Apr 26

42

Posted on Friday, April 26, 2013, at 7:07 PM by Jeff

The movie about Jackie Robinson is very good. My only question: How, in a film so committed to accuracy the actor playing Red Barber worked endlessly on mimicking the radio broadcaster’s voice, does the final cut have a scene labeled “Interstate 24 — Missouri” in 1945?

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Apr 25

Titonka Elementary School closing

Posted on Thursday, April 25, 2013, at 3:28 PM by Jeff

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
July 6, 2011: Dead district walking.

Even though Titonka’s merger with Algona does not take effect until 2014, the district effectively will cease to exist this summer. All students K-12, instead of just 5-12, will be going to school in Algona. There will still be a preschool in Titonka.

As you can see above, Titonka has a really, really nice school building. I hope it can be put to good use. I wish in cases like this the larger district would consider a student distribution to keep absorbed district buildings alive, but when it’s a matter of literally a few dozen students, it’s just not cost effective.

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Apr 25

Jack Trice’s jersey number has been discovered

Posted on Thursday, April 25, 2013, at 12:24 PM by Jeff

I completely understand the lengths of research this writer went to.

(One microfilm clip shows Coe played Wisconsin in 1923. Imagine that today.)

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Apr 24

CWL may be next small-school domino to fall

Posted on Wednesday, April 24, 2013, at 12:59 PM by Jeff

Corwith-Wesley and LuVerne have been whole-grade sharing for more than 30 years, but could never merge because the combined districts didn’t meet the 300-student threshold.

Now the two districts may be going to join Algona within the next five years.

I hope to have more about this later.

Note: A Mason City Globe-Gazette article mentions in passing the collapse of the Corn Belt Conference, which Wikipedia says is one of Iowa’s oldest. But in this case realignment is not an effect of money so much as simple attrition.

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Apr 23

Latest cancellations ever?

Posted on Tuesday, April 23, 2013, at 10:35 AM by Jeff

Rock Valley and Boyden-Hull, presumably among others in northwest Iowa, cancelled school last Friday because of snow (and then had prom anyway).

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Apr 23

Part of San Marnan Drive to be relocated, rebuilt

Posted on Tuesday, April 23, 2013, at 3:00 AM by Jeff

A housing development next to a golf course will cause San Marnan Drive in Waterloo (formerly IA 412) west of Ansborough Avenue to be closed and then rebuilt 80 feet south of the present location. Current San Marnan follows the section line in that area. It seems kind of silly to me, but that puts the homes right by the golf course instead of across the street.

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Apr 22

Wrong word choice?

Posted on Monday, April 22, 2013, at 11:51 AM by Jeff

Des Moines Register, today:

“We will be entrenched in this community,” the Minnesota Wild owner promised.

ESPN, 2008:

Iowa State coach Gene Chizik’s flirtation with Auburn about the Tigers’ vacant head coaching job has prompted the response back home one might expect.

“As for me, I want to make one thing very, very clear: You guys have been reporting on me for a year and a half, and anybody who knows myself, my wife, my family; they know that we are firmly entrenched here in Ames. We love this university; we love who we work for; we love this football team; we love this community.”

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Apr 22

Looking at the 2013 state map

Posted on Monday, April 22, 2013, at 11:11 AM by Jeff


The more things change, the more they stay the same. (1983 state map photo)

Before I get to errors, if there are any, here’s what can be picked out as being changed in the newest Iowa state map:

  • US 20 is four lanes from US 71 to Dubuque. There will be no more major shifts in that road. Where it is, is where it will be.
  • US 63 is now red for its entire route, including through Tama County, reflecting the middle portion’s inclusion in the National Highway System.
  • MN 60 is now four lanes from Bigelow to I-90. Minnesota is still doing some work in the US 59/I-90 area (PDF), but that is scheduled to be done this year, and the rural four-lane opened December 6.
  • All exit numbers are vertical.
  • IA 330 has been extended to Altoona.
  • The line for IA 149/Business 63 in Ottumwa is now the smaller urban-route line.
  • The yellow urban area for Cedar Rapids has metastasized grown substantially, including nearly everything south of US 30 and west of Palisades Kepler State Park; the Palo and Toddville areas; and from IA 13 eastward about two miles.
  • Ditto for Des Moines’ area now having Polk City, Cumming, and everything east of R22 and south of US 6 in Dallas County.
  • Iowa Falls and De Witt now have urban areas.
  • I-35 Exit 94 in Ankeny has been added.
  • Items I pointed out last year have been corrected.

Addendum: The Quad-City Times suggests that the paper map be discontinued because of “almost universal web access.” I can’t begin to explain how much of a bad idea this is.

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Apr 21

License Plate Letters — BAA

Posted on Sunday, April 21, 2013, at 12:27 AM by Jeff

Sadly, these are not reserved for sheep owners.

It took six months to get through the new A’s. Why so long? Two likely explanations:

  • Anyone with an April through September or October registration (along with late March renewers) who still had an original 1997 license plate (000AAA through the early F’s) regardless of vehicle age got a replacement in the late Y’s and Z’s last year before the rollover, which occurred in mid-October.
  • This year the 1998-2003 plates are being replaced, and by this time, there may just be fewer original plates left around than you (I) might think. New vehicle registrations also get the new B’s unless the owner is holding on to a later-alphabet plate.

The letter sequence may be slowed down in the future because the full alphabet is being used in the second and third positions, at least so far. This only happened the first time around in 1997, and still skipped the D’s entirely.

(I have renamed the title of updates starting with this one because I don’t want to give any wrong impressions.)

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Apr 19

The League of Legendary Leaders

Posted on Friday, April 19, 2013, at 9:24 PM by Jeff

will split into East and West divisions in 2014, and in a shocking development, the seven westernmost teams will be in the West. (Nice Friday night sports dump, guys.)

This, however, will remain funny:

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