Cycling Back to Minnesota from Iowa

One of the most delightful experiences of my trip to Iowa was discovering the Apostolic Assembly Church. It was recommended to me by a lady I met along the way who had been helped by members of the church at one time. So I decided I had to check it out. And I was very very glad I did. I attend different churches nearly every week in my travels. I enjoy them all, but some really stand out. This is one of them. Warm, friendly greeters at the door, powerful sermons, full of children, spirit-filled worshippers, lots of enthusiasm and gratefulness and hope. My kind of church! Here is a sampling from Pastor Clayton George:
"I had to work at becoming a drunk, to learn to cuss, to learn to break into cars. I worked hard for hell. But we serve a savior who gives us unmerited grace. And because of Him, I have no more hell to pay....When you give your life to Christ, hell can't touch you!"

Pastor Clayton doesn't pull his punches: "This world will steal every drop of happiness you have. That's the way of the world: double, triple diamond. (in reference to multi-level marketing schemes). The thief and the robber lay awake at night thinking 'How can I get your money, and make you think how you're going to get rich.'
I hate religion, and I hate it with a passion. It's a pyramid scheme" (I didn't get a chance to ask him exactly what he meant by that one!!)

Here is the link to the website for the main organisation: http://www.upci.org/The previous pastors of the Anamosa church have been working in New Zealand for a number of years. They are in Hamilton, and I will look them up the next time I'm there. Yes, I am not even surprised any more about the coincidences in my life.

In general, I find that I am being oh so carefully led nowadays. I think I am making the decisions about where and when I go somewhere, but so often when I get there I find out that I am so supposed to be there at that time.

I attended two of the Thursday bible studies during my stay in Anamosa. At the first one, it turned out that I was there to help brainstorm for a fundraiser for one of the families of the congregation. I attended the second one and asked the attendees to pray for my safety on my bike. Here we all are:

And here are a couple of lovely words from the recently passed daughter of one of the members:

Take a chance, because you never know how perfect something can turn out. Sierra Burnell, 1991-2008

and

Someday everything will make sense. So for now, laugh at the confusion, smile through all the tears, and keep reminding yourself.....Everything happens for a reason. Sierra Burnell, 1991-2008

I look forward to seeing my new friends when I return to Anamosa in the future.




Heading back to Minnesota, I had a couple of additional safety items:

The flag is my favorite! I have been trying to buy a flag like this ever since I saw a similar one in New Zealand. I finally found a source here in the US. And I am so blessed that the gentleman in California who sells them took a look at this blog and chose to give two of them to me!!! He likes what I am doing and wants to help sponsor my work. Thank you Ian!! These flags are very effective at keeping cars at a safer distance from me. They are very reflective, and on a flexible stalk, so if you or a car brush up against them, they simply bend and spring back. You can order them from Ian Hopper at fecusreptilius@gmail.com

The other safety feature are these flashing lights on the valve stems. They flash only when the bike is moving. The batteries lasted for 7 days of all day riding, so that wasn't too bad. These would be great for kids! I have had them in storage, so I don't remember exactly where I got them, but it was at a bike store, and not online.








My first day on the road returning to Iowa was lovely. I had a great tailwind, and every time I got off the bike I felt that wind and wanted to get back on right away to take advantage of it. Wind like that out of the south doesn't happen that often!
I was carrying some extra comfort on this ride:





My niece Jesina had given one of her very favorite stuffed toys to me. And as much as I try to keep my load down, I couldn't say no to this gift.





At one point during my ride, I was passing a stand of clover along the road, and it came to me that I had not seen a 4 leaf clover in quite a while. I had even searched for half an hour a while back and not found one. Just as I was thinking this, I spotted a four leaf clover while riding my bike. I stopped and went back and found it again.













I don't know why, but I can spot them without consciously thinking about it. So I looked around, and in 5 minutes, found 4 more.













