Categories
Living in Society

Quiet Before The Storm—Decision 2026

Iowa state flag.

The primary season has been a prelude to an important election in the history of our state. Since Republicans gained majorities in the Iowa House and Senate in 2016, along with the governorship, they have been hammering away at our freedoms. Energy is building to reverse policies created since then. 2026 may be a decisive year.

Rob Sand has been the sole Democratic candidate for governor since filing day, March 13. He has had the luxury of preparing for the general election instead of expending resources on a primary fight. He has been making the most of it. Due to hard work and political savvy, Sand’s outlook has been positive, with strong fundraising, favorable early polling, growing national attention, and a race increasingly viewed as genuinely competitive despite Iowa’s recent Republican dominance.

Democrats fielded an entire slate of statewide candidates, although none of them is operating at the scale of Sand in name recognition and fundraising. Of the group, attorney general candidate Nate Willems stands out, having raised $1.25 million according to the reporting period ending this week. The remainder are strong candidates with individual strengths, yet none has broken out like Sand or Willems. They all depend on Sand pursuing the governorship at a high level and, in doing so, motivating Democrats and no-party voters to turn out for the Democratic ticket.

Sand is well positioned to do this. He is the only Democrat currently holding statewide office in Iowa. He has significantly more money than the other Democratic candidates and substantially higher name recognition. Polling on the other statewide candidates is sparse, and Sand is the only Democrat currently showing consistent competitiveness in public polling against a top Republican opponent. To the extent they matter, national Democratic groups appear to view Sand as the party’s best chance to make Iowa competitive again. These are the reasons I say Rob Sand has been using the time before the June 2 primary well.

The Johnson County Democrats pointed out the obvious in their May 13 newsletter: “We’re heading into one of the busiest and most exciting seasons of the year, with parades, fundraisers, and community events filling our spring and summer calendar. These moments are more than just celebrations. They’re opportunities to connect, organize, and build the momentum we need for the months ahead.” At the county party Hall of Fame event on May 16, inductees mentioned the need for Democrats to come together after the primary and work toward November as a team.

As primary candidates jockey for position, last week was relatively quiet. We hope it was the quiet before the storm that brings new leadership to Des Moines and the state.

Categories
Creative Life

Spring Photos 2026

Blue-thirty.

Another month of spring remains. This year I took spring photographs, enough to make this special post with recent favorites. Being a photographer is a constant process. If we are lucky, some of the results are good.

Visitor parking.
Street art, Iowa City.
Honeysuckle.
Bird using state park  nesting place.
Street art in Des Moines.
Wild blackberry flowers.
Rain helped radishes.
Rain also helped kale.
Trail walking after sunrise.
Categories
Kitchen Garden

Using Up Collards

Collards and white beans to be served over brown rice. It would be good over cornbread as well.

In early Spring I inventoried frozen leafy green vegetables. A lot remained from last year. That prompted me to use some of the collards, so I came up with a collards and white bean dish that was satisfying and used up two quart bags. Here is how I made it.

Unnamed Collards and White Beans Recipe

Ingredients:

2 quart bags of frozen collards
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans cannellini beans
1 tbs tomato paste
1 tsp smoke paprika
2 cups vegetable broth
1 tbs seasoned vegetable base
Extra virgin olive oil
Splash of apple cider vinegar
Fresh parsley for garnish

Method:

Brown the onion slowly in extra virgin olive oil.
Add garlic, tomato paste, and paprika.
Stir in thawed collards and cook until the moisture reduces.
Add beans and broth.
Simmer about 25 minutes.
Finish with apple cider vinegar.

Serve over cooked brown rice and sprinkle chopped parsley on top.

Categories
Kitchen Garden

Spring Slips Through Our Fingers

Rain puddle on the state park trail.

There was heavy rain overnight from Monday to Tuesday, our fourth night in a row of it. We should enjoy spring rain. It cleanses the atmosphere, and cleans the house, driveway, and yard. Instead, I feel tension that garden planting is not further along. This despite the fact the growing season extended by 10-20 days over the last 50 years because of global warming. What is planted is thriving. It’s the remainder that has me concerned.

