Here are seven things I've learned moving from Southern California to Iowa City, including breakfast pizza and winters
When you say yes to a job in a city you’d never seen photos of until you applied, located in a state you’ve never visited, set in an area of the country you don’t even have family in, your Google searches look a bit something like this:
How do you drive in the snow?
What kind of jackets do I need for the snow?
How close is Coralville to Iowa City?
Where is the nearest airport?
Who is the mayor of Iowa City?
What to do during a tornado?
I still don’t know the answer to the first question beyond slow and keep a nice distance between you and the car in front of you.
I’ve worked at the Iowa City Press-Citizen for one year and 11 months — technically I was hired in June 2021 but my first byline was in July — as the entertainment and features reporter, though my work has touched on a bit of everything, especially recently.
Some of you may know I come from Southern California, where I lived my entire life. If we’ve ever spoken and you asked me that question, I’d tell you I lived east of Los Angeles. It’s the equivalent of asking someone from Illinois where they live and them responding with “outside of Chicago,” I’ve learned.
I started as an entertainment reporter for the Des Moines Register on Monday, ending my time with the Press-Citizen.
Here are seven things I learned while living in Iowa City and head out to Des Moines:
No, those sirens you hear every first Wednesday of the month aren’t real
For the record, I knew that. My poor mom, who helped move me in? She didn’t. She and my dad were in downtown Iowa City while I worked. She was terrified, according to my dad.
Breakfast pizza, scotcheroos and walking tacos. Yes, yes, and no, thank you
I’ve only had breakfast pizza from Casey’s, not Kum & Go — which some folks have told me is the better spot. I didn’t feel particularly good after my "breakfast," but it was tasty. Iowa City native and Press-Citizen photojournalist Joseph Cress introduced me to pickle wraps and scotcheroos. Divine.
Walking tacos?
Not my thing. My chips got soggy far too quickly.
Oh, and I’m a big fan of Culver’s. So is my In-N-Out Burger fanatic of a brother who tried it when he visited.
Don’t wait until noon to find a spot to tailgate for an Iowa Hawkeyes football game
Go early.
It’s that simple. I was lucky to find a space near the English-Philosophy Building at the University of Iowa to set up camp.
There’s a reason why there is a saying 'deer in headlights'
I’ve seen deer before. Never while I was driving in SoCal. Certainly not late at night, when the darkness practically hides them save for the gleam of their eyes. Thankfully, no other cars were around.
It’s cold. You have to layer up.
I wore leggings and a turtleneck underneath nearly every outfit during the winter. I was gifted thermals for the holidays by my family. I’d never owned a thermal prior to that. In the first few months here, I found myself at Scheels staring at a rack of winter gloves, scratching my head at what I should purchase. The gloves I wore during “cold” days back home would no longer suffice.
Life doesn’t stop because it snows
I remember stepping into the Foundry Food + Tap in Coralville after some serious snowfall earlier this year, thinking, “No one is going to be here."
I was wrong.
I’m so glad. That said, I’ve learned never to waste a day of good weather.
There’s still so much to learn about Iowa
The beauty of this, I've discovered, is that people are eager to explain, to point me in the right direction, to provide recommendations and to correct mispronunciation.
I’m talking about you, Ely.
Paris Barraza covers entertainment, lifestyle and arts at the Des Moines Register. Reach her at pbarraza@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @ParisBarraza.
This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: 7 things our entertainment reporter has learned living in Iowa City
