Whooo are you? Who-who, who-who?
A quick reintroduction, as my "Follower" count approaches cult-like status. (Plus: a 3-question poll!)
Have you noticed that there’s something going on with Substack? If you’re new to the platform, you may not be aware that the company seems to have flipped a switch that allows new readers to become “Followers” (hi newbies!) without committing1 to subscribing (um…thanks, Substack?) If you’re one of the new folks who clicked “Follow,” let me (re)introduce myself. I write about Midwestern lives (including my own), and I live in the exotic locale of Davenport, Iowa, one of the Illinois/ Iowa “Quad Cities,” (of which there are actually more than four).
My street farm cred and writers’ bio
I grew up on a farm and attended school in Hancock County, Ill., where there was one flashing red light at the 4-way stop between the Hardee’s and DQ—oh and also a pilgrimage site for a certain world religion just kitty-corner from there.
After college, I started my career as a reporter for a small-town Illinois daily newspaper (the former Macomb Journal), and later worked for the (former… more or less) Register-Mail in Galesburg. In addition to covering SHIT TONS of county health department governance and school board meetings, (much to my misery and chagrin), I interviewed everyone from the grandma who threw the first pitch at a Cubs’ game to the new school superintendent: HARD-HITTING STUFF.
But it’s also true that as a reporter and later weekly columnist, I worked to uncover everything from the (still unsolved, to my knowledge) mystery of who dumped a teenage girl’s body down a farmer’s well, to the fact that a one-time deejay in town, a “war bride,” had been none other than Louise Harrison, George’s sister. (Links? No. This was back during a time when an intern taught me about a new thing called Google.) I learned an immense amount, received some nice recognition from the Illinois Associated Press Editors’ Association, and got hand-written letters from old people. (And since the word “troll” wasn’t really a thing, everyone in the newsroom was astounded when one of my first columns to be published online — which had poked a bit of lighthearted fun at Phil Collins — drew hatred and ire from commentors around the globe.)
I went on to work for many years as a writer/editor in higher ed communications, then began a “temporary” adjunct instructor role in adult education, where I worked closely with immigrants and refugees, as well as adult learners in high school completion programs. Those five-plus years of my career were life-changing, and I fell in love with teaching—the job my parents had tried to encourage me to do back when I was deciding on a major in college. (Advice I stubbornly refused. Which is all the more ironic when you consider that my mom was a high school Spanish teacher. My high school Spanish teacher, to be exact.)
All the while, I wrote and recorded commentaries on local public radio, started blogs and developed followings (and then deleted all my blogs), and, a couple of times, did storytelling in front of live audiences. I once got a whole tweet (RIP) published in the journal Creative Nonfiction.
I now make my living working in a student support role for a community college. I write this column in part to keep the writer in me alive.
A few final notes on this column:
You can peruse the posts I’ve published since I started on Substack in August 2023.
My most-read post, and the one that spurred the most subscriptions, turned out to be one that has nothing to do with the Quad Cities. It’s about a business in my tiny hometown that has a surprising claim to fame.
In two recent posts, I’ve added an audio file allowing you to listen to the post, read by me. (Substack calls this feature a “voiceover,” but to me that term means something more like MORGAN FREEMAN VOICE in a movie preview). I’ve posted a three-question poll about your preference for reading vs. audio (below), and I’d love to have your responses.
I enjoy interviewing interesting people. I’m also obsessed with music, (particularly singer-songwriters), and with my 80s and 90s childhood.
I write through the lens of an aging Gen Xer (and a woman in midlife — thee most desirable status a person can have in this country, let me tell you!), but hope that you’ll enjoy what I write, regardless of your age or stage. (Or by golly even if you’re outside Iowa.) THANK YOU for subscribing, and/or following, or reading through to the end if you’ve just randomly landed on this post.
And now, about that poll! A vs. V?
When it comes to anything you want to read online, (be it a New York Times article, or, say, a Substack writer’s story about accidentally getting high, would you like to hear it read aloud, and maybe have your hands free while you’re driving or making dinner? Or would you skip the audio feature?
Please subscribe, and I’ll send you more hugs than the “Quads” have cities! (NOTE: there are lots more than four.)
Thank you for reading The Inquisitive Quad Citizen, which features stories and questions about Midwestern lives, (including my own). Subscribe to future posts, make sure to check your junk folder, and enjoy something in your inbox that is not about Camp LeJeune! I keep my posts free, but if you upgrade to a paid version, ($5/month or $50/ year), I’ll sing songs by The Who into my voice notes and send you the recordings. (Not true, don’t worry.) If you’re a commitment-phobe, I also (readily)! accept a-la-carte nods of support via my PayPal or my Buy Me a Coffee account.
IOWA WRITERS’ COLLABORATIVE
Check out our Sunday roundup of great writing from across the state. We are a group of journalists, columnists, former or current media professionals, poets, novelists, songwriters, humorists, and more. By signing up for a paid subscription to the roundup, you’ll not only receive a great Sunday paper (of sorts), but know that you’re helping provide scholarships and other learning opportunities for emerging writers.
In answer to your query: I am an Iowa voter who lives in DC and the founder of Www.myruralamerica.org. Among my “formers … former Iowa farmer
For 17 years, former VC of the Iowa Democratic Party — 1980s, and former Clinton and Obama senior level appointee
I am, indeed! And bringing my dad! 😃