CathyBlogs with Common Sensibilities

Betty White Birth Certificate | President Obama | Mediaite

2012-01-17T11:19:00.000-05:00

Betty White Birth Certificate | President Obama | Mediaite:

Gotta watch the video!

'via Blog this'

Amber Recker has my vote!

2012-01-16T11:58:00.000-05:00

JournalGazette.net - Business | The Journal Gazette | Fort Wayne, IN:

Don's miss this article in the Monday Journal-Gazette about Amber Recker. She's energy in motion! Be sure to check out her blog, too ( “The Ginger Kitchen,” on www.thegingerkitchen.com)

'...What are your goals: To be mayor of Fort Wayne. “In all seriousness,” she quickly adds. Recker said she envisions running for the city’s top office in the 2027 election. Recker said she loves Fort Wayne and appreciates how easy it is to get involved. “If you want to make a big difference, you can,” she said. On a more personal level, Recker said her goals include having a healthy and happy family and a successful career, wherever that career will lead....'

'via Blog this'

The (desperate) need for political statesmen (and women)

2012-01-16T11:51:00.000-05:00

JournalGazette.net - Editorial columns | The Journal Gazette | Fort Wayne, IN:

An excellent column by Will Clark in yesterday's Journal-Gazette that no political grown-up should miss:

'...As we plunge into the political races for the year, several things come to mind for many of us. Among these are the lack of responsibility, the ultra-high level of partisanship and the low level of civility that pervade Congress....' Worth reading it all!

'via Blog this'

Local media: Lost opportunities

2012-01-15T20:48:00.001-05:00

Dear WANE-TV Newschannel 15:

You are missing, I believe, a huge marketing opportunity in the bad-beard department, given the excellent clean-shaven-ness of Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Condor.
For example, 'Watch the weather report with the meteorologist with a face as smooth as your neighbors' newly snow-blown driveway!' or
'Watch the weather with your eyes wide open!' or
'Watch the weather that does not cause you to send your children from the room!' or,
perhaps most effective "Watch the weather that does not give you the willies!'

What books do at night

2012-01-10T09:24:00.000-05:00

Happy Christmas!

2011-12-25T09:54:00.003-05:00

From the staff of CathyBlogs, HAPPY CHRISTMAS!

PUPPIES. Christmas. Watch.

2011-12-18T21:11:00.000-05:00

Pearl Harbor from above, 1941-2011

2011-12-07T08:10:00.000-05:00

Pearl Harbor from above, 1941-2011

Great photos from MSNBC photoblog.

Blogged and flogged: Writing and redemption

2011-11-14T20:25:00.001-05:00

Fort Wayne's own Tim Goeglein has risen from the ashes, and, we can only hope, with more originality than when he descended into them.
Goeglein was rather a Fort wunderkind, writing for the News Sentinel and reporting for WANE-TV while in high school. He worked in media and politics after college, and ended up running George Bush the Second's Office of Public Liaison. He also continued to write guest columns -- full of local memory and personal sentiment -- for the NS.
Until 2008, when former NS columnist Nancy Nall used a hunch and a little internet investigative reporting to uncover an unfortunate dependence on plagiarism on Mr. Goeglein's part.
Goeglein has written a book, The Man in the Middle: An Inside Account of Faith and Politics in the George W. Bush Era. So why not refresh our memories of blog posts past?
Read Nancy Nall's original blog post here. It may load slowly; I have a feeling her site traffic is going to go up this week.
Read an interview on First Things about the new book with Mr. Goeglein here.
And here's his Wikipedia entry.

Best Fort Wayne: Rollerdoming

2011-11-13T21:26:00.001-05:00

The clothes, the phones, the music say 2011 ...
the sound of skates on wood, the hokey-pokey, kids having fun -- timeless.

I believe in convergence and serendipity.
This weekend, I am reading Stephen King's new book, '11/22/63,' set in present day ... and 1958. I turned 3 late in 1958, so my memories of that year are other people's, like my mom's, or otherwise acquired by study, reading, TV, pop culture (and Happy Days, ack).
Stephen King -- seven years older than me -- would have slightly better memories; he's better at research, too (well, let's face it, he's better at a LOT of stuff), so this book rather a primer for us on 1958s Americana. And so vivid that you can almost smell the cigarette smoke, taste the root beer, hear the music.
(Well, wait. I actually did hear the music yesterday during lunch at Culvers, which seems to be stuck near a time portal similar to that in King's book.)
Somewhere I didn't hear the music, but did step into a '50s vibe -- Rollerdome North. Even in 2011, a new 8-year-old thinks a rollerskating party is a cool thing to do.
Not that the Rollerdome is stuck in the past -- oh, the kids are doing the hokey-pokey and turning it all about once a session -- but mostly it's all music from this century, nice and loud, and sharing that thumping bass beat with its rock roots.
Once upon a time, I wrote a story for Business People magazine about floating wood flooring -- for places like gyms and roller rinks. So I spent an hour or so with a member of the owners, the Wall family, learning just enough to be able to write a feature about that part of their business. It seems they still sell floors.
But they also sell rollerskating, and if the kids are different now in some ways -- in fashion, haircuts, electronics, attitude -- on a Sunday afternoon in the dusky, ear-splitting rink, I bet Mrs. Wall, who still takes sells your ticket and buzzes you in, and later thanks you as she hands you a flyer as you leave, would find more similarities than not.
Even the skates, which seems to have morphed from rollerblades back to four-wheeled toe-stoppers, have gone retro. So when you look out into the rink, there's no need for an Instagram filter, for it's all there: the muffled roar and slap of skates on wood, the confetti light from the disco ball, the bass tattoo, the graceful swoop of a skating pro, the tumbling step of a little kid, the giggling, squealing girls, the rough-housing boys. The D.J. in the corner, like a beneficent Oz, queuing up music, directing traffic, granting birthday wishes, ushering one session out and another in. Even as the Rollerdome has ushered several generations in -- and out, and back again.
I think King is onto something; the past is no farther away than a step and swoop into the 'Dome.
Special bonus link: Who knew that one of the Wall kids -- Kevin -- 'is a producer, digital entrepreneur and environmentalist who creates and produces global events often viewed by a billion or more people '? More here.

An Interview with Michael Martone | The Lit Show

2011-11-11T13:23:00.000-05:00

An Interview with Michael Martone | The Lit Show

Just came across this interview with Fort Wayne's own Michael Martone:

'Martone’s large body of work confuses the boundaries of fiction and fact, memoir and essay. At the same time he has emerged as a defining chronicler of the Midwestern experience, and he has edited several collections of essays and photographs in an effort to define that amorphous region.

An Interview with Michael Martone | The Lit Show

Martone was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and is currently Professor of English and Director of the Creative Writing Program at the University of Alabama. He is the author of, most recently, Four for a Quarter, a work of fiction whose subject and structure are defined by the number four....' Read more:

Not Christmas Yet: Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T09:45:00.001-04:00

Best Fort Wayne: State championships

2011-10-30T01:32:00.000-04:00

I'm still tired from when our kids won Class A State Band Championship in '92 (Angela was a band aid); '94 (her sophomore and Tony's freshman year); '95 (junior and sophomore) and '96 (Angela's senior senior year). Some of the longest, funnest, best-memory days of our kids' childhoods.
But the lessons they learned (besides flute and trumpet) in working hard, winning well, losing with grace, and sticking together have lasted until today.
Today, when the Homestead Spartan Alliance Marching Band won its 5th championship. It was their 25th consecutive appearance in state finals, and it's Steve Barber's 25th year as HHS band director.
Homestead band bringing home state championship | The Journal Gazette | Fort Wayne, IN
Spartan Alliance Band - JournalGazette.net | The Journal Gazette | Fort Wayne, IN
From IndianaMarching.com, picture of the Class A retreat
Complete state finals placings from ISSMA

First Friday of the Apocalypse: What's your number

2011-10-28T09:50:00.000-04:00

There's so much coverage of Earth's 7 billionth person that I think reporters must be out counting babies somewhere, trying to scoop each other. And there's so much negative coverage it seems the apocalypse is (ONCE AGAIN!) upon us. Is it spooky the U.N. has picked Halloween as the tipping point?
Are you feeling guilty by being one of the 7 billion? I hope so. The pending apocalypse is all your fault.
Leave it to the BBC to illustrate your exact placement in the blame.

I'm feeling pretty special; just call me Miss 2,790,327,717. And looking at the chart, I'd say the 20th century was pretty damn good for people. Just in time for the apocalypse! Maybe even the zombie apocalypse!

Speaking of apocalypses!

Be ready for the zombie apocalypse! The CDC is!
Don't feel real optimistic about surviving it? No worries! Protect your loved ones with Frank Lesser's Living Dead Will.

You oughta know: Thursday's good stuff

2011-10-27T21:22:00.001-04:00

Some days are like arid wastelands on the internets, when one's RSS feeds look enticing, but turn out to be a cruel mirage.
Luckily, today was not that type of day.

I grabbed the USAToday from the editorial table and read about the first African Americans who served in the Marines. Called the Montford Marines (for where they were sent to train), they were disrespected and forgotten during and after WWII, although they served honorably and well. But at last, present-day Marines are making sure they are forgotten no longer.

