by Shawn Sullivan on November 28th, 2008
I just returned from my first parent-teacher conference ever for my daughter, and it was a humbling experience. It is odd to see the child that you have spent the better part of 5 years molding and developing reduced down to a couple of strengths and weaknesses (not the words they used but that’s really the point). Overall, there were no surprises, but I was prepared to fight tooth and nail to make sure my daughter wasn’t unfairly criticized. Of course, I’ve already known for some time that I’m going to be a pain of a dad…That being said:
1. Who are the people in your life that you would fight to the end to protect? Is there anyone on that list who isn’t family?
2. Just so I can prepare myself, what is the appropriate age for kids to date nowadays? My background in juvenile corrections has left me with a skewed and cynical perspective on teenage dating. Please center me…
3. What’s the best age for kids? Is it when they’re cute babies, rambunctious toddlers, functional youth, or when they’re 18? I kinda like the whole 4-7 age period.
4. If someone gave you a chance to go back in time and relive your entire childhood, would you do it? I’m talking from 3-18….You couldn’t pay me enough…
5. So much of what we do is teach our kids with a reflection of our own values, biases, and interests. That being said, if you knew that your child would develop a passion for only one band or singer that you love, which band or singer would that be?
by Cheryl Mathis on November 26th, 2008
I count my blessings every day, and I try to live with as much gratefulness as I can muster. Thanksgiving comes easy to me, and it’s my favorite holiday. All the best food with no gifts.
This year, I am thankful for the small grins my daughter gives me when she’s privately delighted. I’m thankful for the wrinkle in her nose and the downcast eyes when she’s scolded and trying not to cry. I love the soft strawberry blonde curls that swirl around the nape of her neck, and I’m so grateful to have her in my life, healthy and happy.
My son continues to teach me humility and new ways to laugh every day, and for that I am appreciative. I’m thankful for his politeness (when he’s not kicking his sister) and his willingness to love openly and enthusiastically.
I can’t talk about thankfulness without acknowledging The Husband. He finds new ways to love me and value me every day of our life together. I’m grateful for the way he throws his whole heart into loving our children. I didn’t have an affectionate father, so it heals me to watch him with Ben and Anna.
So that’s about all the gooey, sentimental claptrap I can handle for one post. Here’s a brief rundown of a few of the other things I’m thankful for this year.
– Citizen Wausau and the Gang of Four lets me be a grown-up once in a while.
– Working part-time so I have time to be the anal-retentive control freak I really am.
– Owning our own house where I can paint the walls with color.
– Redemption and forgiveness and all of the other graces you can find around the corner.
So, Citizen Wausau friends… what are you thankful for this year? Tell us in the comments.
by Andy Laub on November 25th, 2008
Thanksgiving is almost upon us and with it another winter begins. Which means that what I’d like to be doing is curling up in front of the TV and staying there until April. Or at the very least, just relaxing a bit after a busy year.
But it’s not to be; I’m not yet at that point in my life where hibernation is a viable option, so at the very least I can find a few minutes here and there to take stock of my situation and be thankful for what I have – and what better time for that then now?
I’m thankful for friends and family. This belongs at the top of everyone’s list. Sometimes I need help, and sometimes I need to help, and I’m thankful to have that interaction and that network of people that I can trust and confide in.
I’m thankful for technology. Wow, that’s zero to shallow in one sentence. Lame as it sounds, technology is a huge part of my life. The modern world revolves around computers, and so I’m thankful to be able to take advantage of what they offer instead of shying away. The internet is amazing.
I’m thankful for theatre. Because it’s one of the few diversions in my life that is completely unplugged. And because it allows me to use a completely new part of my brain. And because I’ve met about a million new and awesome people in the last two years.
I’m thankful for a good year. Times are tough and will probably be that way for awhile. But for me the year had a lot more positives than negatives, and I can only hope that trend continues.
