I am not a rabid fan of any sports team, but when I do cheer on a team, it is the Minnesota Vikings. I am not sure why I am a Vikings fan. My parents were not fans. They didn’t even watch football. My siblings didn’t cheer for them either. But, growing up in northern Iowa, most of the boys in my elementary school class were Vikings fans. In those days, the NFL games on TV were limited to the closest geographical teams. So, a Vikings fan I was — and still am.
Fran Tarkenton. Chuck Foreman. Ahmad Rashad. The Purple People Eaters. Those were the Vikings I remember the most, as they were the ones who were the closest to being Super Bowl champs. Four times in the Super Bowl. Zero victories. It’s not easy being a Vikings fan. You don’t have to remind anyone of that.
You also don’t have to remind fans of the 1998 season when the Vikings went 15-1 but were upset by the Atlanta Falcons 30-27 in the NFC Championship Game when Gary Anderson missed a field goal for the first time that season. Randall Cunningham. Robert Smith. Cris Carter. Randy Moss. If the Vikings ever had a chance to win a Super Bowl, that was it. Was.
These are new times for the Minnesota Vikings. Their decisions off the field are allowing them to win games on the field. General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is making sound business decisions, and Head Coach Kevin O'Connell is making aggressive plays that secure wins. On Sunday, Minnesota locked up its 14th win of the season with a 27-25 victory over the Green Bay Packers, setting up a showdown for the top seed in the NFC on Sunday against the Detroit Lions.
The best predictor of future performance is past behavior, so let’s assume the Vikings get close but blow it again this year. Then what? Namely, what do the Vikings do with 27-year-old quarterback Sam Darnold, who has completed 343-504 passes for 4,153 yards, 35 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. His one-year, $10 million contract will be over, and many teams in need of a quarterback will be willing to reportedly pay nearly $150 million for his services. Do the Vikings need Darnold? Does Darnold need the Vikings?
Beyond football, there are many life lessons to be learned and parallels to be drawn. Loyalty. Teamwork. Finances. Reality. On different levels, we all make these decisions with our families, our jobs and our friendships. And in doing so, we sometimes make fans. And, sometimes, we make foes.
Money rarely makes life simpler, but a Super Bowl championship could make the decisions for the Vikings easier. If nothing else, it would at last make it easier to be a fan.
Have a wonderful Wednesday, and thanks for reading.
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FROM KCCI: A look at weather records set in central Iowa during 2024. From tornadoes to an extreme winter, the weather was busy this past year. ...READ MORE
FROM WHO-TV: Shooting investigation underway in Pomeroy; Manson standoff is linked to incident officials say. POMEROY, Iowa — Multiple law enforcement agencies are on the scene in Pomeroy investigating a shooting Tuesday morning and officials say the incident is also linked to a standoff in Manson. ....READ MORE
FROM WOI: Over 150 groups call on Iowa to join summer EBT program. With no action either way from Gov. Reynolds, over 150 organization signed a letter urging her to sign on to the summer EBT program.....READ MORE |
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Clear Mortgage meteorology
We'll see a little sunshine today for a change. Snow moves in during the day Thursday, with 1- to 3-inch totals by the evening south of Highway 20. Colder air for the end of the week and the weekend. More light snow possible Sunday.
For help with pre-approvals or refinancing, get in touch with Originating Branch Manager Carrie Hansen at carrie.mortgage. |
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| Read the latest CITYVIEW | | | BOOK REVIEW
Book Reviews
Courtesy of Beaverdale Books
‘I Heard There Was a Secret Chord: Music as Medicine’
Thinking of music as a balm isn’t a new concept. There have been numerous articles and quips and even songs written about the human compunction to use sound to express oneself and tap into something raw. Here, though, we have a voluminous work combining anthropology and musicology with the depth and breadth to prove something I think many of us already know — music is more than just communication; it can heal in profound and uniquely human ways. | | | READ MORE |
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Looking forward to the year of AI
AI is encouraging more "dynamic pricing" in restaurants. That's where prices change with demand as they do with Uber, airlines and day-old bread. Currently only 7% of restaurants have implemented some version of this, mostly with Happy Hour deals or lunch discounts. Many operators worry that fluctuating prices might confuse or upset guests if not handled carefully, and guests have resisted the idea of “surge pricing.” (Toast)
Reckoning 2024 in local arts and culture
Breakout talents of the year: Josue Barahoma, a senior at North, began performing in June and now has 35,000 paid subscribers listening.
The bilingual singer-producer will head to Nashville after graduation and enter the exclusive Blackbird Academy; Harmony Parker, a middle school student at Harding, debuted at Des Moines Community Playhouse in “Our Town” as Rebecca Gibbs. That is a mid-major character who has a speech that summarizes the theme of the play, but only when spoken with a rare, precocious sense of wonder. Harmony won a Cloris and other awards for her role. We hope to see her again on stage. But whatever you do, fair thee well, young lady.
The unreachable stars' strive of the year - Brian Hardin, Drake athletics director. Drake won last year's Missouri Valley Conference All Sports championship. That is an incredible achievement for a private school. For instance, in cross country and track and field championships in the MVC, Illinois State, UNI, Southern Illinois and Indiana State sometimes field multiple athletes in all events while Drake might only have a single competitor in about two thirds of events. The only other private schools we could find who ever won an all-sports title in a league of mostly state schools are Southern Cal, Stanford and Abilene Christian, and it's been about 50 years for USC. Hardin also replaced one of the Drake men's basketball’s most successful ever coaches with a guy who just won a national championship and is 13-0 so far. He replaced a successful football coach with a guy who just won a national championship, at arguably a higher level. Yeah, this was a great year for Hardin and Drake.