Back at the desk, it was Terry Gross on Fresh Air that kept me entertained:

A repeat interview with Jimmy Fallon, who talks about his career, his new book, his childhood and Saturday Night Live. He and Terry should have a show. Great to listen to if you're feeling a little down.

And finally, Terry interviews Steve Jobs's biographer, Walter Isaacson.If the internets has been a little too effusive about some who, let's remember, put his black turtleneck on one arm at a time like the rest of us, Isaacson reminds us that Jobs was brilliant, cranky, prickly, and capable of great kindness.

Social climbing: Bacon with a side of Facebook

2011-10-26T22:04:00.000-04:00

I mentioned on Facebook that I attended Social Media Breakfast Fort Wayne, and one of my friends commented that seemed a little counter-intuitive; why should social media people need face-to-face contact? And yet again this month, we proved that, as helpful and powerful as social media can be, IRL conversation and camaraderie is as much a part of 'social' as Facebook and Twitter.
The 'media,' being, in this case breakfast.
As informative and immediate as Twitter is, as powerful at relationship-building as Facebook is, nothing beats bacon for bringing people together.
It was great to hear the panel talk about how social media had changed their lives, and how they balanced personal and business accounts and interaction.
I'm still trying to decide how it went for me. A tablemate (who's a FB fan) made a comment about the way I manage social media for work. And it wasn't positive. Suddenly, the bacon, so crispy and crunchy just a minute before, felt lumpy in my tummy. As much as I enjoyed the breakfast and conversation, I muddled over the errant remark.
We may or may not make a strategic change with our FB pages because of one random comment. But even one negative comment can be starting point for a constructive conversation, and that's good.
And, anyway: bacon.

Walk on by: You can't see the forest because the trees are dead

2011-10-25T18:59:00.000-04:00

I'm going to write a science fiction novel novel, and call it: 'All the Trees Are Dead.'
Except it's real.

Well, that was just depressing, so I'll leave you with this:
Young maples in a row, like flaming matchsticks soon to burn out,
leaves falling like embers.

Best Fort Wayne: Halloweekend

2011-10-23T21:09:00.001-04:00

Okay, it's not quite the same during the afternoon as in the old days at night. But Halloween at the Ft. Wayne Children's Zoo, daytime style, has rewards. For example, better pictures. (Fright Night Downtown, with its Zombie Walk -- on Saturday night -- might become a useful stand-in for those needing terror instead of treats.)
For the preschool and elementary-school crowd, the painted pumpkins, sweet treats, train ride and chance to wear one's mermaid costume is the best Halloween has to offer.

Strawberry Shortcake, a mermaid, Spider-girl, and a puppy walk into a zoo....

Nice effect courtesy of the Reef. No Photoshopping necessary.

One last train ride for the year.

What a great idea, Zoo! Teeny little pumpkins for teeny little people.

Uncle Matt tried to tell the puppy where to go, but she seemed to have a mind of her own.

One wacky set of sisters.

And then some spookiness happened anyway.

'Are they real?' the mermaid and Strawberry asked about the tree faces along the train ride.

Yoda there he was.

Since the grownups get shorted in the treat department, dinner and a trip to DeBrands
seemed in order, and was enjoyed by all. Talk about the best of Fort Wayne.

First Friday of the Apocalypse: 100% chance of zombies

2011-10-21T14:20:00.004-04:00

I opened the garage door this morning and the world was so quiet and still.
Of course my first thought was that the Zombie Apocalypse was upon us and I was the only one left. I took a moment to nation-build (The Starbucks are MINE! The new capitol is DISNEY WORLD! The bottom of the food pyramid is CUPCAKES!); then, my neighbor drove by.
And I realized: It had quit raining.

Think different

2011-10-05T22:14:00.004-04:00

Best tribute to Steve Jobs
Caroline, age 7, was playing Angry Birds on my iPhone when I heard it beep.
She handed it to me and I saw the MSNBC push alert that Steve Jobs had died.
I then used it to text Tony and Greg about Steve.
I handed it back to Caroline and she proceeded to start Netflix to watch Phineas and Ferb.
Later, on the way home, I called Tony to talk about it.
Anybody can use an iPhone, but it took a genius to think one up.

Consequences of a Slow-moving Low

2011-09-28T22:18:00.000-04:00

Today’s last rain baptized
Another new night. Which fell fast,
the morning’s promise having failed
to deliver much.
Behind lingering clouds languished
What should have been sunset.
Pale light winking out behind
A slim rent in the clouds.

Nine One Twelve

2011-09-12T21:39:00.000-04:00

What know you, September moon, whom some call Harvest?

If tonight you stare, with naked curiosity, through this clear evening's dark lens,

You'll see too much. Tomorrow, you'll begin that long, slow blink;

A protective reflex, cyclic therapy. One night soon your sleep will come,

Sweet surcease under quiet stars. Hide your eyes all you want, Diana;

Here we teem, live, love, wreck, build, -- and stare back. Do you dream

Of us?

This way to downtown

2011-08-30T22:43:00.001-04:00

I've wrung the best out of a lot of days, but I don't know if I've ever wrung Fort Wayne so thoroughly, and in ways both unique, and ordinary.

Peter Facinelli
(Dr. Carlisle Cullen, 'Twilight' films)

We hit Jefferson Pointe early and got a peek at Peter Facinelli, Dr. Carlisle Cullen of Twilight series fame. We didn't pony up for the $25 autographs and $40 pictures, but I hope most of that money from the fans in the long, long line makes its way to Alex's Lemonade Stand.

I can't help but be curious how much one pays a movie star to sit by the fountain at a lifestyle center in Fort Wayne, Indiana, for an afternoon. So this one goes in the 'unique column.'

Caroline plays Upward soccer at Crosswinds Church

If you live in Fort Wayne, and you don't have a child's sporting event to attend on a Saturday, well, then not only do you get to sleep in, you get to take a nap, both.

Since Caroline (on the right, kicking) had a 2 p.m. game, and our day started with a movie star sighting, no sleep for us. Go Hungry!

Freimann Square Taste of the Arts

The lure of 29 area fooderies, a plethora of music, and a dash of art was more than enough to get us downtown late afternoon.

Taste of the Arts took over Freimann Square and Main Street, and it was hard to know where to hit first. The band playing by the fountain? The artists on the north side of Main?

No contest. Get your tickets and start sampling the best food in the Midwest. Baker Street, those Nacho Sashimi ... marvelous.

End Time Spasm Band performs

We listened to End Time Spasm Band, and what a strange and wonderful mix of swing, jazz and tin pan alley. People ... actually danced. Amazing. I could hardly watch the band for watching the dancers. The energy of the lead singer was so great, it even affected a Fort Wayne audience that is usually not much more than toe-tappers.

See trolley, ride trolley.

The lure of more music and, perhaps, for some members of our party, more sports led us to hop on the trolley and find more adventure. Or at least more music.

Rock. Plaza. Library. Good.

How stupid were we to not get down to this place sooner in the summer. Elephants in Mud, The Borrowed Time Band, and Unlikely Alibi played Saturday night, and wow. Awesome.

Sellout at the TinCaps;
BirdZerk &BallZerk in attendance, too

Just a short walk to the best place in Fort Wayne, where another sellout crowd ate, cheered, sang, laughed, and watched the TinCaps beat the Lugnuts on a warm and sweet summer night. All it needed was fireworks, which it had, too.

Back at the library, still rocking the plaza.

We caught the last band back at the library plaza, where the crowd had not dwindled, nor the evening. This view from behind the stage is probably the closest I'll ever be to a rock star. It seemed like it would be pretty cool. I refrained from any air guitar.

And then it's over.

Another trolley ride back to Main Street, where Dessert was wrapping up Taste of the Arts. Not sure what band it was -- whomever was playing about 10:30. I was beat, but the band sure wasn't.

Who knew that an ordinary Saturday in Fort Wayne could be so ... so ... eclectic. Diverse. Un-ordinary. Fun.

Bet you didn't believe me:

Somewhere up there

2011-08-30T21:33:00.000-04:00

International Space Station to stay manned after all? latimes.com:

Last night my sister -- who keeps track of things of an astronomical nature -- posted on Facebook that International Space Station was to fly overheard about 9:39 p.m.

It was 9:34.

I ran outside, and craned my neck, sweeping the sky, looking for something that was 'really brilliant, but NOT blinking.' ('If it's blinking, that's not it.')

There's a lot of light pollution around my house, but still, on such a clear, still night, the stars were out. And the sky was alive with blinking things -- white things, red things, yellow things.

I walked all around the house, looking, looking. And then, to the north, coming from the west --

A large, bright light. Definitely not blinking. Moving rather quickly. It swept across the sky, when it began fading, and faded out long before it approached the horizon.

Somewhere up there, astronauts worked and slept and ate and looked out their windows. And somewhere down here, near Fort Wayne, Indiana, I watched them go by.

So today, I read that if the Russians can't figure out their rocket problems, the space station may go unmanned, at least temporarily.

