With the winter winds of late, any lingering leaves that were hanging on the trees are now gone. The remains are skeletons of what were plush, green examples of life just a few months ago. But those bare branches are not dead, at least not most of them. They are simply preparing for another emergence that will happen in just a few short months.

The growth of trees is truly amazing, and the comparison to the human body is an easy one to make, especially as we work through own forms of hibernation this winter.

Think about how a tree and a human body both have physical trunks (our cores) and branches (our arms and legs) that reach out from the center. You may even find a tree or two that look like humans. If you watched “H.R. Pufnstuf” on Saturday mornings in the 1970s or were amused by Groot in “Guardians of the Galaxy” in recent years, you know exactly what I am talking about.

Our reliance on water and the sun makes us similar to trees as well. Take away one or both, and we are in big trouble. Expose us to water and the sun, and we grow and thrive.

The bark on a tree is similar to our skin, a protective layer that holds us all together.  When the cuts are too deep, we can become infected with deadly diseases. Over time, we can also both become hollow and suffer slow deaths.

Although trees and humans can survive alone, we both do much better in groups or communities. But put too many in one location, and some of us will be weeded out naturally.

Maybe the most interesting comparison between humans and trees is how we need each other. As humans, we breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. Trees do the opposite by taking in carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen.

Country music artist Dolly Parton has been quoted saying, “Storms make trees take deeper roots” with an obvious nod to how life’s difficult challenges make us stronger human beings, too.

So, go ahead. Hug a tree. Or better yet, make a plan this spring to plant one… or 10.

Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

It’s cold again outside, and that means one thing — it’s time to break out the long johns. 

I recall being a child and staying with family friends on their farm for a few days. The woman of the household was a wonderful lady named Marge, and she told me we would be making long johns. The brain of this 5-year-old envisioned some sort of sweatshop with sewing machines humming away. I was pleasantly surprised to find out she and I would be in the kitchen making long donuts with a maple glaze of incredibly sugary frosting. Not too many years later, I learned to also appreciate thermal underwear and its waffle weave texture just as much. Long johns were — and continue to be — necessary clothing in the winter weather of Iowa.

Even in my suit-and-tie days out of college, I was known to wear long johns. While in a meeting at The Des Moines Register where we were all seated in chairs in a circle, I could see my coworker Shannon laughing at me from across the room. With my legs crossed at the knee, I leaned forward and tried mouthing, “What’s so funny?” She kept laughing. Shannon could see I was becoming irritated with her, and she finally blurted out, “Quit being such a jerk. I am just laughing at your long underwear that I can see from your suit pant leg.” Laugh all you want, Shannon. I was toasty warm. 

Maybe you wonder where the term “long johns” came from. Some say it began with soldiers in World War II who donned the thermal underwear, but the words appeared many years prior. According to a story in the Summit (Colorado) Daily, the invention of long johns is credited to John Smedley in the English town of Matlock in Derbyshire. Smedley manufactured the clothing on the premises of his Lea Mills in the late 18th century, the story says. The name “long johns” supposedly refers to American boxer John L. Sullivan, who reigned as the heavyweight champion from 1882-1892.

So now you know. The next time you slip into some long johns, you can think of John Smedley and John L. Sullivan. And the next time you eat a delicious maple-glazed long john donut, you can think of all the wonderful bakers like Marge. 

Have a fantastic Friday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

It’s pizza season. I know what you are thinking. What season is not pizza season? I tend to agree.

I like pizza. Thin. Thick. It doesn’t matter. I prefer it mostly with meat and cheese, but you can throw in some veggies if you really want to. I can’t eat pizza like I used to, but that goes for a lot of foods these days. Meanwhile, I find it quite challenging to resist a slice of hot, gooey pizza. 

My dad didn’t like pizza. Seriously. I mean, who doesn’t like pizza? I think this stems from those awful, cheap, cardboard-like frozen pizzas that Mom used to buy. Dad was more of a meat and potatoes guy, but he would take me out for pizza from time to time, as he knew it was this teenager’s meal of choice. 

I remember when the Personal Pan pizzas were introduced at Pizza Hut in 1986. We had about a half-mile walk from our high school to get there for lunch, and it was a frequent trip. Promised to be on the table in 5 minutes, we would scarf those mini-pizzas down and run back to class — after a quick game of Pac Man, of course.

