The Road to Farley is Less Traveled

Today would have been my Grandma McBride's 115th birthday. Can you imagine? I actually had to double-check the year she was born, it was 1896. The funny thing is, it seems totally plausible that she could have lived to be 115. She gave it a good run, that's for sure. She died just shy of her 97th birthday. I was working in Dubuque and living with my parents at that time. I came home from work and found one of those smallest sticky notes--you know, the ones that are about 1" square--stuck on the kitchen table with two words scribbled on it in my dad's messy handwriting. After staring at it and turning the note around several times, I realized that it said, "Hester died." Jeez, thanks dad...I like how you broke the news to me that my last grandparent had died. So, as I was thinking about Grandma McBride today, thoughts of Grandma Scherrman also crept into my mind. It made me think how different they were, and how I inherited a little part of each of their per...

I have writer's block. Well, maybe if I really fancied myself a writer, it would be accurate to say I'm suffering from this. Maybe it's more like blogger's block...fatigue, laziness, or my workload have nothing to do with it I'm sure. I made a personal vow to blog something today and was thinking all day about what to write. No epiphanies...so here is a recap of my stream of consciousness today. Most days, I eat my lunch at my desk and my typical M.O. is to scan the Telegraph Herald online, the Dyersville Commercial online, and CNN.com. Sometimes, what I read makes me just shake my head. 'The Bodyguard' to get a more modern remake Really? The Bodyguard? That movie just came out in 1992. C'mon Hollywood, you aren't even trying to come up with new material. Now, in addition to making sequels and prequels, we have to endure remakes of movies that are less than 20 years old...with a "modern" touch. What the heck does that mean? I thought ...

My sister, what a copycat! I told her last weekend that I started a blog this year. Now, of course, she has a blog. I just read her first two posts. Dammit, I think she is funnier than me. She talked about me in her post...as if I wasn't going to read it. Hellooo! She claimed we have nothing in common...well, I think this picture shows we have the same nose. So there! And we sound the same on the phone. Our parents can never tell us apart. Frequently, I'll carry on a five minute conversation with our father, and then he'll declare, "OH, this is Carol! I thought I was talking to Kathy." Never mind that Kathy lives with him and is HOME most of the time, but that's a whole other story for another day. Once, when we lived together as adults, I called home one day to leave a message for myself on the answering machine (yes, pre-voicemail and cell phone days) to remind me to do something when I got home. So, later that day, I come home from work and see that we h...

I am sitting on the couch watching "Brothers and Sisters." I might be on the couch all night. The thought of climbing the stairs to my old bedroom at the farm seems like a task that is just unimaginable. Every muscle in this 49 year old body is aching with tiredness. I went skiing today for the first time in about 10 years. I'm getting so old I can't exactly remember the last time. I know I skied at Keystone in November 1999 when I was there for a conference. But, I think I skied at least one other time since then...maybe in 2000. But, in any case, it's been a while, and my body is telling me so at this moment. I've already popped three 200 mg Ibuprofens. I think I will need a few more if I make it off the couch. I remembered today why I love skiing. Especially on days like today, with clear blue skies, bright sunshine, and warm temperatures. Yes, so warm that I was actually a bit overdressed and felt a bit sweaty under my ski jacket during the mid-part of t...

This was Willow Creek Park on January 4th. My goal was to take a photo from this vantage point each month to mark the passage of the seasons. Well, scratch my February photo. There is so much snow on the path that it is nearly impossible for Bailey and I to forge our way into the park. So, use your imagination to envision the scene above with about 16" of snow on the ground. Hopefully, March will be better. At least I can report that the days are getting noticeably longer. For today, sunrise took place at 7:11 a.m. and sunset is at 5:29 p.m., giving us 10 hours and 18 minutes of daylight. Winter isn't too awful, except when I'm walking Bailey at 5:30 a.m. and the clock at New Life Fitness reports the temperature as -14 degrees!

I know most of you are thinking today is the day for Super Bowl parties -- nachos, chicken wings, little smokies, cheese, brats, and lots of beer. I've never quite felt the same about the NFL since my beloved Don Shula and Dan Marino retired from the Miami Dolphins. My obsession with the Dolphins started back in the 70s when they played in three consecutive Super Bowls, winning two of the three, including the '72-'73 team that went undefeated and remains the only NFL team to accomplish this feat. I had a total school girl crush on Bob Griese back in those days...Larry Csonka, Jim Kiick, Paul Warfield, Nick Buoniconti. Ahhhh, what a team. I lost that lovin' feeling when Don Shula retired and he was replaced with Jimmy Johnson. I cannot cheer for a man who uses more hair product than me. Instead of celebrating the Super Bowl today, I invited a few friends over for super brunch. It was damn good if I do say so myself. And, I must give a shout out to Paula Deen for her c...

You might have already seen the video of Iowan Zach Wahls speaking to the Iowa House of Representatives in opposition of the House resolution to introduce an amendment to the Iowa Constitution defining marriage to be between one man and one woman. If you haven't seen the video of this extraordinary young man, here's the YouTube link: Zach Wahl speech His impassioned plea, sadly, fell on deaf ears. The House passed the resolution by a vote of 62-37. I say to those 62 members of the House, you do not represent me, my friends, my family, or the Iowa that I know. Iowans have long celebrated freedoms and individual rights. As early as 1839, the Supreme Court of Iowa refused to treat a human being as property or enforce a contract for slavery, holding that Iowa’s laws must extend to people of all skin colors. The University of Iowa become the first public university in the country to admit women and men on an equal basis (1885), to grant a law degree to a woman (Mary B. H...

There have been all kinds of terms being thrown around for today's blizzard: Snow-prah Winfrey Snow-nami Snow-mageddon Snow-pocalypse Snow big or go home Snow-verated I like to just call it a hella lotta snow. Just ask Bailey... This was at 10 p.m. It was still coming down pretty hard and was supposed to keep up through the night. Oy vey....we might have to shovel our way out at 5 a.m. I guess, this time, the weatherman got it right. Here are the things that bugged me about today's blizzard: It's midnight and the scrolling messages on the TV are still telling that classes at the University of Iowa were canceled after 4:30. KCRG news had an extended hour long newscast at 10 p.m. How many reporters do I need to see standing outside in the snow and how many interviews with snow plow drivers do I need to hear? I hate people who drive those @%#$!#$ big F250 pickups with 4x4 emblazoned on the side. Hello jerk-off, you don't need to drive 45 miles down Mormon ...