How lonely that light would be, without the eyes watching me.

'via Blog this'

The road now taken

2011-08-23T21:03:00.002-04:00

Finding the quiet places
on Homestead Roard

It didn't take very long, and I didn't go very far, but tonight I journeyed somewhere I'd never been: Homestead Road.

Oh, I've driven down Homestead, more times than I can count, hauling kids to and from school, going to ball games, band practices, work. My car's broken down on it, slipped and slid on it, been tailed by a cop down it because I was, yes, speeding on it.

But until tonight, I'd never, really, been on it.

Thank you, Aboite New Trails (now part of Fort Wayne Trails) for making it possible that I could discover Homestead Road in a way I never could before: on foot, in person, up close and personal.

It's just a road -- a road with a
trail, just for me.

Able to find an unexpected quiet place between two additions, on a curvy wooden bridge over what I thought was a drain pipe under the road.

To sit for a moment and watch the traffic go by -- cars just like mine, whooshing by, avoiding that pothole, timing the light.

To watch the sky, a messy mosaic of clouds all day, trying to break up and let some kind of sunset out from behind them.

To let a couple of bikes zoom by, a quick hi, and realize, I'd never talked to anybody on Homestead Road before.

Not a long trip, no -- three miles, round trip, my house to Homestead. I was there and back again in an hour. But I'd been somewhere I'd never been before, and that makes all the difference, when you walk a road now taken.

A Village Person Tests the Copyright Law

2011-08-16T22:10:00.001-04:00

A Village Person Tests the Copyright Law: "A claim by Victor Willis, formerly of the Village People, for rights to “Y.M.C.A.” could become an important test case in copyright law.

And I am praying that he will win and DJs will have to quit playing this at weddings.

"

How you write a poem

2011-08-16T21:56:00.002-04:00

First you cross your eyes,
And if all you get is eyestrain,
Stop.
Then spin around in circles,
And if all you get is dizzy,
Sit down.
Next, climb up on something
Like a chair, and look around.
If all that happens is vertigo,
Get down.
Get all the way down, and
Lie on the floor.
If all you see is dirt,
Stay there. Close
Your eyes, and breathe.
Let the dark cover you.
Listen to the flub of your heart,
The rush of blood through your veins,
The small wind that's breath.
Let all the words leave.

In a minute, get up,
Try it again --
The crossing, the spinning,
The climbing, the lying.
And mostly, the quiet.

If everything seems different,
... Then, maybe, you're ready
To write a poem.

It's not Wild Kingdom, but it's all the Mutual of Omaha I've got

2011-08-03T21:54:00.001-04:00

Mutual of Omaha came to town recording bits for its Aha Moment series, and I was silly enough to tell them I'd contribute:

On Covington Road

2011-07-25T22:36:00.000-04:00

Tonight I waited to take a walk down Covington Road until the sun had slid behind the trees.
And the amazing thing wasn't the noise -- the traffic, an energetic Aboite Autobahn in the early evening, had thinned and slowed, an occasional tired whoosh of somebody going home. The cicadas, though -- they were screaming, screaming their excitement at being above ground, screaming for the mate they search for, screaming against the end that awaits them all.
The amazing thing wasn't even the color of the sky, bittersweet pink and pale orange, turquoise deepening to navy, backlit by the tired sun that had already set behind the ridge down by Homestead Road.
No. The amazing thing was the air -- for the first time in forever, the humidity had lifted, the temperatures dropped. I wasn't sludging through a steambath, but walking cleanly towards the light, the breeze soft and cool against my face.
Air smooth as the colors, lively as the locusts, welcome as the night.

'AHA!' is looking more like 'DUH!'

2011-07-24T14:29:00.001-04:00

Somehow I got recruited by Mutual of Omaha to record my 'aha moment' for their tour, which is coming to Fort Wayne this week.

I've been waiting to have an aha moment about an aha moment ever since. I've gotta have one by Tuesday. They may get a DUH! moment instead.
Anyone else going to talk to these folks?

Baseball in Fort Wayne

2011-07-24T14:11:00.004-04:00

Greg Dee

Just a quick shout-out for baseball lovers. Greg Dee (full disclosure: my husband) is writing about baseball in and around Fort Wayne for examiner.com. You'll find everything from observations about local t-ball (cute! chaotic!) to youth ball (go Strike Zone!) to Tincaps (loved the AAA series) to the Cubs (watch out, Mike Quade). Read, comment and add to your RSS feed.

Baseball and fireworks

2011-07-18T23:10:00.006-04:00

There were two kinds of people at sun-baked Parkview Field on Saturday night -- those who love baseball, and those who love fireworks. I am confident there is some overlap.

I'm not sure everyone appreciated the heat; indeed, sitting in section 101, with the evening's unrelenting sun in our faces, we were rather cooked by it. Some of us retired to the splashpad to escape.

Entertainment for the evening between innings was provided by 'Myron Noodleman'; unfortunately, I'm no fan of the Jerry Lewis wannabe, and judging from the wan response he received from the 7,000+ fans, I was not alone. Instead, we allowed ourselves to be entertained by perhaps the cutest almost-two-year-old in the stadium, Miss Delaney.

And, really, it's not a baseball game unless someone (like Taylor) gets a big pink foam finger.

The baseball fans among our party -- and make no mistake, they were in the majority -- enjoyed comparing the quality of play between the Single A Tincaps and the AAA Las Vegas 51s and Tuscon Padres.

As the sun fell asleep behind the stadium, meteorological conditions improved.

The game was completed rather speedily, and the Parkview Field staff was ready to amuse the waiting crowds for the hour or so before the Three Rivers Festival Fireworks Finale. Including running the bases. Twice.

Caroline used a little fluorescent magic -- and a smile -- to light the night up, pre-fireworks.

Cities work so hard to get people to their downtowns nights and weekends. Really, it takes so little. Baseball, check. Fireworks, check. Add a little music, some food, maybe some shopping -- done. We're there.

TRF is the best of Fort Wayne. For some reason, the Journal-Gazette buried this article on page eight of the Metro Section of Sunday's paper (and moving the final to Saturday -- BRILLIANT!), but read it -- Jack Hammer gets it: the festival, and Fort Wayne.

Solace for the day

2011-07-18T21:54:00.002-04:00

Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure. (J.K. Rowling)

Even the best day is
A mountain we climb
In bare feet. Every
Hour a switchback,
The future unknowing,
Disapparating before us.
Your learning will fail you,
Your map grow useless.
Your patron glides away,
Light deluminated.
No matter. Pick up your
Bag, it's been packed:
Hope and curiosity to drive you;
Love and desire, to feed you;
Strength and stubbornness to sustain you.
Let us away. Protego.

A little song, a (very) little Fort Wayne dance

2011-07-15T23:08:00.003-04:00

Urban Legend performs on Friday night at Jefferson Pointe.

One day I was s~~pending too much time on YouTube~~ pondering the great truths of life, and came across a video that made me think, 'this would never happen in Fort Wayne.' It shows a guy dancing by himself on a hill. Within a few minutes, somebody else joins in. And then it snowballs.

I thought about that video tonight as we listened to local band Urban Legend at Jefferson Pointe. The Friday night music there always draws a crowd, from the seniors who camp in the shade on the west side of the plaza to the young families who claim the grassy areas to the grownups with drinks in hand by the fountain.

Delaney (age almost 2) likes action, so I took her for a walk around the crowd. I was struck by two things: The number of people there. And their stillness.

I'm going to ask Lisa, my co-worker who is one of the lead singers of Urban Legend, what it's like to perform in front of a group of people who seem to be either comatose, or under the spell of Petrificus Totalus.

Fort Wayne folks: Love their music. Love it so much they don't want to move a muscle, rustle their garments, and miss a note.

There was one couple dancing near the band -- brave souls! Or out-of-towners! And unlike the video above, where one guy leads to another and another, these folks danced alone. What IS it about us that keeps us in our seats?

Well ... not everyone. Back in the cheap seats, an impromptu performance was given, which included a moment of flipflop guitar. Fort Wayne natives, these: Perhaps they've avoided the AIS gene.

Go, girls. Go.

Thunder Moon

2011-07-15T08:51:00.004-04:00

Bright as lightning

In this clear July sky

Yet bringing only night's quietness,

Gliding with us into sleep.

Tonight at Three Rivers

2011-07-14T22:25:00.000-04:00

First and always the smell, grease and heat and sugar. If the wind catches it right, the refuse in the dumpster. The long aisle of carnival food, people queued for fried cheese and barbecue ribs, ice cream and lemon shakeups. Elephant ears. Fried Kool-Aid.
The rippling murmur of conversations, laughter, a child crying. Somewhere a rumbling truck idling. From the big tent, the band tuning up, guitar riffs and half-familiar snatches of melody. A drumbeat.
Playing the waiting game to get a picnic table, 'can we sit here?'s and 'is this taken?' Supping with strangers we see once a year.
What a rare and wonderful mix of Hoosiers, the black-clad goth kids crossing the street next to the Amish family in pastel shirts and dresses, the preppy and the NASCAR families standing in the same line for ride tickets. Kids of every color jumping like pistons in the bounce house.
The carnies in the park, tanned women with rough voices and snappy eyes, slack young men lounging in chairs taking tickets. 'comeonwineraprizeprizeeverytimecomeonnowgiveitatry'
The whipping roar of the helicopter, giving the twenty-five dollar tour every five minutes, best view of downtown you can buy. View of the TinCaps game at no extra charge. "Can we ride, Daddy?" "Let's just watch it take off."
The fading light. Tired kids, damp from their run in the fountain. Parents fresh out of money. Time to head home.

