State park trail entry point.

Journey Home

Tales from the pilgrimage.

Living in Society

Politics mostly social commentary.

  • News Travels in a Community

    News travels quickly in a community. Read more

  • Book Review: The Only Plane In The Sky

    Those of a certain age have living memories of Sept. 11, 2001. What we may not have is the sweeping scope of what happened, which is contained in Garrett M. Graff’s book, The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11. I checked it out from the public library and read it during… Read more

  • Vote Yes for a New Jail

    I visited the current Johnson County Jail soon after it opened in 1981. I remember saying to myself, “My God! They made it too small!” The current board of supervisors approved a referendum for the November ballot to build a new jail and sheriff’s office. I support it. Opinions on the current referendum, previously published… Read more

  • Protecting the Midterm Vote

    My first assignments as a poll worker dropped this week, a reminder of how soon election day will be here. Early voting starts October 14 in Iowa. I drew three shifts helping in the lobby at the county administration building, and expect to draw an election day assignment. The county auditor is well-organized to cover… Read more

  • Miller-Meeks Dodges the Real Problem

    In November I will get my seventh opportunity to vote for Mariannette Miller-Meeks for Congress. I will decline, again. The incumbent is not doing enough on important issues of our times. I am thinking particularly of Social Security. She made a splash with her support for Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent’s bill to open… Read more

  • 25 Years Since the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks

    I wrote this post on the tenth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States. What has changed is then it was Iraq and Afghanistan, now it is Iran. I was scheduled to fly from Moline, Illinois to Philadelphia on Sept. 11, 2001. My flight was cancelled. I returned to the office,… Read more

  • September Stress

    Everyone I know is experiencing stress in September. Read more

  • Summer’s End 2026

    At least once each summer I take the long way around the trail. I walk on the road toward Highway 382 and enter the Hoover Nature Trail, which leads south to an intersection with the state park trail. This route take more than twice as long to complete, and the change in scenery is welcome.… Read more

  • On Reading and Writing

    Life would be more difficult if I couldn’t read or write any longer. These skills represent a connection to a broader society, one in which I have invested my whole life. Read more

  • We’re Going Home — Wendell Berry

    Wendell Berry died on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026. Known best by conservationists as the author of The Unsettling of America, Berry had written more than 50 books of verse, essays, and fiction by his death at age 92. It is difficult to work in the local food movement without giving a nod to Berry for… Read more