Wednesday, 4/30

Once again, it appears as if I'm a bit of a moron.

Yesterday I shared the tale of how I wrote an entire TV piece, only to realize I had written the same basic thing just a few weeks earlier. That wasn't the only time my moronicity (which, by the way, is now an official word) popped up this weekend. Sunday, while Loraine & I were out, I snapped a picture--

I put on social media, along with the captions “In a sure sign of Spring, the trees in Marquette have started to bloom”. It got a bunch of chuckles and responses, one of which said--

“Jim, you missed a big chance. You should have said 'the trees in Marquette are Budding'”.

And, as soon as I looked at the picture, I realized how I am, indeed, a moron. The bottle sitting on the tree branch?

It's Budweiser. The tree literally WAS budding, and I didn't use that as the gag.

Sigh. As the risk of repeating myself, sometimes I amaze myself. And it's hardly ever in a good way.

I don't know why I didn't think of that joke. I knew the bottle was Bud, but for whatever reason my pea brain (perhaps a bit distracted by its journey into moronicity a few hours earlier) didn't put two and two together. And that would have been a GREAT caption. I'm just glad someone noticed it and mentioned it; based on response to it, the comment was almost as popular as the original post itself.

So...I blew that one. But I'm glad someone swooped in to make the save, and the proper gag was saved for posterity. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to work where, I'm pretty sure, I'll do something so dumb that I'll once again amaze myself with my moronicity.

Because, you know, it's been that kind of week.

8-)

(jim@wmqt.com)

Tuesday, 4/29

Despite the fact that I'm a bit of a moron, I think it turned out quite well.

As you can imagine, when you write a weekly piece for TV you get a lot of ideas floating through your head. And sometimes, you get ideas that seem a little...familiar. A case in point?

Late last week, I had a picture I wanted to use, and had what I thought would be a perfect idea for a “Life in the 906” that would allow me to to use this shot--

This past weekend, as I was writing that bit, something started to gnaw at my brain. I wasn't quite sure what it was, but there seemed to be something...off about what I was writing. Then I typed a line that I thought particularly cute, and realized why the whole thing seemed a little off.

I had written and performed the piece I thought would be a perfect idea for yesterday a month ago. I didn't even remember that that “perfect idea” was also perfect on March 24^th.

Sometimes, I amaze even myself. And usually not in a good way.

After sitting for a few minutes and shaking my head in disbelief, I realized I still had the picture, and (hoped) I could use it as the basis for something new. It took a few minutes, but after a little pondering and a lot of self-incrimination, I stumbled upon a way to use that picture in a new piece, one that combined a little poetry, a lot of nice photographs, and at least two references to “Dirty Dancing”.

In other words, it was almost everything I want in a “Life in the 906”.

I'll be the first to admit I got lucky this time around. I can, however, foresee a future weekend when I have what I think is a good idea, only discover (hopefully not too late) that I did it last week or last month or last year, and not be able to throw something together quite so easily. I guess that's one of those things you have to deal with when you've done over 130 TV bits, and (sadly) also something you have to deal with when you're a moron.

You know...like me.

(jim@wmqt.com)

(PS--Because of a technical issues I didn't actually get to read the last paragraph I wrote, and because of another technical issue I don't have a recording of it.  So here, if you're curious, is the script in its entirety--

There’s one word that you usually don’t think of when you think of the UP.  But we’re in a two or three week span right now where that adjective, sadly, might apply.

You see, we’re in that two or three week span when, and I apologize for using a four letter word here, the UP is dull.

During the summer the UP is one of the most beautiful places on the planet.  As fall kicks into gear we get to live among an explosion of color.  

And even though I am severely opposed to the concept of winter, there is an ethereal beauty associated with it.

But for the two or three weeks in which we currently find ourselves, the weeks after the snow melts but before the grass turns green?  Not so much.  Almost anywhere you look in the UP it’s a mix of brown and gray, a jambalaya of leftover sand, leftover leaves, & leftover dog poop.

It just looks dull.  And making Upper Michigan look dull is like putting Baby in a corner.  Nobody should ever do that.  Yet for these two or three weeks Mother Nature is acting like Johnny Castle never uttered those immortal words.

It’s just not right.  After the winters we have up here, I‘d like to think we deserve better.

But during these few weeks we start to see the signs that we will be dull no more.  The browns and the grays are already starting to fade away.   

Grass is slowly darkening into green.  

Trees are teasing us with buds that will soon become leafs.  

And the first flowers are starting to poke their heads above ground, all signs that in just another two or three weeks the UP will be at its full glory, ready to dazzle us with the beauty of our short but spectacular summer.

