Soybeans coming out of the field in Johnson County.
The new by-district county supervisor election system mandated by the state is underway in Johnson County. Many candidates are running, and at least one incumbent will be ousted. With new people come new policies, including a proposal to adopt a county manager. This idea would have consequences.
The shift to district-based elections is already a significant change. It will alter representation and decision-making. Introducing another major change at the same time—restructuring county government—risks what process improvement specialists call “tampering” with a stable system, creating confusion about roles and accountability. It also raises the question of how a county manager position would be funded.
In the November election, voters will have an opportunity to weigh in indirectly. Candidates differ on whether they support a county manager system, giving voters a clear choice about the county’s direction. Before moving forward, residents deserve time to see the new election system in practice and to evaluate where candidates stand.
A county manager model may have merits, but it should be considered carefully, with full public understanding and input. Good governance requires not just sound ideas, but the discipline to implement change at a pace that preserves what already works. Whether the new board will have necessary discipline is an open question going into the midterm elections.
~ Published as a letter to the editor of the Cedar Rapids Gazetteon April 21, 2026.
Supporting the environment has changed since the first Earth Day. Then the president was aware of public support for protecting the environment and took concrete action. Now, the president couldn’t give two hoots in a holler about it, as evidenced by his support for copper mining in the Boundary Waters. Times have changed, even as the climate crisis knocks on our door daily with some new deviation from what used to be normal conditions.
I wrote about my personal progress in an unpublished memoir:
From Earth Day to Climate Reality
My advocacy for environmental causes came in two time periods: one that began in high school with the first Earth Day, and the second after joining the Johnson County Board of Health. Two and a half years after leaving the board of health, I joined the Climate Reality Project.
The first Earth Day on April 22, 1970, was part of a cultural phenomenon which got the president’s attention. I participated in the event while in high school. When the Council on Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency were created soon after, I felt a palpable relief. Government was taking responsibility. These actions assuaged my high school concerns about the environment. With the government now involved, I could turn my attention to other things.
While on the board of health, Maureen McCue and I were active advocating for regulation of toxins in the environment, especially for better air quality. This was a combination of my family’s history of working in coal mines, my grandfather’s suffering and death from black lung disease, and new concerns about air quality raised while I was on the board of health. The main work was to advocate against the use of coal for electricity in Iowa. Planned coal-fired power plants were held back in Waterloo and Marshalltown by a coalition of environmental groups of which we were a part.
The film An Inconvenient Truth was released in 2006 and won the Academy Award for best feature-length documentary of the year. It featured former Vice President Al Gore presenting the science and risks of climate change to a mass audience. Inspired by the force and clarity of that narrative, I traveled to Chicago in July 2013 and participated in the Climate Reality Leadership Program which trained us to present climate science and promote solutions in our communities.
Gore gave his Inconvenient Truth presentation twice, once as he had in the film, and then once on the second day with explanations about each point. During the training we learned about the latest science of climate change, best practices in public speaking, and connecting with an audience, communication strategies, social media, leadership skills, and community outreach and organizing.
The goal was to teach attendees to give the presentation ourselves and advocate for the environment in our home communities. In return for the training, I agreed to make 10 presentations using course materials. I would go on to attend training three more times, serving as a mentor to others. Importantly, I gave presentations where I could attract an audience: at an event at the Solon Public Library, and on farms, and throughout the region. Being a Climate Reality Leader helped me feel like I was part of something bigger than myself. I particularly enjoyed sitting with Al Gore and a small group of leaders at the Cedar Rapids training, talking about issues of the day.
Increased awareness of climate science helped me reinterpret a lifetime of weather. As a child, my father took me to the bank of the Mississippi River to see the record flood of 1965. The flood water seemed endless then and was unforgettable. At the time, it stood out as a singular event.
Singular events accumulated.
