Category Archives: Iowa Miscellaneous

Mar 01

A suggestion to whoever does the state tournament broadcasts

Posted on Friday, March 1, 2013, at 12:18 PM by Jeff

In the Class 4A final Saturday night, don’t abbreviate Cedar Rapids Xavier as “C RAPIDS” like Thursday night. Call it “CR XAVIER” or “XAVIER” if limited to eight characters. I don’t know if this applies to the scoreboards at the … Continue reading →

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Mar 01

Traer is the winner in final storm totals

Posted on Friday, March 1, 2013, at 12:57 AM by Jeff

The National Weather Service’s compilation of results from the snowfall lists Traer at 16 inches, 15.5 near the 63/96 intersection, and 14 near Evansdale and State Center. For a piece of visual confirmation, see this picture from Tricia Detje Zeis.

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Feb 27

15 inches of snow in Traer (Updated to 16)

Posted on Wednesday, February 27, 2013, at 12:48 PM by Jeff

Waterloo set a record for the day. (Image from Iowa Environmental Mesonet. Image at link changes with each snowfall.) UPDATE: Another map with better gradients from the National Weather Service. The girls’ state basketball tournament was permanently moved a week … Continue reading →

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Feb 21

NT-GR District Championship postponed

Posted on Thursday, February 21, 2013, at 2:39 PM by Jeff

That’s a change from a few hours ago. A game in Jesup has been postponed, too, so the only game in northeast Iowa tonight will be in Waukon. The District 8 Final will be played Friday in Conrad. I wonder, … Continue reading →

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Feb 21

Mis-Q

Posted on Thursday, February 21, 2013, at 12:00 PM by Jeff

So the Weather Channel insists that the snowfall today should be called “Winter Storm Q.” But it’s not this Q: Or this Q: Or even this Q: It’s named after the Q subway line in New York City. This “naming … Continue reading →

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Feb 19

Iowa DOT Photo of the Week

Posted on Tuesday, February 19, 2013, at 12:02 PM by Jeff

For the centennial year of the Iowa Highway Commission/Iowa Department of Transportation, a historical “Photo of the Week” is being posted online. I have added a link in the blogroll. The first photo is the most obvious choice, and probably … Continue reading →

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Feb 04

The Casey’s that don’t sell pizza

Posted on Monday, February 4, 2013, at 10:05 AM by Jeff

Believe it or not, these exist. However, they all have something in common: They were not constructed as Casey’s gas stations. I have now run across two of them. One is a former HandiMart at the I-80 US 151 exit. … Continue reading →

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Feb 01

I-80 needed a snow day

Posted on Friday, February 1, 2013, at 10:21 PM by Jeff

Between Des Moines and Iowa City on Friday morning, after Wednesday night’s snow and Thursday’s wind, I counted the following in the ditch: 17 semis (including three at the Colfax exit), 15 passenger vehicles (including one that skidded at a … Continue reading →

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Jan 31

They’re not ‘Basic Skills’ anymore

Posted on Thursday, January 31, 2013, at 2:20 PM by Jeff

A longtime component of everybody’s schooling in Iowa changed last year. They’re no longer the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills or the Iowa Tests of Educational Development. They are now the “Iowa Assessments.” The change happened last school year, and … Continue reading →

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Jan 14

Factoids about 2013-14 Iowa Legislature

Posted on Monday, January 14, 2013, at 10:19 AM by Jeff

No particular theme here, just some random pieces. All links are to PDF maps and district descriptions are approximations. Big state map (PDF) City insets (PDF) 55 House districts are smaller than the basic “4×4” county (572 square miles). So … Continue reading →

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