Let’s be clear, this column isn’t about the debate over Iowa City’s Dubuque Street Civil War-era workers’ cottages that are being torn down. This is a column about how we […]
UR Here
UR Here: Defining Success
I recently came across an article by “writer, entrepreneur, and video game designer” Jonathan Chee called “5 Key Traits Super Successful People Share.” Chee draws examples from four individuals of […]
UR Here: Winter’s journey
Here in Iowa City, we haven’t had the historic cold and snow this winter as we’ve had in recent years. But the early January snowstorm and cold snap brought out […]
UR Here: Growing a community that gives
No matter how much we might rail against the obscene consumerism of the Christmas season, most of us are no doubt purchasing some holiday gifts to present to people we […]
UR Here: Beyond the feast
For the moment, let’s assume the story of the “First Thanksgiving” is true. You know, how the Pilgrims at Plymouth in 1621 sat down with the Indians and had a […]
UR Here: Community and all that Jazz
Recently, I wrote about how organizing and attending our local festivals builds social capital. But another dimension of community is the personal bond we form with our place. The stronger […]
UR Here: Regarding the wolf
The wolves have returned to Iowa. Or at least a wolf. In February, a man hunting coyotes shot a gray wolf in northeast Iowa’s Buchanan County. This is the first […]
UR Here: Spring commencement and life’s new turns
My daughter Sylvia’s red polyester gown and graduation announcements lay on a table at home, ready for City High’s commencement later this month. We’ve been commencement-heavy in recent years, first with our son Nathaniel’s high school graduation in 2011, then the commencement ceremony for his instrument repair program in Minnesota last year and now Sylvia’s high school…
Mission: Community
April ushers in the vibrant colors of springtime (finally!), but it also sounds the first notes of our community’s festival season. The Mission Creek Festival is here! Highly anticipated for […]
UR Here: Helping out
One of the good things (yes, I said good things) about the dramatic winter we’ve lived through is a strengthened sense of community that has arisen from this polar vortex. […]
UR Here: Baby, it’s cold outside
Images of a baby wearing a sash emblazoned with “2014” may have helped you ring in the new year last month. Infant symbolism for the birth of a new year […]
UR here: A traditional spice takes center stage
As autumn segues to winter, my seasonal spice shifts, too. Since September, it’s been all about nutmeg for me, the one essential ingredient to my apple crisp (aside from Wilson’s […]