Some parts of Clinton looked better than others.

I, for one, thought it had a pretty nice looking courthouse.

My trip through western Illinois the night before had been perfect, in a Midwestern way--an empty interstate drifting through the golden haze of setting sunlight, reflected by the tassels of corn and soybeans spreading out to the horizon. But the scenery only got better as I drove through northern Iowa the next day, on my way to the evening's new destination of suburban Coon Rapids, Minnesota. The open plains of Illinois gave way to the rolling countryside of Iowa and the occasional, verdant view of the mighty Mississippi river.

This was my ineffectual attempt to capture the bucolic perfection of it all. Where's Grant Wood when you need him?

The last stop in Iowa was the pretty little college town of Decorah.

Its courthouse offered me a unique posing opportunity.