The problem is some of the seedlings are getting too tall for soil blocks and need to get into the ground. It has me changing the configuration of the plot I spent last week prepping, moving cucumbers in and delaying zucchini and squash until the next plot. I had wanted to plant celery and fennel is a separate plot, but I will make a row of them in the current one simply to get them in the ground before they become root bound. That’s how it goes in the garden, sometimes. Our plans must remain flexible.

Despite the travails, this has been a spring to remember. I lived in it as a human, undistracted by the political and social climate in which we find ourselves. In that, gardening is needed respite.

I attended a political event last Saturday and was surprised at how many Democrats are birders. I reported to our table I saw two loons on the state park trail and it caused a stir. A retired union member said he would make the trip to our state park in hope of crossing loons off his bucket list. Of course we were discussing Gavia immer, not the human form of loon.

Monday I took training from the county in how to check in voters at the polls. The county information technology shop made it easy for people who have never done this before to sit down and immediately begin. When we consider technology tailored to the task, this has to be one of the best I’ve yet seen. After two hours of training, I feel ready for my work as an election day poll worker.

On Tuesday I got outdoors and did what I could to advance the garden before spring slips away. What else is there to do after spring rain?

Categories
Living in Society

My Last Summers with Stella

Stella Artois for sale at Costco Wholesale.

For $33.99 I walked on by the pallet of Stella Artois at Costco Wholesale. I can find better things to do with my money. Once upon a summer past I would buy a case to drink after working in the garden. 24 bottles would last most of the summer. Despite the physical pleasures, I am done with all that.

It is not about the health risks. There are literally mountains of research linking heavy drinking to cancer, heart disease, gun violence, and other consequences. That all seems pretty bad, yet consuming a 24-pack of Stella Artois over a summer hardly seems like heavy drinking. I know what that looks like.

Some World War II Veterans I knew stopped every night at a local bar to knock back a few after work in construction. They would buy a 6- or 12-pack for the road to continue drinking at home. One was a survivor of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.

Something else had me change.

One of the last things Father did before he died in a meat packing plant accident was cash his paycheck over his lunch break at Pete’s Midwest Tavern, a bar near the plant. At lunch time, or after a shift, Father would visit the Knotty Pine or Pete’s Midwest where he would socialize. It was what union workers did, the trade of butcher workers.

Pete’s Midwest was a cultural center, not only for the packing plant but for the region. When Father died, they were doing a lot besides selling beer. It became a prominent entertainment venue in the Quad Cities, featuring live music, and go-go dancers. In 1965, a sheriff’s raid confiscated illicit gaming equipment. When Father died, the bar took up a collection for the family—all the bars near the plant did. I still remember proprietor Pete Mathews delivering the donations to Mother and talking about the last time he saw Father.

It may seem curious that I never visited Pete’s Midwest, the Knotty Pine, or other bars embedded in packinghouse culture, even when I worked at the plant in 1971 and 1973. I preferred Debbie’s 4th and Western for a beer after I clocked out, just before sunrise. That world understood beer differently than ours does now. It was not an accessory to life, but part of the rhythm of physical labor — wages earned, muscles exhausted, another shift survived.

One of my favorite King James Bible passages is Ecclesiastes, Chapter 9, Verse 7, which says, “Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works.” I wish I could.

I enjoyed beer while I had it, especially after long summer afternoons in the garden. But these days $33.99 seems like a lot for nostalgia. I would rather spend the money on eggs, milk, rice, or something else with more lasting value. The old rituals fade. Perhaps they are supposed to.

Categories
Kitchen Garden

Week 6—Planting Getting Real

First bucket of Winterbor kale, May 16, 2026.

While locating seedlings for the next plot, I could not find the zucchini. I planted yellow and green, then realized they didn’t germinate and I pulled them from the greenhouse. After stewing for a while, I planted more of the same old seeds and made a special order for new ones. Luckily, there is enough recovery time. When the seeds arrive, they will go directly into the ground. In the unlikely event the old seeds germinate, they will also go into the ground.