But for this week, and maybe next, that beauty is just a dream for the future. Until then, we’ll just have to make it through the one time of the year when you can honestly call the UP a four letter word.

Dull.

I’m Jim Koski, and that’s another slice of “Life in the 906”

Monday, 4/28

I might want to join Instagram just for this one page.

While reading the paper Sunday morning (yes, I still read those mythical things called “newspapers”, even if it's the New York Times on a laptop) I came across an article on a very strange Instagram page called “the Depths of Wikipedia”. It was started by a University of Michigan student during Covid lockdowns, and highlights some of the strangest things you'll ever find on Wikipedia.

And some of it is hilarious.

Now, I've laughed my head off at Wikipedia entries on my own. After all, when you have a crowd-sourced encyclopedia, you're bound to find strange and unusual stuff, like the time I was looking up hockey player Jaromir Jagr for Loraine and read in the “personal facts” section of his entry that he had just married a goat. Sports and political figures have the most snark and inaccuracies in their entries; probably not surprising when you consider all the fandom and political agendas out there.

But the cake was probably taken by one of the Wikipedia pages showcased in the article, a page for a song called “The Most Unwanted Song”. It's an actual tune from the mid 90s put together by two avant-garde artists and a composer. When I saw the description of the song I literally did a spit take (I usually drink tea while reading my newspaper, after all). It's not snarky and, as far as I can tell, there's nothing fake about it. Apparently, the song is just this bizarre---

“The song was designed to incorporate lyrical and musical elements that were annoying to most people. These elements included bagpipes, cowboy music, an opera singer rapping, and a children's choir that urged listeners to go shopping at Walmart.”.

Does that sound like a good song or what? And here's the topper—it's 21 minutes long. Yes...over a third of an hour of aural irritation. So, for your listening pleasure...

Let me guess—you didn't make it through even the first minute, right? Don't worry; neither did I. But thanks, “The Depths of Wikipedia”. Now I at least know something like that exists.

I appreciate it.

8-)

(jim@wmqt.com)

Friday, 4/25

You know how there are “dog years”? I wonder if there are “car years”, as well.

The reason that thought popped into my head is that I have to run Loraine's car out to Fox Chevy in a little bit to get new front brake pads & rotors. When I got the oil changed last week they noticed the parts needed replacement, and Loraine likes her car almost as much as (if not more than) me, so I told her I'd take care of it.

And I shall.

Because I know nothing at all about cars (sorry, Dad) I guess I'm a little confused as to why the front brakes are bad while the back ones aren't (because it's a front wheel drive car?). But more to the point, her car, after seven years, only has 13,000 miles on it, so you'd think that most parts would still be fine.

And that's why I started to think of “car years”.

One of the things my in-house car expert (hi again, Dad) is always telling us is that we have to take the car out for more than a spin to the grocery store every so often, because the parts in the vehicle need to get used. We try; we're not always successful, but we try. And if the car has spent the vast majority of the past seven years sitting in our driveway, I'm guessing that would make it like a human sitting in a recliner for seven years.

Things would start not working, and would start not working fast.

So even though the car's seven years old, how old would that make it in human years? I mean, a “dog” year is equal to seven “human” years. If we take that number and apply it to Loraine's car, that would make it almost 50 (human) years old. And that way, I could see why things like the front brakes would need to get replaced.

Even if they haven't been used very much.

I have no idea if “car” years is an actual thing or if I'm just really out there. But when you have something you don't use very much yet have to take it in for a little TLC, things like that pop into your head.

Or, at least, they pop into my head.

So I'll be taking an occasionally wise old man's (hi yet again, Dad) advice and bringing Loraine's car up for a little minor surgery in a few minutes. And while I'm there, who knows--

Maybe I'll ask the people at Fox if there IS a human equivalent for “car years”. Or maybe not. After all, I get enough strange looks directed my way as it is.

8-)

Have a great weekend, everyone!

(jim@wmqt.com)

Thursday, 4/24

I'm now trying to decide—should it be the Lighthouse, or the Ore Dock?

For many years, I've thought the most photographed/painted/drawn/sketched/sculpted/needle-pointed landmark in the city of Marquette is the city's iconic old Lighthouse--

It's big, it's red, and you can go to any local art or craft store and see many examples of how it inspires the city's creative artists. I'll admit; even though I don't consider myself an “artist”, that I still have hundreds of shots (and more than a few examples of video B-roll) of the structure. It's been like that as long as I can remember, and I'm sure you'll be seeing interpretations of it for decades to come.

But recently, I've been noticing more and more photos/paintings/drawings/sketches/sculptures and needle-points of DSS&A Dock #6, or, as we simply call it, “the Ore Dock”.

