Paul Deaton
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SOLON, Iowa — At a table under a locust tree on Main Street I chatted with Kurt Friese, his wife and son as people gathered for his political meet and greet. Most of the small group of attendees are not in my circle of political friends. Maybe they should be. I’ll support Friese in the… Read more
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Monday morning I moved the last two trays of tomato seedlings outside. Since February, seedlings crowded around the windows of our bedroom. Now the race is on to get them in the ground. Ours is a garden designed to keep expenses low and minimize our carbon footprint. I’d prefer a small greenhouse though we didn’t… Read more
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JOHNSON COUNTY, Iowa — Talk about politics is everywhere as the June 7 Democratic primary approaches. There is a lot to think about in the two races with a field: U.S. Senate and county supervisors. Well maybe not that much. The four U.S. Senate candidates participated in a foreign policy forum in Des Moines last… Read more
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Holy cats it was windy yesterday! My to-do list was long, the weather sunny and dry, and danger for frost long past. It was time to focus on planting. The blustery day took its toll long before everything was erased from the white board. As readers can see from the diagram, indecision plagued execution of… Read more
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The fields were too wet for planting this week so farmers took on other projects and came to town. Partly as a result, sales were up at the home, farm and auto supply store. One of the highlights of working there is listening to narratives about the projects in which people engage. Customers seek specific… Read more
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Leaves of potatoes burst through the surface of the soil revealing robust growth and hope for a crop. During last night’s inspection I realized why many of us garden — we are born of the soil and all it produces. Recent rain boosted everything. I’ve been seasoning seedlings outside and am ready to plant them… Read more
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In A Sugar Creek Chronicle: Observing Climate Change from a Midwestern Woodland Connie Mutel produced an engaging narrative of her efforts to cope with change while living on a parcel of Oak – Hickory forest in Northern Johnson County, Iowa. The narrative is about climate change as the title suggests. It is also rich with… Read more
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I got naked as I get in the yard on World Naked Gardening Day. Suffice it that under my Carhartt overalls, Oracle T-shirt, Dickies socks, Calvin Klein underwear, University Square Industries cap, Rugged Wear ventilated gloves and government-issued army boots my nakedness kept its own sensible and properly hidden vigil. I worked our small plot… Read more
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As bad as the Ronald Reagan presidency was for middle and low wage earners, a Donald J. Trump presidency could be worse. Last week’s tit for tat about jobs for West Virginia coal miners is an example of how Reagan’s policies resulted in decimation of an industry, people forgot, and then Trump asserted he could… Read more
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Tomorrow’s 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby serves notice the race is on to finish spring garden planting. Planting is never completely done. What I mean is putting seeds in the ground and moving the 10 trays of seedlings from our bedroom to the garden soil by Memorial Day. The coming weekend will be prime… Read more
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