Knock, knock

November 15, 2024

A House Call, of sorts…

My job at the Rhubarb has several moving parts. But the worst part of it is, well, right here.

I dread asking people to help fund the work that goes into this space, which is ironic given that my grandfather, Gil Hartman, was an accomplished door-to-door salesman. He sold everything from lingerie to life insurance. In family lore he met my grandmother—a preacher’s daughter—on a doorstep. I want to believe it was a lingerie day. So just be grateful (as am I) I’m not at your front door with hosiery.

One thing Gil and I have in common is we both studied journalism at Washington State University, though in his day it was Washington State College. Journalism runs in the family and I’ve been a reporter and public interest researcher since I was 18. I’ve won several national and regional awards for investigative reporting and, in 2011 was honored by the Washington State Bar Association with their infrequently bestowed Excellence in Legal Journalism award. I’ve written a handful of books, most recently Beautiful Wounds, a lushly photographed story about floods, geology, history and heartbreak.

This space, here, Rhubarb Salon, is the promotional and toll-free zone for The Daily Rhubarb (TDR). TDR is a spin-off of the Rhubarb Skies project that a handful of talented friends helped me launch precisely a decade ago.

Rhubarb Salon is primarily a way to introduce my writing and photography to new readers. It is set up as a free site, so please don’t try to become a paid subscriber here, as it just won’t work inasmuch as the site’s paywall is purposefully disabled. Many of the articles and photo spreads are truncated versions that run concurrently with the full-length treatments at TDR. The main exception has been the West Plains “Forever Chemicals” investigation of which there’ve been 23 installments in the past 16 months. Given the compelling public interest in the story—and the original reporting I’ve contributed to it—I decided to make it available here without a paywall.

I will continue to do so, and if other local/regional investigations are warranted and within my reach I will also make those stories available, here, for free. Especially given the outcome of this month’s Presidential election, 2025 is likely to be a crazy year with new challenges for all journalists and engaged citizens. I plan to be here for that and share the experience with you. It’s no exaggeration to write that our democracy is in great peril, and we need to bravely to do our parts to help rescue it from the forces of autocracy and disinformation.

That said, in order to continue the Rhubarb project, I need to expand my paid subscriber base to the The Daily Rhubarb, which will give you everything you get here, only more, full-length features and articles. So, if I can channel my dear grandfather—“Hi, my name is Tim, and I’d really like to interest you in a paid subscription to The Daily Rhubarb.” You can do that at the button below.

Gil would have said it better than that (he started each greeting with the word “say!” as in “Say, what a beautiful smile for a Monday…” and then he’d compliment your dog, your cat, your sweater, and any small children in sight. I’m no match for his charisma.

But while I’m here—pleading for you to consider becoming a paid subscriber to TDR—I’d also like to encourage you to check out the Rhubarb Skies Photography store where you can view prints of my ever-expanding nature portfolios. Some of the photos appeared in my recent book, Beautiful Wounds (2022), but there’s lots of new birds, critters and even some marine life to choose from. (My base rate for prints is $1 per square inch, which includes tax and delivery.) Gil would say the prints also make splendid gifts.

If you can’t afford a subscription or a print, please share Rhubarb Salon and help spread the word about the Rhubarb editorial project.

—tjc