I put them in one of my books, to give away to others as I travel. When fresh, I like to put them in people's birdbaths, but these will be given in other ways. Not many birdbaths along the roads in Iowa.This lovely leopard frog hopped out on the road when I stopped to pick the 4 leaf clovers:
I shooed him back into the grass before I left.















I also enjoyed photographing the horses I saw along the way. Here are a few:



































































































































































































































Now you know why it takes me so long to get from point A to point B on my bike! If this were just a mode of transportation, and not an opportunity to really enjoy this amazing world, I wouldn't be able to do it - at least not alone.











In one of the towns I passed, the farmer's market was taking place. An Amish girl was selling baked goods and vegetables. I bought one of her small and most delicious peach pies. She was very shy.














I camped the first night in a lovely campground in Littleport, Iowa, right along the river. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Littleport,_Iowa















The next morning, once the tent dried out from the evening dew, I headed for one of my favorite towns in Iowa - Elkader http://www.elkader-iowa.com/history.htm
































On my way out of Elkader, I was halfway up a long hill, and pulled off on a side street to rest. While standing on my bike, a car pulled up, and the lady asked me if I was waiting for someone. No, I said, I am waiting for my strength to return. She talked to me bit more through the open passenger side window, and we discovered that she and her husband (Arlys and Pat) were soon going on a trip to Australia and New Zealand. So she invited me into her house (which was the house I had inadvertently stopped at), and the three of us talked for over an hour about Australia and New Zealand, as I rehydrated with a cold drink. I gave them tips on phone cards vs cell phones, clothes to take, and took a look at their itinerary. They were going in a group through their bank's travel club. It looked like they were going to see all the highlights in their 21 days. They will be in Auckland one day, in mid November. So we exchanged info, and we just might meet up in Auckland. We took a photo before I continued on up the hill:







The next few hours were the worst of the ride. I was climbing uphill, on a ridge road, against a headwind. It took me 4 hours to ride 20 miles to West Union. I wasn't invited to pitch my tent at the farmhouse I stopped at, and it was Saturday night and I wanted to attend church Sunday morning, so I free camped at a partially demolished and abandoned building, sleeping out under the stars without the tent for the second time in my life. On a concrete pad. It was lovely going to sleep seeing the stars, but not so comfortable later on when it got cold.

The next morning I got going early, and as I rode through West Union I checked out the times the churches had service. All the ones I saw were 9:30 or later, and it was only 7:30 am. So I decided I would treat myself to breakfast at Hardees and cycle on to the next town, and look for churches along the way. As I was finishing my breakfast, a gentleman at the next table asked: "Your dressed pretty nice for cycling, aren't you?" I said Yes, I have my Sunday "go-to-meeting" clothes on, because I want to go to church. I told him I intended to ride to the next town because it was too early for the churches in West Union. He said the Zion Lutheran church a few blocks away had an 8am service, and if I went now, I would still get there in time for the best part. So I did. I walked in just as Pastor David Grant was giving his sermon, and received these gems:

"A new life that bursts out in unexpected ways - that is what God wants to give us."

Plus

"God wants to give us an extreme makeover - and trust him with all of who we are."

And then Pastor Grant gave the example of the ugly duckling, who, after he had turned into a beautiful swan, saw a reflection of himself in a pond and said "Goodness, how I've changed! I hardly recognize myself." Yes, I could relate to all of that sermon!

But the best was yet to come. And I think this is why I was meant to return to that church that morning. I was given the gift of a theme song. It was the last song the congregation sang that morning. It was introduced by the choir director as the favorite song of their new Assistant Pastor who would be arriving in a couple of weeks. The choir director wanted to be sure the congregation could sing it well as a gift to the new pastor when she arrived. Lucky me! Here it is:

I'm Going On a Journey
I'm going on a journey, and I'm leaving today. My head is wet, and I'm on my way. Christ's mark is on me: it's on you too; it says he loves me, and he loves you too. I'm becoming this day a saint of God. It really doesn't matter what roads I trod. Wherever I go, God's been there too. God's love has touched me and will carry me through. There are other saints who have said amen. They'll keep me faithful to my journey's end. Along the way I want to be the kind of person that God set free.

