Franklinsanity

9:03 am, near Brooklyn, Iowa…according to Google – and the Smithsonian – American barns are red because red paint is cheap, and red paint is cheap because it’s got iron oxide in it, and there’s a lot of that around because dying stars throw off a lot of the base components of that compound.

These are the things we ponder in this fine Monday in Iowa.

We’re generally refreshed, after a much more successful stay in Iowa than Ohio.  Thumbs up for the Sheraton there having a restaurant, with a patio, which welcomes dogs – and which is also right next to a giant play structure and a fountain.

So, the wine bar came through – solid Sauvignon Blanc, excellent grilled chicken, burgers, cheese plates and other fare.

There was even a pool.  I believe I can sum up our family’s collective relief by noting that Kingsley finally took a dump.  (He’d been holding it, no doubt out of pique, for days.)

Other highlights:  the plaza near the hotel has nearly tame chipmunks, which hugely amused the kids.  Their grandparents’ country club supposedly has them too.  But they are much more sneaky, there – and the kids have been trying to spot them there since birth, mostly unsuccessfully.

So, the sight of the brazen rogue of an Iowa chipmunk, eating a giant acorn – for reals – was an occasion of significance.  True, Kingsley pretty quickly put the fear of God into him, but for a few minutes, there was a lot of kid joy.

700-plus miles to Cheyenne, Wyoming.  Which is seemingly much less exotic than it sounds – Nelson Litterest, if you’re reading this and have tips, let us know.  But we’re really only there for a few hours…the next glamour destination is Park City.

Onwards.