And finally, on behalf of Citizen Wausau, I’m thankful for the readers, the commenters, the contributors, the staff, and everyone else who has supported us over this last year. We really, really appreciate it. I don’t think there’s any way to adequately express how much.
by Shawn Sullivan on November 25th, 2008
On Sunday, I taught my son’s Sunday School lesson about Thanksgiving and talking about being thankful for what we have. At one point, I asked the kids (all aged 2-5) what they were thankful for…In no particular order, they were thankful for:
-Mom and Dad
-Their toys
-Their pets
-Their dead goldfish
-Stuffing and Turkey (to be fair, we talked about what we ate at Thanksgiving Dinner)
As I sit here and reflect on what I’m thankful for, I realize that I’m thankful for many of the same things. I’m thankful for my wife and kids, who enrich my life in unmeasurable ways every day. I’m thankful for my family, who are there for me when I need them and who ask for very little in return. I’m thankful for friends who value my strengths and overlook my weaknesses. I’m thankful to have a job I love, at a place that truly allows me to make a difference every day.
Not a day goes by that I don’t thank God for the wonderful blessings he has bestowed upon me, and in these tough times, it can be tough to find the light in the darkness. I am a lucky person, and I am truly thankful for it. Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving!
Oh, and by the way, I’m thankful for turkey and stuffing too…
by Dino Corvino on November 24th, 2008
I was thinking about high school, and the word joule came to mind. I have no idea what a joule is, but I think I learned about them in high school. I think I learned a lot of what I am thankful for in high school. But more than that I learned FROM some people who I am thankful for in high school. Men and women who shaped me (some might BLAME THEM for that, but I rather like them).
- Bill Heeren. I had him for Chem, and Geometry. In geometry class we all bombed a test, and he cried in front of the class. He was upset that he was doing a bad job teaching. Later Bill would play basketball with me, and give me detentions just to make sure I had someone to talk to, as I think he concerned about me. I am thankful for Bill Heeren.
- Scott Blanchard. I get paid to write a lot of stuff these days. Regardless if you think I deserve to, someone does. I started in 10th grade on the DC Jet, and I got thrown off of the Jet for doing bad research. You see, I was in 10th grade, and had no idea what research was. Now, I know what it is. Given my current job, Scott Blanchard got me here.
- Maren Thorson. A lot of people remember her. I read books by the pound to quote Diamond David Lee Roth, and she started me on that. Ethan Frohm, JD Salinger, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Steinbeck. Man, we READ in school and we talked about the ideas. How cool was that.
- Joel Mensch. I have no idea where he is, but if I did I would gladly call him everyday just to talk to him. He was such a friend in a hard time, and I will always thank him for it. I hated math, and he was my math teacher, and he never punished me for it.
- Eugene Dix. I met Jackie in his class. She was my lab partner and she got a B and I got a D. How that works, no idea. His class was hard. The most academically hard class prior to college, and I loved it. Stunk at it, but I got to meet Jackie and hang out each day with Dave Webber and Jay Freels, and those were cool guys.
I think that we can all make a list of other things we are thankful for…OS X, Parker Jotter, Keen Shoes, our grandparents, and all those lists are valuable. I was thinking about high school today.
by Cheryl Mathis on November 23rd, 2008
Date night with the husband featured live music at The Fillmor as we bundled up against the cold to venture out to see Mean Tooth Grin. Weeks ago I sat in a van with guitarist Tom Jordan and listened to him geek out about guitars and amps with Scott Holt. He invited me to come hear him play in November when he’d open for Steepwater.
Tom Jordan played with a gravity, feeling the weight of all the rock and blues greats who influenced him resting on his shoulders as he leaned into the rock, jamming his body against the beat. It seemed like he’d been loving this since he was a kid, this dream of performance, this open sharing of his first love. He presented it as a gift on a steel platter, asking us to love the music, too.