Words by Kenneth D. Larkin.

My friend Arlene in Hastings played it for me on her piano, so I could remember the tune as well as the lyrics, as I travel. What a blessing! I was unable to upload it here, however. I need to work on that.



As I ride, I see many unusual mailboxes and road signs. I have decided to start collecting photos of the most interesting ones.







Now, those of you in the Midwest have seen snowmobile caution signs before, but those of you in New Zealand and elsewhere might not have....
















I can never pass by a group of long horned cattle without stopping. Aren't they great?
































This is a photo of a train carrying sections for something very, very big. Could it be for wind generators????














I have never seen anyone put up a sign like this. Good on you, Charles!!



























Here was nearly the only llama I encountered on this journey:

















And the only group of curious beef cattle:



They ran after me on the bike as far as they could - just like in New Zealand.









Once I had to take a quick break in a corn field, and was struck at how private and beautiful it was inside the corn field. I decided it would be a great private place to bring something to lay down on and take a nap. Have any of you ever done that?


















Getting close to Minnesota, I started to see signs of the Amish farms: horse dung on the road, the sign of a carriage wheel in the unpaved shoulder of the road, and this:






I was so hoping to get to see a horse-drawn carriage, but it wasn't to be. The closest I got was one of the Amish farms:







You can see the carriage in the photo, and learn more here:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish

I can relate to much of Amish culture. To live the lifestyle they do in American culture is very difficult indeed.




One night on the road with no planned place to sleep I found myself in the small town of Wykoff, Minnesota. I pulled in to the local gas station, and asked the lady working there if she knew if there was a place in town where I might put up my tent for the night. She didn't hesitate at all: "My back yard", she said. Wow! Her name is Janet, and she moved to Wykoff from the Cape Cod area of New York a number of years ago. I didn't know any of this at first, of course. She gave me directions to her home just outside the town off a gravel road, told me to help myself to a beer in the fridge, and if there weren't any, to call her and she would bring some when she got off work at 9pm. What a sweetheart! She also asked if I could let the dog out, too. Little Bill is his name. I told her I would probably be in my tent asleep by the time she got home, because I go to bed with the sun, but I would be sure to spend some time chatting in the morning. She also said I could make myself at home and have a shower. That is exactly what I needed most. Five minutes after I arrived, I was on my way to her unlocked house. Some of you may think I am making this up. Not at all. I find in my travels the most kind, generous, trusting people imaginable (with some exceptions, of course).

Janet loves lighthouses and anchors and nautical themes. Here is her mailbox:


It lights up at night, but I didn't stay up to see it. Too pooped.















And here is Little Bill:





He is most definitely a cross between a black lab and a basset hound. He loves to retrieve balls (the lab in him), and Janet says he can be unbelievably stubborn (the basset!) We had a good time getting to know each other during the evening, before I settled in for the night.

In the morning, Janet and I had a lovely chat over breakfast before I headed north for Rochester, Minnesota and a return to high traffic cycling.

In looking up a link for you for the town of Wykoff, I see that I should have stayed in town longer, and visited Ed's museum! http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2136 Next time!


This was only the second scarecrow I saw on my Iowa/Minnesota travels:







The crow is not a real bird.





I was able to photograph some lovely insects also, along the way:
































And then there was this:














A checkbook in the grass by the side of the road. It still had a pen in it. And checks. I used my cell phone to call directory assistance and get the number of the owner. I called, and an older lady answered. I told her I found a checkbook (it was her husband's), and she was very happy. She would have come and picked it up from me, but it was far easier for both of us for me to mail it to her. Ah, but the story doesn't end there. Later in the day I stopped at a farmhouse to get advice on the detour in the road ahead. I wanted to know if a bicycle could get through. Well, I was invited in for lunch, and at one point I told the story of the checkbook. The husband said he knew the family: "I think these folks are Joe's parents." And they probably were. That's how it is in the country.



