An American Day Trip
...The American Gothic House Center is a museum that opened in 2007 and is a tribute to the tenacious efforts of the people of Wapello County. Visiting is free although they would be grateful for a donation. It is open varying hours during the year so be sure to check the web site to avoid missing it, as it is delightful...

Bags of Our Fathers
"'Except for a small amount that has been incinerated…every bit of plastic manufactured in the world for the last 50 years or so still remains. That half-century's total production now surpasses 1 billion tons. It includes hundreds of different plastics, with untold permutations involving added plasticizers, opacifiers, colors, fillers, strengtheners, and light stabilizers...Thus far, none has disappeared." From Polymers are Forever, Alan Weisman in The World Without Us 2007

Equality for Mom, Peace for the World, by Cathy Haustein
It never fails to amaze me how much people act like apes. The very people who will get all mad about evolution often act like violent chimps. They cheer violent acts of aggression, speak in dominating language, don't work towards understanding others, and see women as lesser beings. Some experts point out that right wing pundits have permeated our once-civil discourse with violent language. Mother's Day was once a holiday to celebrate and promote peace. But the ways some talk nowadays you'd think that peace is a dirty word

Avoiding cults means choices to be made, by Cathy Haustein
I keep thinking about the images of the young females taken away from the polygamy cult in Texas... a cult will "prohibit critical analysis or independent thinking" and limit personal freedom and choices...