In April 1973, more than twenty inches of snow fell across Iowa in what should have been spring. In 1993, as we were building our home in Big Grove Township, a flood described as a 500-year event delayed construction by a month. In 2008, another “500-year” flood backed water into the watershed of a nearby 900-acre lake, stopping barely a hundred yards from our front door. The change in intensity of events was noticeable, particularly the flooding which had been commonplace when I was in grade school.
Precipitation was extreme, yet there were also heat waves. Farmers still talk about the 2012 drought. It was so hot and dry for such a long period that corn leaves curled upward to preserve moisture, and yields dropped sharply. Drought returned from 2020 through 2024, described by the state climatologist as the longest since the 1950s.
In 2019, I measured thirty-five degrees below zero at home as the foundation creaked and a lower-level window broke. On August 10, 2020, I watched a derecho tear through the neighborhood, damaging all but one tree on our lot and uprooting three entirely. Cleanup became routine. Repairs were expected.
Straight line winds, derechos, droughts, tornadoes, Iowa has always had severe weather. What changed was the frequency and the scale. Individually, each event could be dismissed as weather. Together, they formed a pattern. Climate Reality offered a way to address causes rather than consequences—to work upstream instead of continually rebuilding downstream. That was hopeful.
Politicians and industry were slow to respond to our advocacy. All the same, we kept at it. I had an opportunity to talk about coal-fired power plants with Bill Fehrman, then president and CEO of MidAmerican Energy, at an event at Old Brick in Iowa City. To say it politely, he knew how to handle me, pointing to their expansion into wind generated electricity and said they would eventually eliminate coal from their electricity generation mix. I made several trips to lobby in Des Moines with both Republicans and Democrats. With Democrats, I was preaching to the choir. Republicans appeared to listen.
I wrote letters to the editor and guest opinions, I was interviewed by radio and television reporters, I participated in large conferences and my own scheduled events. One time I gave an abbreviated version of the Inconvenient Truth lecture to three farmers while helping them plant crops at a nearby vegetable farm. I did what I could to raise awareness of the ongoing climate crisis.
According to weather sources, In April 2026 we had 5.69 inches of rain through the 17th. That is between 65% to 95% higher than average. We felt it on our homestead as precipitation kept me from most gardening until Friday when I attempted to put in a plot of cruciferous vegetables—curses, foiled again. A weird combination of changing air pressure, lightning, thunder, hail, rain, and wind persisted from 1:30 p.m. until dusk.
I did get the bed tilled and weed barrier applied. Saturday we had high winds, so I didn’t plant and pulled up fencing instead. On Sunday, I finished laying ground cover and put in the fence posts. Based on the weather forecast, I will plant cruciferous vegetables later today.
Cruciferous vegetable plot on April 17, 2026.
Big trees are leafing out. Both of these have cracks in the main trunk from the 2020 derecho, and eventually will be goners.
Pin Oak Tree on April 17, 2026Autumn Blaze Maple tree on April 17, 2026.
Radishes and turnips broke ground. Here are the radishes.
Radishes on April 17, 2026.
Temps dropped into the 30s over the weekend, so I put a space heater in the portable greenhouse Saturday night. The cold spell lasted through Monday.
I started what I believe will be the last indoors plants this week: cucumbers, squash, collards, and some more cauliflower and Asian greens. From here on, almost everything goes into the ground.
Finally, I cleared the burned plastic off this year’s tomato patch. The weed burn was a problem, as I couldn’t control which plot it burned and fire took out four of them, some with plastic weed barrier. Luckily, the scorched garlic plants have already recovered. Second week in and I’m making progress.
The rise of a shadow workforce—workers who perform essential labor without full rights or protections—is not a side issue in the American economy. It is rapidly becoming the model that reshapes work for everyone.
During an April 2020 interview with Kimberly Graham about her U.S Senate race, she laid a framework,
We are some of the hardest working people on the planet. Americans are very productive. We work hard but we are not seeing the rewards of that. We are falling further and further behind financially. More of us are hurting financially. We may have jobs, but yeah, we have two jobs because we can’t make it on one. There’s all the gig economy. We have fewer and fewer unions, fewer and fewer union jobs that come with benefits and come with a pension and all of that. (Blog for Iowa, Kimberly Graham – A Voice For ‘Us,‘ April 2, 2020).
