July 04, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Collections & Hobbies
Altoona engine expert saves a rusted-out relic from going postal It looked like a cannon, and assuming the old engine wouldn’t run again, the man’s plan was to transform it into a mailbox. But before putting it out for U.S. Postal duty, the man heard he needed to talk to Don Pettey. Engines of
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July 04, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Couch Surfing
“It’s nice to be in an environment that does not include animal excrement for once.” Lisa comes from Manhattan, Kansas, to take part in a veterinary externship. Although she was not around much, she had a two-week stay in Des Moines while she visited different farms as part of a
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July 04, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Belly Up To...
Suburban brewery is a throwback to rural Iowa With half of a pickup truck protruding from behind the bar tapper, one might think the beer is coming directly from a leak in the truck. It’s not. But only a few feet away, lagers and ales brew at Barn Town Brewing. A little piece of
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July 04, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Tech Talk
Your pocket “super camera” is now a gateway tool to master photography. The mechanically captured still image has been around for more than 150 years. In the mid-1840s, the Daguerreotype process was invented whereby a specially conditioned, silver-plated copper would lock in an image when exposed to light and shadow.
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July 03, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Stray Thoughts
Sunday morning, government officials gathered in Des Moines to brief journalists about the storm that swamped the city and surrounding area with between 5 and 10 inches of rain Saturday night. Among the reporters there was William Petroski, who has covered state government for the Des Moines Register for 37
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June 27, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Stray Thoughts
If you go out East this week and swing by places like Mount Vernon, Monticello and Montpelier, don’t be surprised if the soil has been disturbed over the graves of our Founding Fathers. Those founders of this beacon of freedom known as the United States of America surely have turned
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June 06, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Stray Thoughts
When Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the large tax-cut bill into law last week, she talked about how the legislation will allow hard-working Iowans to keep more of their paychecks. What the governor did not mention was how there are other real-life consequences for the people of Iowa that go beyond paying
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June 06, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Feature 1
And what are they doing with it? Swipe your loyalty card at the grocery store, and all of those purchases are now tracked. Browse for an item on a company’s website, and the next time you’re on your computer, an ad will likely show up for that product or another from that company. Track
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June 06, 2018 by Brent Antisdel
in Feature 2
Ripping up the rulebook with slow-pitch softball heroes as they share their best on-field moments Slow-pitch softball is played nightly by all kinds of people at various levels of competition. Power hitters dominate the sport, and one such super-slugger forced Des Moines’ leagues to rip up the rulebook. “His name
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