Lincolnite

Many of my favorite memories from summertimes past involve family gatherings at Pioneers Park. On many a Sunday afternoon, family from Lincoln, Omaha, and Grand Island would gather for a picnic lunch, followed by an afternoon of softball, frisbee golf, or just playing in the playground. Sometimes my parents would let me buy a treat from the concession stand -- a can of pop, a candy bar, or maybe a frozen malt. The park used to be quite busy on Sunday afternoons, and we would often have to scramble to find a picnic area big enough for all of us. And then there was Babe Ruth baseball. I rode my bike five miles to every morning practice. Once I stopped to feed wild berries to a fox near Beal Slough. Another time I got the crap beat out of me by hail until I was able to take shelter in a fire station. And on yet another trip to practice something fell from a tree, hit me in the eye, and lodged itself under my eyelid. Now that I think about it, I remember far more about the bike rides to and from practice than I do about practice itself, or even the games. I suspect many of Robbie's early summertime memories will be from the playground at Antelope Park. We spend a fair amount of time there, and why not? It's an awesome playground. Southpointe's Friday night music series will probably also be up there in his memory bank. Heck, that's where he stole his first kiss. What are some of your favorite summertime memories in Lincoln?

Last year in Nebraska 158 girls were named Addison. Addison? I don't think I have ever met or known an Addison, yet here it is, the most popular name for baby girls in 2007. Once again pop culture passes me by. Ava was the only other name on the top 10 lists that surprised me. I'm familiar with all of the others, especially on the boys side. Any surprises for you? Any guesses on which names will be up-and-comers, and which will drop in the near future? I'll give you a hint: Brent is dropping quickly, having now fallen out of the top 500. Sadie (my wife's name), on the other hand, is about to crack into the top 100. I could see that one taking off.

My dad had some dental work done today and he isn't supposed to chew for a few days. That means lots of soup for a while. We had planned to eat lunch together today, but my brain froze up when I tried to think of good places to get soup for lunch. So I'm opening it up to you folks, not just for my dad and me today, but for all Lincolnites: Who has the best soups in Lincoln?

Sometimes I like to search Google News for articles that contain "lincoln nebraska" or related queries. Here is a fairly random collection of my recent finds:

• Ted Sorensen talks about his roots
• Former Lincolnite John Moran is performing in Tel Aviv
• I'll bet most of you didn't know that "the palm-down, extended-arm salute was the officially prescribed form at Prescott School in Lincoln, Nebraska" in 1941
• UNL is getting many Paul Fell cartoons and illustrations

Sorry all you yardwork slackers out there, the City Council nixed the idea of doubling the City's weed height allowance from 6" to 12". The amusing thing about this community-wide discussion has been listening to people complain about the height of the grass and weeds in several City parks and adjacent to various bike trails. Parks and Recreation was recently ranked as one of the least important departments in all of City government. Parks & Rec has already been cutting back on its mowing schedule over the past several years. If they face budget cuts, or even a stagnant budget while having to maintain more parks and bike path miles, we'll be seeing more and more neo-tallgrass prairies around town. Actually, that makes me wonder. What is the net cost/savings of planting an acre of parkland with native grasses and plants? I spend a lot of time on the Helen Boosalis Trail -- aka the Highway 2 trail -- and I have been pleased with the areas of native grasses already planted. Several more acres could be added. I wonder if it's worth it?

Star Tran has finally -- finally! -- made some adjustments to its routes. After months of talk, the new routes will kick in on Thursday, June 5. A series of open houses -- including two today at Energy Square from 11:00 to 1:00 and 4:30 to 6:30 -- will help introduce riders to the new routes and schedules. I rode Star Tran for years, so even though I don't currently use their services, I'm trying to follow this transition. Star Tran's riders tend to be creatures of habit so I don't expect the new route schedule to go over well in the short term. I suspect it will take a few months for folks to really be able to judge the new system's worth. Are any of you Star Tran riders? Have you evaluated how the new system will affect your usage of the city's buses?

