Takin' the Blog for a Walk

It took all day to realize but I had a good day today. Found a dollar among some plants outside Midwest Express Center and got a free case of soda from the manager at Pick 'n Save by pointing out the wrong price on the shelf label. Doesn't take much to make me happy.

You don't have to be that lucky to find a bargain. Hidden treasures await you at the semiannual parish rummage sale starting Thursday 9/28 at St. William, 440 N. Moreland Blvd.

Even though the best selection can be found Thursday and Friday between 8:00 a.m and 6:00 p.m., the best bargains are on the last day, Saturday the 30th from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. when everything is marked half price. I've been know to stop first thing Saturday morning to grab a good deal on a bike.

The St. William rummage isn't the only bargain in town Thursday through Saturday. Weisgerber's Gasthaus has set up a tent in their parking lot at the corner of Grandview and Silvernail for their first Octoberfest. The event is free but, to raise funds for a museum, the food and beverages are extra.

See you there.

I'll bet most of us in Waukesha feel we can get a pretty good view of the stars and planets by just stepping outside at night. For stargazers though, it's obvious what city lights do to diminish the nighttime experience.

I understand budget cuts the city is facing so I'm not against the proposition of a cell tower on Lowell Park hill. It could provide up to $20,000 yearly for the city. The tower, as proposed, would resemble the flag pole at UWW and presumably have a flag flying from it. The flag would have to be replaced occasionally by an as yet unnamed party.

I'm not a big fan of the flag pole at UWW because the powerful spotlight it uses shines straight up and can be seen a good mile away, but at least it's in a good location--at a school. Installing a cell tower on Lowell Hill maybe isn't such a bad idea if it keeps my taxes in check but pretending the thing is a flag pole, in the middle of a park, is a little hard to swallow. If the idea is to light it anyway, like the toboggan slide that's lit year round for two weeks of use, then fly the flag. If it doesn't have to be lit, then don't fly the flag.

Better yet, to slow down the development of the top of Lowell Hill, (one thing you'll never see there is an astronomical observatory), why not incorporate the tower with the toboggan slide if that's possible? It's already lit.

Had some fry-ku published in today's Weekend Cue section. Haiku about french fries.

Will be helping out at Retzer Nature Center's Apple Harvest Festival tomorrow, Saturday the 23rd. If the weather's nice or if you've never been to it before, you should think about stopping for a while. It's really a great time at a great place. Of course, Retzer is nice any time of the year.

The odd thing about yesterday wasn't that a family member had the same surgery second time in less than two months. It wasn't that the whole family slept, or tried to sleep, at Waukesha Memorial Hotel (oops, I meant Hospital) to keep company after the surgery, though that itself was odd enough to keep the kids home from school Friday. Too tired, they said.

We had an unusual bit of country in the city yesterday as we walked toward the car to go to the hospital. We saw a rabbit running down the sidewalk. On two legs. Held aloft by a huge hawk's talons. The bird traveled forward with the adult-sized catch but just couldn't get it all the way airborne. We watched until it landed at the end of the block on a terrace next to Grandview Blvd. We drove that way as we left and didn't startle it so we got a pretty good look at a magnificient bird of prey fixing itself breakfast.

One less rabbit for Sir Fido to chase but still plenty to go around.

The 70's rock group YES had it surprisingly close with their hit song Roundabout.
In and around the lake
Mountains come out of the sky and they stand there
One mile over we'll be there and we'll see you.

Mere blocks from Lake Michigan and exactly one mile south of the highrise "mountains" of downtown Milwaukee is the Sixth Street roundabout. Because the roundabout is two blocks from where I work I've been through it hundreds of times. I can say from experience that the roundabout is not that bicycle friendly and has seen more than it's share of fender-benders, but it does seem to move traffic.

Giving directions through the Sixth Street roundabout is tricky because there's more than just two intersecting streets. It could have been a lot worse if I hadn't noticed some unfamiliar street names a few weeks before the roundabout opened. Thanks to my phone calls the city changed two street signs before opening the intersection. We will never have to tell someone "go three quarters of the way around the circle before getting off at Nicholas, or is it Alexander Street, which becomes Florida, or is it Virginia Street?"

