(re-run)\ It was all because of a blizzard. Well, sort of. I wanted to go to Minnesota to see the boyfriend I’d broken up with five months before while we were in Europe. We had bought Eurail passes and had made our way across the continent, sleeping on trains, in tents, and youth hostels, even… Continue reading Door Number One or Door Number Two?
Category: Iowa
Trading Up in Omaha
Alice got a teaching job in Council Bluffs, Iowa. She decided to live across the Missouri River in Omaha in an old Victorian that had been converted into apartments. A military guy from Maryland moved in upstairs. She ran into him in the hallway after a bike ride one evening when he was coming back… Continue reading Trading Up in Omaha
Laugh More, Worry Less
The state is on fire, again. It seems that three of the last four years have been off the charts for wild fires. 2017 – Napa and Santa Rosa burned. Santa Barbara County, too. 2018 – Paradise, the town, was wiped off the map. 2019 – Because of heavier winter rainfall, the fires weren’t so… Continue reading Laugh More, Worry Less
Lola Meets Ricardo
Lola met her forever husband on the first day of college at the University of Iowa. She had signed up for a speech and composition class with an emphasis on women’s studies. When she got to the classroom, there was a note on the door that the class had been moved to another building. A… Continue reading Lola Meets Ricardo
My Free Farm Dog
(re-run) I saw three Aussie-mix puppies today. They are ten to twelve weeks old and gorgeous! I remember Pepper as a puppy just four years ago. I am too old to house-train another puppy. But they were so cute! I had a Brittany spaniel/Australian Blue Heeler mix puppy way back in the day. My future… Continue reading My Free Farm Dog
I Stole a Dilly Bar on a Dare
When I was fourteen I stole a Dilly Bar from the Dairy Queen on a dare. It was lunch break from my junior high school, and we had an open campus. That meant we could walk across Douglas Avenue to go to the corner drugstore for candy or the Dairy Queen for ice cream. My… Continue reading I Stole a Dilly Bar on a Dare
Doc and Lillian
When I was just out of college and teaching in a small town in Nebraska, I rented a refurbished farmhouse from the superintendent. His dad was Doc. Doc’s wife was Lillian. They became my surrogate Nebraska grandparents. Doc used to be a dentist, and one day he presented me with a mood ring. Remember those?… Continue reading Doc and Lillian
Worst Boss Ever
(re-run) Aside from the old-guy boss I had for ten days at the Iowa State Fair, who took one look at my giraffe legs in my short culottes jumper I’d made in sewing class and demanded that I bend over to see if my butt would show (it didn’t), George was the worst boss ever.… Continue reading Worst Boss Ever
The Day Grandma Got Woke
My mom loves to watch Ellen. It’s usually fun and games, with hunky guys and Ellen playing tricks on her guests and staff. She rounds out the hour with lesbian jokes, a musical performance by some obscure band, and Ellen surprising some needy but giving person with $10,000 in cash. Then the death of George… Continue reading The Day Grandma Got Woke
Bricks, Ricks, & Cardboard
(re-run) The college mixer was hosted by the men in Lorch House in Friley Hall, in the heart of the Iowa State campus. Tappan House, the top two floors of my dorm, Barton Hall, was invited. Yes, I am old. Yes, dorm floors are co-ed now. This was in the days of the dinosaurs. The… Continue reading Bricks, Ricks, & Cardboard