This week was hit or miss. Most of Wednesday was devoted to a trip to Des Moines. Friday we took care of early voting since I will be a poll worker all day on election day and we wouldn’t be able to vote together. Saturday morning I woke to the sound of rain, which continued until predawn light. We need rain. Sunday morning it rained again, this time, a thunder storm. It rained again Monday morning. Garden work continued in the gaps between these events. Mostly it was in the garage and greenhouse.

Some of the kale leaves were large enough to harvest. It made a five-gallon bucket full. Half went into the freezer, and half will be for Taco Tuesday dinner next week. The first fresh kale is always the best. Everything in the cruciferous vegetable plot is growing and—fingers crossed—predators are staying away.

I planted the rest of the covered row. Although a few of the first-planted seedlings didn’t take, most did and it looks like there will be a normal production run. This year the covered row is greens and herbs. There were enough parsley seedlings in the greenhouse to harvest a cup of leaves for the kitchen and plant four of them in separate small pots for elsewhere in the garden or to move to the kitchen herb garden.

A deer stopped by the potato patch for a snack of the young leaves. After seeing the evidence, I put up a temporary fence to keep them from further dining. Only two or three tops of plants were taken by the ever present herbivore mammals.

The next plot is taking longer to prep. After designing it, specially configured ground cover was required. The main issue was finding places to let okra, zucchini, huckleberries, and tomatillos spread. There are two small patches in the shaded area where I seeded arugula, daikon and regular radishes, tatsoi Asian greens, and chard. The rest of the plot is planned for rows of green beans, sweet peppers, eggplant, and remaining sundry items. The ground cover is mostly laid, so the fencing can go back up and seedling planting begin. I hadn’t grown huckleberry before, and it has been a while since I had a good tomatillo or okra crop. Same with daikon radishes. This plot represents a lot of experimentation, and provides hope for new things.

It looks like I will run out of rolls of ground cover. I re-use what I can, but don’t want to fall short. I mail-ordered from the same supplier as last year. It should be here when I need it for the following two plots.

Despite the hit or miss nature of this week’s gardening, progress was made, and muscles got sore. This is the time gardeners live for.

Categories
Living in Society

America Is No Longer The Dominant World Power

War is Not Healthy

It saddens me to write this, yet the undeclared Iran War is heading to be the worst defeat in American history. While Iran’s tenacity in times of conflict is well known, the current administration appeared ignorant of their resilience as it initiated war without the consent of the Congress. Our country expended a boatload of missiles—depleting half or more of key stockpiles—in the first two months of the war.

According to the Center for Strategic Studies, the military used these critical munitions:

  • Patriot Air Defense Interceptors: Nearly 50% of the total pre-war inventory was expended within the first few weeks.
  • Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM): At least 45% of the stockpile was consumed.
  • THAAD Interceptors: Between 50% and 80% (up to 290) of the THAAD inventory was used, creating severe near-term shortages.
  • Tomahawk Cruise Missiles: The U.S. used over 1,000 Tomahawks, which accounts for roughly 30% to 50% of the total available U.S. arsenal.
  • SM-3 Interceptors: Nearly half of the inventory was expended during the campaign.
  • JASSM & ATACMS: More than 20% of the long-range JASSMs, as well as approximately 1,000 ATACMS and other ground-based missiles, were used.

What did we get for that? Closure of the Strait of Hormuz, destruction at our regional military bases, and little else. Joe Cirincione described the president’s position, “Simply put, Trump is out of cards to play.”

This week, the president was on a state visit to China. He is damaged goods. Cirincione presents the analysis of David Rothkopf as follows:

Trump has so damaged the core U.S. relationships with countries worldwide that he is seen more as a pariah than any American leader ever. Certainly, as an enemy of democracy and supporter of strong men worldwide, Trump can no longer claim, as past U.S. presidents did, to be the “leader of the free world.”

Indeed, in many ways, this trip will mark the end of the idea that America’s president is the world’s most powerful person.

