His ’n’ hers outhouse in southeast Iowa

The first thing that you might notice about Mike’s Auto and Salvage in Burlington is that, for a junk yard, it’s extraordinarily neat, clean and well mowed. From the office to the outbuildings and salvage yard, there is a place for everything and everything is in its place.

“That’s the only way to run a junk yard,” said Mike Massik III. “If you don’t, it’s total chaos!”

His father, Mike Massik Jr., started the business years ago just after World War II. Even the pens and pads of paper on the desk are lined up in tidy order. (My home office is more of a mess!)

And the people, most of them family, are friendly and polite — which ricochets down to the clientele who pop in and out. They know they’re going to get a fair shake on whatever kind of used auto part they need, so there’s no reason to get uptight, as can be the case at other salvage yards. There’s not even a mean junk yard dog to ward off strangers.

The same goes for the outhouse. There’s no indoor plumbing at Mike’s, but don’t let that keep you from using it. Mike’s outhouse has electricity, an electric light, outlet (in case you want to blow dry your hair), and two portals — one for female and one for male. “Public bathrooms have to be male and female,” Mike said. And women do use it, as Theresa Thomson, owner of Mike’s Auto, can attest.

As is often the case when people are pawing around the junk yard looking for parts, nature calls. The outdoor facility right there comes in handy. Letting ‘er fly out behind a pile of junk is considered crude and nonprofessional at Mike’s.

Actually, this is the second-generation outhouse at Mike’s. The original outhouse is still standing but has long since gone by the wayside as not meeting modern standards. It was a one-holer.

Mike’s outhouse wasn’t always equipped with 110 volt electricity. It originally had a battery-powered push light. But people kept leaving the light on and running the batteries down, so Mike decided to run electricity. It may be the only outhouse in southeast Iowa that has electric lights. Mike has never heard of another. Maybe Iowa. Maybe the Midwest. Maybe ... ? Oh, well. Better let ‘er go.