What I'd write about if I had a blog

2011-07-12T09:03:00.004-04:00

I think I'd write about the last of the Harry Potter movies. I'd say that I've found the quality wildly uneven, and would disagree with the results of this survey. I'd mention that 'Half-Blood Prince' is my new least favorite, having taken over from 'Order of the Phoenix,' which had a totally made-up scene in it. The the first two are my favorites. That I actually like Deathly Hallows, Part 1. And mostly that I contemplate seeing Part II with both dread and anticipation. Because I just. Don't. Want. The stories. To end.

I'm a reader, not a cinephile, so the movies are always going to fall short. And I'm crossing my fingers that Pottermore.com is, indeed, selling Kindle versions of the series, because I will love carrying around the books with me everywhere I go -- having them on my Kindle, my phone, my laptops is going to be my version of Hermione's magically extendable purse.

I also think I'd write about what a cool week Three Rivers Festival is in Fort Wayne. Wow, it gets a lot of criticism. But wow, it tries to do a lot. The 3RF Parade is one of my top two favorite parades of the year (Milan Melon Festival in Milan, Ohio, being the other). The Ice Cream Social has been a favorite since the '80s. We used to take our kids to Kids Day ... and now it's our grandkids. And one whiff of Junk Food Alley is enough to make me crave a lemon shakeup and an elephant ear.

Headwaters Park hosts one festival after another. If I were in charge of the world, I'd expand those festivals with parties, concerts, craft/art shows, music, performances, (year 'round), theme them all and brand Fort Wayne as the Festival Capital of the World. But that's me.

And the last thing I'd write about is the sky last night, the way it changed all evening long, the shapes of the clouds, the kinds of the clouds, the colors that kept mixing up, deepening, fading to gray. A cloud mosaic, moving pieces that finally went to bed. But here, it was like this:

And this:

Yep. That's the kind of stuff I'd write about, if I had a blog.

On the bookshelf

2011-06-15T22:14:00.002-04:00

For those of you always looking for that next good read, here's what's on my agenda:

My 'Books Worth Reading' book club's slate for 2011-12:

Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Unbroken by Laura Hilienbrand

Mary and O’Neill by Justin Cronin

The Paris Wife by Paula McLain & A Movable Feast by Ernest Hemingway

Caleb’s Crossing by Geraldine Brooks

In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larsen

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

These books were recommended by the ladies of the club for pleasure reading:

The Power and the Glory Room

The Day of the Locust The Book Thief

The Most Famous Man in America Gone With the Wind

The Greatest Journey Atlas Shrugged

Moonwalking with Einstein Let the Great World Spin

Wench Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

The Seamstress of Hollywood Blvd. Cutting for Stone

Warmth of the Suns

Match

The Last Child

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter

Word Catcher

A Week at theAirport

Where We Know

What is Left

Zeitoun

The Quickening

Sisters

Finally, here's a little roundup of various publications summer reading recommendations:

Also, in case you missed it, here's some of Oprah's summer reading recommendations:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/43384783/ns/today-books/

USAToday always has some good summer reading suggestions:

http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2011-05-24-best-summer-reads_n.htm

And NPR always has some good ideas:

http://www.npr.org/series/summer-books/

Recent Birdsong

2011-06-12T10:29:00.014-04:00

www.twitter.com/CathyBlogs

Anthony #Weiner entering 'professional treatment.' Surprised to hear there is now specialized treatment for #Twitter stupidity. Yet needed.

No description for the color of the cloudless sky as I walked tonight.The sidewalk led me from twilight to evening....http://t.co/Sif1t9J

Dear January, SO THERE. Love, June.

O Monday, I wish you were as easily thrown off / As blankets on a hot summer night.

Yesterday I was out enjoying the day, and today I'm on the inside looking out.

What #Facebook is good for: The place where you can track the insomnia of all your friends and family.

Finally the leaves | A tardy, lazy spring / A winter that won't go away / Hesitant trees, slow to fullness

Let's lash thousands of tanning beds together, tie a million helium balloons on them, and pretend it's the sun. Like in UP, only less sad!

Rain a snare-drum staccato on the skylight;birds a cacophonic chorus, strangely harmonic; the piercing-then-fading moan of the faraway train

Judgment Day | Who knew it came in May? / Even after waiting, anticipating, prevaricating / Sometimes words paint better pictures.

Over Ft. Wayne tonight

2011-06-08T22:19:00.001-04:00

No description for the color of the cloudless sky as I walked tonight. Deep twilight but no stars, just a perfect half-moon glowing white, shadowed with grey, tilted in the southwest. To the north the faintest hint of the day's pale blue, dusted with the last of the sunset's pink. Above me the great dome was featureless, navy blue screened by purple, a strange mosaic, black a mere promise. The sidewalk led me from twilight to evening. Yet still no stars.

John Donne: Good Friday

2011-04-22T10:49:00.000-04:00

Good Friday, 1613. Riding Westward

By John Donne 1572–1631

Let mans Soule be a Spheare, and then, in this,

The intelligence that moves, devotion is,

And as the other Spheares, by being growne

Subject to forraigne motion, lose their owne,

And being by others hurried every day,

Scarce in a yeare their naturall forme obey:

Pleasure or businesse, so, our Soules admit

For their first mover, and are whirld by it.

Hence is't, that I am carryed towards the West

This day, when my Soules forme bends toward the East.

There I should see a Sunne, by rising set,

And by that setting endlesse day beget;

But that Christ on this Crosse, did rise and fall,

Sinne had eternally benighted all.

Yet dare I'almost be glad, I do not see

That spectacle of too much weight for mee.

Who sees Gods face, that is selfe life, must dye;

What a death were it then to see God dye?

It made his owne Lieutenant Nature shrinke,

It made his footstoole crack, and the Sunne winke.

Could I behold those hands which span the Poles,

And tune all spheares at once peirc'd with those holes?

Could I behold that endlesse height which is

Zenith to us, and our Antipodes,

Humbled below us? or that blood which is

The seat of all our Soules, if not of his,

Made durt of dust, or that flesh which was worne

By God, for his apparell, rag'd, and torne?

If on these things I durst not looke, durst I

Upon his miserable mother cast mine eye,

Who was Gods partner here, and furnish'd thus

Halfe of that Sacrifice, which ransom'd us?

Though these things, as I ride, be from mine eye,

They'are present yet unto my memory,

For that looks towards them; and thou look'st towards mee,

O Saviour, as thou hang'st upon the tree;

I turne my backe to thee, but to receive

Corrections, till thy mercies bid thee leave.

O thinke mee worth thine anger, punish mee,

Burne off my rusts, and my deformity,

Restore thine Image, so much, by thy grace,

That thou may'st know mee, and I'll turne my face.

An opening day miracle

2011-03-30T21:49:00.000-04:00

It was dinner time, and sometime during preparation, a miracle happened:

It's a sign.

Why make this stuff up? When other people do it for you?

2011-03-21T20:25:00.001-04:00

Just one days's headlines on msnbc.com:

Vegetarian throws airline meal at flight attendant Because violence against animals is so wrong.

Apple criticized for OK'ing iPhone 'gay cure' app Because we should all be morose instead!

Body Odd: Knife-throwing boob job doc holds record I can't even begin to diagram that sentence.

Bird 'muzak' piped in California town Because those dang birds are just a little pitchy.

'Zombies ahead,' warns electronic road sign in SC If you're warned, what fun is it?

Sammy Hagar says he was abducted by aliens Who is this news to?

Entire Jolie-Pitt clan makes a snack run I can only hope the next time I go to Dairy Queen somebody takes my picture and I get a headline on msnbc.com.

Martin Sheen: Charlie is 'emotionally crippled' Like fathers, like son?

Report: CB$ bigwig want $heen back

Nintendo's virtual puppies want to lick your face And give you virtual puppy diseases.

Restaurant lets diners check food for radiation I sense a visit by Anthony Bourdain.

If only we'd had a Harry Baals headline in the local section today, my news reading would have been perfect.

For Japan

2011-03-16T13:48:00.000-04:00

O Nihon, the sun lies buried
And snow falls like heaven's tears
No balm for what lurks beneath

Daylight Savings Time

2011-03-12T09:17:00.000-05:00

Two a.m., let me wrest you
From your sleepy space
Between the party hour of one
And the insomnia of three
Now, I'll drive a wedge in the evening
Move over, TV eight and bedtime nine
Let me shove this reluctant time
Into the lovely springtime twilight
Sunlight stretching to the night.

