Des Moines and San Francisco: a subjective view

Last month I visited family in the Bay Area of California – plenty of time to see some differences between Polk County in Central Iowa and San Mateo County just south of San Francisco. In the earlier post, more objective, quantifiable data were compared.

While some of the differences can be easily compared, it is harder to quantify other differences, such as

• food, gardening
• travel, commuting
• baseball, activities
• stress

Grocery shopping? California may have a big edge here.

• CA has New Leaf, Whole Foods, and Andronico’s, natural food stores where you can get everything you need; while the prices are a little higher on some items (especially the meat), the produce is ripe and fresh – likely because it doesn’t travel far.
• The only places like that in IA are the farmers’ markets: Des Moines Farmer’s Market, and other local markets; Iowa City’s New Pioneer Food Coop; Ames’ Wheatsfield Grocery. In contrast to CA, Des Moines-based New City Market and Campbell’s Nutrition are quite small by comparison.
• When it comes to the commercial chains (except for the produce) IA’s Hy-Vee and Dahl’s compare favorably with Safeway in CA.

Home gardening? This will get your attention! There is a wait of 4 to 7 years to get a 100 sq ft garden plot in the Fort Mason Community Garden. That is a plot about the size of a very small bedroom. We’ve had picnics at Fort Mason more than once, and it is a beautiful spot as you can see on the right; but it’s easier to find a spot to garden in Iowa.

Food, in general? My impression is that

• Iowa wins on beef and pork
• California wins on fruits and vegetables

Driving? I find it easier to drive in the Bay Area, but enough said about that.

Cars? This is a strange experience. I drove my sister’s hot rod Lincoln for 4 weeks, and you wouldn’t believe what I have seen and have not seen.

• I saw only ten 2009 Chevrolet Impalas in 20 days
• instead? Toyota, Mercedes, Lexus, Hyundai, BMW, Acura, Honda, Volvo and a few Ford cars and Chevy trucks

Public Transit? The Purple Wren and I stayed in a coastal California community about the size of Grinnell, Iowa and took lots of public transit too.

• twice to San Francisco and back (SamTrans bus and CalTrain)
• once to Oakland and part way back (walked a block to SamTrans buses then BART right to the Coliseum)
• around San Francisco (Muni)

Baseball? Definitely a lot of winners here! Whether you live in the Bay Area or Des Moines, you can see good professional baseball: San Francisco Giants; Oakland A’s; Iowa Cubs. I saw the A’s and the Tigers and my favorite Tiger Curtis Granderson (shown left), but the best part was spending the afternoon with my nephew John who rode BART from Berkeley. We had great seats, but you know, it’s hard to beat an afternoon in Principal Park right here in Des Moines!

Activities? There is more to do in both places than I can ever get to.

Stress? I am not sure that stress is the right word – intensity might be better. The pace is faster, and the crowd is larger in CA. It is a line-up kind of place, and longer lines – at the movies, banks, grocery stores, restaurants, traffic, bus/CalTrain/BART stops. It’s all exciting and intense, but it creates a little more stress. When the Purple Wren and I moved back after a year in CA 10 years ago, I said, “I could live in CA, but I wouldn’t live as long.” I’ll stand by that.

Well, you win some, you lose some, and sometimes you tie. I’m happy to be here; I was happy to be there.

Des Moines and San Francisco: factual differences

Bernie Madoff in Des Moines dollars

By his own admission Bernie Madoff engaged in criminal acts using $65 billion of other people’s money. He lost it.

How much is $65 billion in Des Moines dollars?

The median annual household income in Polk County is under $55,000.

If the average Polk County family worked 1 million years, they would still be $10 billion short.

You say you don’t have a million years? Enlist your friends. There are about 150,000 households. If every man, woman, and child in Polk County pooled their income for about 8 years, we could match the $65 billion. 

That’s one perspective on the crime: Bernie Madoff took the equivalent of 8 years of labor of every man, woman, child in Polk County, Iowa.

I wonder where his thinking went wrong. 

photo by flickr by Steve Rhodes of a painting by Yan Pei Ming

Voting early

Want to vote early? You can still do it.

In Polk County

• In tiny little letters at the bottom of the auditors web page, Auditor Jamie Fitzgerald points out that voting early is still possible at the Polk County Election Office. The Polk County Election Office is 120 2nd Avenue (south of Court Avenue and west of the Des Moines River). Just walk in from 8 am -5 pm, Monday through Saturday through Monday November 3. The folks in the auditor’s office are very helpful and will tell you how to get it done.
• If you don’t know for sure, you can check to see if you are registered to vote on the web site of the Iowa Secretary of State. The site even tells you where to vote! If you are not yet registered, you can register on Election Day, Tuesday, November 4 at your correct polling place but you have to bring along proof of residence (many things as simple as a utility bill or bank statement will do) and a photo ID (like a driver’s licence or Iowa student ID). For a second way to find your correct polling place, follow the link called find your polling place on the Polk County Auditor’s website. You can also see the ballot through links at the same site.

In Dallas County

• It is not quite as easy, but according to The Des Moines Register, you can do it. The only remaining early voting day is Saturday November 1, from 8 am to 5 pm at the Dallas County Auditor’s Elections Office at 910 Court in Adel, Iowa.
• Just as in Polk County if you don’t know for sure, you can check if you are registered to vote on the web site of the Iowa Secretary of State. And again the site even tells you where to vote! If you are not yet registered, you can register on Election Day, Tuesday, November 4 at your correct polling place but you have to bring along proof of residence (many things as simple as a utility bill or bank statement will do) and a photo ID (like a driver’s licence or Iowa student ID).

This is an historic election. If the primaries were any indication, there will be a record turnout. It may be a good idea to vote early.

photos by James Lindberg