I stopped at a garage sale along the road, hoping to find some home made goodies, and instead was treated to a story about the one room schoolhouse on the property. Perhaps someday it will be a bed and breakfast, or restored to its schoolroom days.












I made it to Rochester, and stayed with Lowell Baker and his wife for the night. Lowell had hired my father to sell insurance for AFLAC a number of years ago, and told me the story of how the duck mascot was chosen for AFLAC. When AFLAC was getting bigger, they decided to hire a marketing team to help them with their advertising. This was a husband/wife team in New York. As these two were discussing all the various options for the company, the name of AFLAC was repeated many times in the conversation. At one point the husband joked to his wife: "You sound just like a duck." And she picked up on that to suggest that a duck should be the company mascot. The rest, as they say.......
Here is a link to one of the better ads with the duck: http://www.aflac.com/us/en/aboutaflac/videoPlayer.html

I have never seen any of these ads, since I watch so little TV. So this was new to me, too!

The next morning, as I was packing up to ride up to Lake City, Minnesota, the skies grew dark and I heard thunder. Lowell insisted on taking me and my bike up to Lake City in his van. Thank you, Lowell! We stopped for breakfast, and had the waitress take our photo:














Two of my 5 sisters live in Lake City, Minnesota, on the Mississippi. It was great to see them and brother in law Mike again, before shoving off for Hastings. The Mississippi River is wide at this point, and the bluffs are beautiful:

















Once I reached Red Wing, I picked up the Cannon Valley Trail, http://www.cannonvalleytrail.com/
This was definitely the most interesting bike/walking trail of the three I experienced during this trip. Every mile or so was a place to pull off and investigate something of interest. The mosquitoes got me back on my bike pretty quickly, though!

I camped on the trail, at an abandoned gravel 'pit', though it wasn't really a pit, more of a leveled gravel hill, I guess. It was private, spacious, and beautiful. One photo is from the evening, and one from the next morning.


























In Hastings, I stayed with my friends Arlene and Bob. We went for breakfast at a restaurant on the river under the bridge. It was very reminiscint of Sydney Harbour. I enjoyed it very much!













Then it was back in St Paul, and big city conveniences and traffic. Safe and sound and ready to attend the Peace Island conference, held at the same time as the Republican National Convention.

Anamosa Iowa (Again)

I arrived in Anamosa, Iowa in early August. I was there to help my sister Sharon finalize getting the 40 years worth of Jones County property records into her computer database. This was a requirement for her new abstracting and title business. She had until Sept 1 to get them in, and she and her staff had been working for the past 9 months on it. Here is a photo of me in the Jones County Records room, where I spent a couple of weeks trying to decipher legal descriptions of farm and city properties and enter them in a laptop.

In addition to helping out in the office, I also helped care for my nieces Jesina and Kalli. We went swimming,

played in the park where the stream runs over the road,








































and Kalli continued to develop her gymnastic skills. She is fearless and strong at 6.


















Kalli also has excellent eye/hand coordination, and is learning to play softball. Her mom and I tossed her soft rubber balls to hit one night. A few nights later, while babysitting, Kalli asked to hit 5 balls before going in for bedtime. And she asked if she could hit just one real baseball. I agreed. So she hit the 4 soft rubber balls, and the last ball, as promised, was a real baseball. And, wouldn't you know it, it was well hit, but off course, and I watched in horror as it hit a window of the house and broke it. Now we were in trouble!!!! As the responsible adult on duty, I wrote out a check to cover the damage and handed it to mom and dad when they returned, and told them the sad tale of the errant baseball. Fittingly, it was Kalli's own bedroom window that was broken, so she sees it all the time.





Sharon's family has two pets right now, Keesha the dog and Bessie the cat. They get along surprisingly well!















