideas and people and creations are mind blowing. I especially enjoyed a virtual reality recreation of Black Rock done at the Renwick Gallery a few years ago -take a peak at the video teaser https://www.si.edu/object/meet-artist-android-jones-no-spectators-art-burning-man:yt_09UnHO4VRNk. I had done VR before, but that experience left me elated for days, it was profound. The State Dessert is Basque cake, which looks tempting.
Tucson, I have to say ‘tuck-son’ so I spell it correctly, is where I first smelled olive trees. The aroma is a sublime. I’ve heard that the pollen of olive trees has led to the ban of new plantings but the grove on the University of AZ campus is stunningly beautiful and also home to amazing science and art communities. It also has a Mineral Museum, and I can stare at those for days on end. The State Dessert is Sopaipillas, also fantastic.
Las Vegas, well we know the glamour and excitement that never sleeps there, but there is also a tech start-up and art scene emerging and Red Rock Canyon just on its border is so gorgeous. The State Dessert, again, is Basque cake.
Hope you enjoy these data dives. If you don’t like deserts, desserts, science, art or creativity for criteria, what do you choose? Send me a note at hello@choosemyhappyplace.com so I can dive into some of your ideas. Or tell me you want more of my weirdo picks.
