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By Tom White
Thursday, Feb 7 2008, 05:29 PM
Well, once again, Mother Nature gave our local news media plenty of fodder this week to continue with their on-going mission of striking fear into all of Southeastern Wisconsin. If you didn’t notice by looking outside, it snowed on Wednesday. And in case you missed that, all you had to do is tune to a local TV station, and they would have been sure to tell you all about it, again, and again, and again.
Did it snow on Wednesday? Yes.
Should elementary schools and daycare centers be closed in such a snowstorm? Yes.
Should we be so fearful of snow that we practically shut down the entire State of Wisconsin? No!
Last time I checked, snow is slippery, and yes, we should be cautious when driving on it, shoveling it or walking on it. However, this is also the same snow that we go sledding on, make snowmen out of, have snowball fights with, make snow forts out of, go skiing on, go snowmobiling on, etc., etc. etc. But the local news media would try and make you believe that snow is somehow toxic, and that any and all contact with it will likely bring you certain death. Of course, their news reporters must have some sort of specialized skill, education or snowsuits that we don’t, because they have no apparent problems getting out and about to give us 24-hour, “live and breaking” news coverage of every snowflake that falls and how quickly it is or isn’t plowed. The whole time, they’ll also scare us into believing that “this situation is dangerous, and you should all stay at home unless you absolutely must go out”. Well, I drove from my home in Hubertus down to my office near Mitchell Field for work yesterday morning. I then cautiously drove home in the afternoon, and I’m here to say that I am still alive and well.
I don’t mean to sound like “Mr. Tough Guy” or anything, but I just think we have gotten too far out of hand when it comes to how we deal with snow around here. I think it’s time Wisconsinites put on their big-girl-panties, and deal with the snow as it comes. It’s not the first time we’ve had snow, and it won’t be the last. It’s not only unnecessary, but in my opinion, unprofessional for the news media to somehow suggest that we are all going to die each and every time we get more than a couple inches of snow.
G’Night G’Town!
Don't knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldn't start a conversation if it didn't change once in a while. ~Kin Hubbard
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By Tom White
Thursday, Jan 31 2008, 12:55 PM
Years ago, before my wife Steph and I had kids, we had a running joke with our friends Tim and Debbie. Tim and Debbie shared a mutual “dislike” for crying and screaming babies with us. When we were out-on-the-town, we’d joke amongst ourselves that “They are playing our song” whenever we heard a crying baby.
Well, years later, Tim and Debbie are now the proud parents of their two boys, Joey and Michael, and Steph and I have our little beauties, Buck and Lyndsy. While having kids of your own certainly puts screaming and crying kids into perspective, I’d be lying if I said the noise of a whining kid has gotten any easier for me. Well, I guess it has a little, but crying to me is as bad as hearing fingernails scratched on a chalkboard.
Which brings me to our son Buck…bless his over rambunctious little self. You see, Buck has been quite the whiner since the day he was born. Don’t get me wrong or anything, Steph and I love him to death, but he literally hasn’t stopped crying in his three years on this planet! He was very colicky as an infant, and is just plainly a “cry-baby” now as a toddler. We’ve tried all the tricks to break his habits of whining, but not many work for long, so we simply give him our love and accept him for who he is.
Okay, I’m probably being a little harsh on the boy, as he doesn’t cry all the time. However, the poor little fella' came down with the flu this past weekend, and hasn’t stopped crying or whining for 6 days straight. Steph and I are doing our best to give each other breaks from his persistent wailing, but honestly, it’s been a long week. Luckily, it appears he is at the tail end of it, and we’ll soon have our little bundle of joy back.
Oops, got to run now, I think I hear them playing our song!
G’Night G’Town!
The soul would have no rainbow had the eyes no tears. ~John Vance Cheney
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