MAY 2009 - From The Passenger Seat

Finally, spring. A burst of new life, new hope. Such a shame this spring is tainted by the worry of our country’s economic illness. But even so, as Doug Larson, a Wisconsin newspaper columnist said, "Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush."

I don’t know now how I ever lived without a garden. Flowers, vegetables, herbs -- springing forth from beneath the ground seemingly from nowhere. (I’m often, each spring, surprised by something I forgot I planted the year before.)

Also, still a novice gardener by all means, I’m also impressed at the rate by which things grow -- how quickly they expand and spread. (And how often I have to divide or try to contain them.)

Every spring, when the rains and storms come, Frank and I inevitably wander out to the back porch on an evening to listen to the rain and the sounds of the storm -- and fall asleep. If it’s a clear night, and there is an asteroid shower or lunar eclipse, we’ll climb up on the porch roof to watch -- and fall asleep.

For some people, spring arrives with the Robin, or the blossom of the Tulip, or the appearance of Morels. All these are good signs. But for me, I know it’s spring when I wake up and realize I’m on the back porch.

When I was young, my mother had a sign near her porch that said, "He who plants beneath the sod, shows he has a faith in God." Truly, gardening is tied directly to faith. Faith that things will grow, flourish, fill out and spread.

Spring is a time for new life, new hope, new projects. With spring comes new smells, new sounds, new sights, all sorts of activity. Just as it is in the mountain woods and fields, so is it with our lives -- and with Two-Lane Livin’. New, for this spring issue, we’ve created a page for our readers. "From the Passenger Seat" premiers on page 23, and will include comments, letters, essays and photos sent in -- by you.

You know, when we launched Two-Lane Livin’, we never really imagined the response we would get from Central West Virginia readers. I never imagined that we would we receive so many letters, submissions, recipes, photos. It only makes sense to share them. So, if you have a story, poem, idea, photo to share, send it in! We love hearing ‘From the Passenger Seat’ of Two-Lane Livin’.

With the arrival of travel season, Two-Lane Livin’ has expanded its reach. Over the eighteen months of our existence, we’ve kept detailed records about our delivery routes and distribution numbers. By adjusting these numbers to match travel season, Christmas season, and other factors, we were able to expand further into Nicholas County. Welcome Summersville readers!

We’re excited to round out our Two-Lane Livin’ region. We now reach into larger cities including Parkersburg, Ripley, Buckhannon, and starting with the April issue, Summersville. Someone joked with me that these are four-lane locations, not two-lane, but it seemed only neighborly to share our urban friends.

Two-Lane Livin’ isn’t always a geographic lifestyle. Two-Lane Livin’ can be a mindset, a culture, a way of perceiving the world. It seems to me that folks who live in the city would need that Two-Lane outlook as well, possibly even more than we do here in the country.

The quick response we got from Summersville readers to the April issue supported this concept, and so we’re very happy to have them join us.

Two-Lane Livin’ now reaches into 15 counties of the Central West Virginia region, available at nearly 500 different locations. By keeping track of our distribution numbers, we reach as many monthly readers as possible, with less than 5% of copies left over at the end of the month. By adding Summersville to our region, we are working to make sure that every single copy of Two-Lane Livin’ is enjoyed by someone.

By the way, those left-over copies? They’re re-circulated. Past issues are used to introduce new readers to Two-Lane Livin’ all the time. Packages are sent to West Virginia Visitor’s Centers, and past issues are presented wherever we go. Over 200 issues were picked up at the Garden Fest in Charleston this past month, and just as many at a recent regional CEOS meeting. Just goes to show, good practical information doesn’t expire or go out of style!

By now, you should know that here at Two-Lane Livin’, we’re always trying to get the most for our money -- to find the best deal. Likewise, we think Two-Lane Livin’ is a deal. All this entertainment and practical information for free? Now THAT’S a deal.

We also believe that ads in Two-Lane Livin’ are a great deal because they reach more than 34,000 interested readers monthly, both in and around your home base. No other regional publication prints as many copies per issue as we do, or has as many distribution locations as we do. In print, we’ve got Central West Virginia covered.

But now, we’ve got an even better deal. We can help your business cover Central West Virginia in print AND in radio. Two-Lane Livin’ has made arrangements with another new media outlet, WVRW 107.7 FM, to offer our clients both print and radio ads through one contact.

WVRW plays True Oldies, and their sister station WHAW 980 AM, plays True Oldies and Bluegrass -- music with Two-Lane style. With similar styles and overlapping coverage regions, it only makes sense to package the two together.

By combining the two mediums, Two-Lane Livin’ can create great marketing campaigns for your business with options for deep discounts! Talk about great deals! If you really want to connect with Central West Virginia, you need one of these combo packages. They are only available from Two-Lane Livin’, Central West Virginia’s Guide to Life.

~ Lisa