Thinking Out Loud

Apostrophe Patrol 2013: Sortin' it all out.

Traeger Grills are wonderful. This little cookbook title, however, is problematic.

An apostrophe can be used to show a letter is intentionally deleted. A typical example is when we depict a rural or casual pronunciation of the "ing" at the end of a verb. Example: "I'm singin' in the rain."

The good folks at Traeger apparantly wanted to send a rural/casual message, but they did not want to go so far as to delete the "g" at the end of "Traegering."

Hence, this odd case of an apostrophe that has no purpose whatsoever. It's just smoke.

 

 

 

Ed's New Venture in Communications

Friend Ed Stroesser is a partner at Communique, a premier communications, media and public relations firm in Jefferson City. Yesterday Ed was one of eighteen "permanent deacons" (i.e., ok to be married; not planning on becoming a priest) ordained for the Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City. This morning Ed celebrated his first Mass as a deacon at his home parish -- Immaculate Conception. Pastor Msgr. David Cox (right) is shown with Ed.

Having become proficient with human communications, Ed hopes to expand his scope to include the divine. 

We suspect he'll do a great job at that too. Best wishes.

Maybe pitchforks and chainsaws are next.

Today's ammo selection at the local Walmart was pretty slim.

Couldn't find any 12 guage skeet loads (not usually part of a terrorist's arsenal). 

I guess the Second Amendment DOES just refer to "arms."

Maybe I'll run by on the way to church in the morning. And then say a prayer for whoever thinks this is going to make any difference.  

Make a positive out of a negative.

Last night some sorry souls toppled the statue of the Blessed Virgin at Helias, a gift from the Vanderfeltz Family, Leon and Rita Mae in particular.

Let's focus on foregiveness and repair. Send a small donation to Helias High School  % the Statue Repair Fund.

Spend a moment thinking about foregiveness. It will help you deal with this event, and others like it. 

Apostrophe Patrol 2013: Split personality.

This is one of the most unique violations we've seen. This little apostrophe thought he was a comma. He appears on the front page of today's News Tribune.

 

 

 

 

A Dreary Day's Dalliance

Yesterday was a great day to stay inside and make . . . . .

 

Doggy Jerky !

It's a salt free cure specially created for canines.  

Here's how Colby reacts when she knows you have some in your pocket.

The Cole County Landwehrs @ CCHS Tuesday PM

Fred and Theresa Landwehr arrived here in 1908 with seven children, a horse named Lucy and a St. Bernard. East McCarty Street did not exist. The rest is history.

A dairy on Ash Street where Prison Brews is now located. A farm transformed into three hundred home sites. Careers at Central Bank and the Attorney General's Office. A young mother victim of the 1918 Great Infuenza. The youngest son lost in a war against his father's home county.

I will try to summarize just a portion of who they were, what they saw, and how they and other farm families added to the heritage of Cole County and Jefferson City  -  Tuesday March 12 @ 7:00 p.m. at the Cole County Historical Society Museum (across Madison from the Governor's Mansion). 

To Shuttle or Not to Shuttle? THAT is the question.

Jefferson City does not come to the conference center issue blind.  We spent lots of taxpayer dollars to learn about this complicated idea. We should keep in mind several important principals and not start all over as if we have not learned anything.

Experts have confirmed several basic principals that we all know instinctively.

We have one thing that no other cities in Missouri has: a Capitol and all the energy and politicking that goes with it. All objective data shows that our target guests are the hundreds of state wide associations and public employee groups that now cannot meet in Jefferson City because we have no facility big enough to accomodate them. Any successful conference center must access this base. The graduations, boat shows and music concerts will fill in the rest of the schedule.

In addition, we know that any site that must shuttle guests to the Capitol, the Truman Building, the Supreme Court and other vibrant state hot spots will not succeed, and it will not leverage our only advantage over competing convention cities in the state. 

Furthermore, any site that does not have ancillary hotel rooms within walking distance will not be competitive. In order for a conference center to be successul it must have convention quality hotel rooms attached, or within a very short distance from the center. Tell a meeting planner that most of their guests will have to go back and forth from the main hotel by shuttle, and the planner is going to look elsewhere.

Finally, we all know that when we go to a conference and spend eight hours in meetings and seminars we want to get out and do something in the city where we've landed. These evening activies unusualy center around dining, adult beverages and entertainment. Guests do not want to drive or take a shuttle back and forth to these venues. They want to walk.

City leaders should understand that one way for the Jefferson City project to fall on its face is to locate it where meeting planners are told that important state offices, hotel rooms and other amenities will be available only by .  .  .  

. . . . shuttle.

The city council should not just look at the econmics of putting a box on a lot and declaring victory. The council should look at a site that will leverage our advantage as the Capital City, and a site that will accomplish multiple planning objectives over time. 

Any proposal that depends on shuttles should be rejected outright.

Evening Meetings = Better Government

For decades the Cole County Commission, like most of their counterparts statewide, have conducted their meetings with broad agendas at a time of day (the morning) that discouraged public involvement and made total media coverage difficult if not impossible.

Last night, at the urging of newly elected Western District Commissioner Kris Scheperle, the Commission held a regular meeting in the evening. The result, according to this morning's News Tribune article, was a meeting where "every seat was taken" by interested citizens. 

Next:  Let's stream (or at least record for replay) every Cole County Commission meeting so citizens can view their government in action without leaving their homes. The technology has been there for a long time. Is there a willingness for County government to take this opporunity at transparancy?

 

 

 

Bloody Mary Bagel debut @ Chez Monet

As part of the inaugural festivities this week, Joan Fairfax will offer Missouri state elected officials . . .

a complimentary . . .  Bloody Mary Bagel.

Others may enjoy this latest addition to the Chez Monet Menu for a modest charge. Brainchild of a bored former mayor, this healthy and substantial snack combines the decadence of a toasted bagel and cream cheeze with more responsible components: thin tomato slices, a prominent celery stick and large olive.

It's a dang Bloody Mary on a plate!