What happens to winter while we sulk

2011-02-15T13:05:00.000-05:00

Our wearisome fight against the cold seems lost;
We retreat to nurse our frozen Indiana hearts.
Meanwhile, outside the ignored window
Winter is slowly melting away.

Harry Baals, iPhone app, and now fast food capital!

2011-02-10T10:44:00.002-05:00

Fast Food Capitals - Galleries - The Daily Beast

Check out who's #33 on this list of the Fast Food Capitals of the U.S.
140 fast-food restaurants, 54.7 per resident, and the most prominent? Dairy Queen. Who knew?

Also--Indy beats us once again at #22.

On a positive note, I love the pix of Friemann Square used in the slideshow gallery.

Visual deprivation on Hearthstone Drive

2011-01-29T16:46:00.001-05:00

Just warm enough outside to blur the edges of the snow. When I stepped out the door, the small sound of the icicles dripping off the roof -- pianissimo, uneven -- could fool you that it's warmer than it is. A spring sound. The clouds are that white-gray that blends in along the horizon, like we are in a big sphere of nothing. Visual deprivation. Filled the birdfeeder; earlier, the cardinals had come by and emptied it, bright spots of welcome red. I followed my own footsteps back through the yard. Later the steps looked as if someone had left winter behind, and not come back. Yet I had.

Where comes gray

2011-01-27T11:34:00.001-05:00

I came upon her making gray
Early one January morning,
Standing in a fallow field.
She drew the elements from
The Earth and Air:
The white of winter's snow,
The last dark of night,
The soft filter of fog.
All gathered in Isis' arms,
Composed by her whirling hands,
Spread by her quick breath.
The field suddenly illuminated
By a strange morning Twilight,
An animate, glowing gray
No summer rainbow could ever hold.

Teachers, learning, and Gov. Daniels

2011-01-24T13:27:00.000-05:00

I watched Gov. Mitch Daniels State of the State address on Jan. 11. Although I've supported much of his agenda (as an independent) throughout his tenure, I was rather stunned at his attack on teachers during this speech. I think the teachers are stunned, too. He waged a rather flat-out assault on teacher incompetence with the inference that our Indiana teachers are somehow to be blamed for students lack of achievement in school. Not once ... ONCE ... did I hear him mention the importance of parents in a kid's education, and the importance of PARENTS being their child's first, and best, teacher. But then if he had, he might have sounded too much like ... well, you can read it here>>

Also, in a just-released ranking, Indiana's kids are in the top half of the nation>>

Cities that should NOT ask for building names

2011-01-21T08:41:00.001-05:00

Cities that have former mayors named Harry Baals really should NOT be asking their citizens to vote on what to name a new civic building. For the results are predictable.

I suggest naming it for the Hamilton women of Fort Wayne, who did so much for the country and the city. More about them here

In the Journal-Gazette

Vote here, please NOT for Mayor Baals

Dusting

2011-01-20T18:48:00.003-05:00

It’d gotten ugly
That thaw exposing
A raw landscape.
No healing yet
All we muster
Is hiding under
Today’s light snow.

MLK, too, decided to stick with love

2011-01-17T10:25:00.002-05:00

'And I say to you, I have also decided to stick to love. For I know that love is ultimately the only answer to mankind's problems. And I'm going to talk about it everywhere I go. I know it isn't popular to talk about it in some circles today. I'm not talking about emotional bosh when I talk about love, I'm talking about a strong, demanding love. And I have seen too much hate.... Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Aug. 16, 1967, Atlanta, GA

Pres. Kennedy's words were aimed at the world--but now apply to Americans, ourselves

2011-01-11T19:00:00.001-05:00

I could try to write something profound (like this by Steve Almond) but John F. Kennedy said it so much better in his inaugural address on Jan. 20, 1961. In some of these quotes, he was referencing the larger world; but in today's venomous political climate, I'm struck by how these words of strength and reconciliation apply to ourselves:

For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life....

United, there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. Divided, there is little we can do—for we dare not meet a powerful challenge at odds and split asunder....

To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a special pledge—to convert our good words into good deeds—in a new alliance for progress—to assist free men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty. But this peaceful revolution of hope cannot become the prey of hostile powers. Let all our neighbors know that we shall join with them to oppose aggression or subversion anywhere in the Americas. And let every other power know that this Hemisphere intends to remain the master of its own house....

So let us begin anew—remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate...

Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us....

Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths, and encourage the arts and commerce....

Let both sides unite to heed in all corners of the earth the command of Isaiah—to "undo the heavy burdens ... and to let the oppressed go free...."

And if a beachhead of cooperation may push back the jungle of suspicion, let both sides join in creating a new endeavor, not a new balance of power, but a new world of law, where the strong are just and the weak secure and the peace preserved....

Now the trumpet summons us again—not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need; not as a call to battle, though embattled we are—but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, "rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation"—a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself....

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country....

With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own....

Read it all; I recommend it>>

Fort Wayne ... 46th most literate city

2011-01-11T11:39:00.001-05:00

According to Central Connecticut State University: The overall rankings were determined by the rankings of each city in each of the six subcategories: bookstores, educational attainment, internet resources, library resources, newspaper circulation, and periodical publication

Central Connecticut State University (CCSU): Overall Rankings

Conspiracy Theory

2011-01-09T13:00:00.000-05:00

Sol, you bright and shiny liar;
And sky, you cerulean co-conspirator,
Neither of you succeed in hiding
Winter's frigid crimes.

Our Man Mitch gets more coverage, predicts the future

2011-01-05T20:55:00.000-05:00

From the Daily Kos blog:

Gov. Daniels: Raise the retirement age because young people "will live to be more than 100": "

The Republican brain trust strikes again.

During an interview with the New York Times’ David Leonhardt, [Indiana Governor Mitch] Daniels claimed that raising the retirement age makes sense because people will eventually live to be 100 years old by “replacing body parts like we do tires”:

Clearly, means testing. Clearly, retirement age, over time. What you’re saying to these younger people is –- who, by the way, I think, barring disasters, are going to live to possibly old ages, as we have always thought of it.... They will live to be more than 100, because, again, barring accidents or something, or war, well over. They should. They’ll be replacing body parts like we do tires. If you ask a young person who’s paying any attention to this, “How old do you expect to be, and how long would you like to be a vital working person?” they’re not going to find this offensive. Thirty years from now, you might work at 68, 70, 72....

Aside from the obvious folly of raising the retirement age now in anticipation of human body-part replacement technology that may or may not exist at some undetermined point in the future, Daniels is basing his policy preference on the same faulty understanding of American life expectancy espoused by loads of would-be Social Security reformers.

While average life expectancy has indeed been rising, it is largely as a result of increases among upper income earners working in white-collar jobs. Middle- and low-income workers have not seen the same increases and would be disproportionately affected if the retirement age were raised.

It's not out of the realm of possibility that Daniels (like Kent Conrad and any number of other lawmakers blithely talking about raising the retirement age) doesn't know any people who would be particularly effected by a raise in the retirement age. Which is a plausible excuse for not understanding the ramifications on the workforce of raising the retirement age. It's not an excuse for coming up with as crazy-assed idea as human body-part replacement becoming the norm for current generations of Americans.

Nancy Nall remembers former Fort residents better than I do

2011-01-05T10:19:00.000-05:00

From her post 'Leave the lights':

....Charles Pugh — once the dumbest reporter on WKJG-TV in Fort Wayne, now the dumbest city council president Detroit has had since the last one:

City Council President Charles Pugh is dissolving his controversial nonprofit after taking criticism for secrecy surrounding it. The Pugh & You: Move Detroit Forward Fund was set up in March to raise money for staff travel and community outreach. But it caused heat for hosting a $5,000 a table fundraiser in August for Pugh’s 39th birthday. Criticism increased when Pugh refused to disclose donors that a staffer confirmed included a strip club operator who gave $500.

(A great picture, too. It needs a thought bubble: Once again, Kwame ruins it for everyone.):"

Flash fiction

2011-01-04T20:54:00.000-05:00

Flash fiction is, simply, very short fiction. Read a little about it here. I like playing with it. It's like Twitter for short stories.

Here's some examples I had fun with for a contest I lost. This particular contest wanted fiction of 30 words or less. I can report the rejection letters for flash fiction read exactly like rejection letters for any fiction.Only shorter.

-30-

He'd been drunker but not lately. He faded awake at the end of a bad
dream. Neither the drink nor the dream explained the dead girl beside
him.

Drive Thru

The bus pulled into the station; he was waiting. I could feel his arms
around me; his voice whispering, 'I love you.'
The bus emptied, idling; I turned my head.

Space Invaders

THAT was no contrail in the western sky. Al thought maybe the Ruskies
were after Alaska again and called 911, but it seemed no one else had
read the directive.

The 'Suddenly Popular' Mitch Daniels?

2011-01-02T21:01:00.000-05:00

Sarah Palin 2012 - George Will - This Week | Mediaite

"He went on give some predictions based on the fact that nominees, he explained, tend to win the majority of electoral votes in the Mississippi Valley– giving Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Sen. John Thune, and the suddenly-popular Gov. Mitch Daniels a leg up in that area."