Where do we go from here? That’s an open question, however, I never want to hear the words “American Exceptionalism” again.

Categories
Living in Society

Changes In Iowa Early Voting

Voting early by mail.

Early voting for the June 2, 2026 primary election began on Wednesday, May 13. I voted early because I am working on election day. Early voting feels almost like a non-event this year compared to the role it played in the Obama presidential campaigns of 2008 and 2012. Republican opposition to President Obama emerged quickly. He did win Iowa both years.

Fueled by investments by wealthy conservative and libertarian donors, along with authentic grassroots opposition to President Obama and the Affordable Care Act, a conservative backlash movement grew in the first year of Obama’s presidency. It included spontaneous local protests soon after Obama was sworn in, the April 15, 2009, Tax Day TEA Parties, and confrontations at congressional town hall meetings over the Affordable Care Act. This conservative movement energized Republican volunteers in the 2010 midterm elections.

2010 was a turning point in U.S. political history in which Obama faced serious resistance. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was the most significant reform of U.S. health care since Lyndon Johnson signed legislation to create Medicaid and Medicare in 1965. It passed the Congress without a single Republican vote.

In the Republican resurgence in the 2010 midterm elections, they gained 63 seats in the U.S. House, made Rep. John Boehner Speaker, and gained six U.S. Senate seats. Democrats maintained control of the Senate yet had lost their filibuster-proof majority.  In addition, Republicans made major gains in governorships and state legislatures. This positioned them to shape post-census redistricting in ways that strengthened their electoral position. The political polarization of 2010 endures today.

After the 2010 election, many Republican-led states enacted voter ID laws, reduced early voting periods, tightened absentee rules, and altered registration requirements. It is worth revisiting the election-law changes Iowa Republicans made after gaining unified control of state government in 2017.

In 2008 and 2012, Democratic organizations—the Obama campaign specifically—used early voting laws as a key part of their get out the vote efforts. They were successful. Republicans clearly noticed and moved to change voting law as soon as they gained control in Iowa.

The first election law change after Iowa Republicans won the trifecta in 2016 was House File 516 which reduced the early voting period from 40 to 29 days. They followed with another in 2021, Senate File 413, which further reduced the early voting period to 20 days. That leaves Iowa with an early voting period that is workable, but considerably less expansive than it once was. I believe this was part of the Republican intention.

Republican legislators made other changes to voting rules and processes. In 2017, HF 516 established Iowa’s voter ID requirements, required signature verification for some absentee ballots, changed absentee-ballot request procedures, and expanded procedures intended to prevent duplicate or ineligible voting. In 2021, the list of changes was longer:

  • Polls closing at 8 p.m. instead of 9 p.m. on Election Day.
  • Shorter deadlines for requesting and returning absentee ballots.
  • Requiring most absentee ballots to arrive by Election Day, rather than allowing some postmarked ballots to arrive later.
  • Restricting county auditors from mailing absentee-ballot request forms unless voters specifically requested them.
  • Limiting counties to one ballot drop box location.
  • Tightening rules on who could return another voter’s absentee ballot.
  • Requiring petitions for additional satellite voting locations.
  • Expanding procedures for moving inactive voters off registration rolls.
  • Increasing state oversight and potential penalties for local election officials.

A primary election is not the best time to evaluate how Democratic organizations manage early voting. Because there are high-profile Democratic primaries for the open U.S. Senate seat, in some congressional races, and in supervisor races, each campaign does their own thing regarding early voter turnout. The effort gets reduced in language to some form of “vote on or before June 2,” rather than any obvious canvassing to harvest early ballots. The new laws prohibit intermediaries from collecting completed absentee ballots.

That I characterized early voting as a “non-event,” indicates the routine nature the process has become. However, it is important to remember how we got here if Democrats want to make it easier to vote going forward.

