too bussy to blog

I wish I could say more to those who crave more postings to this blog. Most mornings have simply been too busy -- driving the Amtrak crew to the train station at 7:30, then selling bus tickets on Washington St. from 9:30-11:30 -- leaving insufficient dilatory time for blogging (or blooking) or anything more than answering a few emails and reading the latest news in town and in the world. . . . Even the 6th anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy came and went unmentioned by yours truly (although I gave the supermarket checkers and bank clerks at Schnuck's a "Happy Pretext for War in the Middle East Day," which they appreciated. Another phrase I'm trying out is "9/11 was an Outsourced Job," which also seems to resonate with folks.)

Today it's 10/11, and I am still "burned out" on local bickering. I'm glad Scott Thorne is pricking on the local scene in Bytelife. I also see where Peter the Great has weighed-in on the sales tax way out on the Left Coast. (I could pick a bone with Peter over his use of the term "Boneheads" to describe City Council, but instead will toss it to the dogs of blog to gnaw over. And they can chew on this:)

I spoke with (SIU Marketing Chair) Terry Clark over the weekend. He said that a half a million bucks has been budgeted for advertising SIUC in Chicago -- spent on second tier media. Bus stops in Chicago suburbs and cable television.

Speaking of marketing, my little bailiwick on N. Washington St. is all abustle. Tom Egert has purchased the building next door to WDBX and plans to tear it down and build an annex to WDBX. . . . And Auntie's Wings has been reincarnated yet again as "Truly's Country Kitchen .. . And Green Partiers Rich Whitney and Paula Bradshaw are renting out the Big Muddy Indy Media Center, which they are fixing up and painting with the help of volunteers. Paula has recently launched her own blog. Her daughter Jessica has started working part-time with me at Greyhound. She's a sweet intelligent young woman, who likes the new ABC tv series Pushing Daisies as much as I.

In late summer a group of us tried to organize as "Street Fair" in the 200 block of N. Washington St. We planned it for October, but the cost of insurance was prohibitive. The agent said if Main Street were to co-sponsor, the rate would be much cheaper, so a presentation to Megan Cole and Main Street board will be made in the Fall.

Speaking of Cole, I've only seen hizzoner the Mayor once or twice since the election. The last time I left his office a couple of months ago, laughing uncontrollably at the thought of him doing a comedy act, while sitting at a dais with a gavel.... "Next joke up for consideration. Item 6.1 Punchline 6.1.1.." I told him how I was thinking of changing my name to David B(for "Be" or "Bee") Moore, by adding an "O" to my last name.... I told him (jokingly) I wanted to ride the double-o internet wave "like gOOgle and yahOO" and he said, without missing a beat, that maybe he should change his name to Brad Cool. ... and that's where Brad Cool, "King of Sit-Down Stand-Up" was born, and why I laughed my way down the City Hall stairwell, even though the Mayor had just instructed me to remove all links to the "Team Brad" website, except his contact page.

Other stuff goin' on, too. the local Ron Paul for President contingent has been doing street corner sign duty and billboarding on East Main St. Personally, I like his Libertarian ideals, and if a Republican is to be elected in 2008, I hope it's him. But a Clinton/Obama ticket would be unbeatable, and John Edwards would be a good Attorney General.

Rudy Giuliani will be the Republican nominee, unless the media decides to treat Ron Paul more fairly. They're treating him like he's a Democrat - I guess because he's the only Republican candidate who is principled and honest.

There's a Ron Paul meet-up group at Longbranch this morning.