Old and New

Elberon, Iowa's Main Street features this building - housing a once typical old time general store that is no longer in use. Today the building is enhanced with a cell tower in its backyard. This wood framed building was probably built before telephones came through Elberon. Now modern day cell reception is the talk of the town. Know that.

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Sunset Near Keystone, Iowa

Two days ago the three day old snow cover made for interesting photography near 42N's Keystone, Iowa. On December 28th within 30 minutes of local sunset the sky conditions changed so much between sun angle and cloud cover as evident in these 42N team photos of farmland. This particular area of the country is largely used for grain production and livestock feedlots. Many farmhouses and barns can be dated to the beginning of the last century. Silos at these farms often date to the mid-1900s. Windmills like those seen in the last photo are quickly fading from the landscape after years of neglect following rural electrification in the late 1940s which made water pumping easier than wind powered pumping. Know that.

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Cardinal Alignment on Main Street Elberon, Iowa

42N's Elberon, Iowa is laid out on a cardinal point grid. Elberon's main roads align north-south and east-west like so many Midwestern towns. This photo looks south along Main Street and includes the United Methodist Church. At this time of year the sun sets around 4:30 PM and creates long shadows across the landscape and compass point orientated roads. Following any of these town roads or country dirt roads will eventually get you to paved highways which in turn lead to more signs indicating your position on the map - a paved GPS system built years ago before geo-positioning, satellite-based technology was even a concept. Know that.

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Christmas Lights in Motion

Got a Christmas tree with lights? Got a shutter controllable camera? Got 15 seconds? Set up and zoom in while the 15-second exposure is underway. Here's what you can get - a highly overexposed image of white lights reflecting off red garland and red ornaments, against the green tree. Pure seasonal motion while travelling at warp 6. Know that.

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Paul McCartney's British Invasion Concludes On Sirius XM Radio...For the Moment

For past month Sirius XM Radio has broadcast McCartney Radio to celebrate the 20 millionth satellite radio subscriber. The Paul McCartney Band performed at the historic Apollo Theater in NYC on December 13th with a live broadcast to celebrate the re-issue of his Band on the Run album, the 75th anniversary of the Apollo Theater and the 20 millionth subscriber. The month long commercial free channel featured a vast array of McCartney catalog material and interviews. McCartney's appearance on Sirius XM is a part of the station's limited run, artist branded broadcasting.

For those who follow the ex-Beatle its another way to connect with the groundbreaking musical force from all those years ago. And as for the concert - read the review here and watch a few videos. The complete 2 hour long concert (in mp3 format) is available from various sites on the Internet. McCartney's performance included a wide selection of old and new songs and was both gear and fab - complete with microphone failure and restarts.

Magical Mystery Tour, Jet, Drive My Car, All My Loving, One After 909, Let Me Roll It, Long and Winding Road, Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five, Maybe I’m Amazed (restart), Blackbird, I’m Looking Through You, And I Love Her, Petrushka, Dance Tonight, Eleanor Rigby, Hitch Hike (multiple restarts), Band On The Run, Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da, Back In The USSR, A Day In The Life; Give Peace A Chance, Let it Be, Hey Jude

Encore: Wonderful Christmastime, I Saw Her Standing There, Get Back,


Encore 2: Yesterday, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise), Carry That Weight, The End

Live radio - you can't beat it. Know that.

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No Picnic Today At Wapsipinicon State Park

Blue skies finally returned to Iowa after two days of gray and snow. In 42N's eastern Iowa the storm dumped up to 8 inches of snow. Here at the Wapsipinicon State Park near Anamosa, Iowa the Christmas Eve snow covered the picnic area making outdoor eating cumbersome - in fact no one was using the tables or grills. Today snowboarders and sledders made use of the park's hilly golf course.

This park is one of Iowa's oldest state parks (dedicated in 1923) and features caves and cliffs made of sandstone and limestone. Dutch Creek (above) flows through the park and into the Wapsi River. Fishing is good where the two meet - so I am told - since I haven't caught any fish there to date but have lost tackle. Know that.

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Snowy Christmas Eve in 42N Country

Seven inches of snow fell today ensuring a white and merry Christmas...and more shoveling close to guest time.

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