WOW! 2014 arrives in New Year's Day and it is COLD in Iowa! Well, not only that, but it is STILL COLD in Iowa, and it is now February 7. So far we have had 29 days that sported a reading of below 0. BELOW 0!! Fall of 2013 saw local schools cancel classes in late August and early September because it was TOO HOT!,, 4 months later they have cancelled classes 4 times because it is TOO COLD!! Global Warming was and is a big farce, so I guess we will call it cold weather!
To date in 2014 the Coralville Water Department has repaired 3 water main breaks. MORE than usual but no unexpected. In January the City of Cedar Rapids had 109 water main breaks!! There goes the 'Streets budget'!!
I just read that the City of Hayward, WI, has asked all residents to open at least one faucet in the house and let it run constantly with a stream of about a quarter inch or so. It is important to keep the water flowing to avoid freezing. The WHOLE TOWN! I have been there many times on fishing trips, and I would compare Hayward, WI, to....maybe, Washington, IA, without a town square. Nice town!
Do I attend the annual WinterFest in Coralville this weekend, OR do I acknowledge that everyday is WinterFest and forget it.. I am leaning towards going to see the new movie 'Monuments Men' this Sunday afternoon. Nothing we can do about the cold but complain, and it is cold for everybody, so why bother! Suck it up and pray for SPRING!
I was an attendee at the recent Brrrr Fest here in Coralville a couple weekends back. Nice event, nice size crowd and a well behaved crowd. This is a nice event here in Coralville. A lot of the proceeds will be used for the July 4th celebration here in Coralville.
Coralville is like all other towns in the Midwest...,,, short on salt for streets. I say 'good', as salt eats cars! Sand is messy and NOT good for carpets if it is allowed in the house (neither in salt!) and sand does not bother the water runoff like salt.. MORE sand and less salt in my book.
I told my wife the other day that 'we should go to AZ for a week', and she said, 'we probably can't get TO the Airport, if we do make it the flight will be cancelled or the Airport on the other end will be closed!, 'so let's stay here and complain'...
SO, let's all complain about the weather! IT won't help, but we'll all feel better about it!!
See you in Coralville!
REX
Friday, February 7, 2014
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
2013 Greetings to you!
Somehow I managed to keep the ship upright over the holidays. TOO many holidays all at once. TOO confusing. On at least 2 occasions I had to look at a calendar to see what day of the week it was!! I had no clue. We had company from Christmas Day to New Year's Eve, so we were busy every day. They are from Savannah, GA, and had no clue on why 'anyone would live here in the snow and cold'....Truth be known, Michele and I wonder the same thing!!!!
Of course our first snowstorm had to be full of ice. The streets are terrible! Lumpy, rough, etc. The 'City guys' can't do much with 2-3" of ice. We need solar snow removal. We need some HEAT!! It is doing better this week and the streets are now looking better and riding better.
Please take time to visit the Old Coralville Dam. HUGE flood control project underway. Go into the restaurant before lunch or after lunch rush, and ask if you can look out the east windows. WOW! This is a BIG project. I love to see projects as they are in progress. You will like the details on this one. LOTS of guys working along the river installing walls, pouring cement, operating heavy equipment etc. Don't miss it.
I have not been to Scheels since some stupid kid ran his SUV thru the front doors. How about a little jail time for offenders. Not every bad guy should walk. Jail would/might make him and others THINK about what drugs or alcohol can do.....I am an old school guy probably, but if they say we need a new and bigger jaill, how about reserving a cell for a guy like this and don't let him out for ahwile. I am SURE that the store and Mall suffered a LOT of actual damage/costs, PLUS Scheels was out of busienss for the day and more.
I am hoping that Winter is Winter, and when it is time for Spring, that Winter has the decency to LEAVE!
Too bad for Notre Dame. I am not a fan of ND, but I am not a fan of Alabama either. Someone had to win.
Keep your self from biting the dust on the ice!!!
Somehow I managed to keep the ship upright over the holidays. TOO many holidays all at once. TOO confusing. On at least 2 occasions I had to look at a calendar to see what day of the week it was!! I had no clue. We had company from Christmas Day to New Year's Eve, so we were busy every day. They are from Savannah, GA, and had no clue on why 'anyone would live here in the snow and cold'....Truth be known, Michele and I wonder the same thing!!!!
Of course our first snowstorm had to be full of ice. The streets are terrible! Lumpy, rough, etc. The 'City guys' can't do much with 2-3" of ice. We need solar snow removal. We need some HEAT!! It is doing better this week and the streets are now looking better and riding better.
