Iowa

I’m driving to the great state of Iowa this weekend. I’ve not been there in more than a decade and a half. In the 80’s, we drove there regularly as two of my mother’s sisters resided in Waterloo. It was in Iowa where I first saw "E.T.", where I got my first taste of Long John’s Silver’s, and where, while about to eat a bowl of cereal (without milk, as I like it), my aunt asked if I wanted any milk and before I could answer in the negative, she’d already put a few ounces on it. Eww!

There’s really not much to draw me there. The reason for my trip is to see one of my favorite singers, Vince Gill. It will be my 6th time watching him play as well as the 3rd year in a row (I saw him in MN in ’06 and in WI last year). Mason City is the closest he’ll be coming to my home base this year. After some reflection, I decided that driving two hours (each way) to see him wouldn’t be too much of a strain. After all, I (and my friend, Shanon) will be able to enjoy some quite notable scenery on the way down. This IS Iowa we’re talking about.

No, I remember the drives to the state and can’t say there was much to look at unless I was playing that find-as-many-states-as-you-can-on-other-cars game. I shudder to think of what it’d be like having to drive all day through one of the Dakotas.

Maybe one day, cars will be available that can project beautiful scenery and make it look as though it actually exists outside your window. That would be wicked. It might take some time to perfect, but I have no doubt Obama could speed things up if elected. Actually, Iowa is where Obama had his first primary victory all those months ago.

To reduce the boredom factor, I’ll have to bring some good tunage along. I don’t typically like to listen to the singer I’m going to see on my way to the concert. I’d rather be “fresh” when they come out on stage.