Iowa: Your Remote Midwest Paradise

Iowa isn’t what you consider a high-profile destination, and I’m pretty sure that’s why I love it. This girl loves an underdog. In the Upper-Midwest, it competes with the lakes and Northwood culture of Minnesota and Wisconsin; and then there’s the rugged, western terrains of the Dakotas. But don’t forget Iowa, folks.

Ok, so Iowa Blood runs deep in my veins. My Mom’s family on both sides has an extensive farming history in Northeast Iowa. Of course, her immediate family has left the farm, which makes me even more infatuated with the modern-day Iowa farmer. But I genuinely swear locavore culture originated in Iowa (probably out of necessity). And Iowans are far too humble to claim themselves as the innovators.  I have locavore nostalgia for my family trips to Iowa during the growing season.  I would watch my grandma eat each meal constructed from local foods: tomatoes and muskmelons sprinkled with salt, a minimum of three ears of sweet corn per day, BLTS’s and some concoction of cucumbers, onions and vinegar which I even witnessed (in Oelwein, Iowa) last summer at a lunch counter. As a kid, I figured this is how everyone ate in Iowa. My grandma even brings her own in-season Iowa produce to Minnesota when she visits, and refuses to eat Minnesota sweet corn!

Finally, this girl can’t help but embrace Iowa as a genuine pioneer of social justice issues.  Not only does Iowa recognize all varieties of families and domestic partnerships through their decision to legalize gay marriage, they have always been on the forefront on social issues. Iowa was one of the first states to “legalize interracial marriage and to allow married women to own property. It was also the first state to admit a woman to the bar to practice law and was a leader in school desegregation.” (MSNBC, April 2009). Hecks yeah, Iowa, you make me proud.

There is a current wildly innovative movement of salvaging and revisioning the family farm as not only sustainable small-scale family operations but also as perrenial flower farms, art workshops and my fave: shops brimming with re-purposed farm junk and antiques. In the next few days, my posts will highlight and celebrate these amazing places that make Iowa one of my favorite retreats.