In fact, I went around my apartment just now and counted 5 examples (including needlepoint, lest you think I'm kidding) of the Lighthouse, which is probably average for a Marquette resident. But the Ore Dock? 10 pieces of art, including a VERY big photograph taken during “Orehenge”, the twice a year phenomenon wherein the sun rises directly through the empty guts of the structure.

At least in my apartment, and, I'm guessing, most of Marquette, the Ore Dock is now the most photographed/painted/drawn/sketched/sculpted/needle-pointed landmark in the city of Marquette. (And yes, I HAVE seen a needle point of it. I just don't have one).

Why the gradual shift? I'm not sure. One theory I might put forth is that the Ore Dock is a lot cleaner, for lack of a better word, than it was 25 years ago. Before 2000 it was still grungy and, in many people's minds, representative of those old days when trains would be on top it it, belching smoke into the air and disgorging iron ore dust into its chutes. But once the old trestle leading up to it was torn down just after the turn of the century, people seem to have forgotten that it's one of the last remaining signs of the old industrial Marquette. It's now a city icon, something with which we grew up and something without which we couldn't imagine Marquette.

Like I said, that's just a theory. But it could be the reason.

I'm sure neither structure will be lacking in photos/paintings/drawings/sketches/sculptures and needle-points any year in the near future, and perhaps the Lighthouse will once again claim the throne. But for now, it seems like the city has a new artist muse--

DS&A Dock #6.

(jim@wmqt.com)

Wednesday, 4/23

They're both kind of the same. But they're also both really, really different.

A couple of days ago someone asked me a question that I hadn't personally considered—if there's any difference writing these blogs and the TV bits I do every Monday. Like I said, I had never even thought about that, but her question made me think which, as we all know, can be a dangerous thing.

And the conclusion to which I came is that they're actually quite different.

I mean, both these daily musings and my weekly thing are, at their core, just essays. It's just me rambling about whatever comes into my head (and, as an aside, things keep coming into my head. I rue the day when I sit here with an empty brain.

And keep those snotty comments about that last line to yourself. 8-))

Anyway, the more I thought about it the more I realized the difference between the two, at least from a technical point of view. These things can be as long or as short as I want, and include occasionally tortured syntax, weird ideas, and long, rambling statements.

My TV pieces, though, need to be precise...concise. They need to be two minutes long, give or take a few seconds. I need to write them to be spoken, instead of writing them to be read (which, until you have to do it, is something you don't even think about) And unlike these, with their (occasionally) esoteric topics, the TV bits need to talk about something that interests the entire UP. Or, at least, something that might interest a significant chunk of the UP.

Unlike a fair percentage of these.

I will admit, though, that writing these for over two decades has made writing the TV bits a piece of cake. Well, maybe “piece of cake” isn't quite the correct word, seeing how much work they can occasionally be. But consider these daily ramblings my gateway drug into the world of TV, because like I said--

If you can write one of these every day, then writing another one a week, even with all of its differences, is probably a whole lot easier than starting from scratch.

(jim@wmqt.com)

Tuesday, 4/22

If you're lucky enough to look in the right spot, you can see the signs that the changes, they are a-comin'.

I've always been of the opinion that Spring (or at least what passes for it around here) is the one season where Marquette does not look its best. Think of it; in March (or this year April, thanks to our late winter), the snow's melting, leaving piles of dirt and dog crap everywhere. No one likes to see that. And then in April and early May, there's no color. The grass is brown, the leaves haven't popped out, and everything is just kinda “blah”. But there is hope, as I noticed over the weekend when I took one of my cameras and went out for a walk.

Everywhere you looked, Marquette was still Marquette, but without any color, especially on Saturday when it was cold & rainy. I don't think I've ever called Marquette this, but on Saturday Marquette looked...dull--

The weekend did get a little better, at least on Sunday when the sun popped out here and there. The city wasn't quite as dull, but you could tell it's still in the process of shedding this weird winter. For instance, while the snow's gone in the city, it's still sitting on Marquette Mountain--

Even the robins notice there's not much color out there--

But if you know where to look and you look close enough, you can see signs that things are changing. In fact, if you want an inkling of hope, a sign that changes may be on the way, take a glance at this--

Hopefully, the colors continue to keep popping out, and the grays and the browns slowly disappear. The forecast for the next few days calls for temps in the 50s and (perhaps) even the 60s; if the flowers above have popped out when it's been in the 30s and 40s, can you imagine what things would look like after a few days of actual Spring-like weather?

It's almost enough to make one giddy. So keep you fingers crossed, if you would. The days of Marquette looking less than world-class may be over quickly this year!

(jim@wmqt.com)

Monday, 4/21

Here's a note to daily blog readers Chicky-Poo & Dar of Melbourne Beach, Florida--

It's today, Mom & Dad. Our wedding anniversary is TODAY.

