INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION From Eccentric America

Describing The Indescribable

Eccentric America is a walk on the wacky side of American tourism.  It explores the people and places that populate the fringes of mainstream tourism, providing a unique view of the American psyche as if seen through a slightly cracked window. You'll be shocked, surprised, amused, and confused by the eccentrics you'll meet in these pages.

Defining eccentricity is like defining beauty; it all depends upon who's doing the judging. Technically, an eccentric can be defined as someone whose behavior "varies wildly from the norm", which, depending upon circumstances, could even mean you. This definition also allows for society to change its mind from time to time, and from region to region, regarding who it labels as deviant, delightful or otherwise. Americans tolerate such a huge range of behaviors that most anything short of picking your nose in public can be considered acceptable.

If eccentricity is a term relative only to the behavior of a particular group, how does a culture decide who gets to wear the eccentric label and who gets dismissed as a crazy old coot?  In America, eccentrically speaking, money matters. If you're poor and act bizarre, you're crazy; if you're rich, you're elevated to the status of eccentric. Color matters, too. The whiter you are, the more leeway you have to indulge in eccentric behavior without serious consequence.  The darker your skin, the less luxury you have to indulge in strange behavior. The vast majority of eccentrics are middle class whites.

It's widely believed that Britain, more so than America, is a hotbed of eccentricity, but it turns out that nationality really doesn't matter.. A clinical study of eccentrics by Dr. David Weeks, whose book, "Eccentrics: A Study of Sanity and Strangeness" studied both British and American subjects, concluded that approximately one out of every 10,000 people can be considered genuine eccentrics regardless of their country of origin. He also found that full time eccentrics share a number of traits, particularly those regarding happiness, conformity, and creativity.

Happiness is a key trait that distinguishes an eccentric from someone who's neurotic or mentally ill.  Take Leonard Knight of California for example.  For sixteen years he's lived alone in a truck, in a remote desert locale, patiently building a mountain in God's honor out of dirt, straw, and paint.  That he is happy is obvious as he proudly shows you around his tribute, now 35 feet high.  Leonard doesn't suffer from stress and anxiety, doesn't need medication to control his moods, and doesn't need to see a shrink to get through the week.  He doesn't even need water, plumbing, or electricity.  He gets everything he needs by simply living up to his own expectations.

Like Leonard, most eccentrics have the ability to live in unconventional settings, in unconventional ways, and they don't need other people to affirm their identity. Richard Zimmerman of Idaho, dubbed Dug Out Dick, liked caves so much that he's spent a good chunk of his life digging them and living in them.  Marta Beckett of Nevada opened an opera house in Death Valley and had to paint an audience on the walls so she didn't have to dance by herself. For these loners, solitude is their tool of choice as quiet contemplation fuels their creative fires.

Another eccentric trait is that of flouting convention. Eccentrics are non-conformists, with little or no concern for social convention.  They're natural rebels who know they're marching to a different drummer and could care less what tune the band is playing. They know they're different, yet resolutely persist in their passions regardless of the pressure put on them to conform. Tryee Guyton of Michigan painted his blighted neighborhood,
including houses, trees, and trash cans, with polka dots.  Elvis Aaron Presley McLoud of Mississippi spends every day of his life building a database of every reference ever made to Elvis. John Mikovisch of Texas covered the entire exterior of his house with beer can garlands. As long as eccentrics like these don't actually do any harm, society will usually let them go on about their business, however bizarre that business may be.
Outspoken and out of step, eccentrics are tolerated with good humor, while
those considered crazy are whisked out of sight.

True eccentrics have absolute faith that their way is the right one and if you can't see the light, well. . . it's your loss. This is especially true of eccentrics who passionately pursue a strange idea or concept.. Elizabeth Tashjian, The Nut Lady of Connecticut, worships nuts and her home is a sanctuary to them, a place where she can keep them safe from nutcrackers. Nancy Townsend, also known as Mother Goose, invented duck diapers so people can keep the birds as house pets.

Many eccentrics function perfectly well in society even if they do measure success with a crooked yardstick.  Brother Joseph, a cleric in Alabama, spent decades building a concrete Holy Land out of cold cream jars, all the while performing his duties. John Davis of Kansas spent years building himself a gigantic grave memorial with almost a dozen life-size statues depicting all the phases of his life.  Passionate collectors, such as Ken Bannister, The Banana Man from California, and Mildred O'Neil, the Shoe Lady, lead mostly balanced lives despite their obsessions to acquire particular objects.  There's a loopy logic to their thinking; a strange sanity that lets them express themselves more freely than the rest of us without being carted off to the loony bin.

Eccentrics often display brilliant creativity and genius along with their quirks.  Unfortunately, modern society too often tries to treat "aberrant" behavior with drugs, doing a great disservice to those who live on society's fringes. Imagine the loss to society if Newton or Einstein had been given Prozac to modify their thinking.  Most eccentrics just want to live out their own realities and most want to leave the world a better place.  They want to infect you with their enthusiasm so you, too, can be as happy as they are.  Eccentric America takes you into their world, giving you the
opportunity to come away enriched from the experience. If, indeed, one out of every ten thousand of us are genuine eccentrics, that means you probably know some yourself and there could be as many as 2,700
more editions of this book.

ECCENTRIC AMERICA is published by Bradt Guides, at $19.95 USD retail

Eccentric America

E-Mail: janetfriedman@eccentricamerica.com