I took Keesha for a walk one day through the nearby state park, and was in just the right spot to catch these geese flying directly overhead:


















During my visit, a family tragedy occurred. My sister's husband Jeff lost his 7 year old nephew Mitchell in a farming accident. I extended my stay to offer my help, and because I wasn't disabled by grief myself, I was able to collect and edit and prepare a slide presentation of Mitchell for the family and for the hundreds of people who came to the visitation. I also researched and purchased a number of books to help grieving parents - for the family, and for supporters to understand how difficult it is going to be for the family to adjust to this loss.

Mitchell loved farming, tractors, and trains, and was out with his dad in the tractor at 18 months.

































When the accident occurred, he and his 10 year old sister were helping with the haying. A typical farming family.

The church and local community came out in full support. There was a candlelight vigil before the funeral.














There was a memorial put up in the field next to the main road through the community.






































My nieces lived close to their cousins, so got together with the family fairly often, and Jesina was in a wedding with Mitchell.




























The day of the funeral, there were 65 tractors and other farm vehicles lined up in that field, with farmers and their sons standing at attention as the procession passed.

Mitchell was brought to the cemetary on a hay wagon pulled by a John Deere tractor, his favorite. At the end of the service, balloons were let go, and everyone saw them form first into a deer, and then an M, and then a heart, before they disappeared from view.















It was a special service for Mitchell, who will be forever missed by the family. I felt blessed to be able to help in some small way.

Cycling to Iowa

I departed White Bear Lake on Sunday, July 27, heading for Algona, Iowa. Here is a photo from Manitou Island the night before, and the morning I left.

I was carrying with me promotional literature for the Peace Island Conference, http://peaceisland.us/home.html which I would be attending Sept 2 and 3, to leave at the various churches along the way.

On my way out of White Bear Lake, I spotted something shiny on the street, and stopped to pick it up. It was a wedding garter! I added it to my bike for additional visibility to traffic. I realized I am kind of like a hermit crab, which camoflauges its shell with bits it picks up along the way. But in my case, I add things to make me more visible.

And, I spotted a car with very interesting bumper stickers:

These caught my attention, since I have seen a couple of videos on 911 that confirmed my suspicions from the day I watched it unfold in Ireland:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8172271955308136871
and

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4380137365762802294
William Rodriguez, 911 hero

Here is one of the many many quotes from military vets from the link on the bumper sticker:

Col. James R. Uhl, MD, MC, U.S. Army (ret) – Retired Army physician. Served in several theaters of operations, from Viet Nam through Iraq. Former Member, Certification in Military Medicine Working Group. 38-year Army career.
Statement to this website 9/20/07: "There is a well-organized cover-up of the events of 11 Sep 2001. The 9/11 Commission was a white-washed farce. There is evidence that US Government officials had advance knowledge of and are probably implicated in the events of 9/11. A huge body of physical evidence has been ignored, suppressed, and ridiculed by the media and by our Government. Why did WTC 7 collapse? It was never hit by an airplane and was apparently brought down by explosives. How could Al-Qaida terrorists have had access and time to plant bombs in a top secret installation? Why did the 9/11 Commission fail to seek the reason for the WTC 7 collapse? The more one studies the evidence, the more apparent it becomes that our Nation, our Bill of Rights, and our Constitution are in grave danger!"
Editor's note: WTC Building 7 was 610 feet tall, 47 stories. It would have been the tallest building in 33 states. Although it was not hit by an airplane, it completely collapsed into a pile of rubble in less than 7 seconds at 5:20 p.m. on 9/11, seven hours after the collapses of the Twin Towers. However, no mention of its collapse appears in the 9/11 Commission's "full and complete account of the circumstances surrounding the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks." Watch the collapse video here. And six years after 9/11, the Federal government has yet to publish its promised final report that explains the cause of its collapse.

