Lina’s Returns?

By: Mr. Wilson on December 28, 2011
Wait a second, what is this? Does Lina's have a location at 7th and O? I have all sorts of questions. When did this happen? Is this Lina's associated with the Lina's restaurants formerly located on South 10th and 70th & O? The website mentions margaritas -- does that suggest this location is full-service? If any of you work or live near the Haymarket I'd love if you could swing by and see what's going on. I loved Lina's and I'd be tickled if it has come back. UPDATE: Derek Augustine works at 720 O Street -- supposedly right next to Lina's "740 O Street" location -- and he says he doesn't see any sign of a Lina's nearby. Maybe they mean West O?

And the Haymarket Parking Garage Goes…

By: Mr. Wilson on December 28, 2011
It appears that the newest Haymarket parking garage will be located in the vicinity of 7th and O. That location involves an existing surface lot so nobody will need to move out to make way for its construction. Contrast that with one of the alternate locations at 9th and Q where Barry's sits. (Er, used to sit.) I'm not sure which location is best. Lincoln could certainly use a garage in the area of 7th and O. That's been true for years. But when considering not just present circumstances but also the future of the Haymarket, is that location still the best? A substantial part of me says yes, but I can't quite fully convince myself. One thing that most certainly would have been nicer about the 9th and Q location is that existing parking wouldn't have been obliterated during construction. Losing the current lot at 7th and O for several months during construction is going to be a giant pain in the rump for Haymarket visitors.

My Three Sons

By: Mr. Wilson on December 22, 2011
We finalized our adoption this morning. It's time to finally take the masks off the two boys who've been living with us for the past 18 months. image

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Take Action

By: Mr. Wilson on December 21, 2011
Have you noticed how many unseasonably large potholes there are around town already? There aren't a lot, at least not in any objective sense. But boy, I've hit a couple doozies that just seem out of place in December. As annoying as that is, at least the City makes it easy for all of us to tell somebody about it. Smartphone users should download the Lincoln ACTION Center app (available for Android and iOS for now; search for "lincoln action center") and use it as needed. You can report problems and even submit a photo and the problem's precise location. Handy stuff. Of the folks I know who've used it, every one of them has said that their problem was resolved within about 48 hours -- some much quicker. Too often we -- and yes, I'm including myself in that "we" -- sit around and gripe about how the City doesn't fix something without realizing that until it gets on a todo list somewhere, it's not going to get fixed. The Lincoln ACTION Center app helps get problems onto one of those lists so that they can be addressed. Use it. Your fellow Lincolnites thank you.

Wrapping Up

By: Mr. Wilson on December 20, 2011
Adoption day is Thursday, so last night a couple ladies from the Foster Care Review Board came over to conduct an exit interview. The Foster Care Review Board is a fantastic organization. They work hard to help improve the child welfare system, and they've done a hell of a job trying to keep up with the disaster of child welfare reform. Last night's meeting gave The Missus and me a chance to reminisce on the ups and downs in our experience with the state's foster care system. I want so badly to tell you about the experiences we've been through and the lessons we've learned. In fact, I just spent a half hour writing some of them out. But I can't do justice to those stories right now. In time I will tell them all. It's important that I tell them. But not today. No, today I'm looking forward. Thursday is a big day for our family. That's the day that five years of pain, uncertainty, and confusion in the child welfare system finally comes to an end for two boys who did nothing to deserve such a crummy start to their lives. The damage from their experiences will be with them forever, but their time with us has already brought them some healing. Given more time, more consistency, and more proof of our long-term commitment to them, I know that they will grow up to become the men they deserve to be.

I’m Axing You to Not Do That Again

By: Mr. Wilson on December 19, 2011
In the unlikely event you're ever in the same situation as the hatchet-wielding bystander who chased a would-be robber on Saturday night, a piece of advice: attempting to spill the robber's brains on the street is probably not a good idea. Don't get me wrong. Somebody who attempts a robbery at a liquor store deserves a good bop upside the head. But whacking a person on the head with a hatchet ... well that's venturing a bit too close to attempting homicide, and unless somebody's life is in danger right then and there I propose to you that the only person who's going to "win" in that situation is your attorney. I wonder what the thief thinks about all of this. Will he learn his lesson that grabbing a few bucks from the liquor store till isn't worth being chased by a shotgun and a hatchet? Or will he think, "By golly, I was beat in the head with a hatchet and I lived! I'm invincible!". Let's hope the former.