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Reviews

Book Review: The Lives of Bees

Every gardener should read The Lives of Bees: The Untold Story of the Honey Bee in the Wild by Thomas D. Seeley. Gardeners are aware of the mix of pollinators required to service our plants and make food growing possible. We tend to forget this key insect, Apis mellifera, has been present on Earth for from six to eight million years. Before there was agriculture, there were common honey bees. Understanding wild bees and how they interact in the wild is useful and relevant knowledge.

The book is comprehensive, and based on the author’s research as well as that of others. There is a lot about bees I hadn’t considered before.

Wild honey bees position their hives a good distance from each other, a half mile apart on average. This serves multiple aspects of bee life—defensive purposes and limiting the spread of parasites such as the Varroa destructor and contagious viruses between colonies.

Likewise, bees have evolved to prefer a hive entry in a hollowed out tree around 15 feet above the ground. The small entry usually leads to the lower third of the cavity. If we want to find a wild honey bee nest in a tree, we must look up. This positioning is likely an evolutionary aspect of hive location. Curiously, black bears—a main bee hive predator—have eyesight that can’t see bees flying in and out of an opening that far up a tree, according to Seeley.

As humans domesticated bees in apiaries, they did what makes sense for beeswax and honey production—built larger hives for their swarms of bees. According to Seeley, wild honey bees strongly prefer tree cavities with a volume of about 10 to 12 gallons. In addition to size, the tree cavity provides insulation from cold weather. Contrast that with commercial apiaries whose average size is 20 gallons, nearly twice the ideal size. Seeley found less tendency for apiary bees to swarm in larger hives. The result has been allowing mites like the Varroa destructor to propagate better. In a section called Darwinian Beekeeping, he detailed his process. Commercial bee keeping removed a natural defense built up among bee colonies over thousands of years of evolution.

The physical book was made using a heavier paper than most mass market books. In fact, it was a bit much to read in bed because my hands got tired of holding its weight. The photography and illustrations make the premium paper worth the workout of holding and reading it. There is more than just the physical object. If you have ever wondered about bees, this is a comprehensive and readable reference. Highly recommend.

Categories
Creative Life

It’s Still Spring

Pre-dawn light on the state park trail.

Signs of spring are everywhere: First sets of goslings on the lake with their parents, songbirds throughout the forested area, and earlier morning sunrises. During my at-home retreat, I have been keeping irregular hours and changing most everything about my daily schedule. On Tuesday I slept until first light, immediately dressed, and headed out for my morning walk without any of the normal daily regimen. It felt weird, but I did it. Behind all the schedules and regimen, I’m still me.

I came across what appeared to be a molted feather of a Barred Owl on the trail. Because I hear owls high in the tree canopy in the predawn light, there is ample additional evidence they are around. The feather confirms the species of owl. While researching the feather, I discovered the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, which governs such findings. The common outdoor saying, “take only pictures, leave only footprints,” applies here.

Barred Owl feather on the state park trail. The rules, according to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, are to not touch them, tempting as it may be to pick it up and take it home. I took this photo and left it where I found it.

If you’ve been in the spice aisle of a grocery store, the high prices are quite noticeable. A jar of organic dried basil costs $7.75 per ounce at a local chain grocery store. If one buys bulk via mail order, the cost of a pound of the same product is $0.86 per ounce. I bought bulk of basil, marjoram, and parsley and shared the savings by giving some of it away to family.

Dried herbs bought in bulk and then broken down for a gift.

The big spring project is planting the garden. For now, I can stand all the work and hope to continue at least another ten years. Indeed the fresh produce—where I control the inputs—is of high value in our household. The year-to-date expense is running 73.4 percent of 2025. Lower costs have to do with purchases made last year, and reusing fencing, plastic ground cover, and the covered row. I’m not finished spending money but the trend is hopeful. Every pound of home-grown produce displaces money I would have to spend at the grocer or farmers’ market. It is a good way to live.

There was a chance of rain, but not much of a chance. We need rain, but the deep soil moisture is probably sufficient. The recent sunny and windy days have been drying the garden’s surface soil. That’s another spring worry—getting sufficient rain to produce a garden crop. Officials at the National Weather Service say we are near normal. That is good enough for today.