Please take time to visit the Old Coralville Dam. HUGE flood control project underway. Go into the restaurant before lunch or after lunch rush, and ask if you can look out the east windows. WOW! This is a BIG project. I love to see projects as they are in progress. You will like the details on this one. LOTS of guys working along the river installing walls, pouring cement, operating heavy equipment etc. Don't miss it.
I have not been to Scheels since some stupid kid ran his SUV thru the front doors. How about a little jail time for offenders. Not every bad guy should walk. Jail would/might make him and others THINK about what drugs or alcohol can do.....I am an old school guy probably, but if they say we need a new and bigger jaill, how about reserving a cell for a guy like this and don't let him out for ahwile. I am SURE that the store and Mall suffered a LOT of actual damage/costs, PLUS Scheels was out of busienss for the day and more.
I am hoping that Winter is Winter, and when it is time for Spring, that Winter has the decency to LEAVE!
Too bad for Notre Dame. I am not a fan of ND, but I am not a fan of Alabama either. Someone had to win.
Keep your self from biting the dust on the ice!!!
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Coralville still HOT STUFF!
True words were never spoken..Coralville, IOWA is hard to find even on an official Iowa road map.. The name IOWA CITY is plastered in BIG letters, and like all little neighbors, we don't , can't, won't say a word,, we'll just do what Coralville is good at........GROW, expand, push the envelope, think in and outside the box, rely on volunteers to man the events, refuse to rely on our easterly neighbor for any advice, leadership, opinions, etc.
Such a wonderful 'spirit' to have, and we here in Coralville have had a Coralville Pride element to the town and IN the residents for over 100 years! HUH?.. In 1875 the new little town ( 1873) needed a location for a school. A one room school,, a local businessman, Ezekial Clark donated land along '5th' street, and the locals built a TWO ROOM schoolhouse! They did NOT need a 2 room school, but the School Board said, 'someday we will'..,, in my opinion THIS was the first step of our button-popping Coralville Pride, 'drive', and spirit..
More to come, more to talk about,, but while/if/when you are out and about, take a look at all the 'action' in town, including several building cranes near 1st avenue along the Iowa River, visit the all new Backpocket Brewery, take a time warp couple of hours and visit the way COOL Antique Auto Museum and the Johnson County Historical Museum, and the new Coralville Center for the Performing Arts!
SEE, this IS a hot little town!!!
Such a wonderful 'spirit' to have, and we here in Coralville have had a Coralville Pride element to the town and IN the residents for over 100 years! HUH?.. In 1875 the new little town ( 1873) needed a location for a school. A one room school,, a local businessman, Ezekial Clark donated land along '5th' street, and the locals built a TWO ROOM schoolhouse! They did NOT need a 2 room school, but the School Board said, 'someday we will'..,, in my opinion THIS was the first step of our button-popping Coralville Pride, 'drive', and spirit..
More to come, more to talk about,, but while/if/when you are out and about, take a look at all the 'action' in town, including several building cranes near 1st avenue along the Iowa River, visit the all new Backpocket Brewery, take a time warp couple of hours and visit the way COOL Antique Auto Museum and the Johnson County Historical Museum, and the new Coralville Center for the Performing Arts!
SEE, this IS a hot little town!!!
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
The real HEAT is now on!
Greetings from good old Coralville, Iowa.. It has been HOT so long, an 85 deg day seems like a cool one! It does! It remains, most days, in the low 90s, but even the low 90s are far and away nicer than the 102, 105, 107 stuff. IF that is AZ you can keep it.. AZ is the desert, so if you live down there and it is hot, well, too bad, IT"S A DESERT!! Not Iowa, we grow corn and beans.. a few hot days in the 90s, once in a great while a 100 deg day.. ...Oh well, we have to take what comes..
NOW I am learning that the schools open here in Iowa City on August 16.. AUGUST 16! NOT all schools are air conditioned...Boy, that will be a load of fun for the kids, and the teachers. I am thinking that schools will have EARLY DISMISSAL at 1pm, for the HEAT and not the SNOW....I'll bet so!
Well, we did not have a/c in the house, let alone the school when I was a kid. I remember my arm flab sticking to the papers on my desk. If you picked up your arm, the paper (handout) came with it! Nothing you could do,, it was just plain hot.. I DO remember the Principal's Office being cool...............hmmm..
Now you can drive around town and see the dead and dying, and the soon to be dead and dying trees, shrubs, plantings etc.. We will lose a zillion trees and shrubs for a year or so. They just got no water. IF you want to make some money, I suggest you get into the tree/shrub removal business.Lots of people in the landscape business, but nobody in the shrub removal business. You will need a pickup truck, a chain saw, a rake, etc.. You will have plenty to do! For a couple years
.....Yes Fall is here soon,, school opens, the same old stuff,, but this year, I am as excited about IOWA basketball! When was the last time you heard someone say that! IOWA has stirred up the pot in basketball. This season should be fun! , with more to come! We are on the right track back!!