I share this with you because I believe we should all be aware of what really happened that day, and this explanation makes far more sense to me (and thousands of other Americans) than the version the US government sent out to the media. We need to be aware of this because it highlights how much false trust we have placed in our government, and to be alert for more of the same. The next time we see it happening in front of us, and it looks fishy and doesn't make sense, we may take a closer look and not accept whatever we are told.

My route south took me through downtown St. Paul so I could cross the Mississippi where I knew I could get across without any stairs. This route took me right past the St. Paul Farmer's Market http://www.stpaulfarmersmarket.com/ where I made a wonderful discovery. There are few vegetables that travel well by bike, since most require some preparation. My wonderful discovery was that sugar snap peas travel well, staying crisp and delicious without refrigeration, and need no preparation. My pint of sugar snap peas I picked up at the farmer's market lasted all 5 days of my trip, during the hottest days of the summer.

My first visit upon leaving St. Paul was to visit my friend Sherry. Here we are in Apple Valley. The big garbage bag protected most of my gear from the light rain that continued most of that day.

My sleeping arrangements that first night were at an obviously abandoned property along the road near Lakeville. Once I disappeared behind a building, I was as safe, no - more safe, than if I had been staying the night in my own home. I had already had my shower - at the grand opening of a massive gym. Perfect!

The next few days I rode through southern Minnesota and northern Iowa. Here are some typical (fields full of crops), and not so typical photos.

I was attacked by dogs, but was saved by my new dog Dazer. http://www.dazerii.com. This device runs on a 9 volt battery, and gives out a high frequency buzzing sound that is irritating to dogs. Irritating enough to stop them in their tracks if they are chasing me just to harass me. For dogs intent on injuring me, it worked also, but only at close range. I highly recommend it.

At one point I was able to ride on the Sakatah Singing Hills State Bike Trail. http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_trails/sakatah/index.html This cycle trail is built on an old railroad bed, and runs from Faribault to Mankato, in southern Minnesota. It was so freeing to not worry about sharing the road with cars and trucks! I removed my helmet and reflective gear, and rode along thoroughly enjoying the sights and sounds from the trail.



There were benches, birds, lakes, flowers, corn fields, towns, etc. I slept along the trail one night, but it was not a good choice because of the very long grass I was in. Too many mosquitoes!

My most enjoyable night out was on Lura Lake in southern Minnesota. Lura Lake is just south of Mapleton, Minnesota http://www.city-data.com/city/Mapleton-Minnesota.html . I had stopped at the Catholic Church to put up a notice about the Peace Island Conference http://www.peaceisland.us/program/programi.html . Though it was around 6 pm, the church was wide open, because they were having a blood drive. The kind ladies at the blood drive invited me in for a free rootbeer float, which is what they were giving out to the blood donors. I would have donated myself, but I needed every red blood cell I had to pull that trailer! When I asked about a campground, they told me about the one on Lura Lake. It was a couple of miles out of town, but worth it, they said. I hoped so!!

I arrived around 7pm, and was delighted to learn that the camping fee was only $5 for my tent, and that I could have whatever spot I wanted, as long as it wasn't reserved. I found a lovely spot next to the lake, and marveled at all the white pelicans and fish in the lake. Lura Lake is 1200 acres in size, but no deeper than 9 feet (3 meters). Fish were jumping everywhere, and there were at least 50 pelicans on the lake, and many other diving birds. It was too green with algae for me to swim in, but I didn't mind. I so enjoyed watching the birds.

















Earlier in the day, I had stopped to watch a group of about 12 young pelicans learning to synchronize their flying. If you have never watched pelicans fly, pay attention to them when you get a chance to watch them. When flying with others, they flap their wings in perfect timing with each other. It is beautiful to watch, and I have not noticed any other bird do this. So it was fascinating to watch these young pelicans form and reform their small groups of 2-3, making slow circles in the sky as they gradually headed west out over the cornfields, learning this beautiful skill.

When the sun started setting over the lake at the campground, I was in for a treat. The most beautiful sunset I had seen in a long time.

And one lone pelican to complete the picture.