Not much has changed for the better since Graham said this. Increasingly, a shadow workforce performs work, yet are not counted as employees on payrolls. This includes legally present independent contractors, freelancers, gig workers, temporary agency workers, and part-timers. It also includes undocumented workers who are not legally in the country. The work they do is real, yet legal protections are partial, inconsistent, or absent. There are risks in this.
In a discussion with local writer Joel Wells, he said in an email, “We are actively allowing the creation of a permanent underclass of workers with fewer rights, fewer protections, and no real voice. That is not speculation; it is already happening.”
Businesses are designed primarily to generate profit not jobs. That is why public policy must set the rules that protect workers.
Democrats must take the mantle in establishing and maintaining worker protections through policy. What is needed is a clear, understandable framework that voters can grasp and defend. Things like health insurance, retirement contributions, child care, and paid leave are a beginning. There should also be strong penalties for wage theft, labor standards enforcement regardless of immigration status, and whistleblower protections for vulnerable workers. Democrats should bring these issues to the forefront of policy discussions. Since FDR, Democrats have stood firmly with labor. That relationship needs revisiting.
If neglected, the shadow workforce can be normalized, lowering standards for everyone. It has begun to spread… to everyone.
When work is pushed into the shadows, rights disappear first—wages and standards follow. Bringing that work back into the light is not just about fairness for some workers. It is about protecting the future of work for all.
When politicians come after public libraries it gets my dander up. Libraries have become part of who I am and without them we would all be something less. The administration, which doesn’t give a fig about me and what I think, is at it again.
The president’s proposed budget seeks to eliminate funding for the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). It may sound familiar: in 2025, the administration, working with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), attempted to drastically shrink or effectively dismantle the agency—placing staff on leave, freezing or cutting grants, and issuing an executive order to reduce it to a “minimum presence.” In response, people across the country and across the political spectrum took the fight to court, where federal judges blocked most of those efforts. The outcome underscores a simple truth: public libraries and museums continue to matter deeply to both rural and urban communities.
Mine is a simple question: Why can’t the fact that we love our public libraries and museums be enough to ensure their persistence?
What does IMLS do? It is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 123,000 libraries and 35,000 museums. IMLS provides grants to libraries that need to replace technology and infrastructure. Among other things, they are directly involved with funding Inter-library Loans, Books for the Blind, preserving veterans’ stories, funding resources for those associated with people who are autistic, providing disaster preparedness for libraries and museums, sustaining Native American libraries, and more. Could we live without these services? Maybe, but not as well.
I read the Republican arguments about ending federal funding for libraries and museums, saying they should be managed by the states. If IMLS goes away, as the administration’s budget proposes, it would affect a number of local museums that rely on project-based grants to fund operations. These museums include the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library, the African American Museum of Iowa, and the Iowa Children’s Museum. All of these are sources of pride in the community.
Yes, our federal elected officials may tire of us calling so frequently. However, our public resistance is how we tell them we care about our libraries and museums even if politicians don’t.
The U.S. Capitol switchboard phone number is (202) 224-3121. You can call this number to be connected directly to any Senator’s or Representative’s office by providing your zip code or the name of your representative. Let them know how you feel about shuttering IMLS.
It has been a rainy week. Too much moisture in the garden to plant, and constant showers to keep me inside. When the weather is like this, I make a point to find space between rain clouds and get in my 30-minute daily morning walk. A two-hour rain delay is typical.
When I finally got on the trail, I took this photo. There are two geese. The one on the left is ducking its head in the water while the other keeps watch. I don’t usually see them this close to shore.