HOT summer nites back in the day. We had no a/c at home, neither did anyone else so I guess we never missed it. NOW we can't live without it!
Keep cool my friends!!
NOW I am learning that the schools open here in Iowa City on August 16.. AUGUST 16! NOT all schools are air conditioned...Boy, that will be a load of fun for the kids, and the teachers. I am thinking that schools will have EARLY DISMISSAL at 1pm, for the HEAT and not the SNOW....I'll bet so!
Well, we did not have a/c in the house, let alone the school when I was a kid. I remember my arm flab sticking to the papers on my desk. If you picked up your arm, the paper (handout) came with it! Nothing you could do,, it was just plain hot.. I DO remember the Principal's Office being cool...............hmmm..
Now you can drive around town and see the dead and dying, and the soon to be dead and dying trees, shrubs, plantings etc.. We will lose a zillion trees and shrubs for a year or so. They just got no water. IF you want to make some money, I suggest you get into the tree/shrub removal business.Lots of people in the landscape business, but nobody in the shrub removal business. You will need a pickup truck, a chain saw, a rake, etc.. You will have plenty to do! For a couple years
.....Yes Fall is here soon,, school opens, the same old stuff,, but this year, I am as excited about IOWA basketball! When was the last time you heard someone say that! IOWA has stirred up the pot in basketball. This season should be fun! , with more to come! We are on the right track back!!
HOT summer nites back in the day. We had no a/c at home, neither did anyone else so I guess we never missed it. NOW we can't live without it!
Keep cool my friends!!
Friday, June 22, 2012
YES, it's TRUE!...Almost the 4th of July.. Can't be, but it is almost true. My favorite time of year and my favorite holiday, as I totally respect the reason for the holiday! Being told what to do by the British King did not sit well with the new Colonists, and they put their ingenuity, efforts, and rifles where there mouths and thoughts were! Thank GOD!! Hope you take a moment to 'thank the Colonists' every year, and those who wrote the Declaration of Independence!! Read the Constitution lately?.. Do it, very interesting. Simple and straight forward,,, AND people consider themselves 'experts on the Constitution and Constitutinal law.. READ it, you will be as smart as they are, as the document is straight forward!
Sweet corn on our tables BEFORE July! Earliest sweet corn season EVER so they are saying! This is fine with me. I am ready. I remember planting sweet corn at my Grandpa's house/garden when I was a kid. That would have been in the 50s. He had a HUGE garden out in the back yard. His specialty was strawberries. I hired on the pick them, and we made 10cents a quart and all the strawberries you wanted to eat. Well that did not last long,, as he knew, cuz after about 8 or 9 of them you are sick of them and don't eat any more! So, it sounded better than it really was! So, you bent over in the hot sun, picked them and got 10cents a quart!! Rip off!! .. And I was his Grandson!! HA!! He treated all the local boys the same.
I 'got' to help him rake, hoe, pick, etc a lot when I was a kid. Course I also mowed the grass,, all 3 lots on 6th avenue.......for a free supper and a $1.75....Man, slave labor.....I was actually having fun as I got to be around my Grandpa and Grandma. They were old and fun.. THEN at night, after working in the garden and mowing, we ate supper, and then watched Lawrence Welk..................................They loved it!!
Time marches on!!!
Sweet corn on our tables BEFORE July! Earliest sweet corn season EVER so they are saying! This is fine with me. I am ready. I remember planting sweet corn at my Grandpa's house/garden when I was a kid. That would have been in the 50s. He had a HUGE garden out in the back yard. His specialty was strawberries. I hired on the pick them, and we made 10cents a quart and all the strawberries you wanted to eat. Well that did not last long,, as he knew, cuz after about 8 or 9 of them you are sick of them and don't eat any more! So, it sounded better than it really was! So, you bent over in the hot sun, picked them and got 10cents a quart!! Rip off!! .. And I was his Grandson!! HA!! He treated all the local boys the same.
I 'got' to help him rake, hoe, pick, etc a lot when I was a kid. Course I also mowed the grass,, all 3 lots on 6th avenue.......for a free supper and a $1.75....Man, slave labor.....I was actually having fun as I got to be around my Grandpa and Grandma. They were old and fun.. THEN at night, after working in the garden and mowing, we ate supper, and then watched Lawrence Welk..................................They loved it!!
Time marches on!!!
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Get a good look now!
I suggest that you take walk, drive, or cruise around Coralville real soon. The 'landscape' is changing. The old vacant lots (corn field when I was a kid) next to the 'Old School ( 1876) on 5th street will be re-developed soon. 2 contenders are submitting their plans/ideas to the Coralville City Council later this month. The site SHOULD be the new home of apartments, condos, greenspace, bike trails, etc. We will see what the Council decides......