Yowzers, I can hardly believe my little boy turned two today. No, wait, that's a lie. I can definitely believe it. When Robert turned one, it felt weird. But he has seemed like a two year-old for a couple months now. This birthday didn't sneak up on me like the last one did. There's no disguising the arrival of the Terrible Twos. Not that Robbie is all that terrible yet, but he can throw a fit when he's motivated. Now that Robbie is two, all sorts of doors will open for him: He doesn't sit still very often: This didn't turn out half bad, considering I just held out the camera and clicked: Don't mess with this guy! Robbie is going to clean up this town: For the record, Robbie weighs in at a slim-and-trim 25 pounds and he stands 33 inches tall. That puts him squarely in the 30th percentile. (In contrast, his cousin Sam is 7 months younger but could eat Robbie for breakfast.) This morning Robbie got to open his presents from mom and dad. The two big winners were a book about vehicles and a nifty "bike". Tonight he will get to eat at either Gateway (for the carousel) or Red Robin (for the "balaloons"). And then tomorrow is his birthday party at the awesome Antelope Park playground. We'll be there from about 1:00 until 2:30 or 3:00. Stop on by and say hi!

The Mayor's road design task force has released its report. The skinny: there's plenty of money to be saved in our road construction budget. We just need to cut back on some of the "nice-to-haves" and focus more on the "need-to-haves". No surprise there. I have long been critical of the City's excesses in new road construction. I would tell you more about the report, but despite assurances in the City's press release that the report is online, I haven't found it yet. It isn't on the committees and task forces page, nor is it on the task force reports and initiatives page. Oh there it is. Dang, they sure didn't make it easy to find. You can find the report here. Among the report's findings:

• Use several different road types over the next 20 years to help stretch road funds;
• Lincoln can't afford to build roads today to meet needs that won't exist for decades;
• Changes in road type don't diminish safety, just convenience;
• Money can be saved over the long term through road offsetting, use of asphalt, and asphalt reuse/recycling.

I encourage you to take a look at the report (PDF) yourself. It's a refreshing read. Or maybe I just think that because it confirms many of my existing opinions. Gotta love confirmation bias.

Let's compare internet connection speeds so we can help each other comparison shop. Here's how we'll do it:

1. Avoid any bandwidth-hogging activities, such as file sharing
2. Go to SpeedTest.net
3. Click the pyramid associated with Kansas City, MO to start the test
4. Record the download and upload speeds. If you run the test more than once, record the fastest speeds
5. In the comments, note your ISP; your service plan and monthly cost; your download speed; and your upload speed

How does your speed compare to others in Lincoln and Nebraska?

Don't go to NebraskaSpending.com. Seriously. You'll spend way too long clicking around and looking at numbers. Now I'm curious just how complete the data is. For example, is it really possible that we have a 23 month contract totaling $254,417.85 for "size 5 reg men's work boot"? How do you spend $250k on size 5 boots? Hopefully the description field isn't fully descriptive, or we have a whole bunch of Correctional Services employees with really small feet.

Can anyone explain why it is that the sign for "Tina's Mexican Restaurant" on 10th near Van Dorn Park reads like "Lina's Mexican Restaurant"? In the LJS review last month, it states that "Tina's" was named after the owner's daughter. Anyway, I'm glad to see this place take off the way it has. It reminds me quite a bit of D'Leon's, but as an improved D'Leon's version 1.5. The chicken fajita plate is excellent - a plate of grilled chicken cooked with onions, bell peppers and a pretty spicy sauce, along with rice, beans, and choice of warm corn or flour tortillas. I'd just like to know what the deal is with the name of this place.

Mayor Beutler has warned LPS that he may yank $178,000 in funding that goes toward LPS's Community Learning Center (CLC) initiative. LPS funds the project to the tune of approximately $843,000. The leaner the budget gets, the more likely the mayor has to dig into projects like this. But just for fun, let's speculate a bit. Mayor Beutler has made it clear that the City doesn't take very much of our property tax dollar, and he has pointed out that LPS is the big pig at the property tax trough. Could this be part of a plan to shift more of the community's focus to LPS's share of our property tax bills, gradually taking the heat off the City? I think it's possible, if not likely. In a way, I'd be disappointed if that's not what Beutler is up to. What do you think?

The jail bond issue was defeated yesterday. Not that it matters. The jail will be built anyway. Will the County Board take away any lessons from the vote? I wouldn't bet on it.