WXRT's and Chicago's Lin Brehmer: 'Your Best Friend in the Whole World'

I've always had a hard time spelling his name in my blogs and journal. If I heard him say "Your best friend in the whole world" once, I hear him say it a thousand times.

Yesterday, WXRT had a lengthy show on Lin Brehmer and all the local news channels had bits on him.  He even had his name, birth year and death year on that iconic scorebeoard outside Wrigley Field, home of Lin's beloved Cubs.

I wonder if he gets cremated, will they spread his ashes around the field?

Lin Brehmer was a Queens, New York native and Colgate University graduate.  He started his radio  career at a station on Albany, Nerw York, before joining WXRT as a music director in 1984.  He left the station in 1990 for a one-year stint as music director at KTCZ- FM in Minneapolis before returning to host mornings at WXRT -- a position he held for nearly thirty years.

In 2020, he shifted to the mid-morning slot when Terri Hemmert retired.

I used to listen to him every morning after I retired in 2006.

Sure Going to Miss Him.  Our Best Friend in the Whole World.  --RoadDog

The World Trade Center By the Numbers-- Part 2: Cost, Depth and Extra Land

TIME TO BUILD:   14 years from the formal proposal to finish

NUMBER OF ARCHITECTURAL DEIGNS:  105

COST TO BUILD:  More  than $1 billion

RENTABLE FLOOR SPACE:  About one acre per floor

DEPTH OF THE TWIN TOWERS:  70 feet

EXTRA LAND CREATED BY BUILDING THE WTC:  About 23 acres added to Lower Manhattan

TWIN TOWERS ELEVATOR SPEED:   1,600 feet per minute

WINDSPEED THE TOWERS COULD SUSTAIN:   80 m.p.h.

NUMBER OF SPRINKLERS IN THE TOWERS:   3,700

HEIGHT OF THETIGHTROPE WALK BETWEEN THE TOWERS:  1,350 feet on August 7, 1974

FORCE OF THE TREMOR WHEN THE TOWERS FELL:  Akin to 2.1 and 2.3 earthquakes

The World Trade Center By the Numbers-- Part 1: Quarter Mile Up, 45 Miles on a Clear Day

From History.com.

It was Supersized in all aspects.

It took ten years to build and came down in a minute.

When the World Trade Center's twin towers opened in 1973, it was the world's tallest buildings.

They rose a quarter mile into the sky.

They had  15 miles of elevator shafts.

Nearly 44,000 windows which took 20 days to wash.

From the South Tower observation deck,  visitors could see 45 miles on a clear day.

The Trade Center complex (there was more than just the Twin Towers) was so huge that it had its own zip code.

Looking For Woodstock, or, Dumb Ol' Me

As for me, I didn't know anything about Woodstock until it was going on, and I heard a report on WLS.  I, of course, was a huge music fan and especially of my absolute favorite group back then, Creedence Clearwater Revivial.  And, they were headliners.

I hadn't heard where it was (and certainly not it being in New York) and figured since it was at Woodstock, it must be Woodstock, Illinois.  This place was only about 25 miles away from Palatine so I figured why not go see CCR.

I actually drove to that town and....  Well, you can guess what happened.

A senior moment as a junior.

No Woodstock Music Festival for Me!!!  --RoadDumb

STATE OF THE JOKE  (from the Wassup magazine):   An Alaskan was on trial in Anchorage.  The prosecutor leaned menacingly toward him and asked, "Where were you on the night of October to April?"

50th Anniversary of Woodstock-- Part 2: And There Won't Be A Woodstock 50

From the August 7, 2019, Chicago Tribune "The 'bizarre trip' that was almost Woodstock 50" by Mesfin Fekadu, AP.

That's what the original Woodstock organizer Michael Lang had to say about his efforts to have another one on the 50th anniversary of the original.  "It's been a really bizarre trip."

Lang, now 74 was going to have No. 50 with all-star acts like Jay-Z, Dead & Company and the Killers and it was to be in Watkins Glen, some 115 miles northwest of where the original was held.  It just didn't work out.   His financial backing pulled out.

Melanie, known as the first lady of Woodstock, was scheduled to perform for Woodstock 50, but figured things were going bad when she couldn't get in touch with Lang.

However, she will be performing at WE 2019 in North Carolina over two August weekends.  Some of the others appearing there will be Canned Heat, Jefferson Starship, Ten Years After, Jon Sebastion,  Vanilla Fudge and Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels.

The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Bethel, New York, on the site of the original Woodstock, will be having a celebration during the anniversary August 15-18, featuring performances by Ringo Star, Santana and John Fogerty (CCR).

