Point Made

Like many of us, I have a strange habit. I write in a log book in the morning. I use a stenographers wire bound tablet. I record the day of the week, the date and the time I make my record. Then I put down the Temperature, the "feels like temperature," the sky conditions, the wind direction strength, and the highest wind speed in that day, the barometric Temperature, and the dew point. Then I jot down some goals for the day. I get this information from Weather Underground, and they tell me they are using Kimberly as the reference point for my zip code. I don't record it, but I also review the ten-day forecast Why do I do this? I started years ago when I saw the hostess of the country club dining room I was working in do it. She would occasionally refer to it when she wanted to evaluate staffing for the shift. No secret here. At a golf club, better weather is going to indicate more customers and vice versa. I suspect the chef would have appreciated the informa...

Mother Nature cast an icy stare in our direction this week. We went from a day in the sixties to subfreezing overnight. To make matters worse, the wind, sometimes gusting at over forty MPH, clocked from the south around to the Northeast in a twenty-four hour period, assuring that no matter which way you would rake your leaves, they would end up back on your lawn. Those of us living in the Fox Cities got about an inch of snow during this transition. It was the kind of snow you can live with. By that I mean it was somewhat pretty and you didn't have to shovel it. It also disappeared by Saturday. Maria and I got back on track this weekend. Early this fall we took advantage of Marcus theater's $5.00 Sunday. We bought $25.00 Passports that allowed us to see any film we wanted to see on Sunday up until December 4. Are first two weeks we watched, and presumably assisted in helping the box office, the number one film that weekend.The pass gave us the opportunity to experime...

If you know me, you're that I'm upset and exasperated. The Party of No has finally gotten what it wants, unabated control of all of the government. The Party of No's  first goal was to convince people that government was the enemy. They did it by letting the American People know that they were not alone with their prejudices. With a wink and a nod, it was okay to carry suspicion dislike for; people of color, foreigners, anyone not Christian or heterosexual. By diverting the attention of the electorate with astroturf campaigns for issues like abortion, prayer in school, gun rights and the sanctity of the flag, they have been able to pick the pocket of the average Joe Sixpack. The overall tactic was simple. The phrase "starves the beast" was put in practice by voting to give the electorate anything they wanted or needed, but refuse to fund the program. In many cases, programs like financial regulation and food plant inspections failed. These failures are not...

Years ago, two friends of mine, who have the kind of sense of humor and quick minds I love to hang with, pointed that the signs in Door County that advertised that U'Pick Em's were misleading in the sense that they were not a different kind of berry, but a discount for labor. They further educated me that 0%'s were neither a different model nor even a vehicle. The Poppa is batching it a Camp Jeff this weekend. The Maria is romping in the swamps of Louisana with the Coven of the South ( Linda & Meme) . It was pitched to me as an opportunity to have quality time with our dog, Lucy. I don't deny the fact that Lucy is glad somebody is home, but I don't think she is sleeping any less.  I sat with my friend Danny Chauvin and watched the Alabama / LSU game last night. We were actually in our homes, mine in Appleton, WI and he in Mandeville LA, but we IM'ed our feelings back and forth until the painful end. You can love them or hate them, but you have to ad...

There is the planned reconnection. 'Let's check in with each other on (fill in the date). If we're not married to anyone, maybe we should think about getting together.' Many of us went to our class reunion. It frightened me that many of my classmates had not changed at all, especially the high school sweethearts that married and are still married. But a spontaneous reconnection is always informative and for some reason more satisfying. It can be joyous. It can be sad. My joyful reunion came when I noticed a familiar name on Facebook. Char Van Astin commented on something I posted. I liked her site and back and forth went the comments, likes, etc. I called, left a voicemail. I met Bob Van Astin when we both worked at the company that required you to call on Monday to find out what the name of the company was. (Xpedex when they downsized me.)  Bob returned my call. We agreed to meet so we could catch up. Many of you might remember Spirit Halloween Stores. Afte...

George Will, Columnist and Chicago Cubs fan, once said, "They wouldn't be the Cubs if they didn't disappoint you". Let's hope that, like his abiding faith in right wing political precepts; Mr. Will is wrong. It' hard to see anything other than we have the first female president on our historical horizon. Aside from the possible contingent of over confident support for Hillary Clinton staying home, little stands in her way. What this means for us is going to play out in the next year. We can only hope. If she is elected, at least, we will be able to breathe again. Our backyard friend Tom, the Turkey, has been here and not here all week. I worry about him and what does that say about me? All I know when he does pop in I feel a little better. I've been told by many people not to fed him. He is a wild animal and to feed him would somehow domesticate his instincts. I'm still not sure of this evaluation, but I have no plans to buy a bag of cracked corn a...

No, this will not be a repudiation of the skyrocket on the fourth of July Presidential Bid by Donald Trump. I say skyrocket because, as the life of a skyrocket, his nomination and campaign is attention demanding during its launch, building interesting in its accent and awe-inspiring in its climax only to leave the night dark and quiet. No, I will not be writing about The Donald. Many of you remember Gordon, the Gecko. For some who may have forgotten, Gordon was my backyard companion in Mandeville, Louisiana. D espite my pleading, Gordon  chose not to migrate north with us. Silly Lizard! My guess is he believed those who told him about the weather. I have a new backyard buddy. Tom (sorry no poll to select his name this time) has taken up residence in our well-wooded backyard. I'm told that he is the victim of nature. We had a flock of six wild turkeys in our yard. We assumed that it was Mom, Dad, and four young ones. Probably not, we find. It seems that after th...