"When all is said and done, the real citadel of strength of any community is in the hearts and minds and desires of those who dwell there." Everett M. Dirksen
"We are stuck with technology when what we really want is just stuff that works." Douglas Adams
I was up in Madison WI this week on business. I think the City Motto is “The USSR may have fallen but Madison marches on”. They’ve been on the west edge of where WI has been getting hammered by stormwater this spring, and the lakes are just about over their banks.
Being the state capital may help, but they seem to be a leg up on stormwater solutions too, and it has definitely helped.
Yes I would and yes I am. And don’t forget about the benefit concert for the Blodgett House on the evening June 26th. “Let’s put the heritage back into Heritage Festival.”
Gee, would you ever guess that I am also the Chair of the Community Events Commission?
John H. Pearce, a Naperville resident since 1965, died June 9, 2008 at Edward Hospital. Born Aug. 21, 1927 in Terre Haute, IN. He is survived by his wife, Elvina; a brother, Frank G. Pearce of El Macero, CA; and eight nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Fred and Irene Pearce; a brother, Milton Pearce; and two sisters, Genevieve McWilliams and Dorothy Shea. A memorial visitation celebrating John’s life will be held on Friday, June 13, 5 until 9 p.m. at the Friedrich-Jones Funeral Home, 44 S. Mill, Naperville. In lieu of flowers, memorials in John’s honor may be made to the Interlochen Center for the Arts, 4000 Highway M-137, Interlochen, MI 49643. For info, 630-355-0213.
DuPage County is the only county in Illinois where candidates need to get three times as many petition signatures as required by state law. Last month the Illinois Senate took a look at DuPage County’s exceptional requirements for filing a petition to run for office, and unanimously voted to strike down the provision.
Yesterday the House of Representatives Friday repealed that provision of the state’s election code with a 65-49 vote. Gov. Blago now needs to sign it.
Note: I wrote this a couple years ago. I’m just posting it as is.
Tales told to a child while my Dad and two of my uncles played three handed double deck pinochle
I just got back from the cemetary. While there, memories surge into unexpected places, pulling pieces of the past forward to the near present. On Memorial Day, they flow into the stories of WWII told by Dad, and by my uncles, sitting around a linoleum topped dining room table.
A flurry of exchanged emails later, it appears the damage done was due to two factors, mainly the discovery of construction debris (cinder blocks, etc.) that the contractor dug our and removed. The big rutted tracks will be graded and seeded, and everything should be back on track this year. The garlic mustard they wanted to nuke with herbicides is on hold until they take another look at the pest plant disposal options. PDHA offered some weed pulling laborers (hey, and we’re legal laborers). Last time the PD did a weed pull, volunteers eliminated almost 600 lbs. of the stuff (!).
The IHDA request for bond cap got a fair hearing. Council took great pains, especially Mayor Sandack, to separate the housing issue from the cap request. DGreport regular John Schofield spoke to the point, about the small economic stimulus that can help a couple realtors and families, and how the benefit ripples outward to home improvement stores etc., and that the families who would benefit from it are able to make the payments and be a valued part of the community. Plus, it costs the village nothing, nada, zip. Commissioner Schnell asked all the tough questions, and Robert Morsh from the IHDA had all the answers. Durkin suggested the program be tailored to village employees. This program might benefit 5-6 families at best, so it is modest and measurable.
And Sandack got the big council laugh of the night; he meant to say the $1.3 million cap grant as proposed was not a big deal, but he said $1.3 million was not a big deal. As he said it he realized his mistake, as did the other council members, who gave him the appropriate off the mic grief as he backtracked.
After Tuesday night’s packed house and impassioned pleas to council to reject the PD cell tower plans (which they can’t, see the original post), I expected a big turnout at the PD board meeting asking them to hold up and reconsider. Not a single person from Tuesday attended tonights meeting.
How did I get the correction on Pavlicek’s ICMA membership (instead of being a Director, as listed on ZoomInfo)?
