A simple room above an Irish pub — a New Year’s resolution
I tired of New Year’s resolutions long before I became an old man. But, before I did, my resolutions were the typical nutty variety that I always circumvented by the [...]
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Posted January 01, 2025in Joe's Neighborhood
Posted December 04, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
Airport security and me
The metal detector is where it first goes south. Metal in my knees and metal in my neck trigger all the bells and whistles. At this point, the security guards [...]
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Posted November 06, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
Door-knocking blues
Knock, knock. Hello, my name is Joe Weeg, and I’m here to encourage you to vote in the upcoming school board election. Listen, I HATE door-knocking for candidates. Always have. [...]
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Posted October 02, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
An unlikely oasis
It’s 3 a.m. I’ve tossed and turned since going to bed four hours earlier. The sheets are twisted around my feet and tying me to the bed in some obscure [...]
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Posted September 04, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
Lost in a big box store
Well, here I am in a big box store, and it’s happened again. The start is simple enough. My wife goes one direction to get granddaughter clothes, and I go [...]
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Posted July 31, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
A pedestal for a good cop
“I’m not gonna do that,” the Des Moines police officer says from the middle of the classroom. I fix him with a cold smile. “Listen, that’s the law for a [...]
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Posted July 03, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
Why a religion major?
I sat in the back of Macbride Hall for a reason. I wanted to be invisible. I wanted to slink in early unseen and slink out in the crowd unnoticed. [...]
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Posted June 05, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
On the road in the Netherlands with a 5-year-old
I spent most of my adult life trying to get my kids out the door. “Begone children,” was my motto. When they were young, I’d wonder if it was too [...]
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Posted May 01, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
Two characters and a dog in Woodland Cemetery
The graves sprawl over the bright green and faded brown grass like grazing cattle over the stubble of an Iowa corn field. Narrow blacktop roads meander here and there across [...]
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Posted April 03, 2024in Joe's Neighborhood
Expedition to the top of the head
My dermatologist slowly goes over my bald head with gentle fingers and a calm voice. He dictates to his assistant as he goes — much like an explorer taking notes [...]
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