Zigs, Zags and U Turns

Leaving Des Moines was almost as confusing as getting there. Trying to find the secondary roads was a bit of a challenge so I ended up on the Interstate and decided it was probably for the best as it was raining again and there was probably not a lot I would see anyway.

The good news is that I was not speeding. Although I am not sure it would have mattered. I felt like I was involved in a Police and semi truck sting. Just as I was getting on I-80 from I-35 there were four separate semis pulled over by Iowa State Police. I have to admit that my first thought was that they were being targeted because they probably have higher fees for tickets. My second thought was that was not fair, especially since there seemed to be lots of cars speeding by. Also, I was not happy that one of my future careers could be such a risky and high profile one.

Once seeing that, I decided to plan the day in baby steps again. The first one was to go to Newton, IA where my friend Cindy Rose Deeter grew up. It really was what I would think is a typical Iowa town. A nice mainstreet with several stores, a town that has spread out as it grew with smaller businesses growing on the outskirts. I am not sure who the mural expert is, but several of the building have these wonderful paintings on the side of the building.

My highlight in Newton - while driving through the outskirts, I saw a Goodwill store and had a sudden urge that said I should stop and see if I could get a pair of jeans and a shirt to wear and then I would not have to worry about laundry nor about having to go home. I thought about going to the Outlet Mall that wasn't too many towns away, but knew that I really didn't want to shop nor do I want clothes that I am not sure what do to with. A pair of jeans, two shirts and $12 dollars later, I am good to go for several days more. Life is good.

As I was leaving the town, the sun started shining and once again I decided to put a bit more effort into finding the side roads. Go figure, just as I was thinking of that, I saw the sign for Pella, IA which did two things. One, I remembered that I had been in Iowa before when I worked at Wolohan lumber company in the Contractors department and went to the Pella Window plant. The second thing that I remembered was that Pella also has a large Dutch population and they also have a tulip festival. Of course, I took that as a sign that I should probably take the roads leading where I would see relatives and cousins with the same mousy Dutch blonde hair, big bones and square faces.

I was not disappointed. I remember when I was in the Netherlands and walked the streets and I thought I was looking at people that grew up in Zeeland, Holland, Overeisal, or Drenthe, Michigan. I think the people in Orange City and Pella could be picked up and plopped there and no one would know the difference. (unless of course we had to speak or do more than count in Dutch)

I ate lunch in the Windmill Restaurant and ordered the "special"; Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn and biscuits. It couldn't get more comforting and reminiscent than that. I remembered going to Grandma Heidema's and her serving meatloaf, green beans, potatoes, and applesauce. I asked if they had beans so I could really capture the memory, but they didn't have them. Dutch is Dutch, but there is a bit of variety.

After leaving Pella I started going in one direction and then decided that I should just go to Iowa City so I ended up zigging and zagging on the back roads to get there. I wanted to make sure I had a chance to get a room, exericise and eat so that I could watch the b-ball game.

The good news is that I was able to accomplish it all. I got a nice room and then worked out in the pool (my new way to accommodate my bum knee and yet still get some movement in the arms and legs), had time to answer a few emails, went to dinner and then saw the game where the Cavs lost to the Celtics.

I have a feeling I am starting to wind down on the trip. There is nothing specific on my list of things to see or do that is unchecked. That doesn't mean that I couldn't find lots of things that I could do or appreciate seeing, but it would be a matter of just driving around and finding something. And that isn't what I set out on the trip to do.

That said, I am not going to do a breakneck drive back to Chicago or Michigan. I am still going to do the "take it as it comes" and do the backroads until I get there. But now I think I need to start capturing all of the things I have learned and thought about. Boy can that be scary.........