Lincolnite

Say goodbye to another Lincoln tradition: the Haymarket Farmers Market has banned pets as of September. Taking pets to the Farmers Market has been a tradition since the Market's opening. Complaining about them has been a tradition nearly as long.

Today is Budget Day for the City Council. Any guesses on what survives and what dies?

Who: You and your clan What: Ribs When: Thursday, August 10 @ 6:00pm Where: Outside Pershing Center Why: Because ribs are good, and you want to meet Robbie The Missus and I -- and, weather permitting, Robbie -- plan to hit Ribfest Thursday evening. Would anybody care to join us for some rib tasting? Here's what I'm thinking: if several of you want to join us, we can pool our money and get ribs from several different vendors, or better yet, all of them. Then we'll sit down, taste some ribs, and vote for our favorites. I will post the results here on Lincolnite. Any takers? Even if you aren't up for gorging on ribs, you're still welcome to join us. Heck, isn't the opportunity to meet Robbie worth the price of admission?

I haven't dug into the details yet, but I think it goes without saying that a $1.01 tax rate is much better than the Lincoln Board of Education's original proposed $1.05 rate.

Councilwoman Robin Eschliman wants to blame Star Tran's drivers for Star Tran's "empty buses", crappy routes, and other shortcomings. As a result, she voted against their new contract. That hardly seems fair. The drivers have very little, if anything, to do with the fact that Lincolnites don't ride the bus. Blaming the drivers for a less-than-perfect bus system is like blaming the waiter for the bad food on your plate. On the other hand, Ms. Eschliman may have a point in disapproving of the fact that the contract permits only 10% of employees to be part-timers. Take one look at Star Tran's route and driver scheduling and tell me how much sense it makes to rely primarily on full-timers.

Do any Lincolnites actually like LIBA? The two sentiments I tend to hear most are "I hate 'em!" and "Who?" I don't know a lot about LIBA, but my impression of the organization is that they exist primarily to say no to any government spending. There is certainly a role for that ideology in policymaking, but I wonder if LIBA goes too far. They come across as knee-jerk, anti-everythings. I doubt that's the impression they are trying to leave. Maybe they just need a new marketing director to spruce up their image.

Lincoln police dealt with two probable murder scenes over the weekend, but the news media have been surprisingly silent in the days since. Why? There are a bunch of possible reasons. Bad timing in the news cycle, for example. Or there are not enough details available to make an interesting news story. But still, two murders? That angle alone is worth something, right? I know this sounds jaded, but I have a theory to explain a portion of the light coverage: neither of the victims was a pretty, young, white female. The victim found on Friday was 43-year-old Sharon Desantiago. Sunday's victim was 28-year-old Doyle Bryant of Omaha. Few details about either victim, including their race, have been released, however Ms. Desantiago is pictured here. I intentionally waited until now to post on the murders just to see if the coverage would pick up. It has not. There is always this week, of course, but doesn't that feel a little late?

The Missus has to check in at work a few days this week, so today I'm pulling daddy duty. We started with an early morning walk, but we had to cut it a little short due to some pesky sprinkles. We don't really have a plan for the rest of the day. We'll probably just wing it. In other Robbie news, he has been sleeping through the night more often than not. It certainly isn't an every night thing just yet, but we're starting to see a pattern. When he makes it through the night he usually hits the sack around 9:00pm and wakes up between 6:00am and 7:00am. Robbie has also recently discovered the joy of spitting. He bubbles and gurgles and sputters his lips, and he loves it when we mock him in return. I think all the lip buzzing means he's going to play a brass instrument. I'm guessing trombone.

Talk about timing. Just as Lincoln was talking about putting water use restrictions in place, Mother Nature goes and dumps rain right on the Platte River, helping to refresh Lincoln's wells. Which means, I suppose, that for now you are free to go about wasting water as you wish.

I was thinking this weekend about LPS, and I got to wondering: where is Lincoln Public Schools Superintendent Susan Gourley? I can't think of the last time I saw her face on the news or read a quote from her in the newspaper.

So Harrison Beck missed two practices. Yawn. I don't know that Husker Nation really cares. Beck has long been rumored to have maturity issues, and this little episode won't help that perception one bit. Will Beck ever fit in as a Husker? We'll see.

A while back the Journal Star ran a feature called "There Oughtta Be a Law", and other groups have run similar campaigns over the years. I don't know that anybody has ever done the opposite, though: There Oughtta Not Be a Law. Thinking only about local ordinances, which one(s) would you repeal, and why?

Is it just me, or does anyone else find excessively NOISY restaurants to be a major turn-off? Why do some of the newly arrived Lincoln restaurants feel that pumping the volume at the lunch hour somehow makes the food or experience better? At times I feel like the dude in the famous “The Scream” painting by Munch above when I visit some downtown places. I understand that a number of places cater to the student body, and that some of the bars do need some music to keep things lively and so on. To me, a place like The Watering Hole – which has great food - has just the right level of music volume to keep things lively while allowing its patrons to converse without needing to use a megaphone. There are a few other places in downtown Lincoln, however, that have gone completely over the top when it comes to noise pollution. You probably know them. Anyway, a few of my favorites for real nice, quiet places to eat in downtown Lincoln are (in no particular order): Danny’s Deli, High Nooners, Papa J’s (or whatever it is now called), Nha Trang, Main Street Deli, Ali Baba’s, and of course, the immortal La Mexicana. Good food, and you don't walk out with busted ear drums, a disoriented look and migraine headache.

A Lincoln family is hosting a marrow drive in honor of Johna Kozak, who has acute myelogenous leukemia. If you have ever thought about donating bone marrow, this is a good opportunity. I have thought for a long time about donating bone marrow. My interest began several years ago when I had to have bone marrow drawn for some tests, and it grew when a childhood friend died of leukemia. I'm ashamed to say I still haven't gone through with the preliminary screening. For the average person on the street, it's no surprise that donating bone marrow isn't high on their list. The testing process itself costs $25. Not many people are willing to front that sort of money to have their cheeks swabbed. And then there is the actual donation process. It isn't for the faint of heart. Consider: they take a long, metal straw, jab it deep into your hip, and suck. Having had bone marrow withdrawn I can tell you that it's not at all painful at the time and only slightly uncomfortable. But it is much more complicated than giving blood, and it can lead to soreness and complications afterward. Here's hoping they soon come up with an easier way to donate, or better yet, come up with a way to use a patient's own cells.

I think the summer heat is getting to us, and Lincolnites are getting a tad grouchy. So it's about time for a reminder of just a few of the great things about Lincoln, in no particular order:

1. Lincoln is big enough to get lost in, but small enough there's a good chance you'll run into somebody you know.
2. Sunken Gardens. What an awesome point of pride for the city.
3. Our dining options are getting better and better. Sure, we have room for improvement, but do you remember how recently it was when Lincolnites were positively giddy that Applebee's was coming to town?
4. Most Lincolnites don't have to think twice about going for a walk in their neighborhood any old time. And they do.
5. There's no place quite like Lincoln. Not that I have found, anyway. We're just a little bit different, and we like it that way.