Happy new year and words we don't like

Good morning and HAPPY FRIDAY!

The worst words of 2011
This morning we had a lot of caucus news and an overnight chase, but it was a couple of lighthearted stories that really got us talking and laughing during the commercial breaks. A college in Michigan releases a list of words or phrases each year that are overused, useless and should be banned. Some of them this year include "babybump" and "new normal." That got us thinking about some of the phrases that make us cringe and we came up with quite a few. Dan said his least favorite word is "actually." Mine is "like." Brett came up with "epic fail." We were also laughing about how words get shortened or altered over time. For example, "bestie" instead of "best friend." Or is spelled "besty?" I guess I don't even know how to write these "new" words!
Furthermore, does this list represent the idea that our use of the English language is going to pot? Or have Americans always had fun coming up with new ways to communicate and the list is just a way of showing that? I have a feeling a lot of long-time English teachers must wonder what the h*&# is going on with the way we talk and write.

Goodbye 2011
As we say farewell to the year, it's custom for people to make a list of things they want to do differently in the year to come. The ol' New Year Resolutions! I have to admit, it's kind of cheesy, but I always do it. Most of them never stick, but occasionally I make a change that becomes habit. Of course, every year I vow to exercise more and lose weight. Sometimes it happens. Sometimes it doesn't. But I have found the ones that are specific and not too difficult are the ones that have staying power. For example, last year I decided that I would make the bed every day right when I got home from work. I am happy to report I am now a regular bed-maker! In fact, it's helped inspire me to keep the house a little more in order throughout the day. I haven't decided what will go on my list this year, but I think it will have something to do with keeping the clutter in my house under control. What are your resolutions? Or do you make a point not to make them?

This is the last blog of the year. I hope you all actually have a wonderful weekend and a, like, epic New Year's Eve! :)

Happy Wednesday

This morning I had the pleasure of working with Dan Winters. He's filling in for Patrick the rest of the week. Even though we work under the same roof, we rarely get to have a conversation that's more than, "hey... how are ya?" This morning we got to swap stories about our kids and catch up. Dan also has this way of making everyone laugh with his humor and impersonations. And laughing is a GOOD thing at 5 a.m.

Caucus Countdown

The candidates are pulling out all the stops this week. Lots of stops for all of them this week. And the latest poll basically shows a three way tie between Mitt Romney, Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich. But it could still be any one's game. The same poll shows 12 percent of likely caucus-goers still haven't decided.

Occupy Des Moines Protesters

This morning we aired part of the speech one of the Occupy protesters made last night at "The People's Caucus." The gentleman got up and said everyone should get a free education. Doesn't matter if it from a Community College or a Ph.D. My question: who pays for it? Should educators volunteer their time? Aren't some of them already underpaid? I understand to an extent the protesters' frustration with certain corporations and campaign funding rules , but when their message becomes entirely self-focused, you lose me. And I imagine, a lot of others, too.

Coffee Revelation

Dan made the coffee this morning at work and I noticed it tasted different. He told me in put in some of his Pumpkin Spice Dunkin' Donuts coffee with the regular and it was delicious! My new favorite.

As Jeriann would say, Happy Humpday!

Brooke

Counting down the Caucuses and 2011

The Morning Buzz is back after a Christmas break. Patrick is off this week enjoying some down time and I am coming back after a week off. It was a wonderful break, but as much as I love what I do for a living, coming back to work after vacation AND the holidays is downright dreadful. Excuse me while I go eat a few more pieces of leftover Christmas candy to make myself feel better. Speaking of candy... I think I am ready for some serious sugar detox. I don't know if you feel the same way, but I think I need to eat raw celery for about a week straight to get all this sugar out of my system. Wait, who am I kidding, I'll leave that for New Years.

The caucuses will happen just one week from today. And the campaigns are pulling out all the stops. Between the calls, the tv ads and the mailings, who could blame anyone for wanting this whole process to be over. Seven days is a long time in the world of politics and it looks like there's really no clear leader at this point. And for those of us who work in tv, this is exactly what makes the Iowa caucuses SOOO much fun to cover.

Hope you enjoy the sunshine today!

Occupy, Chuck Norris and A year at an End

Good Morning.
Last blog from me before the new Year. I will try to keep it brief.