While waiting for the rain to end, I emailed U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst to vote no on HJR 140 which pertains to opening the Boundary Waters to foreign copper mining. It took a couple of minutes. Here is what I said:
I urge you to vote NO on House Joint Resolution 140, the Congressional Review Act targeting the Boundary Waters mineral withdrawal. The Twin Metals mine is owned by a foreign company that has an agreement with China to smelt the copper in China for free — and China gets the copper. The United States gets nothing but the pollution. No United States Senator should support this anti-American bill that would allow China to pollute our most treasured wilderness to gain a competitive edge over us. Please stop it by voting NO.
Bread on the water. The resolution needs only a simple majority, which if they get it, Poof! The Boundary Waters are open to mine runoff. That is, after the inevitable lawsuits end.
On Thursday, the Senate approved the resolution in a 50-49 vote, so folks are lawyering up.
One day this week a beaver was swimming a few yards off shore. They are common in the area and occasionally cut down trees along the lake shore. I have also seen mink on the trail. It reminds me of a time when natives trapped fur-bearing creatures to trade with white people. Typically that was in autumn.
I once visited the House on the Mound in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, built by Hercules Dousman. He managed trading operations for John Jacob Astor’s American Fur Company in the Upper Mississippi Valley. The Victorian-style home was luxurious by any standard. It was called the house on the mound because it was built upon an ancient native burial mound. Dousman flourished on the Wisconsin frontier. “As a fur trader, railroad builder, grain-shipper, he became the most influential figure of the upper Mississippi Valley and the Midwest’s first millionaire,” wrote August Derleth in his 1958 book The House on the Mound.
The beaver I saw seemed unaware of the value of its fur.
If we look closely, there is evidence of lives lived long ago all around us. I used to go with a friend to Palisades Kepler Park near Mount Vernon to climb the bluffs overlooking the Cedar River. I don’t do rock-climbing any more, but I used to enjoy it. On top of those bluffs were Native American burial mounds.
According to Google search results, “The Native American mounds located along the bluffs, represent the prehistoric Woodland Indian culture. These sacred sites include conical and effigy mounds that are often knee-high, with some reaching up to six feet, serving as a reminder of early indigenous habitation.” The burial mounds are some of the last remaining in the area. So many of them were turned into farm land, or like the House on the Mound, built upon by white settlers.
Whether it is waiting out a rain delay or observing our habitat, it is easy to feel connected to nature, and to civilizations that went before us. We forget that Iowa wasn’t always a grid of farms, towns and cities. There were woodlands and prairies, and pure springs flowing within walking distance of where we built our home. On days like this I can imagine the grid being lifted, then walking this land like Natives did in the 17th and 18th Centuries. I live for that imagining. It can be who we are.
At a political event in Iowa City on April 11, 2026.
Traveling to the county seat on a Saturday afternoon is unlikely for me. However, I needed to speak with my candidate about the upcoming June 2 primary election, so there I was. About 75 people crowded into a self-described “cozy nook” at the Green House. Framed as a “botanical retreat,” the establishment serves plant-infused specialty cocktails, local beer, and non-alcoholic drinks crafted with local tinctures and herbs. I had none of those as I had come with limited funds and to talk.
Whenever I visit Iowa City I encounter people I have known for years. This makes a sociable visit no matter what the agenda. This event was a joint fund raiser for Democratic congressional candidate Travis Terrell and my candidate for county supervisor Jon Green. There were a lot of speakers.
The flavor of the event was based on two people I have known for years and were there, John Dabeet and Newman Abuissa. John was born in Jerusalem and is a board member of the U.S. Palestinian Council, an organization “that aims to represent, educate and advocate on issues of concern to Palestinian Americans, strengthen ties between the US and Palestine, and push forward a vision based on liberty, justice, and human rights for all,” according to their website. John spoke at the event. Newman was born in Damascus, Syria and “is a prominent Syrian-American activist, civil engineer, and political organizer based in Iowa City, known for his vocal advocacy for Palestinian rights and his leadership within the Arab American caucus of the Iowa Democratic Party,” according to Google search results. Both identify as Democrats, and have been active in Iowa politics.
