July 12 -- homeward bound through Iowa

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Time to head home from Des Moines.  One last look out the hotel window.  I really like having a view of a lot of sky.

Heading for I-80.  I think this is the state capitol.  I kept getting enticing glimpses, and I kept thinking I'd get a clear shot at it, but this one, from a moving car, was the best I got.  It reminds me of the state capitol in Denver.

More gorgeous skies over green, green Iowa.

Green and rolling Iowa.

Two versions of this next image -- one which shows that big sky, and one which concentrates focus on the interesting ground.

Looking out the windshield.  I was not driving; I was taking pics..........

Green "corduroy" corn.......

This is something we saw all over, along I-80.  The low places were not only *not* planted, they were mowed.  I suspect this is about water control, but do not know.......

Here is one of those serendipitous excellent happenings.

We wanted a rest stop, and we just happened to stop at the Tiffin, Iowa, eastbound rest area.

We first noticed that the shaded picnic areas have quotes cut out of big metal sheets.  Then, when we approached the building, we noticed this enormous pen nib rising out of the concrete........

Here's a closer crop of the above image -- one of the picnic areas.  Look at the pencil!  I didn't even notice that, when we were there.

We took time to walk all around the rest area, and we read all the quotes.

"I am eternally grateful .. for my knack of finding in great books, some of them very funny books, reason enough to feel honored to be alive, no matter what else might be going on."  -- Kurt Vonnegut


This next one begins "Well, either you're closing your eyes to a situation you do not wish to acknowledge, or you are not aware of the "

"caliber of disaster indicated by the presence of a pool table in your community.  Ya got trouble, my friend, right here in River City."  -- Meredith Wilson

("Gotta find a way to keep the young ones moral after school!")



There were many more quotes.  (It doesn't seem that the metal chosen for some of the quotes is standing up to the weather very well, alas.  I hope there is money for maintenance, in their budget.....)



Maybe Iowa has a penchant for putting art in unexpected spaces?  While I wished there was more science (even if less art) at the science museum, I was charmed by the art at an expressway rest stop.  Good job, Iowa.

This stop was beautiful, and beautifully clean.  If you are crossing Iowa on I-80, I strongly recommend you do yourself a favor and get off at the Tiffin eastbound rest area for a pleasant stroll.

Mop assemblage behind the rest stop building.

Looking north over I-80 from the parking lot of the Tiffin eastbound rest area.

Here's a video at the rest stop, showing more than 180 degrees of gorgeous Iowa sky.

Still at the rest stop.  While I am surprised at how often I get a pic that pleases me from a moving car, it's a lot easier to get a good pic when I'm not moving and don't have to take my pic through window glass!

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