Getting Your Woodstock On.  --WoodDog

TRIVIA TEASER:  Babies:  What was the name of the baby who joined the MacPherson family at the start of the comic strip "Baby Blues?"  What are the names of the two babies since then?  Answer below.


Zoe, Hammie, Wren

Chicago Cubs Success Breeds Haters, But Not Me

From the July 4, 2019, Chicago Tribune by Paul Sullivan.

It was probably inevitable, but the success of the Cubbies has brought about the haters.  Now, not just certain White Sox fans or Cardinal fans,  but people across the nation.

Data from Twitter suggests that the Cubs are now second only to the New York Yankees in the hatred in the hearts of folks.  The Yankees are the most-hated baseball team in 28 states while the Cubs are a distant second with 8.

I have always disliked the Yankees.  Why, I don't even like the name.  But they have been a bane to my White Sox for too many years to list.  If I was at a Sox game against the Yankees and the Yankee pitcher was throwing a perfect game or a no-hitter, I would seriously have to consider whether I'd be pulling for him.  Well, I would pull for him, but only after much soul searching.

Some Cub-hating states are obvious, like Wisconsin (the Brewers) and Missouri (the Cardinals).  But other states not keen on the North Siders are Iowa, Indiana, Arkansas, Nevada, Wyoming and South Dakota.  South Dakota?

Other "hateable" teams are Dodgers (5 states), Cardinals and Mets (4 apiece) and Red Sox (1).

I am not a Cubs hater.  As a matter of fact I am a big Cub fan unless they play the White Sox.

Well, at LEAST They Are Not As HATED As the New England Patriots.  --RoadHateYankees

Ten Great Great Places to Live in 2013

From the July 25, 2013, Yahoo! Finance, Cost of Living.

These are cities based on affordability, good jobs and quality of schools.

10. DUBUQUE, IOWA, (We'll be there next week)
9. Anchorage, Alaska
8. ITHACA, NEW YORK

7. Morgantown, West Virginia
6. BILLINGS, MONTANA
5. Columbia, SC
4. SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO

3. Bryan/College Station, Tx
2. BURLINGTON, VERMONT
1. Little Rock, Arkansas

--RoadDog

Now, Here Are Some Folks Who REALLY Decorate

The December 16th American Profile Magazine had an article by Marta W. Aldrich about some REALLY DECORATED HOUSES with some really beautiful pictures.

Glenn and Christina Barber of Spring Hill, Tn, put up 35,000 lights on their home topped by an eight-foot lighted cross. "It's all about the kids. I love the look on their faces," said Glenn. He has become an amateur electrician and starts mapping out the next year's lighting in April, then spend a full month preparing for the Thanksgiving lighting. He uses more than a hundred extension cords and six circuit breakers.

He's happy to do all this despite the $300 jump in his December electric bill.

The article then goes on to say that outdoor lighting really came into vogue in the 1950s. Over the last 50 years, the displays have steadily grown, especially with the introduction of inexpensive lights. Today, some are even computer controlled.

Chuck Smith, an electrical engineer in Franklin, Tn., had massive lighting displays at his home for thirty years. At its peak, he had 130,000 miniature lights connected by seven miles of wire controlled by a computer and nearly 400 circuits.

Unfortunately, he had to stop in 2003 after traffic in his neighborhood got to be too big of a problem. He now puts up his display at a local shopping center.

He has a website devoted to people who light up their homes http://www.planetchristmas.com/ . If you like majorly-decorated Christmas houses, you've got to check out this site.

The article closes with two other big-time decorators. Anthony Volpe who put up 90,000 lights last year in Monroe, NY.

In Scottsdale, Az, Michael Anderson has 35,000 lights synchronized to "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree, "The Chipmunk Song" and eight other Christmas songs.

"Let it glow!" by Marta W. Aldrich.

Now These Are Some People with Big Christmas Hearts. --RoadDog

Pigeon Problems-- RoadDog's News and Observation

The November 14th Chicago Tribune had an article about the pigeon problem in US cities. Besides rats and squirrels, and now, apparently some coyotes, pigeons have adapted themselves to living in urban areas better than any other non-domesticated animal. The tall buildings are an excellent substitute for the canyons they inhabit in the wild.

Whenever I go into Chicago, they are everywhere. Some won't even move until you almost step on them.

And, there are a LOT of them, and even more all the time. Many cities are trying to control them, even from removing their eggs, birth control, to using birds of prey to swoop down on them. In Brooklyn, NY, city councilman Simcha Felding has proposed an ordinance that would make it illegal to FEED pigeons and punishable by a $1,000 FINE if you break the law.

This proposal has pigeon-lovers up in arms.

But, what are you going to do. Feeding the pigeons only increases their numbers, but I'm sure they can forage for enough food in the garbage. Of course, the very worst thing they do is leave their droppings all over everything, especially statues, which they consider to be their very own private bathroom.

