What do you miss/appreciate about Iowa?

[BillBrasky4Cy]

I missed AE products and Fareways meat counter. I lived a number of years ago where Kroger and Walmart were the options and the meat suuuucked. You could get a good steak at the butcher shop but it was double the cost of the grocery store.

Also, gas stations/convenience stores. Casey’s and Kwik Star are so far beyond Marathons, Shell, Circle K, etc when you travel as much as I did.

 

[Alswelk]

I miss how (to put it poetically) aggressively verdant everything is in late spring/early summer. It's hard to describe, but I'll come back up during that time of the year and just be a little overwhelmed by how green everything is.

 

[JP4CY]

There are other good convenience stores out there:
Wawa and Sheetz are great.
If you get into TX Buccees is like a Fleet Farm with hot food.

 

[BCClone]

I've lived in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oregon, Minnesota, and now West Virginia. The big cities don't have the kindness Iowans have. Minnesota and, believe it or not, West Virginia to a greater degree are the only people comparable to Iowans.

Don’t insult us by lumping us in with those Viking people.

 

[ianjbark3r]

Traffic.

Austin traffic is the GD Thunderdome. Des Moines traffic is like walking your pup around Gray's Lake.

 

[SEIOWA CLONE]

There are other good convenience stores out there:
Wawa and Sheetz are great.
If you get into TX Buccees is like a Fleet Farm with hot food.

We saw a Buc-ees in Kentucky on the drive home Monday, between Lexington and Louisville. They are moving out from Texas.

 

[tm3308]

Casey's pizza. Fortunately, Kwik Trip is Wisconsin's Casey's and there's one every four blocks, so I could be worse off. But as much as I like Kwik Trip overall, they don't have Casey's pizza. I can still get it once in awhile, but the closest one in Wisconsin is about an hour away from where I live.

Iowa City. I'd give anything to be able to move back. When I first went to college coming from a town of 1500 people, Iowa City felt overwhelmingly huge. After graduating, spending a couple years in Des Moines and moving back to Iowa City, it felt like home. Certainly more so than my actual hometown does anymore.

 

[CascadeClone]

The way it goes from oppressively sticky and still, to cold and breezy right before a big storm.

Also, following distance. In Iowa you think you got cut off is someone doesn't give you 2 full car lengths before pulling in front of you. Anywhere else (especially big cities) 2 feet between bumpers is considered polite!

 

[JP4CY]

We saw a Buc-ees in Kentucky on the drive home Monday, between Lexington and Louisville. They are moving out from Texas.

 

[Al_4_State]

Absolutely nothing. Good riddance.

There are about 10-15 threads to talk about how much you hate Iowa and everything that's wrong with the state.

 

[Sigmapolis]

I moved from waukee out to rural west central iowa and i'll never go back to living in the "city".

I moved to Waukee and there's nothing "city" about it by my standards.

 

[Remo Gaggi]

The Hawks of course. Their fans are the best!

 

[KnappShack]

Sterzings potato chips.

But that's about as positive as it gets. Sadly.

 

[CoachHines3]

I moved to Waukee and there's nothing "city" about it by my standards.

maybe not on the big scale of things- especially where you came from.

But still, living on top of each other doesn't tickle my fancy.

 

[Big Daddy Kang]

What do you miss and/or appreciate about Iowa?

This is primarily for those who have moved away, or those from out of state that have moved to Iowa or lived in Iowa for a significant amount of time.

Positivity is appreciated! We have plenty of negativity already.

The roads are all north-south, east west, at least where I grew up. I get lost in Wisconsin all the time.

 

[Bipolarcy]

What do you miss and/or appreciate about Iowa?

This is primarily for those who have moved away, or those from out of state that have moved to Iowa or lived in Iowa for a significant amount of time.

Positivity is appreciated! We have plenty of negativity already.

My youth mostly. But Iowa beef is the main thing. Just can't get steaks like those too many other places. Most of our beef comes from Texass. There are other, smaller things I miss, like pork tenderloin sandwiches, and you can't find Bing or Bun candy bars where I live.

 

[Al_4_State]

The roads are all north-south, east west, at least where I grew up. I get lost in Wisconsin all the time.

The seems to be a function of most flat places. I've traveled extensively through backroad of Nebraska, the Dakotas, western Minnesota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Illinois, and they're all pretty much a grid.

 

[1100011CS]

Casey's pizza. Fortunately, Kwik Trip is Wisconsin's Casey's and there's one every four blocks, so I could be worse off. But as much as I like Kwik Trip overall, they don't have Casey's pizza. I can still get it once in awhile, but the closest one in Wisconsin is about an hour away from where I live.

Iowa City. I'd give anything to be able to move back. When I first went to college coming from a town of 1500 people, Iowa City felt overwhelmingly huge. After graduating, spending a couple years in Des Moines and moving back to Iowa City, it felt like home. Certainly more so than my actual hometown does anymore.

You've lived in some horrible places.

 

[SolonCy]

Have lived in the San Joaquin Valley California for 6 years now, I miss:
- being surrounded by lush green vegetation (actual grass that I can walk on)
- being close to bodies of water that I can fish or kayak in (instead of a concrete canal)
- working with competent people (people here are friendly, but unhelpful and no concern for quality)
- limited red tape and regulations (seems CA makes rules so people have work to do)

 

[simply1]

Tasty Taco and Great Plains