8-)

You know how every family has their own inside jokes, quirks, traditions, rituals, and ways of doing things? Well, my family's no different. We have certain ways of doing things, certain things that get brought up and never fail to make everyone laugh, and certain traditions that have been followed since time began.

And one of those traditions would be my parents thinking that my wedding anniversary is on a day other than today

We're not quite sure how it started. We're pretty certain my parents were on the courthouse steps when Loraine and I said “I do” all those years ago. I'm pretty certain because they're in the pictures, and we got married so long ago that Photoshop wasn't even a brand-name, much less the verb it's become. Yet for some reason we've received anniversary cards and calls on the 23^rd, or the 25^th, or the 27^th, but not that often on the 21^st.

But that's one of the things that makes the day so special.

Now, in my parents defense (and this was one of the excuses we've been given over the years), a lot of big family dates occur on the 21^st or the 23^rd. So it's easy to see how, for the first few years, you might juxtapose one date with another. But it was more than (gulp) three decades ago that Loraine and I got hitched. Over the years, part of that celebration has branched off into “what day you think we'll get the card from your parents?”. And you know what? We wouldn't change that for the world. It's now literally part of how we celebrate our big day and, if I'm being honest, one of our favorite parts.

So mom & dad, just remember—it's on the 21^st. Really, it is!

*****

And to the Most Amazing Woman in the World, happy anniversary. Thanks for letting me spend all these years with you. I can't wait to see what we get to do next!!!

Love,

(jim@wmqt.com)

Thursday, 4/17

47 percent, huh? That's quite the number.

Odds are you weren't listening at 2:35 yesterday afternoon, or that if you were you don't even remember my “Weird Fact of the Day”, but it's a number that simultaneously did and did not surprise me in any way, shape, or form--

Because of their costs, 47% of Americans who usually color Easter eggs will not be doing so this year.

Like I said, I'm not surprised; thanks to everything from bird flu to confusing economic policies eggs have remained stubbornly high in price, and I can see why people have wanted to cut back. But to NOT follow the traditional coloring of eggs?

Well, that would almost be akin to not making cookies during Christmas. And that's kinda sad.

I also find it a bit interesting because Americans, collectively, are slated to spend 24 billion dollars on the holiday, which includes everything from ham to chocolate bunnies to that fake grass you'll be picking out of your carpet for the next six months. I'm wondering if that total now represents the ceiling for Easter spending in this country, and the fact that eggs are anywhere from one to six (depending upon where you live and what kind you buy) dollars more expensive than at this time last year represents the point at which people throw up their hands and say...

“Okay. Enough”.

While it hasn't affected me in real life, I have had a little fun with it during our “Easter Parade of Colors” contest. When I give qualifiers two egg colors, sometimes one of those color is white because, as I tell them, eggs are so expensive that it shot our budget and we couldn't afford that many colors. It gets a laugh, because I think a lot of listeners relate to it.

Hopefully, it doesn't affect you too much. After all, everyone has their favorite Easter tradition, and I know that for a lot of people that involve the coloring of eggs. So if you have to give something up for Easter, make it that fake grass that you';ll still be finding int your carpet for the next six months.

Spend it on the eggs instead.

*****

I have tomorrow off, so when you come by here to read a new one of these you'll have to remind yourself that “Oh, Jim has today off”. Back with something new on Monday.

Enjoy your chocolate bunnies and, if you're splurging, your eggs!

(jim@wmqt.com)

Wednesday, 4/16

This is actually my favorite part of the whole process.

I don't know if I've mentioned it recently, but History Jim has a PACKED schedule this year, including (but not limited to) two big new History Center walking tours, assisting with a cemetery walk, a show at the Lake Superior Theater, a couple of private tours and talks, five newspaper articles, and yet another series of “Pieces of the Past”, the videos I make for the History Center.

It tired me out just typing all that. I can't imagine what my brain will be like at the end of the year.

8-)

Anyway, because most of the things on the list are in the summer and/or fall, I've been spending these yucky winter (and winter-like spring) weekends and evenings up to my eyeballs in research. Like I said, it's actually my favorite part of the process, for a couple of reasons. One, I get to learn stuff, and two, I get to learn stuff I didn't even know I'd get to learn.

That's especially appropriate of my first big History Center tour this summer, “Wild Wild West”, which will explore Marquette's Washington Street WEST of Fourth Street. I knew there were several things I wanted to talk about, and as I dug into those things I came across all kinds of other interesting facts, which means that (among other things) the tour will now talk about drunken shenanigans, one of the most interesting families of the early 20^th century, and the day when someone decided it would be a good idea to try to blow up the railroad tracks heading into downtown Marquette.

