Not long ago I got a message from a friend, asking if she could bring her daughter, son-in-law and his parents to our farm. Their son-in-law and his parents are from Ukraine. We became instant friends as they arrived and stood in our driveway. The father pointed at my husband’s cap, smiled ...
My wife and I recently provided daycare for our 6-year-old grandson for a week. It will probably take me a month to recover. We had taken care of little boys before, obviously, although that was more than 30 years ago. We aren’t as young as we were back then, but little boys are still as ...
Editor’s note: This is Part 1 of a two-part column. “Spell-check” thinks Brasil is spelled with a Z (Brazil). Down there they spell it with an S (Brasil). I have been to Brasil close to 35 times, mostly for investment duties, since December of 2001. That was just a month after 9-11 when ...
NEWS The White House is cracking down on companies avoiding U.S. tariffs by routing goods through other countries. A new report says China-linked goods are being rerouted through more than 40 countries, potentially involving between $40 billion and $303 billion in trade each year. The ...
Since our state’s founding in 1846, Iowa’s corn farmers have fed our families, fueled our economies, and strengthened our nation’s security. Representing the largest corn-producing district in the nation is more than just an honor — it’s a responsibility to ensure Iowa feeds and fuels ...
NEWS The fight over the next U.S. farm bill remains unresolved, with a key Senate Agriculture Committee Democrat urging colleagues to withhold support despite concessions intended to attract bipartisan backing. Trade policy is also adding tension, as tariffs may have cost U.S. agriculture ...
The joys of home ownership are infinite. And by “joys” I mean “pain-in-the-patootie maintenance issues.” If a wife says to her husband, “I’m thinking about painting the living room,” what she really means is, “I want you to paint the living room.” The husband might reply, ...
Journalism has many traditions. One of the oldest is adding “-30-” after the last paragraph of a just-completed story to alert the editor of “the end.” Old-timers say it was adopted from the Western Union’s shorthand for “End of message.” Whatever its origin, -30- is a fitting ...
How much do you have to work to accumulate wealth? A lot of people think that a 40-hour work week is all that a company should be able to require of anyone to be a full-time occupation and that is fine. My young son works a four-day, 10-hour shift at a company and then takes the opportunity ...
It’s that time of year — the time when a glimpse into the garden and a second swipe to remove sweat from our eyes reveals what appears to be those long-awaited and coveted red dots for which we’ve been waiting so impatiently since May. It could be a mirage (in the summer heat) … or ...