White Pole Road day-trip occupied most of Monday. Had set my stomach for some really good small town diner home cookin’ but it wasn’t to happen. Don’t travel into small town rural Iowa on a Monday and expect to find much open! So I settled for some greasy potato chips, and RC Cola and a piece of pizza from Casey’s convenient store. I’m sure all of that was on my diet! (Individual blog entry for the White Pole Road trip)
The high point of the day had to be getting into the bank parking lot going the wrong direction. So I’m a tourist! We do things like that to get a good picture! I’m sure the ladies in the drive thru window wandered what that crazy lady in that 1 ton dually was doing driving thru their drive up the wrong direction! That wasn’t the only ‘wrong way’ I had for the day. Couldn’t find Hwy 30 EAST and found myself headed west on Hwy 30 instead. All of ‘cut thrus’ across the median were blocks so as soon as it narrowed to a 2 lane, I found a farm drive, pulled in to turn around when I saw the farmer stop what he was doing and watch me. I just shrugged my shoulders, gave him a really dumb look, which in those instances comes naturally! Waved and pulled back on the highway – headed EAST this time – headed home. Back in town, my sister took her wandering sister to the old Field’s restaurant for a steak sandwich! Best meal of the day!
There was so much to see and I definitely was trying to see too much in one day! And, if I get a chance to get back to pick up some things I missed, I will definitely make sure it isn’t on a Monday! I really want to try that raisin cream pie served at the Menlo Diner.
Along the White Pole Road, there are many references to the “rival” River to River Road – think I’ll get busy researching that and plan a trip!
Tuesday morning started out like any typical AM - Li'lBit wants out. Typical ends there - can't let her out - Tinga got out of her cage - can't open the door with her out. Li'lBit can't wait, diarrhea all over in front of the door. I'm barefoot! Get Tinga in, let Li'lBit out, leave door open while cleaning up mess. Holly runs out the door. Tinga in, mess cleaned, Li'lBit in, Holly in -- and how did your Tuesday start!
So glad my neighbors had moved out yesterday and no one could see me outside in my nite shirt, trying to wipe poop from the bottom of my feet and from between my toes off in the grass. Must have been a wonderful sight!
The RAGBRAI (Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa) hit day 3 of their travels from the Missouri River, across Iowa, to the Mississippi on Wednesday. They were passing through about 20-30 miles from where I’m staying. Thought I’d drive down and park the truck along the route and just wave at the bikers and shout some moral support as they went by – but, we are still under heat advisories and if they want to pedal their bikes in this heat, they are just gonna have to make it without my wave and support! I went and did laundry instead!
Thursday: Time for some Iowa BEEF. Bea and I went to Rube’s Steak House in Montour with Gene and Vickie. Montour is another of Iowa’s great little rural places well off the beaten path that people from all over manage to find when they want some good beef.
Got really serious about watching tropical storm Don only to find it heading to south Texas and then start to fizzle. Not that I wanted a major storm to hit the Corpus Christi area since my 5th wheel is down there, but Texas really does need the rain. Not to be this time.
Friday lunch with Kathy and Bea and some of their co-workers (oops! Kathy’s retired, now!) – anyway it was a great day for a Cap Anson sandwich and some sweet’tator fries at the Tremont Grille.
Saturday AM, while I had Li’lBit out, being lazy, I was holding the door open and just watching her in the grass outside the trailer, Holly decides to bolt out the door for the second time this week. Crazy Cat! Holly, Holly, Holly, Baby Holly, is the repetitive phrase used to ‘lure’ her back. Took awhile, she played her own little game of ‘cat and mouse’ with me – just letting me get close enough to pick her up and then running back under the trailer. Finally, I gave up – hadn’t had my morning coffee and the fog in the air was a little heavy on the lungs. I saw her setting on the picnic table, went to get her, back under the trailer she went. So, I just gave up. Left the door open, fixed her bowl and Li’l’Bit’s bowl, made my coffee – and there she was. Back in and acting like the sweet little kitty she ain’t! I hope this bolting out the door isn’t starting to be a habit!
Once the fog lifted the morning was terrific. Took Li’lBit, my book and my coffee outside and spent the major part of the AM setting outside doing nothin’! Love it when I can be outside and don’t have to stay cooped up in the A/C! The birds must have babies – my feeders are empty more than they are full! I’m filling them twice a day. My sister brought by the local newspaper and my mail that Brenda sent. For someone that is “no mail” or “paperless” on all accounts, etc, I sure get a lot of mail. Of course 2/3 of it goes right in the trash! I guess you never get off junk mail lists!
Sunday Brunch with Bea at Cecil’s Cafe – the home of the chicken with the top hat. Yummy biscuits and gravy with eggs and lots of coffee. Then off to look for dead people – stopped at WalMart to pick up some daisies just in case I found any.
Yesterday a friend was telling me (on Facebook, of course!) that her husband had mentioned the greatest train wreck in Iowa history took place at Green Mountain, Iowa. Green Mountain? That’s just up the road from Marshalltown. You know the ‘history gene’ in me had to jump on that with both feet. So off I went, camera, map and daisies in hand, headed to Green Mountain. (This excursion and the train wreck will have its own blog entry.)
On my way back home after about 100 miles, most spent on Iowa’s wonderful rural dusty gravel roads, I stopped at Taylor’s Maid-Rite and picked up a Maid-Rite and a chocolate malt to go. Nothing says Iowa like a Maid-Rite – the loose meat sandwich you eat with a spoon. A perfect Iowa ending to a perfect Iowa day!
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