Two speakers discussed AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee based in Washington, D.C. Terrell criticized Christina Bohannan, also a Democratic candidate for the Congress, for accepting a six-figure campaign donation from AIPAC. He also criticized Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks for accepting a lesser six-figure amount. What is AIPAC doing in this race? They are not favoring either candidate. Rather, they are guaranteeing the outcome of a member of Congress favorable to Israel, regardless who wins. Terrell hopes to leverage that to win the Democratic primary.
I don’t get out much and the conversations I had about plumbing, farming, compost, contractors, politics, and local culture at the event helped make it a positive evening. There is more to being a progressive than one’s stance on Israel and Palestine. However, that afternoon, those issues were in focus. It’s part and parcel of the diversity within the Democratic Party.
Following are opening paragraphs to a chapter of my work in progress, A Working Life. They begin a section on moving to Big Grove Township in 1993. It occurred to me the second paragraph should happen and I spent an inordinate amount of time crafting it. This opening stands up, I believe.
Big Grove Township was established before Iowa Statehood. The first sawmill was built in 1839 by Anthony Sells on Mill Creek. Put the big groves of trees together with the sawmill and you have us. The oak, walnut, hickory, ash, elm, and cottonwood that once thrived among numerous pure springs were long gone when we bought our lot here. What dominates is the culture we and others brought with us to an area where what was native once existed in abundance yet no longer does. There is something essentially American in that.
Also quite American is forgetting about natives who lived here for thousands of years: ancient, unnamed hunter-gatherers, mound builders, and the Oneota culture, which flourished across the Upper Mississippi River Valley for several centuries and gave rise to the historic tribes later known as the Ioway, Meskwaki, and Sauk. Oneota peoples cultivated maize, beans, and squash; built villages along rivers and streams; and moved seasonally across a landscape defined not by fixed boundaries but by ecological, social, and ceremonial relationships.
Not far from here, a small museum once displayed cases of stone points, pottery, and tools gathered from nearby fields—fragments of those lives, removed from the ground and arranged for viewing, now gone themselves.
In such context, we moved to Big Grove Township in August 1993.
Cookbook by Suzanne Ormond, Mary Irvine and Denyse Cantin.
I want to like Creole cuisine as I had when visiting New Orleans. I even bought Suzanne Ormond, Mary Irvine, and Denyse Cantin’s book Favorite New Orleans Recipes as a souvenir to make it myself in Iowa. The trouble is I became vegetarian since then, and none of the 119 recipes is a fit. Every once in a while I make my version of red beans and rice–using the holy trinity–but the available vegetarian sausages are not the same and by the time I finish, it isn’t really Creole.
Before sending the cookbook to the public library used book sale I reviewed the recipes again. The only thing remotely doable was some version of egg salad. I set the recipe aside and took pen to paper and made my own Creole-inspired egg salad starting with three hard-cooked eggs.
Trinity Egg Salad
I prepared the eggs as per usual: placing them in cold water in a saucepan, bringing it to a boil, turning it off, letting them sit in the hot water for 12-15 minutes, then dunking them in an ice water bath for 5-10 minutes.
Egg salad is sauce and diced ingredients mixed together. For the sauce, I put the egg yolks in a bowl, and added about three tablespoons Duke’s Mayonnaise, one teaspoon stone ground mustard, two tablespoons finely diced homemade sweet pickles, one teaspoon of pickle juice, one half teaspoon garlic puree, a teaspoon of home made apple cider vinegar, and a few dashes of my hot pepper powder. I mixed until incorporated.
Next I added the dice: 1 tbs red onion, 1 tbs red bell pepper, and 1-2 tbs celery, along with the whites of the eggs. Fold everything together with salt and black pepper to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use, at least 15 minutes.
Except for the holy trinity, there is not much to make this a Creole recipe.
I do know the flavor was take off your hat and sit down good. I hope you will try it.
Journey Home 
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