Why God made bloggers

2010-12-18T16:56:00.000-05:00

UPDATED: My heart grew three sizes and now I have an enlarged heart. WORTH IT. — TheBloggess.com

This is one of my favorite bloggers, and she had an idea for Christmas for her blog that expanded beyond anything she ever expected.

Jenny might be Santa Clause!

Big bookstores FAIL? Small stores WIN?

2010-12-18T16:38:00.001-05:00

Big bookstores nearing end of their shelf life? - Business - Retail - msnbc.com

Won't it be funny if, with the growth of ebooks, it's the big bookstores that bite the dust, and all the little funky bookstores, with cozy coffee corners and personal service and free internet access, thrive?

I do disagree with this statement:

"If I popped you in the middle of a Borders or Barnes & Noble, you might not know what store you're in. They're basically the same store," said Mark Freiman, a senior retail consultant at Focus Management Group, who has spoken to Borders management about how to turn around the business.

I think Borders has done a MUCH better job of integrating technology in their stores. If I need help in a B&N -- just to research the name of a book or an author or to find if a book is in stock -- I have to line up at the customer service desk, and wait till one of the scarce clerks is available. In a Borders, computers are easily available, and I can look stuff up myself. WIN, Borders. FAIL, B&N.

Charge of the Shopping Brigade

2010-12-16T22:21:00.000-05:00

(Sincere apologies to Alfred Lord Tennyson)

HALF a aisle half a aisle
  Half a aisle onward,
All in the valley of Sales
  Drove the Mitsubishi.
“Forward, the Shopping Brigade!
Charge for the extra discount!” she cried:
Into the valley of Sales
  Rode the Mitsubishi.

“Forward, the Shopping Brigade!”
Was there a woman confused?
Not tho’ the sales clerk knew
  Some one had mismarked it:
Theirs not to make bad deals,
Theirs not to pay full price,
Theirs but to shop or die:
Into the valley of Sales
  Rode the Mitsubishi.

Target to right of them,
Walmart to left of them,
Kohls in front of them
  Couponed and discounted;
Storm’d at with cart and small children,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of the Mall,
Into the mouth of Best Buy
  Rode the Mitsubishi.

Flash’d all their charge cards,
Flash’d as they swiped at checkout
Scanning the merchandise there,
Charging a pile of stuff while
  All the line wonder’d:
Would they ever move again?
Right thro’ the line they broke;
Self-scan and 10 items or less,
Reel’d from the swiping-stroke
  Battered and dead broke.
Then they rode back, but not
  Not the Mitsubishi.

Toys R Us to right of them,
Old Navy to left of them,
Bed Bath and Beyond behind them
  Debit carded and check booked;
Accousted with clerk and checker,
While feet in too-tight shoes swell,
They that had shopped so well
Came thro’ the checkout line of Death,
Back from the mouth of Macy's,
All that was left of the list
  Packed in the Mitsubishi.

When will their energy fade?
After the wild charges they made!
  All the gifts loaded!
Honor the wishes they fulfilled!
Honor the Shopping Brigade,
  Honor the Shopping Survivors!

46804. Not quite 46814, but close

2010-12-15T22:20:00.000-05:00

Just saw on the news that my ZIP code (46804) is next door to the wealthiest ZIP in Indiana (46814), beating out Indy ZIPs of Fishers and Carmel. Not sure if I should say, 'Go Aboite!' (for once, Ft. Wayne beating out Naptown) or be chagrined and apologetic (How many times since 1986 have I had to explain, 'Not EVERYONE in Aboite is rich?').

Our Man Mitch mentioned as prez possibility

2010-12-14T22:23:00.000-05:00

Charles Krauthammer Tells Bill O’Reilly Sarah Palin Must Expand Policy Knowledge: "

Bill O’Reilly recently talked with frequent Fox News guest Charles Krauthammer to handicap potential GOP candidates’ chances in the 2012 presidential election. Krauthammer called Mitt Romney the front-runner” and said Mike Huckabee has established himself as a “major player”…but his most dissected comments will probably be his remarks on one Sarah Palin.

Krauthammer compared Palin’s problem to Hillary Clinton’s in the late 1990s – strong support from her core base, virulent opposition from most others. O’Reilly asked if the level of opposition to Palin is the media’s fault, and while Krauthammer said they’ve “contributed enormously” and that “the animus to her is unprecedented,” he also allowed that “she is not practiced in policy” and that the infamous Katie Couric interview was “not a ‘gotcha’ interview.” According to Krauthammer, Palin’s growth in mastering policy issues will shape her fate:

“I think if you want to expand your base, you have to get into policy even though it sounds dull.”

Krauthammer added that someone he thinks should run is Indiana governor Mitch Daniels, whom he praised as a “very smart guy” and “very nuts and bolts,” which may appear attractive to voters despite not necessarily having the charisma of others. Indeed, his description of Daniels made him sound like everything Palin, according to Krauthammer, isn’t. Video of the segment below, via Fox News.

David Blaine special on The Travel Channel

2010-12-12T22:01:00.000-05:00

I'd just like to know how to levitate.

David Blaine night on The Travel Channel.

A cool space shuttle video for Sunday

2010-12-12T17:09:00.000-05:00

Slo-Mo Shuttle Launch of the Day: Three separate space shuttle...: "

Slo-Mo Shuttle Launch of the Day: Three separate space shuttle launches (STS-114, STS-117, and STS-124) captured at 60,000 frames-per-second are played back over the course of 45 minutes in this must-see “tribute to the dozens of men and women of the Shuttle imaging team and the 30yrs of achievement of the Space Shuttle Program.

Seems as if something like this could help homeless peope?

2010-12-12T17:08:00.001-05:00

Nest Egg of the Day: Inspired by a cost-efficient housing...: "

Nest Egg of the Day: Inspired by a cost-efficient housing project called “City’s egg” and the burden of big-city rent, Hunan City University architecture department alum Dai Haifei constructed a $964 solar-powered, egg-shaped home outside his office in Beijing. The unit is equipped with a single bed, a water tank, and a lamp. “

I feel good living here though it’s simple, and a bit cold sometimes,” Dai is quoted as saying. “[What’s] important for me, is - it saves me a lot of money!”

Anis Shivani: Is American Poetry at a Dead-End? Prominent Poets Speak Out

2010-12-10T09:30:00.000-05:00

Anis Shivani: Is American Poetry at a Dead-End? Prominent Poets Speak Out

I hope not. I know I'm beating it to death, but hopefully others more talented are performing resuscitation.

Ghost Snow

2010-12-08T22:11:00.000-05:00

Such stillness. A breath between now and night.
How does a day hold so much gray and gray and gray?
And then the snow. So small, soft, spare--
Could you possibly have stopped,
Caught in the chill, infinite air?
Reaching out to touch you,
Imagining forever. And yet you melt away.

For John.

Lake Effect

2010-12-05T16:45:00.000-05:00

Targeted topography, snow with a GPS
A north wind with exact telemetry
A lake not warm, yet not frozen;
Uneven showers, from fat, thick flakes
That fade to tiny dots, and
Even to thin sunshine.
Winter gathers out the window.

JUST SHUT UP ABOUT ...

2010-11-30T22:39:00.001-05:00

... anyone named KARDASHIAN
... any SITUATIONS
... people named after cities, say, like BRISTOL
... TEEN ACTIVISTS. Who aren't very active. Nor teen.
... SLURPEE SUMMITS. Please replace with REAL COMPROMISE.
... LEAKS, Wiki or otherwise. What is there that's so surprising to anyone? And why can't we learn to protect stuff better?
... TAX BREAKS. See Slurpee Summits.
... HAPPY HOLIDAYS. We do have two in a row, you know, that may need to be referred to in tandem occasionally.
... START TREATY. Just pass it. It was bipartisan in the first place.
... MIKE PENCE. Too much too soon too conservative.
... LEBRON JAMES. A little inattention would go a long way.
... ROYAL WEDDING. Because the Royals are so 20th century.
... JOE JACKSON. He's gone.
... DON'T ASK DON'T TELL. Just do your job.
... THIS ECONOMY. What other economy do we have? It does what it does.
... BRETT FAVRE. That's all.
... ICE SKATING competitions with 'CELEBRITIES' of which I've never heard.
... iPADS. Because if I can't have one, I don't want to hear about how wonderful yours is.

Ironing and Mad Men

2010-11-22T20:36:00.000-05:00

So I'm ironing some shirts, his and mine, and threw the first season DVD into the TV, episode one.

And there's something really nice about ironing, something about the heat of the iron and the scent of the starch, and the instant gratification of seeing order come out of wrinkly chaos.

And there's something boring that makes me feel antsy, there's four -- FOUR -- shirts hanging there, and it's the detail that so time-consuming, the points of the collar, the cuffs, between the buttons

Yet once you give yourself over to the task -- take a deep breath, accept that each shirt is going to take five or six minutes each, remind yourself that this is the task of the moment -- it becomes, well, not so bad.

And through all the shirts, I'm watching Don Draper macho his way through the first episode, the calm condescension to the African-American waiter, the way he uses his mistress for fun and profit, and when he gets into work late the next morning, the way he pulls a blindingly white laundered shirt from his desk drawer and changes clothes in his office.

