Feb 04

Smaller and smaller

Posted on Monday, February 4, 2013, at 2:25 PM by Jeff

Remember what I said about changed packaging being a warning sign that the product got smaller in size? It happened a few months ago.

Both are 12 double rolls. But here’s the fine print:

The rolls are now 12% smaller.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Smaller and smaller
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. It’s a small building built in the Amana German style. The other is a former Holiday station in Spencer that is across the street from another Casey’s.

The Holiday gas chain exited the Iowa and Nebraska markets with the sale of 10 stores to Casey’s in 2010. If you go to the Holiday website state-by-state list now, there is still an option to select Iowa and Nebraska, but the store list is blank. Every state except those two has a map image without them (e.g. here).

One of the other Holiday stations is at the end of I-380 at Mitchell Avenue in Waterloo.

Posted in Iowa Miscellaneous | Comments Off on The Casey’s that don’t sell pizza
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 rest area entrance), one pickup pulling a trailer, one RV, and one U-Haul trailer.

UPDATE: The Sears at Coral Ridge Mall, on the west end, is now closed and the markings removed.

Posted in Iowa Miscellaneous | Comments Off on I-80 needed a snow day
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 the old scores won’t be comparable, according to the Waterloo school district.

The kids here and across the country will still be taking the “Iowa tests,” but they won’t be taking “Basic Skills.” Since the ITBS name was in use since 1935, I suspect many teachers and parents will have trouble letting go of that. (Plus, “Basic Skills” is easier for elementary students to grasp than “Assessments”.) The name had historical weight, but I guess the restructured program needed a new designation.

Posted in Iowa Miscellaneous | Comments Off on They’re not ‘Basic Skills’ anymore
Jan 30

Denver, Kansas?

Posted on Wednesday, January 30, 2013, at 1:57 PM by Jeff

Oops. That’s not Colorado. That dot is a little east of Salina, Kansas.

NBC Nightly News podcast, Jan. 29.

Posted in Maps | Comments Off on Denver, Kansas?
Jan 28

Pages updated

Posted on Monday, January 28, 2013, at 2:25 PM by Jeff

IA 196 now has photos from its new north end at new US 20. IA 130 and IA 77 have new pictures as well.

For IA 330, I’ve updated some of the text and have a placeholder for the new south end, but that page hasn’t been created yet.

Posted in Highway Miscellaneous | Comments Off on Pages updated
Jan 26

Liberty Bowl pictures

Posted on Saturday, January 26, 2013, at 9:56 PM by Jeff

What more is there to say about the game? It was overcast, it rained during the second quarter, and ISU lost. (Then it really started raining about 30 minutes after the game.) Because of the dreary day, I had few usable photos. Here are some sights you may not have seen on TV.


The scoreboard at the south end of Liberty Bowl Stadium, where our seats were.


The end zone design (ISU’s was the north) was similar to that of the 1972 Liberty Bowl, so it’s stood the test of time.


The Temptations perform at halftime with “America’s Homecoming Queens” dancing to the music.


This is the play before Tulsa’s third-quarter touchdown to go ahead 28-17. The final was 31-17.

Posted in Sports | Comments Off on Liberty Bowl pictures
Jan 24

More IA 58 crashes

Posted on Thursday, January 24, 2013, at 11:27 AM by Jeff

Three-car accident Tuesday. (KWWL)

The problem with any studies about how to deal with the numerous crashes is that development is now too close for 58 to be expanded into a controlled-access freeway. The stretch between US 20 and University Avenue is the only part of the Avenue of the Saints with stoplights, and that contributes to the traffic situation.

Posted in Highway Miscellaneous | Comments Off on More IA 58 crashes
Jan 22

The NICL bracket

Posted on Tuesday, January 22, 2013, at 1:35 PM by Jeff

The girls’ basketball pairings are out, and for the first time, North Tama is in the postseason as a 2A team. This is the only time of the year it matters, since the regular season is played in conferences and all teams are plugged into a postseason bracket. There’s still a third of a season left to go, but a so-far losing record and class bump make a return to the state tournament doubtful.

Ten of the 12 teams in Region 3 are members of the North Iowa Cedar League, which North Tama left a decade(!) ago because its enrollment was lagging compared to the rest. The other two are NT and Iowa Valley, which is in the South Iowa Cedar League.

Based on the BEDS numbers, North Tama is the 10th-smallest Class 2A girls’ basketball school, six above the cutoff. North Mahaska, last year’s Class 1A champion, is second-smallest, and along with NT is in the awkward position of being in Class 2A girls’ basketball and Class A football simultaneously.

Posted in Sports, Tama County | Comments Off on The NICL bracket
Jan 21

Liberty Bowl parade

Posted on Monday, January 21, 2013, at 10:52 AM by Jeff

Memphis, Tennessee, December 30 — Beale Street was packed with Cyclone fans the day before the Liberty Bowl for the parade. I’ve been through many an hour-and-a-half parade before, but never standing the whole time in wall-to-wall people while wearing a winter coat.

In a departure from usual parade protocol, legendary ISU football coach and grand marshal Johnny Majors was at the end of the parade along with the ISU band and pom squad. The parade organizers knew how to keep people hanging around.

Near the beginning was a set of floats carrying “America’s Homecoming Queens.” I didn’t know about this organization/competition, but it’s connected to the Liberty Bowl/St. Jude’s, awards scholarships, and is limited to real high school homecoming queens. I would later feel very, very sorry for them when I saw them wearing beautiful gowns to a cold, rainy football game (and walking along/out on the field in them!)


ISU pom squad and cheerleaders walk down Beale Street. Notice metalwork on right holding up building facade.


Johnny Majors in the Liberty Bowl parade.

After the parade, there was a pep rally near Beale and Fourth at W.C. Handy Park. Although it’s supposed to be for both teams, here again 95% to 99% of the crowd were ISU fans. We stuck around for the whole thing, but the setup was such that we could NOT see anything or anyone on stage.

While the day was a bit chilly, it was pleasant overall, and all the Cyclone fans were in high spirits. Little did we know what was in store…

Posted in Trip Reports | Comments Off on Liberty Bowl parade