Reforming the reform
In my recent piece about the challenges facing the Sangamon County Citizens Efficiency Commission, I noted that the adoption of township government in the 1850s, which has been intended to enhance local government, today only confuses it. The glut of small, single-purpose government entities in Illinois also was a consequence of a good-government cost-cutting mandate.…
Reporting the report
I have been writing about Springfield local government since the Great Satan in the White House was a Republican. During that time, able and earnest citizens sat down to recommend improvements to everything from local government, water supply and railroad relocation to industrial development, downtown redevelopment and historic preservation. Whatever the experience has taught me…
Inheritances
Thanks to Jared Bernstein for alerting me – us – to a speech delivered by Larry Summers, President Emeritus of Harvard University, Chief Economist at the World Bank, Clinton-era Secretary of the Treasury and, mostly recently the director of the National Economic Council. At a recent conference sponsored by the Institute for New Economic Thinking,…
Interior designers bring ideas to life
Kris Salter of KSID Interiors, Inc., does both residential and commercial work. When it comes to remodeling, it may be easier to perceive a new room than to make it a reality. Interior designers can help take ideas and translate those feeling into homes people can truly enjoy. Springfield-area designers want those with redecorating plans…
Early composting helps soil and plants later
PHOTO BY ANNE CUSACK/MCT New gardeners often ask, “What is compost and do I need to buy it?” When starting a new garden, it is hard to imagine we should initially spend more time, money and energy on compost than on plants, said a University of Illinois Extension horticulture educator. “It is plants we want,”…
The latest in landscaping
Expand your entertaining area with a flagstone patio, sitting wall and lighting. As with any industry, the landscape industry works to keep up with popular trends over the years – from xeriscaping to hedges surrounding a property. Trends come and go, but the job of a landscape designer is to stay current with the latest.…
Pro-future planet
“Consumerism, Society and our Ecological Future” is the talk, Tuesday, April 22 at UIS Brookens Auditorium, by featured speaker Tim Kasser, professor of psychology at Knox College and author of 50-peer reviewed journal articles on materialism, values and goals, plus four books, including the The High Price of Materialism and Psychology and Consumer Culture. Kasser will…
Top 10 reasons to garden
PHOTO BY METRO CREATIVE CONNECTION In our hurry-up, busy world filled with electronic gadgets such as iPhones, tablets and android devices, where does gardening fit in?, asked a University of Illinois Extension horticulture educator. “The gadgets of gardening aren’t flashy – a shovel, pruners, hoses and bags of seeds,” said Martha Smith. “All are simple…
Not all crooks are dumb
Curses, foiled again• Yafait Tadesse went to prison for stealing names and Social Security numbers of a dozen people and using the stolen identities to claim tax refunds. The bogus returns instructed the IRS to load the refunds onto debit cards and mail them to the same address in Georgia that led authorities to Tadesse.…
Changing how we do local government
Former U.S. Senator from Illinois Alan J. Dixon, in his recent book, The Gentleman from Illinois, writes, “Frankly, I believe there are too many elective offices in most states, including an excess of counties with elective offices. And then there are all the elected officials in the small cities and townships in most states. The…
SAVE THE MONARCHS
Illinois’ state insect is dwindling in population. There has been a 90 percent decrease in the U.S. population of monarch butterflies, Illinois’ state insect, since the mid-1990s, according to a group of natural resource leaders. The group sent a request to the White House April 14 for policy changes, such as habitat protection, that could…
Watching paint die
I’ve been dating a girl I really like for six weeks. She pays her rent with a 9-to-5 job but studied painting at art school and wants to make it her career. Unfortunately, I don’t like her paintings at all. They are abstract and don’t look like they take much craft, and they just don’t…
Ready to work
ILLUSTRATION BY KIRK LYTTLE/MCT With about $4 billion in transportation and other projects planned for Springfield in the coming years, groups in Springfield are already working to ensure a fair share of the jobs generated go to minorities. The Faith Coalition for the Common Good and Bridging the Gap, both based in Springfield, are helping…
Don’t skip national record store day
National Record Store Day is on April 19. It’s that time of year again when we celebrate on an international level a great holiday of profound importance to the world. Well, yes, there’s Passover and Easter, too, but I was referring to National Record Store Day, happening in 2014 on April 19. The other holidays,…
Letters to the Editor 4/17/14
Cities around the country have been struggling with the rising cost of road repair. PHOTO BY METRO CREATIVE CONNECTION ROAD REPAIR FAIRNESSEnjoyed the article by Lauren Duncan (“Pay at the pump, fix the roads,” April 10) regarding raising the gasoline tax to raise more money for roads. I am not sure that raising taxes is…
Turf tips for spring
PHOTO BY METRO CREATIVE CONNECTION Lawn care questions in the wake of last summer’s drought are now pouring in, said a University of Illinois Extension horticulture educator. Rhonda Ferree listed the following as her top 10 tips ranked in order of importance. 1. Fertilize at the proper time. Most homeowners only need one application per…
Sniffing the ethical rot in Wall Street’s culture
Not too many years ago, any news story about bonus money would’ve been about some 20-year-old baseball player – an up-and-coming superstar getting $100,000 or so on top of his salary as an extra incentive to join the Yankees, Giants, Red Sox or whatever team. Sportswriters dubbed them: “Bonus Babies.” How quaint. These days, stories…
Pansies brighten up a spring garden
Pansies are making a comeback in the garden world, said a University of Illinois Extension horticulture educator. “According to the Garden Media Group, pansy and violet sales were up 6.4 percent in 2011,” said Rhonda Ferree. “Since then, pansies have been in high demand for both spring and fall sales.” In the fall of 2011,…
Costner saves Day
Kevin Costner as Sonny Weaver in Draft Day. It’s apparent from the start that director Ivan Reitman wants Draft Day to be to the NFL what Moneyball was to the MLB. For a while, the film succeeds in that. It is a no-nonsense, behind-the-scenes look at how a major sports franchise is run and an…
Home & garden events calendar
Jaycees Lawn Mower ClinicApril 19, 8am-1pm, OReilly Auto Parts North, 1321 N. Dirksen Pkwy, Push mower full-service tuneup. All service done same day. $55 or $20 blade sharpening. 553-2082. Introduction to WeatherizationApril 19, 8am-4pm, Air sealing, attic and wall insulation, furnace repair and replacement, electric base load reduction (lighting and refrigerator), window and door weatherization. $100.…
Repurposed furniture: A market of old and new
Julie Butler of Tossed and Found has put together rooms in her store, which features recycled and reupholstered furniture. PHOTO BY LAUREN P. DUNCAN Before throwing out that dresser with a broken drawer or the outdated coffee table, be aware there are a few people in Springfield who can turn it into something new. With…
Does FutureGen have a future?
