Memnison Journal

Some read-this items on the GM bankruptcy: Cissna Park, Illinois struggles with the loss of a huge chunk of its tax base, as a local GM dealership is closed. A LA Times article on why GM went down for the count. Michael Moore, a GM kid like me, on where we go from here and [...]

Here’s a map from AP of the major stimulus projects on a county-by-county basis.   Zoomable flash.   In my case, the big project in my area is the resurfacing and repair of a major nearby road that we use on a daily basis that is pothole city (which is unfortunately a widespread problem in the Chicago [...]

The tax refunds came back in, and back out again; Susan’s SUV needs immediate work on brakes and tierods (chaching), Mere and her cousin need to be signed up for some Summer stuff Right Now (chaching) and I’m getting the document scanner that I need, which is on sale at Egghead with free shipping (chaching). [...]

Went out and got prescription reading glasses today; my prescription is +1.75, and they work very nicely.  Worst part was slipping and falling HARD on the slick tile floor just inside the Vision Works store; as I’ve said before, with my cruddy balance, I learned long ago to fall down the best way I can [...]

Craft stores and online stores that sell handmade stuff are doing well as cheap gift-things with the recession.  Me, I’m worthless at handmade gifts, unless you make ‘em on a computer. People (and primates) will believe lies and deceive each other far more than dolphins will. I say we elect dolphins. Yes, the non-US based [...]

Looks like the Ohio DOT is finally getting rid of the US-35 traffic lights in Greene County between Dayton and Xenia. When I was little, there were two seriously weird expressways-with-traffic-lights situations in the area – on US-25 / I-75 north of the city in Northridge, not far from a home I had on North [...]

Ohio Department of Transportation has a whole bunch of map information online; some of them are in MrSid versions, and some in TIFF.  If you need help with those, ask, and I can recommend converters. Their basic state (and localities) maps are here.  You can also request a printed map for free online. The historical [...]

Various Illinois politicos are asking for a pardon for former Governor George Ryan, whose corruption in office led to a lot of people in jail and several deaths.  One paper wrote: “Instead of selling license plates, [Ryan] gets to make them.” Otherwise, Ryan will stay in jail till 2013. Good.  Let him rot there.

Probably of utterly no interest to most of you, but there’s been a recent series in Daytonology on the development of the east side of Dayton, which is my home town.  I spent – well, from 3rd grade till I graduated from college on that side of town, and it’s the Olde Home for me, [...]

Today was Mere’s ‘family’ birthday party out at her great-aunt Marlyce’s house in Elgin, and we moved the time up somewhat because of the weather; it was getting slick and messy from sleet and snow.   And also, it looks like Mere is coming down with a cold.  She came home, and moaned and crashed very [...]

Recently, Susan and I have been up to her Aunt’s house in Elgin or out to talk to her about her computer problems.  Auntie (Susan’s mom’s sister) operates a doctors’ organization that has a couple of big yearly meetings (for training updates, and other conference stuff) and some smaller ones, and it’s sometimes amusing to [...]

I’ve posted here about a kid who was killed by a drunk driver outside of Dayton; the guy was convicted of aggravated vehicular homicide.  He was just sentenced to five years in prison.

It seems that John McCain has now become the favorite candidate of Big Oil; his contributions from that end of the universe have massively increased ever since he said that we needed to try and drill our way out of the energy crisis, and to allow the guys in Big Oil to sop up all [...]

There’s a trial going on in Dayton, Ohio (my hometown) about a drunk driver who was arguing with his girlfriend while going down a narrow country road at over 100 miles an hour. He came up on a school bus that was parked with its lights on after letting off a 17-year-old kid at his [...]

There’s a new report out that is predicting $7 a gallon gas by 2010 and a serious collapse of the gasoline car market by that time as people start to seriously give up having a car around. This would force the working poor off the roads, but having them use public transport only works in [...]