It’s not that we didn’t have hot lunch pizza at school. We did. Kind of. It was wet and sloppy and on a barely cooked crust cut in rectangles, but it was still one of the most requested lunches. Why rectangles, you ask? Well, there weren’t triangles on the hot lunch trays. Duh.

College days brought about Domino’s pizza — and an incredible challenge. The trick was to see if you could eat an entire small pizza by yourself. I would look at that pizza and wonder how small I could make it if I mounded it into a ball. Then I envisioned that ball of pizza in my stomach. Regardless, challenge accepted… and achieved. 

While living in an apartment fresh out of college with a bunch of friends, we were mesmerized by the introduction of stuffed crust pizza. This was probably made for those who wouldn’t eat the crust, but the rest of us pizza gobblers enjoyed it, too, especially on Sundays watching football.

Much of my wife’s family is from Texas. On one of their visits here a few years back, we decided to go to the drive-in theater in Newton. Jolene thought we should pick up a pizza, so she pulled into a Casey’s convenience store along the way. The Texas crowd wanted to know why we stopped, jokingly asking if she was getting pizza at a gas station. Yes, actually, and they agreed it was quite good. 

Dessert pizza was ingenious. Why not? Sugar and dough are meant to go together. Even so, breakfast pizza was an even better invention. Meat, eggs and cheese on dough? Now you’re talking. 

My favorite pizza, though, has to be Hawaiian. Canadian bacon and pineapple make for a combination so good it will make your taste buds bugle reveille. No one else in my family likes Hawaiian pizza, which means more for me. 

How about you? What’s your most favorite and least favorite pizza? Shoot me a note and let me know. 

Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

With our first measurable snow upon us, some people are already fretting. Hold tight, Iowans. I shouldn’t need to tell you this, but the worst of the winter weather is yet to come. As Bill Murray famously said in “Caddyshack,” “I don’t think the heavy stuff is going to come down for quite a while.”

It’s early January, more snowstorms are coming, and I am looking forward to them. 

My friends in Florida like to boast about their warm weather and share photos of themselves in T-shirts and shorts. Good for them. I am glad they enjoy it. If I wanted to experience that type of weather this time of year, I would move to Florida. No thank you. I like cold weather. I like snow. I even like blizzards. It’s all part of the Iowa experience. Those other places are nice to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there. 

I actually enjoy putting on cold-weather gear and getting outside. The crisp air smells clean, and it invigorates me. Sledding. Skiing. Snowmobiling. I even like to shovel snow, but I admittedly like running the snowblower even more. I get up early on snowy days in anticipation of moving snow.

I am bewildered by people who act surprised when snowstorms hit. It’s not like the weather forecasts aren’t in the news. It’s Iowa. It snows. Plan on it happening again… and again… and again, because it will. 

I am convinced some of the negativity about snow comes from the TV weather forecasters using words and phrases like “treacherous” or “the blizzard of the century” seemingly each time we get a dusting.

Several years ago, Jolene and I were on a ski trip to Lake Tahoe with some friends. More than a foot of snow fell the first night we were there. We were convinced the roads would be a mess, stores would be closed, and people would be shuttered in. We experienced the opposite. By 6 a.m., the roads were cleared. By 7 a.m., the sidewalks were shoveled. And, by 8 a.m., it was business as usual — everywhere. They expect snow. They plan on it. They prepare for it. And nobody seems to use the word “treacherous.”

So dig out your coats, hats and gloves and button up. The heavy stuff is going to come down again soon. Embrace it and enjoy it. 

Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

Consumers spend more than $22 billion on chewing gum annually, and that number is growing. What’s pushing this? It is driven by “stress-relieving properties,” “a growing shift from sugared gums to sugar-free gums,” and an “increasing preference for products that offer dental benefits.” And you thought chewing gum just tasted good.    

Trident, Orbit, Mentos, Eclipse, Extra, Stride, Dentyne. These brands are helping lead the way. But if you haven’t noticed, gum packaging has changed. Sure, you can still buy the smaller packages, but the 40-piece plastic dispensers seem to fill the shelves in convenience stores now. Santa even put one in my stocking this year. 