With U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois looking on, Ken Humphreys, CEO of the FutureGen Alliance, signs a labor agreement on Monday to provide union labor for the FutureGen project planned in a rural area outside Jacksonville. The agreement may signal that the long-delayed project is moving forward. PHOTO BY PATRICK YEAGLE Illinois is one…
just is poem #1 or 1000
a carhit a carhit a carhit a carhit my friendron stoppedat a red lighthe checked outokay at thehospital Icould addphilosophicclichés hereweb of lifeout of theblue left fieldbut you cando that foryourself withno effort
Easters past
PHOTO BY METRO CREATIVE CONNECTION What a difference a couple of years make! In 2012 Easter fell on the seventh of April. It was a glorious weekend, undoubtedly our best Easter ever. The most wonderful thing about it was the marriage of our daughter, Ashley. It was a joyous celebration, a gathering of friends and…
American notes
Longtime rural Midwestern singer/songwriter Chris Vallillo headlines the Prairie Grapevine Folklore Society Concert on Tuesday evening, April 22. Known for his skillful guitar playing and singing, Vallillo’s 2008 Abraham Lincoln in Song, released by Gin Ridge Records, reached No. 10 on Billboard’s bluegrass album chart. Dirty Linen magazine described his music as “vivid, original story…
Mike Madigan, media hound
A long time ago I asked Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan why he never golfed at his golf outing fundraisers. Madigan explained that he was a terrible golfer (he’s since improved, I’m told). If people saw him embarrassing himself badly on the golf course, they might take a dimmer view of him as a leader.…
NEW GENHKIDS LEADER NAMED
Jen Dillman Jen Dillman has been named the new genHkids executive director. GenHkids is a Springfield nonprofit group that works to improve the health of children in hopes of fostering a generation of healthy kids. The organization’s initiatives include several local fresh food programs in schools. Dillman has worked with the group over the past…
Raised bed checklist
A Creta stone raised garden is a perfect way to make an accessible garden for all to enjoy. PHOTO COUTRESY DESIGNER LANDSCAPES, INC The idea of putting in a raised-bed vegetable garden can be confusing if you’re not sure where to start, said a University of Illinois horticulture educator. It can be especially difficult for…
Trying to stop revenge porn
The electronic sharing of certain obscene images could soon be a criminal offense in Illinois. State Rep. Scott Drury, D-Highwood, is sponsoring legislation that would make it a crime when an individual knowingly places, posts or reproduces a pornographic or nude image or video on the Internet without the consent of the individual shown. Similar…
The perfect time to plan this year’s fruit tree orchard
PHOTO BY METRO CREATIVE CONNECTION It’s time to plan for a new home orchard or to consider replacements for aging fruit trees in an existing home orchard, said a University of Illinois Extension horticulture educator. “There are several different kinds of fruit trees to consider: apple, cherry, peach, pear and/or plum,” said Richard Hentschel. In…
Indian sounds
Enjoy the classic tale The Jungle Book April 18-19 presented by Springfield Theatre Centre. Gil and Ann Opferman are directing this beloved story of Mowgli the Indian boy raised by wolves in the Indian jungle. Gil Opferman says of the play, “We want the opening scene of the Indian jungle to come alive and magically fill…
Wicked Walls
After eight years of many record releases and live performances, the highly respected and much appreciated, Champaign-Urbana based group, New Ruins, split up back in 2012. From the ashes, co-founder J. Caleb Means slowly began to piece together a musical puzzle by soul searching through songwriting in the summer of 2012. At first, what…
Spring salad at your front door
Mesclun is a mixture of assorted small, baby salad leaves also known as a mesclun mix. You can purchase mesclun bagged in cellophane at your grocer. Yet freshly harvested from a few square feet in your patio, garden or front stoop, mesclun is an easy tender treat, said a University of Illinois Extension horticulture educator.…
Rio 2 a Vibrant, Predictable Animated Affair
Much of the same is at play in Rio 2, the sequel to the surprise 2011 hit that dealt with the misadventures of Blu (voice by Jesse Eisenberg), a Spix’s Macaw raised in the frigid wilds of Minnesota of all places, who finds out that he’s not the last of his breed when he’s shipped…
Rearranging the desks
The citizens panel gathered to find what it called opportunities for economy in the provision of public services in Springfield and Sangamon County. Upon investigation, they found that the cemetery management was antiquated, that budgeting and accounting needed improving, that information about public agencies ought to be collected and disseminated to the public that pays…