Simple. A member of the Executive Board of Directors of the ICMA called me. And agreed to exchange emails with me. And was his usual unfailingly polite self.
The time stamp function on this blog was not set correctly, running 11 hours ahead. It is now one hour behind. Bear with me.
John Schofield also suggested I might consider editing what I write. I go back and correct grammar, and if there is new info that modifies what I have written I will try and update that, but for the most part what you see is as I type it, with the thankful addition of spell checking, because I am a lousy typist and often flip pairs of letters, like teh instead of the. Granted, most of my posts would shrink by about 50% if I did edit…I will think about it.
Rupert Borgsmiller called and emailed me yesterday with some sense of urgency that I call him back, giving me his direct line phone number.
I know, I know: who the heck is Rupert Borgsmiller? Mr. Borgsmiller is one of the most important state officials you don’t know: he is the Director of the Campaign Disclosure Division of the Illinois Board of Elections, the state watchdog of campaign finance transparency.
John Schofield sent me this heads up on a Tribune article by Greg Canfield filed March 20, 2008:
In an attempt to stop trees from being attacked by the emerald ash borer, Lombard is requiring residents to get a permit before removing any tree from private property.
The permit, which is free, ensures the Lombard Public Works Department will inspect the tree before the permit is approved. If the tree is found to be an ash, a specific process must be followed prior to the permit being approved.
Silly question: “How does a required permit stop the trees from being attacked?
and not a whisper about it at either the 99 website or the DGS website. Shameful, given the hoursweeks months and months of hard work and practice that go into each members efforts on the speech teams at both schools.
At least Wikipedia gives them the cred they deserve:
It’s speech team has won thirteen state championships, more than any other school in Illinois. In 1997 it became the only team to win the speech state championship 4 years in a row, and in 2008 the only the only school to win that same title 5 years in a row.
Since 1985 DGS’ Speech team has won or placed second in state except for 1986, 1989 and 2000. If a sports team had won or was runner up at state with a record like that, imagine the hysteria. And these students did it not with brute athletic ability, but with brute skill and brute brilliance.
(DGN News has a report on their team, which finished eighth at state.)
The University of Illinois a capella group The Xtension Chords (known as the X Chords) are competing Saturday night in the midwest ICCA semi finals at Northwestern University. My son Brian is in the group, as is Phil and Paula Vettel’s son Ed. Brian went to DGS, Ed went to DGN; both sides of town are represented by this very talented, funny group.
Here’s a couple pictures from this year’s Ice Festival. There was a pretty good turnout. Lots of kids out with their parents, shaking off a little cabin fever.
This is an art form that guys like. Why? Two words: power tools…
To be more specific, instead of brushes, these artists use chain saws. Can there be any higher art form? Did not think so…
The Sea Turtle was looking pretty good.
I have to go back Sunday and see this one finished. The artists starts out with cubes of ice and ends up with perfect spheres to be used as balls for his sculpture.
The dragon guys were shaving down their creation prior to attaching the wings. If you look in the background, Egg Harbor was rolling around carts with complimentary coffee and hot chocolate. I heard plenty of comments that people will eat there when it opens.
Pretty jumping on what normally would be just another dismal February weekend.
I was up in Madison WI this week on business. I think the City Motto is “The USSR may have fallen but Madison marches on”. They’ve been on the west edge of where WI has been getting hammered by stormwater this spring, and the lakes are just about over their banks.
DuPage County is the only county in Illinois where candidates need to get three times as many petition signatures as required by state law. Last month the Illinois Senate took a look at DuPage County’s exceptional requirements for filing a petition to run for office, and unanimously voted to strike down the provision.
The time stamp function on this blog was not set correctly, running 11 hours ahead. It is now one hour behind. Bear with me.
Rupert Borgsmiller called and emailed me yesterday with some sense of urgency that I call him back, giving me his direct line phone number.
Five years and counting, 