And here...I was worried that without stories about hookers this tour would be boring. Goes to show what I know.

This particular tour is coming up June 18^th, and like all my projects I'll be re-purposing a bunch of the tales for newspaper articles, videos, and the like. But then, with everything I have coming up between now & December, I'm not blaming myself for that one bit.

Really, I'm not.

And, to give you just a taste of what the “Wild Wild West” tour will unveil, let me present this picture of the 300 block of Washington Street in the 1920s, complete with a gas station where Little Caesars pizza now sits.

And that's not even close to the coolest picture I've dug up. Join us in June and see what I mean.

(jim@wmqt.com)

Tuesday, 4/15

It's nice to know the pictures came in handy.

As I may have mentioned in here, I've been going through the tens of thousands of pictures I've taken over the past two-plus decades. Every so often, I'll see one I think I might have a use for, and set it aside in a computer folder. Over the weekend I noticed that I seem to have set aside a fair amount of pictures with a certain theme, which led my brain to shoot into overdrive, which then resulted in my TV piece last night about “urban art”.

Have I ever mentioned my brain (like the rest of my life) is weird?

8-)

Over the years, whenever I've seen something interesting, be it sidewalk art, a poem scribbled on a stop sign, or something totally unique--

I've taken a picture of it. As you can imagine, I've accumulated quite the collection of what I call (for no particular reason) “urban art”, which made it quite easy to put together the TV piece. But as I mentioned in it, that's one of the great things about living in the UP, and in Marquette, specifically. It's an area filled with artistic talent, and those artists, no matter how offbeat they may be, are not shy about sharing their creations.

And we're insanely lucky because of that.

So if you're curious as to what some of the those pictures of are like, just check out the entire piece. And then, as you're out & about the next few months, see how many you can examples of “urban art” you can spot on your own!

(jim@wmqt.com)

Monday, 4/14

I don't have a car, so I don't have to buy gas for a car. But if I did, I don't know that I'd let it sit there just running, and running...

And running.

For those of you not fortunate enough to live a (mostly-car) free lifestyle, just let me say this—I feel your pain. Every time I walk past a gas station and see prices that seem to shoot up and down on an hourly basis I myself cringe a little. I can't imagine what it's like having to drive 15 or 20 or 60 miles a day.

It must be painful.

So that makes me wonder about the guy around the corner from where I live. I don't know him, but he's one of those stereotypical guys around here who drives a pickup truck. He also, from what I can tell, has a habit of starting his pickup so that it's warm when he gets into it. With the weather we've been having recently I don't begrudge anyone that. I really don't.

But...I went running this morning. When I ran past his truck it was turned on, the engine roaring like the engine of a pickup truck usually does. I finished my four miles, which means that about 35 minutes later, as I was walking up the street cooling down, I noticed that his truck was still running.

And as far as I can tell, it hadn't moved an inch.

Gas is what...over three bucks a gallon, at least here in Marquette? How much gas—how much money—must a big pickup truck left idling in a driveway burn up in that (at least) 35 minute span? I mean, forgot about all the toxins you're spewing into the atmosphere by leaving your pickup running for at least 35 minutes; that's a rant for another day. How much money do you (literally) burn by letting your truck run just so you'll be warm?

I just don't get it. But then, I'm not a pickup owner. Heck, I'm barely even a driver of a (fuel-efficient) car. There may be a reason for letting a truck run every morning, just as the money that goes out the tailpipe may not be an issue. But still...you're wasting a finite resource (gas). You're throwing away a valuable commodity (money). Where's the sense in that? Where's the logic in that?

Some days, I see things that make me realize I'm not like other people. What I noticed while running this morning was one of those things.

(jim@wmqt.com)

Friday, 4/11

A couple of small things to wrap up the week, the first being a note from blog reader Chelsea of Marquette, who, after checking out yesterday's entry about my new soccer cleats, asked--

“Really? You don't have any vices?”

Believe it or not Chelsea, I really don't, unless you count soccer cleats the color of cotton candy. I'm almost apologetic in saying that; after all, it seems like everyone has something they're a little ashamed of, but not me.

Well, unless you count chocolate and/or the inability to say “no”. If you count those, I have plenty of vices.

8-)

Secondly, since I've been doing this monthly since November, and since I know that several of you actually wonder about it, here's this month's response to the question “is the traffic cone still on top of the Range Bank ATM”?

I personally think the traffic cone's in it for the long haul.

Finally, some of you may read Brian Cabell's blog about Marquette, “Man About Town”. But if you haven't yet checked out his latest entry, I highly recommend it. The writing's amazing, the story compelling, and it proves that even during these turbulent times some people are still demonstrating that humanity's good thing, day after day.