New Year's Day deals
• Amruth Indian Grill's Christmas buffet was so successful they are having another one today. Try the choles!
• Hangover cures, hair of the dog optional. Menudo and pozole have served our New Year's Day needs best over the years. Our favorites are the red posole at Los Laureles (1518 East Grand Ave., Des Moines), usually a Wednesday and Thursday special; and the menudo at Mojito's Mexican restaurants. The hot salsas and tortillas supposedly leech toxins, too.
— Jim Duncan, jd91446@aol.com |
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The 2024 results ...
CITYVIEW's Best Of Des Moines® | | | Best Speakeasy
1. Chicago Speakeasy
2. In Confidence
3. Good News, Darling
The 2025 Best Of Des Moines Poll is now closed. Results will be published in the February 2025 issue of CITYVIEW. |
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| Featured home for sale | | |
$644,900 18127 Tanglewood Drive Clive, IA 50325
This ranch has received rave reviews from local art directors and designers. Come see the ceiling treatments that set off living spaces, the rich doors and cabinetry and stylish selections that set this home apart from the rest. SJ Home Builders has created an unforgettable home.
See the listing here.
| | | See More Homes For Sale |
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| SOLD: Featured commercial real estate transaction | | | 1000 73RD ST., UNIT 24, WINDSOR HEIGHTS
SALE DATE: 2024-10-14
SALE PRICE: $137,500
SELLER: KINGSWOOD INVESTOR SERVICES LLC
BUYER: GIUNTA PROPERTIES LLC
ACRES: 0.138
SQUARE FEET: 1,525 |
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| Weekly fuel report | | | The price of regular unleaded gasoline fell 1 cent, averaging $2.76 across Iowa according to AAA. Prices are down 5 cents from a year ago. The national average on Tuesday was $3.04, steady cent from last week’s price.
Retail diesel prices in Iowa fell 1 cent this week with a statewide average of $3.28. One year ago, diesel prices averaged $3.68 in Iowa.
The current Iowa diesel price is 23 cents lower than the national average of $3.51.
Wholesale ethanol held steady and is currently priced at $2.16.
Natural gas prices were up $.23 at the Henry Hub reporting site and are currently priced at $3.70/MMbtu.
Propane prices averaged $1.56 per gallon in Iowa.
Home heating oil prices had a statewide average of $2.89 per gallon. |
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Featured in the current
issue of Altoona Living magazine | | | Answering a call
Ruepke steps up to provide foster care
By Darren Tromblay
Every year in Iowa, 4,000 children/youth are in need of a temporary, stable and caring home.
While that number is large, it’s progress, actually, says Emily Easton, a recruitment and retention coordinator at Four Oaks Family Connections, which partners with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to recruit, license, train and provide ongoing support to foster, kinship and adoptive families throughout the state of Iowa.
“We are happy to report that, over the last several years, we have seen an increase in the number of relatives and suitable others who have become licensed in order to care for a specific child who they know already,” she says. “This is often in the best interest of the child, and we are excited that we can provide these families with access to the same supports as foster parents.” | | | READ MORE |
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FROM ESPN: Rockets' Amen Thompson, Heat's Terry Rozier suspended for fight ... READ MORE
FROM SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: Kyle Shanahan Offers Brock Purdy Injury Update Following 49ers' Loss to Lions ... READ MORE
FROM Yahoo Sports: Boxers of the Year 2024: Oleksandr Usyk made history — and cemented himself as a legend of the ring ... READ MORE |
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1863: Abraham Lincoln signs the Emancipation Proclamation. On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln signs the Emancipation Proclamation. Attempting to stitch together a nation mired in a bloody civil war, Abraham Lincoln made a last-ditch, but carefully calculated, decision regarding the institution of slavery in America. ...READ MORE
2006: New England Patriots’ Doug Flutie makes NFL’s first drop kick since 1941. On January 1, 2006, following a New England Patriots touchdown against the Miami Dolphins, Doug Flutie enters the game for what initially appears to be a two-point conversion play. After getting his teammates set in a “very strange formation,” Flutie backs up well beyond the normal shotgun position, to the 13-yard line, catches the snap, takes a couple steps forward, drops the ball off the ground and quickly kicks it through the uprights. His teammates immediately mob him after the kick—the first successful drop kick since 1941. .... READ MORE
1958: Johnny Cash plays San Quentin State Prison.“Folsom Prison Blues” gave Johnny Cash his first top-10 country hit in 1956, and his live concert performance at Folsom—dramatized memorably in the film Walk The Line—gave his flagging career a critical jump-start in 1968. But the prison with which Johnny Cash was most closely associated wasn’t Folsom, it was San Quentin, a maximum-security penitentiary just outside of San Francisco. San Quentin is where Cash played his first-ever prison concert on January 1, 1958—a concert that helped set Merle Haggard, then a 20-year-old San Quentin inmate, on the path toward becoming a country music legend. ... READ MORE
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| Birthdays and notables | | | Happy Birthday Jason Wilson!
These celebrities were born on this date: Ice Spice, Noah Kahan, Tank, Angourie Rice, Diamond White, Morris Chestnut, Colin Morgan, Darius Slay
SUBMIT: Send your birthday greetings and congratulatory notes to: tammy@iowalivingmagazines.com |
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The answer to the last riddle: What is a New Year’s Resolution? Something that goes in one year and out the other! - Gail Tomlinson
Today's riddle: What’s the one type of pain that’s enjoyable on New Year’s?
Have a guess? Email tammy@iowalivingmagazines.com |
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dan.juffer@dmcityview.com
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