June 18, 2008 9:09PM

It Smells…Like a Pig Farm

By Robert Ray

5:25pm

Today I write from Iowa City. Home of the University of Iowa and if I remember correctly one hell of a party school. That’s just what I heard.

The campus smells like a pig farm.

Seriously, I am not kidding with you. Anyone who has ever been to a pig farm will understand. But, for those of you wondering, let me explain.
You see, a pig farm is usually in a rural, less traveled region with lots of green pastures or corn stalks, cows and small kittens running around. A pig farm looks like that except it smells like pigs. Pigs smell like a towel that has been wet and soaking in the sun for about three weeks. Now, the wet substance on that towel is likely not water but rather…well…you get the point.

In college I had a friend who grew up on a pig farm.

I really liked hanging out with this guy, he was chuckler. One weekend he asked me to visit his farm. I am from Chicago and the farm intrigued me. Long story short, we ended up riding his fathers’ pigs for two days, yeah, riding them. I sat on top of the pig and the pig would run and I would go flying off it into the pig mud and the pig smell. Look, I’m neither proud nor ashamed, I’m just saying.

When I arrived on campus today I had a pig riding flashback. So, in case you are wondering what all this means then I hope you now get it. Thanks.

The Iowa River overflowed its banks with a more unwanted substance than maybe it should have. So when the temperature is 80 degrees and the sun is baking and the water is sitting and the mud is muddy and the clean up trucks are loud and the sandbags are festering and the….ok……I digress.

Flooding smells.

My assumption that the people of Iowa City are as tested and strong as the folks up in Cedar Rapids was correct. Amazing spirit and just plain old NICE.

Yup, NICE, Iowa is NICE.

Every story is important to me, but it’s those that I can put a face or a SMELL with that I never forget.

5:40pm