Getting in touch with a politician is the nightmare of any interested constituent. That is especially the case with anyone who tries to get in touch with high-level politicians such as senators, representatives and presidents. The longer a man or woman has held office, the harder it feels to contact him or her personally on the phone, through email or in person.

Iowa’s own Sen. Chuck Grassley, however, tends to defy those low expectations. Now in office for more than 30 years, he is known for a wide range of constituent outreach that other Americans can only dream about in their wildest fantasies. Grassley makes a point of visiting each of Iowa’s 99 counties annually.

In addition to returning to Washington, D.C., for each and every vote, he has been known to visit events that have little impact on politics, such as the Iowa Federation of College Republicans’ yearly convention. It is not uncommon for him to arrive unannounced, without the trappings of a six-term U.S. senator, and immediately begin talking to whichever students he encounters.

Grassley also tweets — as in Twitter — on his own, separate from his formal office account. To date, he has tweeted 1,820 times. We can think of few more desirable qualities in a modern politician than such an eagerness to connect with people.

The fact that he has one in addition to his official office’s account probably means that he’s having fun with public life — something we should all do much more often. There is humor left in the world; taking everything seriously all the time reduces us to something less than human.

How else could you explain tweets such as these?

“@SMJBretH i refuse to mow in march”

“Watch the nonhistory channel. “top gear”is on. Real educational!!!!!!!”

“Had opp too watch SCOTUS procdings this am. Interesting and educational. Wish all Americans could see. Need 2 pass my cameras in courts leg”

“Q&A w studnts from Shenandoah on Sen steps during their trip”

“Really enjoyed service at Imago Christi Cedar Rapids today. Dovovan had good msg. @gladchurch”

Sometimes improper use of punctuation, capitalization, grammar and abbreviations can be frustrating. It is probably frustrating to you, as a reader, when you see it in this or any other newspaper. Simple errors make it harder to take the offender seriously.

Heck, if you’ve applied for a job, chances are good that you’ve listed “attention to detail” as one of your special qualities. After all, so the saying goes, the devil’s in the details.

The frequency of Grassley’s flagrant disregard of punctuation rules suggests that something else may be going on. It appears that his mistakes stem more from a zeal to communicate with his constituents both as their senator, giving them important information on public issues and policy, and as a person. It would count as a loss to Iowans if he stopped or did so less frequently. In an era when politics is about partisanship and we allow for few forays into spunk and fun, Grassley’s tweets are refreshing.