I left Columbus at sunrise on Saturday AM. Fog covered the fields -- a bit like a sci-fi landscape - with the sun rising slowly, as I headed west. Harvest is in full swing in Ohio and Illinois with large farm machinery at work on Saturday AM and even Sunday afternoon in what looks like a very observant part of western Illinois [anecdotal based on billboard signs and church parking lot fullness]. Rain forecast for Monday comes true -- good soaking rain starts on Sunday evening as I approach KC.
Central Illinois farms seem very prosperous -- new pickup trucks and farm machinery, neat and tidy farm buildings and fences. [Interesting to buy gas on Saturday AM and be the only non-pickup truck]. Corn especially being harvested with quite a bit of wheat.
Southern Illinois, near St. Louis, seems less well off, along with Missouri. Vehicles are not all brand new and you don't see farm fields covering every square foot of ground. All seems ok -- good time to be a farmer in the US with ethanol very good for the farm economy.
Kansas City is going through lots of rebirth. One can still buy a modest single family home with a yard for $150,000 in a good suburban school district. Many families choose to live on one income per Cy and Esther, even though salaries aren't as high as the East Coast.
2 comments:
This is great stuff, Kathleen! I've never traveled in the mid-west, so I'm living vicariously. It's sounding about as I expected. Glad you're having a good time. The football game brought back memories - especially everyone wearing orange - just like UT.
You would have felt right at home. Everyone in town was so up, including the cashier at Meijer [Walmart competitor] and clerk at the gas station, all noting Tom's shirt -- I didn't feel a need to wear mine the entire day.
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