Occupy
So the peaceful protesters of Occupy decided to lunge at the former Speaker of the House screaming at the top of your lungs?
Yeah...that's going to work out for you every time.
I thought you were the ones that wanted to have a substantive discussion?
I get it. The TV cameras haven't been down to any Occupy events lately, and 98 of the 99% moved on from the disorganized chaos of the Occupy movement. Occupy had a chance to seize momentum from a national movement and squandered it. Most of the rest of us busy living our lives realized there is no real message or momentum to change anything...instead there are 1000 messages from this group, and a lot of them are the tired retreads of professional protesters that come without any realistic solutions.
If they wanted to ask Gingrich a question they could do it at any one of his public events by standing up and asking a civilized question. They could move the discussion one event at a time. The only problem? That doesn't always make the Evening News. So what's the point of all of this? I'm left to wonder.

Chuck Norris
Bret McIntyre had the line of the morning. We were talking abut north Korea and the outlandish claims it's made about the late Dictator Kim Jung Il (Kim allegedly had 11 holes-in-one in his 1st round of golf).
Bret observed that the NK propagandists could have just gone to ChuckNorrisFacts.com to find some lines and replace Norris's name with Kim's.
Try it out...

Spirit
If snow is the thing that gets you in the Christmas spirit...you're out of luck. On Facebook this morning, we were looking for the one thing...the trigger for your Holiday Spirit. My favorite: Political Commercials.

Year at an End
As I said this is my last post of 2011. I hope you all have a safe and Happy New Year.
Thank you to all of the people who visit this blog on a daily or weekly basis. It's fun to have a place where we can actually have a conversation every once in a while. I appreciate your indulging me.
Thank You to the best crew in morning Television!
I tell people all the time, I could never get out of bed at 2am if I had to work with people I didn't like. It's much easier coming to work with this group of dedicated people who really care about making ours the best Morning newscast in Central Iowa. We also have a lot of fun.
The next week or so will be filled with the reminders of how insanely blessed I am. It should allow me to reflect on how I might be a better person and hopefully will recharge me for the a great 2012.
I hope you have a great end of the year.
See you in 2012!
PWD

New Poll, None of the Above and Big Brother Part 2

Good Morning!
Three days of desk solitude down and one more to go before a little Vacation. There's a lot to talk about and as you'd expect most of it has to do with politics


New Poll
The timing of this morning's Iowa State is interesting given the fact that I heard two stories about Ron Paul, his supporters and his organization here in Iowa yesterday. The Poll Shows Paul with 27 percent Support but it also has a large margin of error Newt Gingrich is in second and Mitt Romney hold in third.
Some interesting things about Paul supporters from this poll: They are younger, less affluent and generally less religious than supporters of other candidates. I hear younger and cringe a little. That, combined with a story about a kid from out of state who is working for Ron Paul here in Iowa and I think Howard Dean.
You have to feel bad for Rick Santorum. More people are undecided in the poll that are declared Santorum supporters. The question is will his numbers change given two big endorsements?

None of the Above
I think we answered some of the lingering questions about The Family Leader's influence in Iowa when the group couldn't pick a candidate to support. Instead The Groups leader BVP makes a personal endorsement of Rick Santorum. See yesterday's post.
If Santorum is the guy who best fits this guy's picture of who the nominee should be, and the candidate has been as consistently low in the polls as he has been; what does that say about the judgement of the Leader? It would see he is so far out of touch with the mood, opinions and politics of conservatives that he's picked their last choice.

Take a Hike
That's what we're all going to do come January 1st. It looks like Congress is going to stay deadlocked over a Payroll tax break that everyone agrees should be exteded. The disagreement comes over paying for it.
Republicans have painted themselves into a bit of a corner here because no one wants to vote for a tax hike in an election year. My conservative friends point out that this is playing politics to lower income Americans...and they're right. the average household is going to get $1000 back over the year. Now that's not chump change in my house...but over 26 pay periods? You're talking about enough to go out to dinner one more time...or pay your cell phone bill, or maybe your water bill.
I saw this analysis of the standoff in The Washington Post last night and this is the part I can't get past. It looks like Republicans WANT the fight. They want to make a point. they don't seem that interested in making the government work. If they do, they risk people feeling as if things aren't broken. that would be good for the President. This one may blow up in their faces though. I think people are more frustrated with the fact that these guys are quoting Braveheart and digging their heels in then they would be with an honest debate that didn't go the way they wanted it to go.
I can't stand it...it makes my skin crawl. It brings to mind words like squirrely, weasel, vindictive and weak. And let me be clear... Democrats are no better. They'd be doing(and in fact , did!) the same exact thing if the two sides switch places...