Check it out here—https://manabouttown.substack.com/p/from-ukraine-to-marquette-a-story

On that note, have yourself a good weekend. Up here we're looking forward to having the rest of our snow melt, because it'll be (hopefully) in the 50s!

(jim@wmqt.com)

Thursday, 4/10

How do you like my new soccer cleats?

As you probably know, I don't have many vices in life. I don't smoke, I don't drink, I don't gamble, and I actually like the person to whom I'm married. So when it comes to frivolously spending my money I have to look for creative way in which to do it. That's why I travel, get new cameras, and, for the past decade or so, buy really colorful soccer cleats.

Maybe some month soon I'll even get to use them.

This is probably the fourth or fifth time now that Loraine has seen a soccer player wearing colorful cleats, shown me a picture of said cleats, and watched a few days later as I open the box and (invariably) proclaim “look...they're so pretty”. And they usually are.

Now, I realize that most people would not buy soccer cleats because “they're so pretty”. But, as we all know, I'm not most people.

This new pair, which Adidas just released, is filled with Easter colors, which makes me wonder if that's why they just released them (what with Easter being a week and a half away). It doesn't really matter; I just think it's cool that we can see cleats on professional players in Europe on a Saturday and then have the same cleats in my hands five days later.

Despite what some people seem to think, having a world-wide economy really IS a good thing.

I actually won't be wearing them right away, for a couple of reasons, the most obvious being that (as I've mentioned) we've been having our entire winter in the past month, and are waiting for the remaining snow to melt so we can get back out on a pitch.

The other reason? These will actually be my backup pair of cleats. I'm still using pretty purple cleats I bought last fall and a pair of pretty bright orange ones I bought last spring, and I'll keep this new pair in reserve for when I need to retire one of those colorful pair that I'm currently using.

For now, I can just gaze lovingly upon them, and look forward to keeping them in pristine shape until the day comes when I slip them on and use them to kick a ball for the first time. Then I'll be able to say “look...they're so pretty. AND they help me kick the ball so well”.

At least, that's what I hope I can say. But, just between you & me, the way the cleats help me kick will always come in second when I decide which pair to buy.

It always has been, and always will be, the colors that are the most important.

8-)

(jim@wmqt.com), human being with strange vices

Wednesday, 4/9

So...just what IS the protocol for removing dead people from your contacts?

I'm curious because I had to add a couple of new numbers to my phone this past weekend, and it made me think about that question. Actually, it made me think about a couple of things, the other being that heaven forbid I—we, actually—have to remember phone numbers these days, right? I mean, the only phone numbers I know without having to look them up are Loraine, both my parents, and the Q107 transmitter, which I have to call every time something goes wrong.

Can you guess which one I wish I didn't know by heart?

Anyway, as I was adding the new numbers in I noticed my phone contained the numbers of three people who, sad to say, have passed away in the past couple of years. They were individuals that I had met thanks to the History Center or “High School Bowl”, and were people who had become friends. Sadly, my favorite mother-in-law was in there, as well, almost a year after she passed away.

So when I saw I still have their numbers, I found myself in a bit of a quandary. After all, I don't need them any more. They're dead. But, for whatever reason, it didn't feel right deleting their info. I don't know why. The rational, logical part of me knows I don't need the numbers any more. But to the rest of me it just didn't seem right to get rid of the info. It's a dichotomy I can't explain. It's not like by deleting the numbers I'm removing them from my life. That happened when they passed away. And it's not like I'm ever gonna use the numbers again. Knowing my luck, I'd accidentally touch of the entries and call the number, only to have whoever picked it up when it was reassigned by the phone company answer the call and wonder what's going on.

Just what is one to do? Is there a proper etiquette for dealing with a situation like this?

In the end, the logical, rational, and practical side of me won out, and the numbers are gone. I know I don't need them, and I know there's absolutely no reason for me to digitally carry them around with me. So there—I guess we can now consider that the proper etiquette for dealing with a situation such as this.

Still, it just seems strange not having them in my phone. Now, if I could only do that with the number for our transmitter, all would be right in the world.

8-)

(jim@wmqt.com)

Tuesday, 4/8

The story you are about to watch is real. Some of the names have been changed to protect the innocent.

As I think I've mentioned (or at least inferred) I have been spending time recently with Trolls—people from Michigan's Lower Peninsula (and, for those of you who don't live here, they're called “trolls” because they live below the (Mackinac) Bridge. Get it?) As we all know, people from the UP and people from the LP are not always the same, so I took the opportunity to ask three of these Trolls about their impressions and thoughts regarding Upper Michigan.