This isn’t the bubble gum of my youth, though. Dubble Bubble and Hubba Bubba were those choices, which were pushed by the amount of advertising for the brands on Saturday-morning cartoons. Remember trying to see who could blow the biggest bubble, and then struggling to peel the gum off your face? 

Mom preferred Doublemint, Big Red and others that came in individual foiled wrappers in five-stick packs. Do I dare mention Fruit Stripe Chewing Gum? That brittle stuff tasted great for about 10 seconds and then… nothing. Big League Chew? My friends and I thought we were just like the professional baseball players when we dipped into a pouch of this stuff. 

I still chew gum today, but not the sugary stuff. Regardless, I often crave it. That’s the effects of Aspartame, I am told. But chewing gum isn’t all bad. Flavored chewing gum can relieve bad breath. Chewing sugar-free gum after eating can help reduce tooth decay risk. Whitening chewing gums can coat the teeth to help prevent staining. The additional saliva that is created by chewing gum may relieve symptoms of acid reflux. And, maybe best of all, chewing gum can help burn 11 calories per hour AND relieve stress.

Modern chewing gum is made up of fillers, emulsifiers, softeners and a “gum base,” which may include any of 46 FDA-approved products including plastics, natural latex, synthetic rubber, wood glue, vegetable oil and talc, according to treehugger.com. Seriously. 

You may wonder if chewing gum is biodegradable, but you already know the answer, as the evidence can be seen on city sidewalks and the underside of desks. This litter is concerning to me. According to GetGreenNow, up to 90% of ABC gum (already been chewed, of course) is “disposed of improperly with most dropped on the ground or stuck onto a surface.” This means thousands of pounds of gum are littered every year, and that doesn’t include the packaging. 

Meanwhile, I keep buying and I keep chewing, but my teeth don’t seem whiter, the acid reflux continues, and I don’t feel less stress. And where exactly are any of the four-out-of-five dentists who recommend sugarless gum to their patients who chew gum?

Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

Christmas Day may be over, but the Christmas season continues — and so do the holiday songs, at least for me.

Although I can’t play an instrument, and I flunked choir in eighth grade, I truly appreciate music.  I still spin vinyl on my record player, play my cassettes and pop in a few CDs. And if I still had an 8-track player, I would not hesitate to use that either. But even with all these great ways to listen to music from generations past, I must admit that I truly enjoy streaming music on my modern devices. The problem is that Alexa and I don’t always agree. She has her definition of classic Christmas music, and I have mine. When I ask Amazon’s cloud-based voice service to “play Christmas classics,” I expect to hear Bing Crosby, Gene Autry, Dean Martin or Frank Sinatra. Alexa gives me Wham, Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson and Kelly Clarkson. 

Any Christmas music with a synthesizer is not classic. Period. 

I am not sure why I am attracted to this golden era of Christmas music. It just feels, well, Christmassy. I certainly didn’t grow up in that timeframe, and my parents didn’t play Christmas music around the house. Meanwhile, Alexa is sending her misguided selection to more than 100 million devices from Amazon and third-party device manufacturers. She should be imprisoned, or at least fined. 

As a society, we seem to be obsessed with lists today, and not the naughty or nice ones that the guy in the big red suit puts together. I am referencing the best and worst lists that are commonplace today and packed with personal opinions.

Opinions are like belly buttons, as we all have them. As such, in 2021, Rolling Stone magazine compiled the 20 Worst Christmas Songs of All Time. It includes New Kids on the Block with “Funky, Funky, Xmas,” Justin Bieber’s “Mistletoe,” and ‘NSync singing “I Never Knew the Meaning of Christmas.” Topping their Worst list is Jessica Simpson, featuring Ashlee Simpson, with “The Little Drummer Boy.” Rolling Stone nailed it.  I purposely did not include the links. You don’t want to hear them. 

It is not that I dislike contemporary musicians. Some artists of today can make it work. Michael Bublé is amazing. And then there is… did I mention Michael Bublé? I am joking. Harry Connick, Jr. is special, too. But the list pretty much stops there. 

OK, I am showing my bias. Give me Elvis and “Blue Christmas.” Play “It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas” by Perry Como. Drop the needle on the record of “The Christmas Song” by Nat King Cole. They all make me smile and sing along. 

 “Santa Tell Me” by Ariana Grande? Alexa, “STOP!”

Enjoy the sounds of the season, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707