waukon is a town where, until recently, you could still dial five numbers and reach someone. it's a town where the place to purchase adult beverages is called the "double d liquor store" (and they let me write an out-of-state check, provided i told billy and tim {my uncles} "hello" from them). it's where my papa reigned king in sports at st. patrick's catholic school. it's where he was raised - waukon, iowa - in the heart of allamakee county.
some things have advanced into today's modern technology (picture mike and me rolling through town in our rental car with his wireless laptop, looking for an open signal to pick up the internet).
or the fact that the waukon standard (the local paper) is now online. and i love that you can still read the police briefs - now online for the world to see.
some things are best left unchanged. thousands of acres of untouched land, still used for farming and not yet developed. it's a place where people keep a great eye on my grandpa, who at 90-ish, still thinks he can clean his roof himself by climbing up on it.
my papa's fabulous cousin, pam, sent the following article over yesterday. it's worth a read, as allamakee county is considered among the most remote place in iowa.
from sunday's des moines register...
keeping their distance: iowa's most remote residents
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