My favorite professional activity is visiting my independent telco friends in the area they serve. I am not certain what it is that appeals to me

• Is it the low-cost of living – free parking. inexpensive accommodations and simple food?
• Is it the people – who are authentic and probably more creative than folks from the urban areas- they have to be as there are fewer things to do?
• Is it the open expanses of the fruited plains and the amazing fact that something like 1% of the population feeds the rest of us?

It’s probably those factors, as well as a longing for the orchards that were still around in my youth and that now are close to being completely paved over by faceless business parks that often are half-empty. I am not suggesting that the Valley of the Heart’s Delight shouldn’t have transformed into the Silicon Valley. It’s just unfortunate that it developed the way it did.

So I jumped at the chance to visit Lakeland Communications and participate in their annual customer appreciation day. Their event captured a slice of rural America. The experience is hard to describe, but fortunately, Roger was there to capture the highlights through this video interview with Chris LaRowe of WSTA.

Independent telcos, if you want to see the rest of the story, contact me about an event I am co-producing on October 1.