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Partly Cloudy ~ High: 85°F ~ Low: 66°F Saturday, May 18, 2013 |
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A simpler celebration
Posted Monday, May 13, at 2:34 PM What could you do with $28,400? Save it for a down payment and hefty head start on a house payment? Pay down a mortgage? Purchase some new wheels? Put it towards college savings or paying down tuition loans? How about financing a one-day event that has turned into an overboard extravaganza in recent years?...
Human rights or cheap shirts The Midwestern ethic of frugality thrives here in northwest Iowa. We love clippable coupons, seasonal sales and deep discounts. City-wide garage sales can send Storm Lakers into a frenzy, waking at the crack of dawn to eagerly stake out the opening of a potential goldmine...
A little lesson from a fat dictionary Effort seems to be going by the wayside, replaced by an "I want it now without having to put in the effort" mentality in an age of incresing laziness. In high school, my English teacher always told our class if we did not know the meaning of a word, we would have to look it up in her dictionary, a 10-pound dusty, cobwebbed tome located approximately a half-mile across the room...
Send a bold, resilient message Searching for my training partner's Boston Marathon finishing time around 3:50 p.m. Monday afternoon yielded unexpected, horrific results. The top story on Google featured the Boston Globe's now-iconic snapshot of 78-year old Bill Ifrig, dazed and sprawled on Boylston Street, mere feet from the finish line...
Once in a Lifetime Every June, my grandma Vera McClung would always tell me special decorations were put up for her birthday. In my earlier years, I probably believed her. As a young child, I remember peeking out the window of Grandpa's pearl-white Monte Carlo as we zipped through a small town somewhere in eastern Iowa, where a seemingly endless expanse of red, white and blue rippled in an early summer breeze...
A brighter future Last weekend I pulled triple duty as a reporter, dance instructor and chaperone when I took four of my middle school-age ballet students on a five-hour round trip to see Ballet Des Moines' "Snow White." The excursion had been four months in the making, beginning when the dance company's public relations firm contacted me after reading my November 2012 column about performing arts...
Cancer fuels racing passion While there is no shortage of controversy surrounding child athletes who compete in adult-length races, such as Olympic triathlons (.93 mile swim, 25 mile bike and 6.2 mile run) or full marathon (26.2 miles), one young Michigan teen has set out on a literal crusade for prostate cancer awareness...
Taking responsibility Looming, over-hyped crises solved in the last possible second and political scare tactics appear to be wearing thin on the American public, most recent Gallop polls are showing. Congress' constantly-changing approval rate peaked at 21 percent in late 2012, and has now dipped to 13 percent in March. Gallup has also found more than eight in 10 Americans, or 81 percent, are not pleased with Congress' job performance...
Expectations vs. reality When it comes to dealing with certain situations, we often have expectations of a perfect end result that rarely happens. Weddings are one one of these particular events that can turn even the sweetest, even-tempered bride into a nervous wreck in the days before the ceremony...
Legislature agrees, for once Republicans and Democrats in the state legislature have finally agreed on something: additional funding for community colleges. This week, Senate Democrats proposed $25 million and House Republicans $10 million to boost general adult education and skilled training...
This is why we're fat Two federal studies released Friday show that Americans overall are consuming fewer calories and fast food than a decade ago; yet, the general population is fatter than it has ever been. Statistics from the Center for Disease Control show one in three American adults is now clinically obese, along with one in five children. ...
SL tri encourages newbies Storm Lake does a great job of introducing its residents and out-of-towners to races, whether they are 5Ks, duathlons or triathlons. While our local race directors and event organizers may not receive a lot of credit for their events, Matt Hanson and his Human Performance students at Buena Vista University deserve praise for putting on a successful second annual Extreme Winter Festival Triathlon, held Feb. 10 at the Siebens Fieldhouse...
Hands off my veggies Citizens in a rapidly growing central Iowa suburb may soon have fewer options regarding where they can plant their vegetable gardens. Based on complaints from 70-year old Donald McNutt, regarding his neighbor's edible front yard, the West Des Moines City Council is expected to discuss banning or setting restrictions on front yard vegetable gardens...
Blue Zones buyer's remorse The rest of Blue Zone demonstration sites over 10,000 residents were announced Wednesday, including Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Marion, Muscatine, Oskaloosa and Sioux City. Those six join previously picked sites in Spirit Lake, Spencer, Algona, Mason City, Osage, Decorah, Cedar Falls, Waterloo, Fairfield, Red Oak, Woodbine, Harlan and Audubon. More sites representing smaller populations will be announced in coming years...
Time to get over it Lance Armstrong has finally admitted what the general public has been suspecting since October, when the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency aired the seven-time Tour de France winner and cancer survivor's dirty laundry. Since Oprah is the best person to confess your sins to, the now disgraced cyclist shakily and indirectly admitted, "I cheated," during the two-night spectacular last week...
What about grammar? While Gov. Terry Branstad continues to push for educational reform of the state's K-12 educational systems, continued emphasis is placed on science, technology, engineering and math disciplines. According to the governor, increased focus on STEM will lead to "higher achievement and better career opportunities."...
Keep advocating for trails While taking a closer look at the City of Storm Lake's comprehensive plan during an open house this week at King's Pointe, I heard the same thing over and over while eavesdropping on residents: "We want more trails!" A joint county and city committee, Buena Vista Trails Advisory Council, has been putting forth effort to resurrect the round-the-lake trail idea, after others before them have failed to secure easements or enough funding...
Namaste, new year Last summer, I had the opportunity to take one of Kathryn McKinley's yoga classes with a friend. Having prior spent quite a few hours in yoga studios, discerning good and bad instructors has become a second sense. There are the select few whose "imagine you are on a beach" speech during savasana will have students so relaxed they may nod off to sleep, and, unfortunately, the ones who lead a dull, unchallenging practice or force their class into painful positions, despite protests...
2012 in review When it comes to looking back at this year's highlights, the results are decidedly a mixed bag. In entertainment, fans enjoyed being fed small but satisfying bites of book-based movies, including the Hunger Games, the Hobbit and the Twilight Saga. Korean sensation Psy's wacky Gangnam Style galloped its way to well over 1 million YouTube hits, while Carly Rae Jepsen's vapid summertime ditty, Call Me Maybe, caused bleeding ears and decreased IQ scores...
Iowans make a difference In true Midwestern spirit, Iowans have been reaching out to East Coast residents still reeling in wake of Newtown's tragedy. In a time when most are unsure what to say, one is sharing her homemade apple pies that have been "made from love." With the motto "pie is meant to be shared," Beth Howard, Eldon, has been sharing nearly 300 fruit pies from her camper in the heart of Connecticut with children, parents or anyone seeking a warm slice of comfort...
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Hot topics A simpler celebration(0 ~ 2:35 PM, May 13)
Human rights or cheap shirts
A little lesson from a fat dictionary
Send a bold, resilient message
Once in a Lifetime
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