And then I spun a TV bit out of it.

As you'll hear when you watch it, I'm not surprised by the three different answers I received. In fact, in the back of my mind, I was expecting a variation of each of them. I don't know if I was just able to grasp the relationship between the two peoples, or if Trolls are just that predictable, but they answered the way I pretty much thought they would.

And that's now I got last night's TV piece. Check it out for yourself--

(jim@wmqt.com), not a Troll.

Monday, 4/7

At least it was a sign of spring. And these days, I’ll take what I can get.

Once again, I wasn't gonna talk about the weather, but those of you who are in the U.P. know that we’ve had, well, quite the weather month. We’ve had snow...lots of snow. We’ve had cold. We’ve had ice pellets. We’ve had wind. We’ve had just about an entire year’s worth of winter weather compressed into one 30 day period. And I feel confident in saying that most of us are starting to get sick of it, and are looking for a sign--any sign--that spring may soon be returning.

Well, I think I had one of those signs while cleaning some ice (yes, in April) off of Loraine's windshield after running this morning. And while it may not have been the most traditional sign that spring is inexorably on the way, I’m cool with that. You see, as I wiping Loraine's windshield clean I noticed something on it. It wasn’t on the windshield earlier (at least I don't think), so I knew it had just happened, and I knew it was a sign spring may be lurking about, no matter what the forecast has to say--

There was a big splattering of bird poop on Loraine's windshield.

Now normally we look at a big splattering of bird poop on a windshield as an inconvenience, because we know we have to clean it off. We may also look at a big splattering of bird poop as a personal affront, especially when said splattering happens to appear, say, right after we’ve finished washing our car. But this particular big splattering of bird poop may have been the most welcome big splattering of bird poop in recorded history, if only because it means that there are actually birds around to leave the big splattering of poop. And since birds only start to return to the U.P. when spring is (supposedly) here...

Well, let them splatter the car as much as they want.

I know that in a couple of weeks or a couple of months I won’t feel the same way about seeing a big splattering of bird poop on Loraine's windshield, but for now I look upon it as a sign. A very good sign, in fact, that despite the snow and cold and wind and ice of the past few weeks there is hope. There’s hope that Spring, with its warmer temperatures and green grass and lilac blooms, will show up, no matter what it looks like outside now. And how do I know that?

I saw the big splattering of bird poop on Loraine's windshield. That’s how I know.

(jim@wmqt.com)

Friday, 4/4

I think I've inherited a lot from my mom. I'm pretty sure the ability to draw isn't one of them.

First of all, happy birthday (tomorrow) to one of the two people without whom I wouldn't have been possible. She's down in Florida right now with Chicky-poo soaking up the sun & the warmth, while the rest of us are still up here suffering through the snow and the cold. So, when you think about it, maybe there are two things I didn't inherit from her—the ability to draw, and common sense.

We'll have to debate and discuss that further one day in the future.,

The reason I bring this up on her birthday is that she has a website. I don't know if you're aware of this, but I put it together for her so she could show off her talents as a watercolorist. She came to this hobby after beginning to spend winters in Florida; she took a class, and found out she could paint. And trust me—she can really paint. Don't believe me?

Yes, that last one is of me and a cow in Germany. It was a surprise Christmas present after we all went over there a few years ago, and it's currently hanging in the Jim & Loraine Apartment Gallery, along with several other of her originals.

We call it “A Dork and a Cow”. I think you know which one is which.

Those are just a few of her works; you can check out the rest of them, should you wish, at www.darlenekoski.com. Lest you think I'm biased about her talent (and while I am, it's for a good reason) go ahead and see for yourself just how good she is.

Have a happy birthday, mom. Can't wait to see what you bring back home with you this year!!

Love,

(jim@wmqt.com)

Thursday, 4/3

Once again, apparently, I am an oddball.

Our “At Work/Online Network” question for this week deals with a person's LEAST favorite Easter candy. I kinda sorta did it to see just how many people agree with me that the abomination known as black jellybeans should be banned from the face of the Earth. As of yesterday, though, only one person who answered the question online agreed with me.

The rest thought it should be Peeps.

I wasn't quite sure what people have against Peeps; I mean, I know they're cloyingly sweet and quite chewy, but to me, at least, they're nowhere near as bad a black jellybeans, which taste like someone throwing up in your mouth after eating too much road tar. But maybe that's just me; in fact, if you look online, you can find whole communities of people who gather to rag on the candy. And while there are others like me who aren't fond of black jellybeans, they seem quite outnumbered by those who loathe Peeps.

Wow. I had no idea.

If nothing else, this was an exercise in Confirmation Bias, where someone supposes that everyone believes the same things they do but find out (often quite explicitly) that others actually don't. So, I guess I'll take away two things from this—one, that if there's a more universally loathed candy than Peeps, I have yet to find it.

