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Huzzah for Iowa   (September 19, 2006)


I just returned from a book reading (for my novel I-State Lines In northern Iowa, and I had a great time. As I am still working in film, I don't have any photos of my own to post just yet (this one is a USDA stock photo of cornfields in Spring). Now, the corn and soybeans are withered and dry, and will soon be harvested.

It's not just happenstance that I went to Iowa for a book signing, for Iowa plays an essential role in my novel. The second paragraph reads:
Take our bus ride from Kansas City. It should have been the snooziest cruise in the universe to get to Alex's uncle's farm in Liberty. But no, everyone else on the bus makes it to Iowa except us. Why? Alex.
In the book, Iowa represents all that is authentic in America--after all, growing food is the one endeavor we literally cannot live without--reflecting my character Daz's appreciation of physical labor, authenticity and agricultural landscapes. Like any clear-sighted, idealistic youth, he has only scorn for the phoniness of status symbols and pretension, the seen-at-the-right-party facelift Mercedes namebrand media-marketed America which dominates our sadly pathetic culture. So while it is chance that a bookseller in Northern Iowa is a big fan of the novel (The Kaleidoscope in Hampton, Iowa), it is not chance that Daz and Alex end up in Iowa.

Although Iowa doesn't often appear on any "must-see" tourist destination lists, a leisurely drive through the state offers the rich rewards of camera-ready landscapes and small town charms, and a very friendly population. I made friends with a variety of folks in just a few days, and was welcomed in a way which I suspect is practically forgotten in most of urban and suburban America--where far too many people don't even know their neighbors.

Iowa has 99 counties, and each one has a county seat--in most rural areas, usually the largest town in the county. Many of these hold a variety of charms for any visitor: a nobly designed and built courthouse, Victorian-era homes, small colleges, and in the case of Hampton, a viable, walkable and fun downtown.

Lest I sound like an enamoured city dweller--I visited in a very pleasant time of year. The locals told me that winters are brutal, as the wind--which always blows regardless of season-- cuts right to the bone. Summers are the usual Midwest serving of hot and muggy, with occasional helpings of unbearable. As for small towns--yes, there are limitations which I know well, having spent many years in small towns in both California and Hawaii.

I should also mention that when my Dad was working as a regional sales manager for Monkey Wards back in the late 60s, my brother and I accompanied him every summer as he criss-crossed the midwest and west visiting Ward's stores (or Weird's, as he called them. Yeah, corporate America sucked even then, and of course it's deteriorated since to levels of degradation and insecurity which were unimaginable just a few decades ago. But that's another entry). As a result, the midwest is not unknown territory to me.

But for an urban dweller, it's nice not to worry about being shot by accident (or on purpose, take your pick, we have hundreds of victims in each category), and for suburban commuters, it's a pleasant change to actually know your fellow residents in some other context that complaints from the gated-community watchdogs or faceless, nameless encounters with people who live a stone's throw away but whom you've never actually met.

There are hundreds of wonderful, charming small towns in the U.S., and here are two to visit in northern Iowa:

Hampton

Forest City

And a site on one of the two products growing virtually everywhere: Iowa Corn facts. If you get a chance, go to Iowa and see the countryside for yourself. It is not "fly-over country," it's "get off the interstate and drive through country."


For more on this subject and a wide array of other topics, please visit my weblog.

                                                           


copyright © 2006 Charles Hugh Smith. All rights reserved in all media.

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