An Answer to the Whooo
South Milwaukeean and Friends of Grant Park board member Betsy Abert sent me an email the other day. Referring to my post of January 3 about hearing the call of some kind of bird at night and wondering what it was, Betsy wrote:
It likely was an owl that you heard, and specifically, a Great Horned Owl (GHOW). In the northern realms of our middle west kingdom here, the GHOWs are the first birds to breed and nest in the annual cycle of things. So, you may have heard an individual searching out another individual for purposes related to home-making and reproduction. They generally begin this process around the start of winter/Christmas, and are sitting on nest by early January.
ADOPTED! Smart Scout is looking for love
Looking for a special valentine who will always adore you? Scout is smart, sophisticated and stunning. This Collie/Beagle is seeking a family who enjoys long walks on the beach, outdoor adventures, fine dining and comedies. She's only 1.5-years-old and is a hilarious, goofy girl who loves to show off all her new tricks!
How Has Running Changed Your Life?
How has running changed your life?
I have decided to introduce a new feature to my blog. I am going to write a series of stories about local Cudahy runners and how running has changed their life. If you would like to participate in this series, e-mail me with your story of how running had changed or improved your life.
ADOPTED ! Puppy siblings Tilly & Thomas
Tilly & Thomas are 6-month-old black Labrador Retrievers with amazing dispositions! They are very social, yet not impolite. They are eager to learn, a delight to play with, and they are pictures of robust good health! This weekend, there are many wonderful dogs and puppies looking for new homes at the Wisconsin Humane Society (including Tilly & Thomas' other littermates), not to mention cats, kittens, rabbits, rats, mice and other small animals.
Love animals, but can't adopt? Consider sponsoring an animal while they are at the shelter. You can click on any animal's profile and choose to sponsor a homeless animal awaiting a caring family.
Economic Turmoil may lead to Better Buses
According to an article in the Saturday, Feb. 7th, Business section of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Transit Television Network LLC has filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and plans to liquidate its assets. (The article also references an article in the Wall Street Journal).
If you use the Milwaukee County Transit System you are familiar with this company. For those who do not use the bus, this company operates the TV's that are installed on almost every County bus.
Them Garlic Mustard Pickers!
What a great group! In exchange for the Rotary Club of Mitchell Field having the most excellent Garlic Mustard Pickers play (if you've ever heard them, you know what I'm talking about) at its annual fundraising auction in October, them Garlic Mustard Pickers turned around and donated $250 to Rotary International's PolioPlus project -- an all-out effort to eradicate polio from the face of the Earth.
What good will $250 do against such a mammoth problem, you might ask? It's called one step at a time. $250 here, $250 there and pretty soon you've got eradication in all but four countries in the world. Yes, that is only FOUR -- as in 4 -- countries left that have not been eradicated of polio. The four left to go are Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Nigeria. So the Garlic Mustard Pickers' very generous donation is going to do a LOT of good. Way to go, Garlic Mustard Pickers! Way to go Rotary International!
Debbie's Sweets 'n Treats
It's almost Valentine's Day and you need just the right thing for your sweetie. You know you can never go wrong with candy. Instead of getting the cliche'd heart shaped box of chocolates, why not go for some nostalgia combined with your favorite candies? Debbie's Sweets 'n Treats does just that.
Do you remember going to the penny candy store (some of you may remember it being still a penny or at least 2 cents) with a handful of change, ready to spend every cent? Ropes of bubble gum, pop rocks, slo-pokes... this store has it all. They also have themed tin lunch boxes, gift baskets, and if you stop in on Valentine's Day they have hand dipped chocolate chocolate covered strawberries. Its fun to just browse because the decor takes you back to the good ol' days, and seeing all your childhood favorites is a treat in itself. It was a wonderful stroll down memory lane.
Welcome to 'On the Sidelines'
Welcome to On the Sidelines, my blog. I’m one of six full time general assignment staff photojournalists at CNI Newspapers. All six of us are general assignment, so sports is by no means all I cover for our papers and web sites, but because I’ve gotten a reputation as being good at sports photojournalism, I really love what I do, and I can tolerate the hours, sports is a hefty portion of what I cover.
A little bit about me. I’m 40 years old and live on the east side of Wauwatosa, a life long metro Milwaukee resident raised on Milwaukee’s blue collar south side and earning a degree from Milwaukee Area Technical College in photography in 1989. I am a past president of the Wisconsin News Photographers Association.
I just passed the 19-year mark as a photojournalist, having been hired for my first job out of college in January of 1990. I still remember interviewing for that job and being told that “you need to work on your sports” after the chief photographer at that paper looked at my portfolio. I honestly can’t say I overtly took his advice, but looking back almost 20 years I have made progress.
Since 1990 I’ve worked at two small daily papers in southeast Wisconsin and have been at CNI since 2001. Besides the staff positions along the way I’ve been a contract freelancer for USA Today, the Associated Press, and NCAA to name a few. I’ve covered the Green Bay Packers, Milwaukee Bucks, and the Milwaukee Brewers. The Ice Bowl-II in Green Bay, the last game at County Stadium for the Packers, the last Milwaukee Brewers game in County Stadium, the first game in Miller Park, and the All Star Game when it was in Milwaukee.
I guess that sounds cool to have covered those professional games and it was, but truth be told I much prefer to cover high school athletics to the pros. There’s a level of passion in high school athletics that I’ve never felt covering pro sports and where else but high school athletics can I cover soccer, swimming, and track and field (some of my favorite sports to cover) as much as I do?
