The Saddest, Scariest Story About a Dying Banana Museum Ever http://gawker.com/5499699/the-saddest-scariest-story-about-a-dying-banana-museum-ever Bananas: A Storied Fruit With An Uncertain Future [Real Player] http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19097412 The Banana Club Museum http://www.bananaclub.com/InsideMuseum.htm National Apple Museum http://www.nationalapplemuseum.com/ All Recipes: Banana http://allrecipes.com/Recipes/Fruits-and-Vegetables/Fruits/Bananas/Main.aspx Ken Bannister is a man in love with bananas. Over the past four decades he has managed to amass more than 17,000 banana-focused items, and he is also the founder of the International Banana Club and Museum in Hesperia, California. Browsing around the Museum's headquarters, visitors might catch a glimpse of a gold-sequined "Michael Jackson banana", a banana beach mat, and many banana salt-and-pepper shaker sets. These waves and crescendos of yellow are looking for a new home these days, as the Hesperia Recreation & Parks District informed Bannister in January that his collection (which is located in a District building) would need to relocate. Now, Bannister is attempting to take his bananas on the road, but he is having little luck as of late. He placed the entire collection up for auction on eBay in February for a "bargain price" of $45000. There were no takers, even after Bannister reduced the price several times. Interested parties might want to make a quick trip to Hesperia, or if they miss out, there's always the National Apple Museum in Biglerville, Pennsylvania. The first link will take visitors to a Wall Street Journal article from this Tuesday on the current state of the Banana Museum, complete with a slideshow of images. The second link leads to another news piece from Gawker about the Museum. Moving on, the third link will take users to a fascinating interview from NPR's Fresh Air program that profiles Dan Koeppel, author of "Banana: The Fate of the Fruit That Changed the World". The fourth link leads to the official homepage of the Banana Museum. For those looking for an excuse for a road trip, the fifth link leads to the homepage of the National Apple Museum. The site contains a cornucopia of material on apples, fruit growers in the area, and nearby lodging and dining options. The final link leads to a wide-ranging selection of banana-themed recipes from the All Recipes site. There are many variations on banana bread, banana pancakes, and the lesser-known chocolate banana cream pie.