Day 216, A nice Sunday

After a sketchy night sleep, I laid in bed for a long while, enjoying the view of the backyard and the company of my two mangy cats.  I finally got up about 8:30am, fed the beasts and let the chickens out.  

 

The last of the American dream a 1990 Cadillac Brougham D'elegance.



This was a pretty typical Sunday, with Church at 11am to noon and then home to do a few outside chores.  I also had the opportunity to wash the Cadillac and take some pictures of it.  This amazing car has been sitting in the garage without a cover and it had accumulated a layer of dust from months of sitting.  With just 10,120 miles, it still looks like new.   I have been thinking of selling it, so I can make room to buy a 1950's car to pull the Traveleze.  I don't know why I have such an affection for this car.  Every time I see it reminds me of my grandparents and summers in Iowa.  My Grandparents on my Dad's side always had a big Cadillac and my Grandparents on my Mom's side always had big Buick's.   I remember riding around with them and it made a lasting impression on me. I  especially remember riding with my Grandmother in the backseat of their Cadillac and leaning on each other around every corner and giggling.

Iowa corn fields



Detasseling corn





 

This car symbolizes all my memories of my childhood, of hot Iowa summers, lime stone county roads, rich black Iowa soil, endless miles of corn fields, church, casseroles, table cloths with every meal (breakfast, super and dinner), ice cold milk poured from a pitcher, corn candy in a glass dish, fresh butterhorns and cinnamon rolls backed from scratch, yellow pear tomatoes grown in the garden, the Renwick water tower, names like International Harvester, Dekalb and New Holland, the smell of the lumber my Grandfather owned in Adel,  fireflies, tornados, the noontime whistle at the creamery, my cousins, a sense of family history where my parents were children, where my mom detassled corn and the feeling of unconditional love from my Grandparents took all the cares and worries away.  



This car represents all this and the American dream, where a immigrant from Norway and a rural farmer could make an honest living and raise a family.  Where hard work and family were a priority and after a lifetime of clean living could lead to a small reward, a true made in America symbol and just a little pride of knowing that you own the king of the road, a Cadillac.