Tom growled into the microphone, the rough edge of the vocals shaping the gritty feel of the melody, an unpretentious declaration of being a good ol’ boy from the country. I felt I had been teleported to an outdoor music festival. I was sitting on a concrete wall, the rough surface of the stone scraping my thighs. I held a cold beer in my hand while the hot sun turned my face red and the music turned my body into an extension of the hard rhythm of the rock jam.
In reality, I was sitting in a draft at The Fillmor, my body growing colder as the music heated up on the stage.
Seth Heffner on bass played with an easy grace, a well-practiced and effortless skill with his instrument. The low repetitions of the bass line beat forth from his body, and all he had to do was pluck it from the machine he held. Seth smirked under his baseball cap, his hands curled over the strings, balancing on the notes, scratching it out like an itch he just had to relieve.
Brian Miller on the drums was a beefy jock of a man who played like this was the only place on earth he’d like to be: behind the drums, the sticks in his hands. Playing the beats with force and energy, he drove the music forward. Brian would shrug into the song, throwing himself into the rhythm, an easy grin on his face.
But Tom Jordan shined in his shy way, standing taller as the set aged. This is not a hobby. It’s his blood, boiling dirty and coarse through his veins, inexplicable, as part of him as nothing else. He played around with the melody, taking liberties with it, slapping it around, caressing it, sliding it around the stage, but always bringing it back where it belongs, coming back to the recognizable riffs to bring the song back home again. Tom hid behind a curtain of long brown hair that fell down in waves. Often he turned his body away from the crowd, unsure of himself but damn sure of the music.
Tom’s voice rode above the deep drive of the song, rolling on top of the bass. There was nothing syrupy sweet about the vocals. They were steeped in an elixir: one part snarl, one part sandpaper. He took turns with his guitar as he created a perfect balance between the lyrics and the melodic rampage of the jam.
I remembered the basement bedroom of a high school boyfriend. Black lights glowing, the hormonal heat keeping me warm, the music loud and the bass heavy. Leaning back against the second-hand couch, I learned the basics of the hard blues my mom never told me about. And so it was last night at The Fillmor, listening to Mean Tooth Grin display the skill of years of experience in the old school-style of raucous blues and country.
by Cheryl Mathis on November 21st, 2008
I know it’s premature, but I’m totally getting into the holiday spirit already. I’m trying very hard to resist putting up our Christmas tree so soon. After all, it’ll be the first Christmas when my daughter can grab stuff off of the tree, and I’m not sure I want to give myself another chore to be doing all day long, ie. keeping her away from the tree.
1. The cold weather has arrived. It’s not bitterly cold yet, but it’s still a shock. What activities have you had to halt because of the chilly weather?
2. I was singing Jingle Bells while walking through Sam’s Club last night. Sometimes I forget that not everyone makes their life into a musical, and I’m refreshingly oblivious to people’s irritation or giggles in response to my outward happiness. What is your favorite holiday carol? Or do you avoid Christmas music at all costs?
3. I misplace my keys at least four times a week. I’m always asking The Husband for his keys because I’ve lost mine. It’s not a big deal because we only have one car, but I know he gets annoyed. I think maybe if I had a bigger keychain with lots of fun things on it, I wouldn’t lose them as often. What is on your keychain?
4. A while back, I posted a couple videos in various places online with me and/or my family dancing like the dancing fools we are. I was ripping off the bandaid as far as forcing myself to relax in online videos are concerned. Later, I heard from a friend that a lot of people had felt embarrassed for me when they saw the video. *gulp* Part of me was horrified, but the other part told myself that it doesn’t matter, that many other people were delighted by it. The question is… have you ever made an idiot out of yourself online? How?