Call it morning driving thru the sound and in and out the valley.

Milwaukee's second roundabout has been around only a year or so in the noisy Menomonee Valley at 25th and Canal Streets. It's a simpler and smaller intersection than Sixth Street's with no traffic lights nearby to slow people down. I pass through it pretty quickly in the morning whenever I drive to work. I don't know of any accidents there---yet.

I'll be the roundabout
the words will make you out 'n' out
and change the day your way

The house I grew up in is the next one to the west of the State's proposed location for Waukesha's first roundabout at Summit Ave. and University Dr.. I lived in the area for many years and currently use the intersection after dropping my son at Waukesha North in the morning so I'm familiar with the situation; traffic on Summit doesn't stop and cars on University Drive get backed up. It leads to people taking chances and some of those chances become serious accidents.

I don't think we need a traffic light at University and Summit, cars would still back up there. We need a gateway to the City of Waukesha, a roundabout.

The roundabout at Sixth Street in Milwaukee took some getting used to (and some will never get used to it) but I feel Waukesha drivers would adapt pretty easily.

Today is my son's golden birthday. Great dad that I am, was at work all day and had an important meeting all night. If all goes well he'll have a party on Saturday. Big if. A family member has surgery scheduled for next week but may have to have it sooner. So we'll keep our eyes crossed and hope that doesn't happen.

My oldest son just had a birthday a week ago so it's been busy here.

Now that school's started can fundraising be far behind? The 3-1/2 year old daughter of a coworker started school this year. They call it pre3. She's not even four and she's selling magazines, food and giftwrap for the school's operating expenses and class projects. My child just came home Tuesday with magazine order forms. Now, how is he going to compete against a cute 3-1/2 year old girl selling magazines?

_________addendum 9/17, after the birthday party___________

The weather for the birthday was perfect but, as it turned out, we did have to run a family member to the emergency room, just not the same person scheduled for surgery this week. My cute niece, who just turned five, accidently ran into the corner of the wall and cut her ear open. She was able to leave the party, get one stitch, and make it back before the party was over. Talk about stealing the thunder from the birthday boy! That brave little girl sure was the center of attention when she got back.

If you're among the 70-odd percent that will be too busy Tuesday to take five minutes to vote in the primary then you can save valuable time and stop reading now. However, if you're planning on making a difference Tuesday...

A Republican I'm not but I'll be voting that way come Tuesday. Both Paul Bucher for Attorney General and Brad Schimel for Waukesha District Attorney have been endorsed by the Journal Sentinel among many, many others. Paul will still have his day at the polls come November once he beats J.B. Van Hollen in the primary. Brad, on the other hand, will learn Tuesday whether he succeeds Paul as Waukesha's newest D.A. because his only opposition is from another Republican. For Brad, this primary is just as important as the general election.

I'm biased because I don't know Dennis Krueger or J.B. Van Hollen, Mr. Bucher and Mr. Schimel's competition in the primary. Even so, I know Paul and Brad will do an outstanding job for for our county and our state. I'm proud to know them and glad we're given the choice of these two great candidates.

I know you didn't miss me but I've been gone. "Takin the blog for a Wauk" disappeared from Tuesday through Friday of this week for some unknown reason and could have been lost forever. However, thanks to some great work by the IT people, all I lost was my four September postings. For your reading pleasure I'll rewrite the best of the four.

Sax appeal

Would you give up anything to see and hear a world-class Jazz saxophonist at Carroll College?
Are fifteen dollar tickets too expensive for a 90 minute concert by someone who's worked with Michael Bolton and Diana Ross, among others?

I know fifteen dollars is a lot of money, especially if you're broke, so that's why I'm telling you about Johan Stengard's September 23rd concert. Thanks to sponsors, fifteen dollars of every fifteen dollar ticket sold will benefit the needy of Waukesha through the area St. Vincent De Paul conferences. As a Vincentian myself, I know there are poor and needy in Waukesha who could always use a little extra help.

This is the one concert I know everyone will enjoy and you'll be helping the needy. If you are interested in more info, contact me. If you'd like to purchase tickets, call 547-2763 ext. 201.

The St. Vincent De Paul Society and Waukesha's needy thank you.