I remember being in a hotel in Edinburgh, Scotland, and right across the road was a statue of Sir Walter Scott, author of Ivanhoe and many other Scottish books. The body was black from all those years of early industry, but the head and shoulders was a striking white from you-know-what. Another time, I was in St. Mark's Square in Venice, Italy. Now, if you want to talk pigeons, this has to be the largest concentration of themin the world. I was surprised to see all the open air eateries. I don't know that I'd like to eat out on that square.

Of course, I never had the pleasure of a pigeon dropping on the head, and I'm sure if it ever does happen, I will be a bit more anti-pigeon.

I Don't Mind a FEW Pigeons...But.... --RoadDog

A Sad Day Six Years Ago, 9-11: The Day Terrorism Came To Our Shores

Today, September 11th, occurs on the very same day as that fateful event six years ago. Not only that, but we had a brilliant bright blue sky here in the Midwest, just as was over NYC that beautiful fall day.

I watched some of the History Channels shows on the event this morning.

I was teaching at John T. Magee Middle School in Round Lake, Illinois, that day. I didn't know anything about it until after first period when another teacher came to me with the information during passing period. School continued on as usual, but all we did in my classes was listen to the radio and TV (although I couldn't get the picture).

I tried to get it across to my students that this was actually an outgrowth of an event that happened almost 2000 years ago when the Romans made the Jews leave Palestine. I also wanted them to know that this was to be an event that would rank right up there with Pearl Harbor and the Kennedy Assassination as points in US history that affected everybody.

Seeing those two buildings burning still gets to me.

I am going to have an account that I wrote on 9-11 from my journal (which I have been keeping since 1978) on my other blog spot.

http://roaddogsroadlog.blogspot.com

A Very Sad Day. --RoadDog

Rain, Hostas, and Ribfest Yesterday

Yesterday, I did a Japanese beetle sweep in a light drizzle and then planted three new hostas and about eight others that I divided.

We went over to Kevin and Kelly's, who have the place on Fox Lake for Ribfest. They are the ones who also have the End-of-the-Year party every June (they are both teachers) and the 4th of July fireworks party as they are right across the water from where they shoot them off).

We played tag for awhile with the rain that would start, causing us to move inside, stop, and we're back out, start again and move again, until we finally gave up and just stayed inside.

Kelly made up both beef long ribs and pork short ones. Unfortunately, by the time we got around to eating, we were all too full of snacking, so didn't eat anything as much as we wanted. We'll blame it on Jim and Arlene, who, when they arrived, had more snacks than you could believe. We also had corn-on-the-cob, jambalaya, pasta salad, beans, and cornbread. Kelly makes up some mighty good ribs, right up there with Bob's.

This was a primarily Irish crowd, so we listened to the Gleasons, a great Irish rock band out of Milwaukee, and a lot of other Irish music. Plus, a whole lot of the people were originally, or still living in, Brooklyn, NY.

We were having Ribfest in honor of John, a NY City police sergeant. He had some stories about the aftermath of 9-11 where he helped in the cleanup. I will write about one on the other blog
roaddogsroadlog.blogspot.com. We also had Jim's brother and wife from New York with us. They had just flown in a few hours earlier.

Here's to Good Times. --RoadDog

My Key West Encounter with a Palmetto Bug

While thinking about the cicada, I remembered my encounter with another big ol' bug down in Key West. We were just off Duvall Street near Mallory Square, and I was walking ahead of the group and under some trees.

Suddenly, I became aware of a presence on my back, even more so when it started scampering around. Now this was a good-sized insect, my friends said about four inches long. And I can tell you, its feet dug in like velcro as it moved from one area to another.

Not knowing what was on my back, and not being able to see it, I was more than a little concerned. All I could hear from behind me was uproarious laughter and loud guffaws. They later said that I had probably invented at least three new dances in my efforts to get it off.

It finally dropped off, whether by my efforts or its own, I'll never know. To say the least, my encounter was a large part of the conversation the rest of the night. I was NOT much amused, but figure I would have been laughing as well.  Later, I was told it was a palmetto bug.

I should mention that yesterday, I heard a new sound out by the arboretum in my yard. It definitely wasn't a bird (and definitely not a robin as I know that sound too well after good old mama robin and her nest). Perhaps it is a cicada. Who knows, seventeen years from now I might just have some of the critters.

Help, a Palmetto Bug's Fallen on Me, and I can't Get Him Off!!! --RoadDog


THIS DAY IN HISTORY- 1884- the world's first roller coaster opened at New York's Coney Island. They were originally called a switchback railway and was created by LaMarcus Thompson.

--RoadDog