And two? Well, I guess I'll remain an oddball for a little while longer.

(jim@wmqt.com)

Wednesday, 4/2

You knew it was Hungarian, didn't you?

I did indeed resurrect the old habit of writing a blog and then posting in a strange language yesterday for April Fools Day, and having read several books on strange languages the past few years figured Hungarian would work just fine. For some reason, it's not really related to any other European language (except Finnish, for some bizarre reason) and so there are few recognizable words for someone who speaks a Germanic language (like English) or a Romance language (like Spanish or French) to recognize.

Anyway, thanks for indulging me in my flight of fancy. It actually puts you in good company these days, in the company of the people taking part in our “Easter Parade of Colors” contest. If you've been listening, it's a contest built around a whimsical theme—that we're now broadcasting in color, and people can use their new color radios to guess the color of an Easter egg I hold up to the microphone.

The amazing thing? So far every single person has played along with the gag.

And it IS a gag. After all, sound doesn't come in colors, and even if it did, you'd need a color radio, which according to the promos we're running are available at stores like The Sound Center and Colorvision, both of which closed over 30 years ago. The whole contest is basically one giant whimsical joke, and I have to say I've been heartened that everyone (at least so far) is in on the gag.

And we're going whole hog on that gag, now that we're broadcasting in “full color” (as many of our liners say). Of course, I suppose it helps that we're giving away almost $700 in prizes. A total like that will almost certainly lead someone to willingly suspend their disbelief long enough to qualify. But the way that listeners are willing to play along with such a straight face warms the cockles of my weird little heart.

And we all know how weird THAT is.

So over the next two and a half weeks, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that everyone keeps playing along. And if they do? Maybe I'll amp up the whimsy even more.

I just probably won't try to take a qualifier in Hungarian. That might be a little too much.

8-)

(jim@wmqt.com)

Tuesday, 4/1

És boldog április bolondok napját!

Valójában nem fogok sokat írni ide, de arra gondoltam, hogy KELL írnom egy kicsit, ha valaki kitalálja, hogy ezt a bejegyzést magyarul tettem fel, és képes vagy maga lefordítani, vagy, mint én, találni egy webprogramot hogy megtegyem helyetted.

Úgy értem, nem gondoltad, hogy valójában tudok magyarul, igaz?

Az a vicces, hogy valójában ezt a blogot akartam közzétenni azon ó, 3 millió nyelv egyikén, amelyen a C-3PO állítólag a „Csillagok háborújában” beszél, mert ha hiszed, ha nem, néhány hete olvastam, hogy ott több „Star Wars” nyelvű fordító az interneten, mint bármely más nyelv esetében. Sajnos úgy tűnt, hogy egyiket sem találtam. Vagy legalábbis bármelyik működött.

Aki tudta? Valójában nem hiszel el mindent az interneten. T

ehát ahelyett, hogy ezt egy bolygón kívüli nyelven tenném közzé, úgy gondolom, hogy ezt az egyik legfurcsább nyelven tenném közzé, amivel valaha találkoztam. És hidd el - ez az egyik legfurcsább nyelv, amellyel valaha találkozhatsz. Most itt van a húsvéti tojás a mai bejegyzésben.

Kattintson erre a linkre -

https://en.eprevodilac.com/prevodilac-madjarski-engleski

És eljut egy webhelyre, ahol lefordíthatja a blogot, és elolvashatja, amit írtam. Sok szerencsét!\

(jim@wmqt.com)

********

And happy April Fools’ Day!

I’m not actually going to write much here, but I figured I SHOULD write a little something in case somebody figures out in which language I posted this and is able to either translate it themselves or, like me, to find a web program to do it for you.

I mean, you didn’t think that I actually know that particular language, do you?

The funny thing is, I was actually going to post this blog in one of the, oh, 3 million languages that C-3PO claims to speak in “Star Wars” because, believe it or not, I read a few weeks ago that there are more “Star Wars” language translators on the web than for any other language. Unfortunately, I didn't seem to find any of them. Or at least any of them that worked.

Who knew? You actually can't believe everything on the Internet.

So, instead of posting this in an off-planet language, I figure I’d post this in one of the strangest language I’ve ever come across. And trust me--this IS one of the strangest languages you’ll ever come across.

Now, here’s the Easter Egg in today’s entry. Click on this link--

https://en.eprevodilac.com/prevodilac-madjarski-engleski

And it takes you to a site where you can translate the blog, and read what I wrote. Either that, or wait until tomorrow when I post the translation. It's up to you.

Good luck!

(jim@wmqt.com)