Here and

now we are in Burlington, Iowa.
An odd sized town, full of many things, an australian coffee shop, many empty storefronts, a huge beautiful library, here, and we are dry and warm for the first time today.
The Iowa river came in and confirmed our suspicions of late that we are going
2 miles an hour.
amazing.
the town of keithsburg came and went
with its trains toppled from the flood
its watermarks at chest level
its old old buildings derelict and sighing
its populus, living their entire lives in this tiny river
view

and we spent the night tied up on a beach next to (as we will again tonght) our new friends

Doug and Laura from madison

floating now since Wabasha in a houseboat running solar power
floating a little past the current
a little past us in the current
but stopping just long enough for us to catch up
again and again

i think we're having
venison shitake stroganoff
with them tonight.
slumber party
and music.

We talk about the end of the world. about the economy crubling.
i wonder what signs will tip us off
(here on the river)
to it when it crashes.... maybe the barges will stop. maybe everyone will hide in their houses.

but the strings of cormarants flying north and then south
and the pelicans intermingling with them
the duck blinds fooling even us humans
the rain coming and the wind changing
the blankets increasing in number
the knitting increasing in haste

continuing on and steady.

breathtaking. color changing.
we're so lucky here.