The college mixer was hosted by the men in Lorch House in Friley Hall, in the heart of the Iowa State campus. My house, Tappan, the top two floors of Barton Hall, a girls’ dorm, was invited. Yes, I am old. Yes, dorm floors are co-ed now. This was in the days of the dinosaurs.… Continue reading Bricks, Ricks, and Cardboard
Category: Iowa
#Me Too
The summons said to report at 9:00 a.m. at the courthouse in Martinez on a Friday. I fretted about parking but found a spot in the free lot. The juror waiting room was filled with prospective jurors. We were given a questionnaire, a speech about serving, and then we were sent home for the weekend.… Continue reading #Me Too
Scariest Student Ever
During my ten years of teaching public school, I had many a student that caused me grief. The 8th grader transfer student who called me a bitch in front of the whole class on his first day. The brilliant 7th grade boy who lit matches in the hallway and dropped them on the… Continue reading Scariest Student Ever
Worst Snow Day Ever
It was 7:00 a.m. and snowing hard. I was dressed for work in my tall boots and long wool skirt and sweater. The car was warming up, and I had my go-cup of coffee filled. The phone-tree person was supposed to call by 7:15 if school was cancelled for the day. I stood around drinking… Continue reading Worst Snow Day Ever
Best Music Lessons Ever
When I was seven, I began my musical career by writing a song about going to the drugstore for candy. My first composition was entitled, “If I had a Penny.” Now you know how old I am. There were five kids in my house, and only one parent working for wages. Money was tight. I… Continue reading Best Music Lessons Ever
You Can Take the Girl Out of Iowa . . .
At the end of my ten-week student teaching in Venezuela, one of the teachers said that I could interview to come back to teach at Campo Alegre the following year. She said they were always looking for American teachers. “You can stay with me during the summer,” she said, “until you get your apartment.” The… Continue reading You Can Take the Girl Out of Iowa . . .
Grindr Getaway
How does a sixty-year-old woman find out about an app called Grindr for gay guys? She asks her local millennial cocktail waitress at an upscale bar for a worst date story. Her waitress just happens to know her younger brother’s worst first story and tells it to her for a better tip. Here it is.… Continue reading Grindr Getaway
Me Too
He was one of five professors in the tiny Spanish department at Iowa State. I had him for both semesters of Spanish Two, and I’d just landed a summer job, selling books door to door in a mystery state after a week’s training in Nashville. The bus for me and the other recruits was leaving… Continue reading Me Too
Best Dog, Worst Dog
She was under a rusted-out Ford pick-up truck that looked as though it had been parked there for decades. Her sister was an ugly black and white Australian blue heeler/Brittany spaniel mix. She wasn’t much prettier. “Are you sure you want that one?” my future husband asked. I looked at the black spot on top… Continue reading Best Dog, Worst Dog
First Boss, Worst Boss
Aside from the old-man boss I had at my ten-day job at the Iowa State Fair, who took one look at my giraffe legs in my short culotte 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 First Boss, Worst Boss
FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER! 