I once asked a group of friends, “What is one of the simple things in life that you wish you could have back?” My friend Cory instantly said, “Paper towels in the bathrooms.” We all looked at him a bit puzzled. Then, he explained.
“I hate those hand-dryers. They never get my hands dry, and, inevitably, I walk out of the restroom with wet hands and run into someone who wants to shake my hand. Awkward moment.”
We all nodded in agreement.
My issue is not with paper towels but rather with their ugly cousins — paper tickets. I miss the old days of having an actual ticket in my hand after I paid for entry to a concert, flight, game or event. Just having that ticket felt real. It was part of the process, and I miss it.
Today, most of our tickets are digital. Accessible on our phones. Stored somewhere in the cloud. And I don’t like it. I am already alarmed by how much time I spend on my phone, and I don’t need more reasons to be on it.
Looking back, many of you reading this column saved your ticket stubs to various concerts and events over the years. It is proof that you actually attended and is a wonderful reminder of the memory. What would we save today? A printout on copy paper? A screen shot? No need to keep a ticket stub, I guess, because we have 461 photos on social media from the event.
Like many of you, I have been a season-ticket holder for a number of local teams. In years past, I would receive a box of the tickets that I could use myself, give to staff members or pass along to customers. It was a friendly gesture to offer those paper tickets to people, and I believe they were more likely to use them or pass them along to others as compared to having to log in with a username and password and share. I asked the manager of a local team if my assumptions were correct.
“Sometimes,” he said. “But the greater value of having the digital tickets is we now get all the data on the original buyer and the data on all the people who the tickets are passed along to so we can now market directly to all of them.”
I asked, “Does that result in higher overall ticket redemption?”
“Not really,” he offered.
So, I wondered, what is the point in collecting all this privacy data on customers if it doesn’t increase sales? Cost savings on not having to print tickets? Less spending on overall marketing? Or just an obsession in mining the personal data of others?
To be perfectly honest, I find the motives disturbing, and the whole process makes me want to wash my hands — and dry them with a paper towel.
Have a watchful Wednesday, and thanks for reading.
Shane Goodman
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FROM KCCI: Iowans charged in connection with Jan. 6 attack receive presidential pardons. Nine Iowans charged in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol are receiving pardons from President Donald Trump. ...READ MORE
FROM WHO-TV: How Trump’s executive orders surrounding immigration could impact Iowans. DES MOINES, Iowa — On his first day in office, President Donald Trump followed through on several of his campaign promises, signing a slew of executive orders aimed at controlling the U.S. and Mexico border and ending birthright citizenship. ...READ MORE
FROM WOI: Hands-free driving bill moving ahead for subcommittee debate. Under the legislation, drivers cannot conduct video calls, stream video, read notifications or text messages. Additionally, the bill says drivers are only able to speak into their device while being limited to a "single touch" to turn their device on or off or for answering or hanging up. ...READ MORE |
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Clear Mortgage meteorology
Temps rose overnight into the milder range today. Light snow falls today with a quarter to a half inch totals by the end of the day. Staying seasonable into the weekend.
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 | | | FEATURE STORY
Winter Arts and Entertainment Guide
By Cyote Williams
Get ready to bust out your winter boots, heavy coats, thick gloves and ice scrapers if you have not already. Some snow has started to fall, and so, too, has your ambition to get out of the house. There’s just one problem. Central Iowa is a hotbed for art galleries, theatrical performances, indoor sports teams and musicians all winter long. Keep this guide handy in the winter months and see how many events and activities you can attend. | | | READ MORE |
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Woebegone Wednesday
More than 150 Nobel and World Food Prize laureates last week issued "an unprecedented wake-up call to avert a hunger catastrophe in the next 25 years." The Betting Line is now listing starvation as odds-on favorite to fix global warming, with war now the number two favorite. The elimination of fossil fuels is now listed at two million to one. (WSJ)
They did what? PepsiCo Inc. is "voluntarily" recalling one of its popular "sugar-free drinks" because, as it turns out, it's chock-full of sugar. The FDA announced the company is recalling cases of sugar-and caffeine-free Schweppes Ginger Ale, as the product was inadvertently made with full sugar, thus making it "unsafe for some people to drink." As the announcement noted, "an international investigation discovered the error." Is FDA trying to clean itself up before RFK, Jr. brings the high pressure hoses in?
Tim Flanagan passed. Tim developed a large following in 20 years at Christopher's, where he rose from busboy to general manager before opening his own restaurants. RIP good guy.
Bargains today
• Wine bottles are half price on Wednesdays at Trostel's Greenbriar (5910 Merle Hay Road, Johnston).
• Barntown's (9500 S.E. University Ave., West Des Moines) Wednesday specials are a pound of chicken tenders with fries and two sauces for $11.99, plus $13 core pitchers of beer.
• Wednesday is Biryani Festival at Chowrastha (5910 Ashworth Road, West Des Moines). Buy two and a third is free.
• Wednesdays bring steak night to Club 2000 (422 Indianola Road, Des Moines). Steaks are cooked to order with salad, potato and bread, $14.99.
• Angry Goldfish (2301 S.W. Ninth St., Des Moines) offers hot beef sandwiches with mashed and gravy for $11.50 on Wednesday.
• Kids eat free with every paying adult on Wednesdays at Chuck’s (3610 Sixth Ave., Des Moines).
• Rangemasters Training Center (10520 Hickman Road, Clive) has a Wednesday ladies day special of $13 per person for live firing range and one target. $10 handgun rentals or BYOG.
