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The Iowa Wolves found some much-needed success last season. In recent years, despite an increase in success from the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Wolves struggled to put together winning seasons. The last time the Wolves had more wins than losses was during the 2015-16 season. That was back when the Wolves weren’t the Wolves, as some [...]
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When the Great Flood of 1993 was starting and the rain was coming down in torrents and waves, my wife said, “Let’s fill the bathtubs so we can flush the toilets just in case the water gets shut off.” I laughed. I made fun of her. And the kids and I danced in the rain, [...]
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The holiday season means different things to different people. For some, it is a time to be with family, celebrate religious traditions or reflect on the past year. For businesses in Des Moines, it is often a time to celebrate their employees and clients, reflect on the year’s successes and challenges, and prepare for [...]
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It’s November, and that means it’s time to look up the highest earners from nonprofits in Iowa. We gathered data on the highest-grossing nonprofits according to data from their 990 tax forms, which are accessible at candid.org. Prairie Meadows, the nonprofit casino, brought in total revenue of $2,532,959,229 in fiscal year 2024. President and CEO [...]
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What do you tell beginning reporters about the trade of journalism to make them better interviewers? It’s a topic we plumb annually at the Okoboji Writers’ Retreat. Journalism is as much a trade as a profession, work one learns through work. Now, I have an Exhibit A for two Interview Essentials in the mind-bending, genre-shattering [...]
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Getting out of the house is a challenge for Maria Bamford but a blessing for everyone else. This paradox sits at the heart of Judd Apatow and Neil Berkeley’s documentary, “Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story,” a film that is as much about the alchemy of turning personal torment into comedy as it is [...]
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Recently opened in Waukee’s Kettlestone Lakes development, Lux Asian Restaurant and Bar manifests the destiny of Vietnamese restaurants in the western suburbs. Vietnamese cafés are a bona fide treasure of inner-city Des Moines. Anthony Bourdain led off his Civic Center show in Des Moines by complimenting them. Their marvels have not previously translated to [...]
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The clear, cold water in my basement actually has a current. I wade in, slipping on the painted concrete. Hmmm … is it low tide or high tide? It’s certainly past my ankles. Two sump pumps are working at either end of the basement, pulling the water up and out the hoses going through the [...]
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Tallgrass Theatre Company delivers a double whammy of sass in its 2026 Dream Project show, “POTUS: Or Behind Every Dumb Ass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive.” This year’s dreamer is Director Bridget Grace Scheaf. Scheaf was recently interviewed about this production, giving plenty of enticing insights into this witty, biting, satirical romp [...]
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I’m not a believer. And if people ever ask me to explain what that means, I won’t tell them. You can interpret that however you want to. That’s fine by me. A week before writing this story, I took a trip to Farrar Elementary School in Maxwell. I knew nothing about it outside of what [...]
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People from every musical era experience teenage crushes with musicians. Mobs of screaming fans clamored to see the Beatles and Elvis Presley in the 1960s and 1970s. But in the late 1970s, one teen heartthrob stood out: Shaun Cassidy. With his feathered blonde hair and schoolboy charm, along with songs such as “Da Doo Ron [...]
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At car shows in Des Moines, most vehicles offer a description including how the owners obtained or rebuilt the car and the model specifics, among other factors. In the Cool Cars for Cats show, the car owners post specs of their rides, and several display pictures of their cats next to an open hood. Cool [...]
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As SUV and pickup truck sales soar, only a handful of sedans continue to be manufactured today. Yet, one sedan stands out decades later due to its reliability, price point and fuel efficiency — the Honda Civic. The Honda Civic began manufacturing in 1973 at the height of the oil crisis when car owners desired [...]
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Autumn’s usual run of high-profile auctions came with some big surprises. Both Fortune and Money Week wrote about collectors in their 20s becoming the biggest buyers of high-priced art. Unlike other post-Boomer age groups, Gen Z relishes Old Masters more than modern artists. A prized flower still life by Jan Brueghel the Elder changed hands [...]
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Jay Wang is the owner of Wasabi and its seven restaurants in central Iowa. Because Wasabi recently celebrated its 15th anniversary, we asked him to lunch, and he chose the Wasabi at 50th and Mills Civic Parkway in West Des Moines. Three days before our meeting, his house burned to ruin. Yet, he did not [...]
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Some dining venues attempt to cater to everyone and often get lost in an overloaded menu based on quantity rather than quality. Yet, one new spot with “just right” menu offerings in Adel knocks it out of the park. Great White Buffalo Public House opened in February 2025 across from the Dallas County Courthouse in [...]
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Government of the people belongs to the people. So, it should come as no surprise that one of their most frequent concerns is how government spends taxpayers’ money. Those concerns took me to Davenport a few weeks ago, where I spent more than an hour testifying in a lawsuit filed by Dr. Allen Diercks, [...]
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