Museums and the Emerging Culture of Doing (Versus Spending)

Yesterday while reading the New York Times I was amused to discover that Florida's turning into Oregon. Or at least, thanks to the recession, people are accidentally discovering that secondhand canoes can be more fun than department store charge cards. According to the Times, another crucial activity in the "do more, buy less," lifestyle is visiting museums. You probably know that our city is ridiculously endowed in that department, but there is more to do in a museum than walk around and look at the stuff. Most institutions have  ancillary programing - much of it designed for kids - that gets overlooked, like the Saint Louis Art Museum's Family Sunday workshops. Also overlooked is the fact that there are plenty of museums outside of Forest Park. Some of the smaller and odder museums -- like the just-reopened wax museum down on the Landing, or the interpretive center at Mastodon State Park -- are my favorites. The Visitor's Commission has compiled a master list of sorts, including all of our "house" museums, which you can find here. --Stefene Russell