The frequent start and stop of Chicago gave way to flat winter beaten fields. The day was a bright almost silvery blue, and uncomfortably warm for late March. I thought I would like the large open spaces of the Mid-West, I’ve always been one for skies, but I found this stretch of road to be uncomfortable. It’s strange how exposed you can feel when there are few trees and a seemingly infinite horizon. I thought, this is why people build houses, to have some amount of privacy from the rest of the world. I was a little relieved to reach the Mississippi river and the rolling topography of Iowa.