A Look at the New El Sitio

By: Mr. Wilson on December 16, 2011
My father and I ate lunch at the new El Sitio location at 47th and Pioneers yesterday. Here's a quick look. image As you can see, there isn't too much to see on the inside. That shouldn't surprise those of you who are familiar with the building. It's pretty small. Note, however, that they did manage to add a few booths along the edges. Here's a look at what they've done with the front counter. image The entire experience says "simple". Which is fine, really. El Sitio is very much a neighborhood-style restaurant. As with the general appearance, service was simple as well. There was only a single waitress while we were there. She kept up with the pace just fine. Once we sat she invited us to help ourselves to some chips and salsa. image The chips were your standard corn chips. The salsas weren't my favorite. They weren't bad, but for my tastes they ventured too close to Pace territory. My father had no complaints. image The lunch menu consists of about a dozen combination plates, each priced at $6.99. It's a smart strategy for such a small restaurant: limit selection and keep pricing reasonable. The strategy paid off on our visit. Mere minutes after ordering our food arrived. My father ordered an enchilada and tamale: image He had been hoping for a chile relleno -- his Mexican restaurant default -- but there wasn't one offered on the lunch menu. Nevertheless he enjoyed his meal just fine. For my meal I went with a chicken chimichanga. image I use chimichangas as a barometer of sorts for assessing Mexican restaurants. If it's fried to death, for example, it suggests that there isn't much TLC going on in the kitchen. As you can see from the photo, my chimichanga was fried to a light brown. Perfect. It was presented nicely as well. The biggest surprise was the cheese sauce on top. The menu said something about cheese on top, but nacho cheese sauce wasn't what I was expecting. It felt like a very American touch. Again, that's not necessarily a bad thing, it just really caught me off guard. I had never been to El Sitio's old 17th and Van Dorn location, primarily because nobody ever talked about the place. Its new location is significantly more visible, so that should help them quite a bit. The overall experience isn't going to knock anybody's socks off, but that's ok. It seems to be a nice, unpretentious, neighborhood-style restaurant that I'm happy to have just up the road from my house. I look forward to going back at dinner to see how that menu differs.

No Moore No More

By: Mr. Wilson on December 15, 2011
LPS's Marilyn Moore says she is going to retire at the end of the school year. Yeah right. I kid, sort of. Ms. Moore just doesn't strike me as the retiring type, if you know what I mean. I don't know her aside from the public persona she's presented over these past quarter century. But based on that, can you imagine her not being actively involved somehow in local education or youth issues? I sure can't. Especially not at the young age of 62. Let's just hope she doesn't run off to warmer climes. It'd be a shame if her years of experience left Lincoln. It's far too early to start saying adios to Ms. Moore, but you can bet we'll be hearing more about her and her contributions as her retirement date approaches. It will also be interesting to see who's in line to replace her. You can be sure that decision will generate plenty of discussion.

The Place

By: Mr. Wilson on December 14, 2011
There's a new place to dine in College View. El Sitio, formerly of 17th and Van Dorn fame, is now located at 47th and Pioneers Boulevard in the former Paul's BBQ location. I've heard mixed reviews of El Sitio -- you'll note you probably haven't seen it on many lists of Lincoln's best dining establishments -- but hey, it's just up the road from me so you know I'll dine there just as soon as I can. Here's some random Wednesday morning trivia for you. El Sitio translates to "the site" or, a little more loosely, "the place". I used to love to watch a children's television show that featured a venue called The Place. What oh-so-80s show was it? For bonus points, what was the original name of the venue?

FTAGH: Table and Chairs

By: Mr. Wilson on December 12, 2011
Free to a good home: square wood kitchen table (approx. 34" on a side) and four chairs. It has been sitting in our basement since we moved in, under the mistaken belief that for some reason we might one day want a second kitchen table. We don't. It served us well back in our apartment days, though. And before that it valiantly served up hot meals to the residents at the nursing home in Firth. Interested, or know somebody who might be? Contact me at mrwilson at lincolnite dot com. First dibs to those in need. I'll post photos eventually. If I don't get any replies from here, my next stop is Craigslist.

Why DUI?

By: Mr. Wilson on December 12, 2011
On Saturday night, Lincoln police officers took 17 drunk drivers off the road. Think about that. Seventeen. Those are just the ones who were caught. I don't think I'll ever understand the mentality of those who get behind the wheel after drinking. You might hurt or kill somebody else. You might hurt or kill yourself (as one of my cousins did). And even if you manage not to run into anything or anyone, you might get arrested. Considering how simple the alternative is -- have a sober person on hand to drive you home -- I just can't fathom why anybody wouldn't utilize it. Then again, this is coming from a guy who drinks so little alcohol he can actually remember every drink he's had in his life. I'm not exactly wired for empathy on this topic. In any event, be careful out there, folks.

Three Cheers for John Hibbing

By: Mr. Wilson on December 9, 2011
Congratulations go out to UNL Political Science Professor John Hibbing for his induction into the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), a prestigious honor held by no other UNL professor. Professor Hibbing's research of late has earned attention because of the evidence he has gathered that suggests links between biology and political attitudes. I had the privilege of working with Professor Hibbing back in my undergraduate and graduate days at UNL. Back then he was just getting into the biology/politics connection so it's exciting to see how his research has evolved over the years. Bravo, Dr. Hibbing!
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