The Native Iowan

My, how time flies when you’re getting old…

It is a Saturday morning here. A Saturday morning after a long week of being very busy. Far too bizzy for an old fart…

The last Saturday of my favourite month is here… I was shocked a bit, yesterday, when a guy wished me a “good weekend”. I hadn’t realised it was Friday.

Today, this morning is soft.

The past week saw the bi-annual servicing of my Toyotas. I have a big, cool military type “Troopy” 4×4, and a my trusty farm truck. Both are great vehicles. I use the farm truck daily. It is my main ride. The Troopy is a world class 4×4. It’s big, noisy, thirsty and very much what I call “Queensland Cool”.

Twice a year I schedule a loan-car, start early in the morning, and get both vehicles serviced in 1day. The dealer is an hour away. So up early and on the road by 630am. Drop the Troopy off at 730am, drive the loan car home and have the Truck up by noon, supposedly all done by 530pm.

Of course it never works the way its planned… The Truck isn’t done until almost 5, too late for me to drive in. So I drive in early in the morning of the second day and finish the process off. A total of 6+hours of drive time. Two early morns on the road. Today I am a bit tired. And it feels good.

My healing ankle is healing, and quite sore. 6months and 6days post surgery I am unapologetically using my ankle. Walking, moving doing. I consider the discomfort a good thing. Tho I am still learning what my repaired ankle can and can’t do. I get in trouble when I forget my ankle aint bad. I’m walking well, feeling good, having a momentary lapse of memory, then I try to turn around… turn into my bad ankle, leave my good ankle, and realise I’m going to fall on my arse… Gracefully… All ways gracefully.

An interesting side-story taking place within my very extended family…

In July my Grandson, Mendoza, turned 21. He and his dad did a trip to the USA. M’s first adult trip to the States. His first trip back for almost 10years. Son, Don, attended school in Iowa and has a fierce nostalgia for the time when he milked cows and lived there. Don still fantasises of retiring to Iowa.

So during their trip Mendoza decided to move to Iowa, and enrol in school. We have loads of family in and around Des Moines. My siblings, their kids, grandkids and great grandkids all there. We know family is good. Don has always kept in touch with them all. Its an easy move to manage.

Mendoza has a number of cousins his age there. He just went to the “Iowa State Fair” with his cousins Ryan and Owen. He is learning that the smell of pig shit, in Iowa, is the smell of money…

My youngest sister, Angela, has taken charge of Mendoza. Doing all that is required… sort school out, sort out an Iowa drivers license, get a vehicle bought, find an apartment… I can see Don making his “Iowa Plans”… the standard Iowan pickup truck not acceptable, needs a decent SUV so there are enough seats for everyone when they go visit. As well, the tidy studio apartment not big enough, for when they come visit, so a palatial 2bed, 2bath place is required.

Here’s Mr. M. on his first day of school in Iowa:

I enjoy the poetry of my grandson returning to the land I departed from… 45 years has passed since I left.

And life is good.

Family is good.

More later