In just two days, we show up (knock on wood) at the International Airstream Rally in Sedalia, Missouri. We’ve never been to an Airstream anything, so we figured we’d go whole-hog with the big one this year. Truthfully, we planned this a year ago when we thought we’d be coming back from Newfoundland, but even […]
Tag: Iowa
The Unexpected Allure of the Midwest
I knew nothing about the Midwest before I met Tracy, and it’s not like I know much now. Really, as we travel around the country and I think about where I might like to live as a home base, the only thing I’ve learned about the Midwest is what it does not have. It’s nowhere […]
Doing All the -ings on the Turkey River
Yep, that’s me, the tiny pink dot in the middle of that wide, shallow river. I’m paddling my heart out there, but I’m also doing the other -ings these days in northeast Iowa. Camping Of course we’re always camping, but this spot feels like real camping, the kind we choose when we can. Normally we’d […]
Coming Down from Alaska
I’m a real sap when it comes to that Kris Kristofferson song, “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” The chorus goes: On the Sunday morning sidewalk Wishing, Lord, that I was stoned. ‘Cause there’s something in a Sunday Makes a body feel alone. There ain’t nothing short of dying Half as lonesome as the sound On the […]
Gearing Up (and Down) for Alaska
We’ve got two weeks before we cross into Canada and start our journey north, which means that our stops these days are all about last-minute Alaska provisions. Aka: buying stuff! For people who don’t even live in a house, we sure do buy a lot of household goods. Seriously, this is the haul waiting for […]
Warm Friends in Cold Places
We’d just pulled into a casino parking lot in Altoona, Iowa, and were setting up inside when a security guard knocked on the trailer door. We brace for trouble: After having driven around the huge casino several times, we’d chosen a quiet lot over by the horse track instead of the designated (and full) RV […]
It’s Not Home Until You Barf in It
If that’s not an aphorism, I’m establishing it now. You know that I’ve felt like the trailer is “home” ever since we moved into it. I say things like, ”Okay, time to go home,” and I feel that deep sense of relaxation when I walk in. However, although I had been sick as a dog […]
The Only Brewery We Really Care About
We’re back in Elkader, Iowa, for the third time since we’ve been on the road and for the billionth time before that. Why? Tracy’s best friend since forever lives here with his wife, Deb, pictured below, at her taproom and brewery. During our visits here, we’ve seen the transformation of Deb’s historic newsprint building: from […]
My Weird, Wonderful, New Tattoos
This is Molly, family to several Iowans in this blog and now-owner of Creative Images in Des Moines. She is personally responsible for my mini tattoo obsession. Back when I wanted something colorful and flowing to offset my first humble (but significant) tattoo—the black-lined geometry of my family-shared Star Trek insignia—Tracy told me, “I know […]
Banjo’s Big Day + Reunions and Sookie on the Water
When our days are this full with friends and special events because we’re in a town where we know people, I have a hard time organizing this blog. You’d probably appreciate it if I waited for a week to pass, then threw each topic into its own post so you could see (or skip) the […]