Later, Joan gives Peggy a lesson on how to be a secretary, and it includes how to take care of her boss. Have a needle and thread handy. A fifth of something. Bandaids. Be something between a nurse and a wife.

I guess, as I'm standing there ironing, I'm being a wife. But one of the shirts was really a blouse; it's mine, to wear to work tomorrow. Maybe I'm being my own wife.

Which is the difference between me and the 'girls' on Mad Men. I never had to learn the lessons Peggy does. No one ever had to 'train' me the way Joan does Peggy. Peggy learns the lesson, but soon discovers she wants more. She -- graduate of a secretarial school -- wants the office, and proceeds to work her way up to one. Me -- a college graduate -- never gave a thought to being a secretary. I was an editor from the start.

It's November 22 -- President Kennedy died today, 47 years ago. I'd just turned 8. The world I'm watching on Mad Men died that day too, although it took most of the '60s to realize it. Those of my certain age watched it implode throughout our childhoods.

Forty-seven years has not expunged the tedium of ironing, nor the chaos that ensues when society rearranges itself. But the fallout: When I iron, it's by choice, and for myself; I could just as easily drive by the dry cleaner. And I don't measure my worth by my ironing. Maybe that's the biggest difference between me and Peggy, or me and Don Draper.

A clearer perception of my place in the universe, and my own, and everyone else's, acceptance of it, whatever that may be.

No where needs this like Fort Wayne.

2010-11-19T10:47:00.000-05:00

You Park Like an Asshole Helps You Share Your Feelings with Idiot Parkers [Parking]: "

It's almost daily routine that you run into someone parking in two spots, way too far over the line, or in a spot designed for a car half the size. You Park Like an Asshole helps you fight back. More »

November, the Official Month of Brown

2010-11-11T14:48:00.000-05:00

In the fading yellow light last night: The pale yellow-beige of the unharvested corn rows ... the rich dark earth of the newly fallow fields ... the clinging rust of the stubborn oaks ... the strange gray-brown of the lacy, newly empty trees in the distance. Juxtaposed with the hesitant green of the winter wheat fields, the forgetting grass.

Dan Coats PANTS ARE ON FIRE

2010-10-28T08:47:00.001-04:00

Politifact calls the hypocritical Dan Coats out on his claims about seniors and Medicare in his TV ads:

"The ad is nonsensical in two ways. It says that "Ellsworth voted with Nancy Pelosi to force seniors into Barack Obama's government-run health care program." But there's no such requirement in the law. Seniors are not "forced" into a government plan any more than they have been.

"Also, Medicare is already a government-run health care program...."

Read more>>

I wouldn't vote for this Washington DC-dwelling lobbyist if he were the last candidate on the ticket.

High Wind Warning

2010-10-27T20:50:00.001-04:00

The wind whipped the stars around the sky tonight
Great new galaxies whirled across the sky
Avant guarde constellations, the map rearranged
Dizzy, disoriented, disconnected--same stars, new universe.

This Morning

Morning sleepy as me

Sun slow to get up

As a heavy-lidded moon sinks into bed.

A Partly Cloudy Sky

2010-10-15T17:39:00.002-04:00

Autumn sky a blue and white checkerboard
Messy rows, horizon to horizon
Underneath we jump from sun to shadow
A crazy path to win the game
That's over at sundown. King me.

Thank God! There's one more rational person in the world

2010-10-13T20:42:00.000-04:00

The first of yesterday's The Journal Gazetteletters to the editor, by DOROTHA FRY MASON, was the most common-sense opinion I've read, seen or heard this year, and I wish I'd written it. Read it here>>

Imagine

2010-10-08T13:02:00.001-04:00

Last verse of an old song

2010-10-08T07:39:00.000-04:00

Open window more last time tonight, and the night noises slid through: The distant roar of traffic accelerating to the rev of an engine; closer, the soft thunk of a car door, a fading conversation; beyond the backyard, a sharp, impatient 'Let-me-in-right-now' bark; the thin wail of a siren; and under it all, though the open spaces of would-be quiet, the tired lullaby of crickets, creaking the last verse of summer.

Hey Facebook, open your purses, don't set them down!

2010-10-06T13:28:00.000-04:00

There's a meme going around Facebook for ladies to post a mysterious reference as to where they set their purses down at home. It's supposed to be in support of the fight against breast cancer, but instead seems to be slightly racy and confusing.
I suggest we post links to breast cancer organizations that are actually doing something about it!
Donate to give a mammogram to someone who can't afford it by clicking here>>

Or give a general donation to the National Breast Cancer Foundation here>>

Dear Baseball

2010-09-29T20:21:00.000-04:00

Dear Baseball, Thank you for lingering far past summer into fall, increasing in drama and excitement, making us forget the winter that waits for us.
Yours in walk-off homeruns, Cathy

Dear Maple Trees

2010-09-28T11:12:00.001-04:00

Dear maple trees,
Why the rush to shed your respectable verdant hues of summer, into the flaming, flamboyant attire of autumn? Far too soon we'll be hiding our eyes from your stripped skeletons of winter.

Yours in seasonal modesty,

Cathy

Hang onto your sorting hat!

2010-09-22T21:40:00.002-04:00

Across the saffron sky

2010-09-14T21:45:00.000-04:00

Maybe a peacock exploded in the sky tonight, scattering his jewel-tipped feathers
Across the saffron horizon, where the sun bounced slowly into night

As long we're canning, I want to can this day

2010-08-20T17:18:00.000-04:00

As long we're canning, I want to can this day.

I want to take all this heat--

The sharp heat of the sun on my shoulders,

The hazy heat in the distance,

The shiny, nebulous heat mirage on the highway,

The stifling heat inside my car,

The sunny yellow heat all around--

Draw it in, stuff it in a canning jar,

Stow it in the basement,

And bring it out some frigid day

In January. Because I'll really be missing it then.

Dear Black Beemer on County Line Road

2010-08-20T17:15:00.000-04:00

Dear Black Beemer on County Line Road
Thanks for much for pulling over to text! It's great that you remembered not to endanger your life, or anyone else's, by texting while driving!
However, just a note! Next time, if you're turning left off of Rt. 24 onto County Line -- WHERE THERE IS NO BERM, AND WITH TWO CARS FOLLOWING YOU -- turn your darn turn signal on and wait a few feet before pulling over.
Because I have no desire to be part of your safe-texting three-car pileup.
Yours in voice commands,
Cathy

Dead Garden Walk 2010--You Are Invited!

2010-08-19T22:31:00.000-04:00

Welcome, master gardeners and amateurs alike. Gardening on Hearthstone Drive this year had been a challenge!
When it wasn't 95 and sunny, it was 90 and storming. Despite our best efforts to cultivate only hardy plant life, some specimens proved to be too delicate for the "every plant for themselves" philosophy of this Garden Walk.
Step lively with me as we begin this year's Dead Garden Walk:

First, the gerbena daisy hanging death basket. When healthy, this plant from the dandelion family can survive almost anything. In my capable hands, it quit blooming cheery yellow and orange blossoms a month ago, and has been dying a slow, leaf-by-leaf death ever since. Next stop for this puppy: trash bin.

In a decorative watering can hand-painted by my sister, a wan, fading spike plant oversees the death of a pink petunia. Friends, it takes a special amount of neglect to kill a petunia, and I have accomplished it with several specimens this summer. I may be breeding mosquitoes in the bottom of that watering can, though.

These relatively vibrant pink petunias reside under the crab-apple tree, an infamous part of our yard. The crab-apple has a stunning, show-stopping moment of pink-hued beauty when it blooms in May. It then begins a summer's-long fade, so that by August, it look like Tree of the Apocalypse. I think the reason these petunias have done so well under it is the healthy amount of sunshine they receive through the sparse crab-apple branches.

What can I saw? These petunias lived--oh, they tried to live, so valiantly!--on the front porch. A combination of roof (keeping the rain off them) and sun (dead-on every afternoon) and benign neglect (what excuse can I give?) brought about their banishment from the porch to the side garden, where they can continue to die in peace.

But enough of death! (For a moment.) Here's my accidentally organic tomatoes! Organic, because they were grown sans chemicals or even fertilizer. Accidentally, because I just forgot to take care of them! Wah-la! But, they live!

Meet The Stupidest Oak Trees Every. They are spindly, pathetic-looking, and ... they live in a POT. A give-away from work, NO ONE -- us, nor neighbors, nor family -- seems to want to plant a pathetic oak tree in their yard. But perhaps I am looking at these specimens incorrectly. Perhaps I should call them ... The Most Unique Oak Trees Ever. Because who else do you know who GROWS OAK TREES IN A POT!? And, again ... they are alive!

If only you could have seen these potted petunias, which live (optimistically speaking) on the patio table in the backyard, a month ago. Their cheerful white-and-pink countenance would have cheered you. Alas, they, too, have taken a downward spiral.

Despite my forgetting to water this palm time and and time again, I have failed to kill it, which is GREAT, because Angela gave it to me, and I would have major maternal guilt if it perished. YEA ME. THANK YOU for not dying, Potted Palm!