• Fareway has a sale on wild flounder at $9.99/pound, and Iowa chops at $1.99/pound through Saturday.
• Price Chopper stores have a sale now on red or gold potatoes with five pound bags for $2.50, frozen tilapia fillets for $4.99/pound and catfish nuggets for $2.19/pound through Monday.
• It's cavatelli night at Eastside Eddie's (3517 E. 26th St., Des Moines), served with garlic bread for $10.
• Bordanaro's (6108 S.W. Ninth St., Des Moines) has a Wednesday-Thursday only special on carryout pizza. They start at $6.50 for a 10-inch cheese pie. Each ingredient added is an extra charge, but this pretty much adds up to half-price pies.
• It's lasagna night at Maxie's Supper Club (1311 Grand Ave., West Des Moines).
• Panka Peruvian (2708 Ingersoll Ave., Des Moines) has live jazz Wednesday.
• Cottontail (3700 Dennis Drive, Urbandale) hosts a fundraiser for Urbandale Show Choir tonight after 5 p.m. Chuck's Graziano sausage sandwiches with chips cost $10 and half of proceeds go to the group.
• Waterfront stores' Wednesday special this week is cioppino.
• Cheba Hut (5260 Merle Hay Road, Johnston) is donating $2 of each entree sale today to Smoke Out Injustice, a cannabis advocacy group.
— Jim Duncan, jd91446@aol.com |
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The 2024 results ...
CITYVIEW's Best Of Des Moines® | | | Best Local Place to Buy Cigars/Tobacco
1. David’s Fine Tobaccos
2. Iowa Cigar Company
3. Tobacco Hut
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 | | | |
$400,000 33822 Zook Spur Place Madrid, IA 50156
Have you been dreaming about catching a beautiful Iowa sunset over a hay field, or owning some land for your dog to run free? Set on 1.5 acres in the Dallas County countryside just 30 minutes from Des Moines, this fully renovated home will make all your acreage dreams come true! From the moment you step in, you’ll enjoy all of the ornate farmhouse fixtures, the cozy wood burning fireplace, exposed wood beams and vaulted ceilings, open kitchen area with upgraded appliances, and a charming built-in dog kennel off the living room for your good boy or girl.
See the listing here.
| | | See More Homes For Sale |
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| SOLD: Featured commercial real estate transaction | | | 175 S. NINTH ST., STE. 460, WEST DES MOINES
SALE DATE: 2024-10-15
SALE PRICE: $235,000
SELLER: IRVING LLC
BUYER: PHILIP SUMNER WORTH REVOCABLE TRUST
ACRES: 0.044
SQUARE FEET: 1,920 |
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Featured in the current
issue of Winterset Living magazine | | | Phelps’ small-town dream comes true
A place to feel at home and to “breathe”
By Lindsey Giardino
Miranda Phelps and her family found their way to Winterset in August 2021, and it didn’t take long for them to feel right at home.
Phelps and her husband, Jason, a dentist, had always known they wanted to settle somewhere west of the Mississippi River. In January 2021, the couple embarked on a “Tour de Iowa,” visiting various towns to find a practice for her husband to partner with.
They had previously lived in Centerville and then in Indiana, where they cared for Phelps’ ailing parents. After her parents passed away, the couple felt it was time for a fresh start — somewhere less populated but still rich in community life. | | | READ MORE |
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FROM ESPN: Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, Billy Wagner into Baseball Hall of Fame. ... READ MORE
FROM SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: Oilers' Leon Draisaitl Rips NHL Over Connor McDavid's Three-Game Suspension ... READ MORE
FROM Yahoo Sports: WNBA free agency live updates, tracker: Breanna Stewart, Kelsey Plum, Satou Sabally headline star-studded class. ... READ MORE |
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1998: Ted Kaczynski pleads guilty to bombings. In a Sacramento, California, courtroom on January 22, 1998, Theodore J. Kaczynski pleads guilty to all federal charges against him, acknowledging his responsibility for a 17-year campaign of package bombings attributed to the “Unabomber.” ...READ MORE
1973: Roe v. Wade is decided. Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that established a woman’s legal right to an abortion, is decided on January 22, 1973. The Court ruled, in a 7-2 decision, that a woman’s right to choose an abortion was protected by the privacy rights guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The legal precedent for the decision was rooted in the 1965 case of Griswold v. Connecticut, which established the right to privacy involving medical procedures. ... READ MORE
2008: Heath Ledger dies of accidental prescription drug overdose. On January 22, 2008, Hollywood mourns a talented young actor’s life cut tragically short, after the body of 28-year-old Heath Ledger is found by his masseuse and housekeeper on the floor of his rented apartment in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City. ... READ MORE
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| Birthdays and notables | | | Happy Birthday Samantha Lorenz!
These celebrities were born on this date: Steve Perry, John Wesley Shipp, Diane Lane, Guy Fieri, Olivia d'Abo, Willa Ford, Beverley Mitchell, Sami Gayle, Phoebe Strole, Logic, Lizz Wright
SUBMIT: Send your birthday greetings and congratulatory notes to: tammy@iowalivingmagazines.com |
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The answer to the last riddle:What is the one thing that every history major wants to discover? TENURE! Or A JOB WITH THEIR DEGREE! - Rex Post. Other answers: Gail Tomlinson
Today's riddle: What’s the most popular children’s movie in Ancient Greece?
Have a guess? Email tammy@iowalivingmagazines.com |
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