YOU should also go to the Iowa River Landing..LOOK at the skyline! A HUGE new hospital owned by the University of IOWA is under construction along with the HUGE parking ramp! The exterior work is really looking good, and now they are really going at it, inside.....Along side and just across the new street is the all new HOTEL as locally owned and a part of the Hilton chain. I think it is 95 rooms or so, PLUS new retail stores will soon go up, AND go down the hill (9th Street) and see the final stages of construction of the all new Backpocket Brewery! As I always say, 'what's a town that doesn't have its own brewery!!) So much more, a new extended stay hotel under construction near the Coral Ridge Mall, and HOT NEWS, Sears is leaving the Mall, and new stores will be arriving.. This is good. Sorry to see Sears leave, but it creates new opportunity of new/other stores that we might like..Don't forget the extension now underway on the east end of Oakdale Blvd, and BIG rumors around town of more buildings to come in the Iowa River Landing...Coralville has been 'in progress' since its inception in 1873.. Looking good!
YOU should also go to the Iowa River Landing..LOOK at the skyline! A HUGE new hospital owned by the University of IOWA is under construction along with the HUGE parking ramp! The exterior work is really looking good, and now they are really going at it, inside.....Along side and just across the new street is the all new HOTEL as locally owned and a part of the Hilton chain. I think it is 95 rooms or so, PLUS new retail stores will soon go up, AND go down the hill (9th Street) and see the final stages of construction of the all new Backpocket Brewery! As I always say, 'what's a town that doesn't have its own brewery!!) So much more, a new extended stay hotel under construction near the Coral Ridge Mall, and HOT NEWS, Sears is leaving the Mall, and new stores will be arriving.. This is good. Sorry to see Sears leave, but it creates new opportunity of new/other stores that we might like..Don't forget the extension now underway on the east end of Oakdale Blvd, and BIG rumors around town of more buildings to come in the Iowa River Landing...Coralville has been 'in progress' since its inception in 1873.. Looking good!
Monday, April 16, 2012
Backwards Spring!!
WOW! May in April, but now it's April in April.....! Can't figure all this weather out. All I know is that we did NOT have a real bad Winter.. We can deal with these windy/blustery days KNOWING that it could have been worse..Lots of tornadoes around the country lately, especially the Midwest.Since we all know this, it is pretty important that we are smart enough to deal with it. I have NO problem heading to the basement when I hear the siren or get a weather 'flash' on my cell phone. Last thing I want on my tombstone is 'Rex did not head to the basement' so HERE I lie".............At least make an effort.. Speaking of that,, the aftermath of a tornado is pretty bad. Lives are lost, homes are gone, pets are gone, towns are gone, etc.. If you live through it , consider yourself 'lucky' or 'saved'....Even if you are in the basement you can be sucked out and 'gone to the 'Land of Oz'.. Take our weather seriously,, I know I do..........
Speaking of that, once the tornado is gone, and your survived, but your house/belongings are scattered all over the neighborhood and area,,,wouldn't it have been 'foresight' to have a SAFE at home for some important papers.... Insurance papers, abstracts, Family photos, jewelry, guns, cash, etc.....Sure, you may have some of these things in the bank lockbox, but if you had a safe of some kind, you could have quicker access to it, and do a better job of putting valuables in the SAFE...I bought a nice fireproof, 5 drawer SAFE a few years ago.. The SAFE might blow down the street, but my stuff will be inside..I have car titles, photos, insurance papers etc in the SAFE.. Sure beats looking into every pile of twisted debris trying to find your insurance papers..
GET some sort of SAFE for your important 'stuff'.. Don't delay, go to Lowe's, or Scheels, or go online, or whatever, but do it now.. I am happy that I have one.
REX
Speaking of that, once the tornado is gone, and your survived, but your house/belongings are scattered all over the neighborhood and area,,,wouldn't it have been 'foresight' to have a SAFE at home for some important papers.... Insurance papers, abstracts, Family photos, jewelry, guns, cash, etc.....Sure, you may have some of these things in the bank lockbox, but if you had a safe of some kind, you could have quicker access to it, and do a better job of putting valuables in the SAFE...I bought a nice fireproof, 5 drawer SAFE a few years ago.. The SAFE might blow down the street, but my stuff will be inside..I have car titles, photos, insurance papers etc in the SAFE.. Sure beats looking into every pile of twisted debris trying to find your insurance papers..
GET some sort of SAFE for your important 'stuff'.. Don't delay, go to Lowe's, or Scheels, or go online, or whatever, but do it now.. I am happy that I have one.
REX
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