5. And finally… how do you feel about dogs wearing clothes? I always used to mock people who would dress up their dogs. How ridiculous! They have fur coats! That is until we got Molly, our Boston Terrier. As soon as the temperature dropped below 40 degrees, she started shivering and snorting when she went outside. She’d rush to do her business and then pull to get back inside the nice warm house where she’d plop down in front of a heating vent. Now for walks, we’re putting little sweaters on her, but they don’t help that much. I think we’ll have to get her a jacket. She doesn’t like walking on the cold concrete either, so maybe we’ll have to get her some booties. Are we being silly? Have you ever known a dog who is reticent to go out in the cold?
by Andy Laub on November 20th, 2008
Frequenters of CW will notice as of a few days ago a new addition to the site: a few conveniently-placed but hopefully not-too-intrusive banners served up by Google. Clicking on the ads gives Citizen Wausau a few cents here and there; money that will be put toward our standard operating costs (hosting, etc) and other side projects.
I hope we can count on your continued support and enthusiasm for the site!
by Cheryl Mathis on November 19th, 2008
Our involvement with Twitter is an ever-changing activity. As I figure out the best and most effective way to share and promote local online content, we’ll be tweaking and adjusting our system and format.
Let me tell you a little bit about Twitter. In a nutshell, it’s microblogging … very small blog posts, just 140 characters or less. You write something like, “I’m at Buffalo Wild Wings with Justin and Jimmy, eating too many wings.” Your friends, the people who “follow” you, will see that post on their Twitter screen. It’ll show up with your name, a little picture, and the time you posted it. So now we’ll know where you are, who you’re with, and what you’re doing, and we can comment on what you post. “@soandso Sounds yummy! Are you bringing me the leftovers?”
It’s an easy, fun way to stay in touch with people and also to blog things that aren’t worthy of a full-length post. The 140-character format requires you to be pithy and concise, causing you to get to the point quickly and challenging you to use the fewest words to describe something. You can share funny, interesting things that happen during your day or that interest you. “LMAO at this story from The Onion. http://tinyurl.com/xxx.”
Which describes how I use Twitter for Citizen Wausau. I love finding online content generated in Wausau or related to Wausau. I’m twittering about blogs and events or bits of chatter about the city. Here at Citizen Wausau, we support and encourage local online content. We want you to know that we’re listening to what you have to say, and we’re hoping more of you start writing. Your voice is important, and we want to hear more of you.
I read all new content every day, and I choose links to promote on our Twitter feed. I describe the link I’m sending you to and I give my comments or opinions on the topic discussed. Consider me your tour guide to Wausau online.
Eventually, I’d like to see a full Twitter community, all of us following each other, interested in each other’s lives and opinions in a more intimate way that’s just not possible from full-length blogs and comments. There are several Citizen Wausau people on Twitter already, and many more from the general Wausau community. I urge you to create your own Twitter account today so you can join the conversation. If you don’t feel up to starting a full-fledged blog on Citizen Wausau, Twitter is an opportunity for you to start blogging on a small scale.
Of course when you do, I hope you follow http://www.twitter.com/citizenwausau. And I’ll follow you as well!
Starting next week, I’ll be publishing a Twitter digest to our front page twice a week. I’ll pick my favorite links to post with my comments included. You’ll get a quick peek into what other people are talking about online. I’ll continue posting a Twitter report nightly with all of the links I twittered during that day, but that will be to the community Twitter Report blog.
Please let me know if you have any questions or if you need help getting your Twitter account set up.
by Dino Corvino on November 18th, 2008
Do You Know a Deserving Person?
I do not know if they do this yearly, but my good buddy (and Lil Wayne enthusiast) Rob Mentzer sent me this link. The Editorial Board over at the WDH is looking to award someone, anyone, ANYONE…a person of the year title. All you need to do is nominate them.
I think you need to go through a few channels described in this link, but I think it would be fun for the Citizen Wausau community to engage this process. I suppose you could nominate someone here as well, though I am not going to pass it along just in case that invalidates the votes.
So again, the Wausau Daily Herald has opened up the process to all of us, so let us jump in and make our voices heard.