As I continued south through the corn and soybean fields, I noticed what a superb crop they were having in this part of the state. Late July, and the corn was already at full height. I pulled my bike down into one field to show you the scale of the corn. My bike is dwarfed by this corn!

The most disturbing aspect of the trip to Iowa was cycling past the numerous factory hog farms. Hog confinements, they call them. The agonized, angry screams coming continuously from these buildings was the closest experience of Hell that I have ever experienced. I could hear the screams of the animals up to half a mile away. I cycled past the one pictured below, and realized I had to DO something. But what? I cycled back along the road, and took this photo, and then dug out my IPod, which I have fitted with a device so I can record sound as I travel. I recorded a few seconds of what it sounded like from the road. But it didn't record as loudly as it sounded to me, so I have not put it on the blog for you. It sounded like their were procedures being done to the pigs, like in this video. But there were no cars, and no humans around, and the sound was absolutely nonstop. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaRpgJKpV3g












One of the farmers I spoke to told me how the hog confinement system worked. Often, when farmers need to make a bit more money, they will contract with a company like Cargill to raise the hogs. Cargill, or another corporation in this business will erect the building and supply the baby hogs, and the farmer is under contract the first 5 years or so to raise them. If the building is small enough, it is not subject to much inspection, so overcrowding is common. The farmer doesn't get paid any more for the extra hogs he raises, but can't complain because of the contract. He has to take whatever numbers of baby hogs are delivered to him. I asked about inspections and laws in place to protect the animals, and the farmer told me that everyone knows that the laws are not enforced, and are just a joke. I asked why farmers do it, if they know they are likely to be forced to take on all the extra baby hogs, and have such overcrowding in the hog confinement buildings. I was told that they feel they have no choice, if they want to hold onto the family farm, or want to send their son to college, for example.


He said it was one of the secrets of farm life, just like the 35 young horses he had. They are the offspring of the mares kept in ranches along the North Dakota/Canada border which are kept pregnant to extract female hormone from their urine. The foals are shipped to farms like his in Iowa, and used to test the efficacy of vaccines, because they have not been exposed to any diseases on the ranches along the border, so have not built up any antibodies of their own yet. Once the vaccines are tested, the young horses are shipped to Mexico to be killed, because it is now illegal to kill horses in the US, apparently. I asked whether the horses couldn't be trained and sold, and he told me that they are not worth the expense of training - they are not bred for anything, so are considered useless byproducts of the hormone industry.

The things one learns on the road!!! Here are a few related links:

On Hog Confinements:
http://www.iowasource.com/animals/drukerletter_0606.html
http://www.grist.org/feature/2007/10/17/CAFO_letter/
http://www.stopthehogs.com/communities/iowa.htm

On how horses are used in hormone production:
http://www.equineadvocates.com/premarin2.html

I never knew about all of this 3 years ago. I was too busy trying to make money and keep my customers and family happy to pay any attention. But now I know. And I have stopped buying meat or fish as a result of watching this video: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1881460791819585324&vt=lf&hl=en It is the most important thing I can do to help stop the cruelty. Every time I am tempted to enjoy a steak or a burger or a roast chicken, I now think of the animal and how it lived and died, and it gives me the strength to say 'no thanks'. I enjoy the taste of meat, and I value the protein and the iron it can give. But I don't enjoy it enough to have someone raise the animal in a cage and kill it for me so I can eat it. I can survive just fine without eating animals, so I don't. Someday perhaps we will keep domesticated farm animals only as pets; as loved family members who are cared for even when they are old and difficult to live with.

My last night on the road to Algona, Iowa I was invited to pitch my tent on the property of a friendly farm family.














The next morning I was treated to a most glorious sky! Sometimes I am in the right place at the right time with my camera.

So, despite the pain and agony on earth, God is still with us and inspires me to hope and work for His compassion and love to become manifest and visible here on earth. For humans AND animals.

At the end of my ride to Iowa