These particularly pathetic and neglected pots were not chosen to grace the landscape (?) this year, but chose to participate anyway, from top to bottom, we have: Weeds; More Weeds; and Wild Clover with a Volunteer Petunia. Who says I don't have a green thumb!

Great news, gardeners: We'll be wrapping up this tour high note. First, on the north side of the home, the Hosta Garden, or Those Things Which Cannot Be Killed Even By Cathy. I think it helps that 1) sun is sparse on this side of the house 2) the sump pump empties on this side, so they get watered and 3) the bird feeder is right above them so they get crapped on all day by the birds, aka, ORGANIC FERTILIZER. AGAIN with the organics! Is this a 'green' garden or what!?

And last, and certainly, not least (the Least Award going to that dead petunia in the sideyard):

The ever-blooming ground roses. All I do is cut 'em back after blooming and they keep going and going. These are the roses I watch at night. There's a moment when the evening is almost done and twilight is over when the color of the blooms changes from red to black. It's time to go in, then. This bush, healthy and growing despite owner apathy, get the PERSEVERANCE AWARD.

The NOT YET DEAD/NEWCOMER AWARD goes to this astor, which took the place of Dead Petunia on the front porch. Please contact your bookie for the odds on how long it will take me to kill it.

Winner of the OPTIMISM AWARD goes to this pot, given to me by my friend Dave (who moved). It's yawing maw of possibility is just waiting for something beautiful -- some fall mums, perhaps? -- for me, or for Mother Nature to kill.
That wraps up our 2010 Dead Garden Walk, gardeners! Thanks for joining us. If any of you need tips on how to coax your garden to the vibrant death that mine enjoys, don't hesitate to contact me! And follow me on Twitter: @2010DeadGardenWalk.

Twitter in 10 Minutes

2010-08-12T22:59:00.002-04:00

Awhile back I wrote a short, hopefully helpful piece called "Five-Minute Facebook," for everyone who 1) avoids Facebook because "I don't have time," or 2) Loves Facebook but hates the timesuck it can be.

Now, for the Twitter avoiders, here are instructions for how to get started on Twitter ... in 10 minutes.

First, some clarifications.

· You are right. "Twitter" is a dumb name, "Twitterer" sounds stupid, and "tweet" is something birds do. We didn't name the thing, so we just have to get over/ignore it.
· You'll often hear Twitter described as a "micro-blogging site." I disagree with that description. Some people do use it so--and those are the people everyone complains about, tweeting things like "I had a BLT for lunch." We are smarter, so we think of it as a cross between instant messaging/texting/status updating.
· You can sign up for Twitter, and never, ever tweet a thing yourself. In fact, I recommend it.
· You can sign up for Twitter, and never, ever visit the main Twitter page where you see tweets from everybody in the universe flying by. It's mesmerizing, offensive, fascinating, and mostly useless. We'll use Twitter lists instead, and follow only people who are sharing interesting information about stuff we care about.
· The Twitter.com web page is where we'll get started, but I'll recommend a couple better ways to follow a Twitter stream.
· You, grasshopper, are reluctant to even try, but after a day or so...you are hooked. Information was never so immediate, and fun.

Let's get started:
1. Go to Twitter.com and sign up. Chose a user name that's short and/or funny and/or descriptive and/or generic. Use whatever you're comfortable with; Twitter will let you know if it's available. Guard your privacy--don't share your email, don't share your location, don't upload a picture, and DO check 'protect my tweets.' You can always change these settings if you want.
2. Now, find tweets to follow. Follow only people interesting to you:

· Twitter can look through your contacts to see if anyone you know is tweeting. If you are comfortable with this, go ahead. Your friends may be following people who are also interesting to you.
· To quickly get started, visit: http://listorious.com. You'll be asked to sign in; do so if you are comfortable; it makes it easier to follow people from here. Twitterers are grouped by subject into lists. Click on a topic that interests you; an expanded list will appear. Click on a interesting name and click 'follow.' You'll now see those person's tweets when you are logged into Twitter.com.
· On any web site you visit frequently, look for the Twitter logo or the Twitter "T". Click it, and you'll be directed to a Twitter feed to follow.
· Twitter will begin recommending Twitterers for you to follow, based on your interests.

3. Done. You're on Twitter! You can now open Twitter.com, sign in, and watch the information scroll by. Remember, you can always unfollow anyone you don't like. You never have to follow Aston Kushner, Oprah, or Lady Gaga if you don't want to! And if you want to throw a tweet out there ... go ahead!

When you have more than 10 minutes, try these things:

· Read Twitter Basics>>
· Read about using Twitter Lists>>
· Use a different method to follow Twitter. I suggest Tweetdeck (www.tweetdeck.com). It's an easy-to-use, downloadable application that will let you organize Twitter streams better, tweet easier, and also has a directory. You might also look at Hootsuite (www.hootsuite.com). It's web-based.

And feel free to follow me: www.twitter.com/CathyBlogs

Suddenly

2010-08-12T21:32:00.002-04:00

I'm no vampire: I love the sunny days.
But the twilights, this summer, have been something:
The sudden stillness of the air, the breeze disappearing as if someone switched off a fan;
The deep quiet underneath the locusts' screaming;
The puddle of amber and orange behind the neighbors' houses;
A thin, pale wink of moon;
The first brave star that's really Venus, shining in an deepening aquamarine sky.
And often: only me, sometimes us, to watch it happen, then fade.

Victimized, yet victorious, over American Escrow

2010-08-05T22:58:00.002-04:00

In March 2009, I wrote about how our escrow company--a third party we sent money to every month, and which paid our home insurance and property taxes--ripped us out of several months' payments. That post is here>>

We've worked with the Indiana Attorney General office since then, seeking restitution for the money.

Last week, our A.G. liaison called, telling us that (believe it or not) "the check is in the mail," and inviting us to a news conference to announce the settlement.

That news conference was today, and we had our 30 seconds of fame thanks to various Ft. Wayne news outlets.

Two inaccuracies in various stories: 1st, the money paid to us did not come from American Escrow; it came from a State of Indiana fund set up to provide restitution for victims of fraud. Second, victims did not "receive up to $125,000 in restitution," as one report states; $125,000 is the total amount of the fund, split between 97 recipients.

CLARIFICATION: We did receive back -- from the state fund -- 100% of the money owned us by American Escrow.

I'll post the links here.

Anyway:

Newschannel 15

Indiana's NewsCenter

The article in the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette

Throughout the new-night sky

2010-07-15T22:45:00.000-04:00

I think I saw Monet fly high across the summerland tonight,
Smudging the sliver moon with purple
Leaving a dim smear of light behind.
He blurred the clouds to a mosaic of sunset colors,
And threw the stars, carelessly,
Throughout the new-night sky.

'Round Salomon Farm

2010-07-13T20:22:00.001-04:00

Walking the trail 'round Salomon Farm / The low-slung sun still heavy with day's heat / Down a shallow swale, the curve leads me past a windrow / And evening surprises me from the shadows.

Cathy's 5-Minute Facebook

2010-07-12T14:40:00.000-04:00

I kept hearing people comment that they don't want to do Facebook because "it takes up too much time."

My observation is, IF you can stay away from the games, keeping up with Facebook can be done if five, yes FIVE, minutes a day.

A friend requested I tell her how, exactly, and this is what I sent her:

1) Go to Facebook, then to "Home" in upper right.
2) On the left navigation, click "Friends"
3) Click "Status Updates"

Now you will JUST and ONLY what your friends are doing, via status updates! Scroll down as long as you want--it just takes me a minute or so. If I want to comment or "like" it's fast and easy.

Next, at the top next to the "Facebook" logo, just hover and click your cursor on the notification icons; they may have red numbers that tell you how many new friend requests, messages, and updates you've had. You'll see lists of 1) any friends requests you have (and you can confirm then right here); 2) any direct message you have, just click on one to read; and 3) Notifications to glance over.

IF you have more times, you can click on the "news feed" items and you'll see stuff like pictures posted, etc. Which are kind of fun if you have time.

When I use this method I can take 5 minutes and see most of the important stuff. If I have more time, I'll look at the news feed and at pictures.

I used to play a couple games but they sucked time and I quit. But there were fun :)

And if you are new to Facebook, be sure to edit your privacy settings (upper right corner, under "Account").

Twilight comes to Hearthstone Drive

2010-07-11T21:09:00.001-04:00

Silent as am vampire.

Thunderstorm, your warm rain may

2010-07-08T16:46:00.001-04:00

Thunderstorm, your warm rain may green my grass, but does little to cool this humid day

July's Revenge

2010-07-07T19:38:00.002-04:00

Only air conditioners roar this hot evening / Grass too stressed to grow / Surely a night to curl up with a good book / And a cold margarita / A bit of January in July.

5th of July: A parade, a swim and a game of cornhole. Really.

2010-07-05T15:29:00.002-04:00

And on the agenda, swimming and cornhole

River fest

2010-06-26T20:20:00.002-04:00

Ron Venderly bridge, as Riverfest visitors stroll.