Where this blog goes I really don’t know. I have ideas on topics to write about, but I want this to be a two way street as well as my ramblings. If you have questions about sports photography, newspapers, how I made a particular photo, or whatever please email me and I promise to get back to you or maybe turn your question into a blog entry.
A couple questions I seem to be asked regularly:
Q. Is this your real job?
A. Yes, it’s a real job. I work a 40-hour week Tuesday through Saturday. Sunday I give to my wife, Monday I give to myself.
Honey bunnies
Bonnie the bunny is among many rabbits at the Wisconsin Humane Society looking for new homes this month. This sweetheart is soft and cuddly and will never wake you up at 3:00 a.m. because she's got to go outside. Not only is she beautiful, but Bonnie has a personality to match!
Home Security On a Budget
For some reason I started to think about home security lately. I don't know why, nothing out of the ordinary happened to trigger it, but one day it popped into my head that I should see how secure my house really is. I didn't really want to get hooked up with a monitoring system with a monthly fee and all, so I decided that I could at least do a couple of things, small things, that could make a big difference in my home's security.
I thought my front door was secure, I have a deadbolt, chain, and peephole. I had a storm door installed a few months ago. I opened the door and took a good look at it. The deadbolt looked quite ordinary. Then I looked at the door jamb. There was NO strke plate there! I couldn't believe it. There was only enough wood routed out to accomodate the bolt and there was no metal strike plate! Needless to say I installed one right away and used 3" screws to secure it. I couldn't believe I spent all these months here with my front door so vunerable.
Wheel & Sprocket Bike Expo to be held April 2-5
Wheel and Sprocket will be holding their annual bike expo April 2nd through April 5th. This is a great opportunity to get a great deal on some awesome bikes. I bought my Giant there a few years ago and have had nothing but good luck with it. Additionally, you can receive a $5 discount if you sign up for the 2009 Miller Lite Ride for the Arts at the Bike Expo. You can also get the discount by registering online before March 1st.
For info on the Bike Expo go to www.wheelandsprocket.com . For more details on the 2009 UPAF Miller Lite Ride for the Arts go to www.MillerLiteRide.com or call (414) 276-RIDE (7433).
Brocach Irish Pub and Restaurant
This new restaurant on Milwaukee's east side was voted Milwaukee's best new restaurant in 2008. I've been to this restaurant two times so far and both times the experience was phenomonal.
All that remains of the old 5 and 10 Tap are the Cream City brick walls. The newly remodeled building looks just like a pub in Ireland with lots of dark wood, glass and mirrors, and that quaint feeling of belonging as soon as you walk through the door. There are two floors, downstairs is for smokers, and upstairs in non-smoking. Both floors have traditional irish bars with tables and booths that have a sense of privacy about them. Upstairs there is the added feature of a fireplace. I'm going back the first really nice day in the spring so that I can experience the outdoor patio, which is basically built into the hill on top of the building and overlooks the Milwaukee River.
Moving Forward
Trees, parks, mass transit, local produce were among concerns on the minds of about 25 progressive-minded activists who got together this afternoon for their first post-2008 campaign meeting. In addition to the aforementioned topics, the group discussed a name. Tentatvely, it's South Shore Community Group. Also decided was the next meeting date, time and place: Sunday, March 22, 1 p.m., Oak Creek Library, 8620 South Howell Avenue, Oak Creek. For more information, about the group, its mission and goals, and the next meeting, contact Kathleen Slamka, alexis@miliserv.net.
I Cannot Remember
My husband is the second youngest of seven kids. On multiple occasions, I've asked his mom, "What was Mike like as a baby? When did he walk? Did he cry a lot? How did he sleep?"
Always - my mother-in-law looks at me, laughs, waves her arms, and clearly explains that after seven kids and 30+ years - she - does - not - remember - anything. The most I can get from my in-laws about their memory of my husband was that he was "the fat one."
The economy can't be that bad.... can it?
So, yesterday, the stock market closed at its lowest point since 1997.
The unemployment rate is at 7.6 % and is "expected to peak" at about 9%
March Schedule for Garlic Mustard Pickers
The Garlic Mustard Pickers have announced their performance schedule for March 2009. All of these are smoke-free:
Saturday, March 14th
Sheridan's Cafe
5133 S. Lake Drive, Cudahy
www.sheridanhouseandcafe.com/TheCafe.htm
Reservations are recommended: 414-747-9800
Band performs from 6:30 to 9:30 pm
Sunday, March 15th
The 5th annual "Pullin' O' the Green" Party
Grant Park Golf Course Clubhouse
100 Hawthorne Ave, South Milwaukee
Band plays from 5:30 to 7:30 pm
This event is the primary fundraiser for Friends of Grant Park. Admission is $10 for adults, $3 for kids.
The party features a new menu.
Tuesday, March 17th (St. Pat's Day)
Carlton Grange Pub
3807 S. Packard Avenue, St. Francis (just north of Howard Ave)
www.carletongrange.com
Friends of Grant Park Reminder
Friends of Grant Park friend Betsy Abert would love to see a big crowd at the group's meeting next Thursday, March 5 at the Grant Park Golf Course Clubhouse. The meeting's scheduled to begin at 6:45 p.m.
As part of the Friends of Grant Park "Local Ecology" series, Betsy says, one of the country's top ecologists, Noel Cutright, Ph.D., will speak and show a power-point presentation on "Bird Migration: Following the Flyways - Facts, Fiction & the Future".