Big Brother Part 2
So ISU is working on technology that allows digital advertisements, the kind you see at the Mall, to look back at you, identify who you are and come up with an ad that matches your demographic. That's a little scary. I don't feel like I need that kind of targeted media in my life but I guess its coming anyway.

iPad2
So I am downloading apps for the iPad and I am interested to hear any opinions on the best apps for kids. I don't want games..Ii am looking for something that has a learning component to it. What are your favorites?

As always opinions on these or any other stories you are interested in are welcome. I hope all of you have a good day!
PWD

Endorsements

Flying solo this week so Brooke can have some well deserved time off with her family for Christmas. Still, it's busy around here with Caucuses coming up and the County renaming buildings.

Here we go

Endorsements 1
Polk County Supervisors aren't giving out an endorsement, but they're selling the naming rights to Vets. We'll dispense with the rehashing of the naming debate. From our Facebook post this morning it still looks like a lot of you aren't happy with the CCCU name going on the side of the building, even if it includes Veterans Memorial first.
I understand your feelings on this, n one respects the sacrifice Military Veterans have made to this country more than I do...but this is also about the financial health of the County. The money CCCU contributed helped the County finance the renovations for Vets. The renovations will help the Events enter bring in more money and in turn the County more tax dollars and revenue. There is a larger business benefit. Whether you think changing the name is worth the benefit? That's your opinion and you are entitled. I think it's a gross overstatement and totally inaccurate to say the Supervisors are down there thinking up ways to sell out Veterans.
Now that I'm done defending them, I'll also criticize the quotes I saw in the paper this morning. Some of the Supervisors, including the Chairman sounded stunned that anyone would think the County wanted to disrespect Veterans with the renaming.

“To me, it’s always going to be Veterans Memorial,” Supervisor John Mauro said late Monday. “I’m not sure how other people will see it. But the Veterans Memorial is on the top, and that’s where it belongs.”

What? So we're either supposed to believe the Chairman didn't agree with renaming Vets, or that he sold the naming rights to a local company never actually intending to call it anything else.

This isn't the end of the world. You can call it what you like. There are parts of this that certainly could be handled differently.

Endorsements 2

The Family Leader will hand out its endorsement today. We'll see if it helps the candidate they tap.
Funny enough, a Bible passage was rolling around in my head this morning as I thought about the Family Leader, its positions and its endorsement.

"Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Call it proof I was actually listening in Catholic School. That one always resonated with me.

Post Nuclear Family

That's what I am calling us now. We just acquired a third Apple product to keep around the house. Our latest, the iPad2 is supposed to be an e-reader for Sally. We'll see how much the rest of us use it. I am already impressed and I've only played around with it for about a half hour.

Please feel free to comment on these or any other story you saw today. I'd love to hear about it.

PWD

Adventureland, endorsments, and Off air Debate

Good Morning!
Getting to this very late but it's giving me a few more things to talk about.

Adventureland
The Theme Park had another off season fire early this morning. We have a nice network of scanner hounds who listen to police traffic and call us every once in a while when they hear something. We heard about the fire from a friend who heard it all the way out in Grinnell! Thanks Danny!

Endorsements
Republican endorsements are funny. When the Family Leader put out its marriage pledge, you figured there were only a couple candidates who might get it. Now it seems it's open to whoever is ahead in the polls, not named Romney. It gives some credence to the theory a lot of Republicans have floated talking to me. The organization isn't actually a Kingmaker...it just wants to say it is.
That said, you have to respect the group of Republicans led by former State Rep Danny Carroll. They got up and said Michelle Bachmann is the only "Biblically qualified" candidate, and therefore had the group's endorsement.
Now I don't know what Biblically qualified means...and I would have to ask...does someone have to be Biblically qualified to be President? Doesn't that disqualify any non practicing Christian? Doesn't that go against freedom of religion? Doesn't it sound a lot more like an Islamist State than the United States?
Still, there's part of me that respects the group for sticking to its narrow list of principles and supporting a candidate, not because she's the flavor of the week, but because she adheres to their view of what a President should be.
Finally, if former Delaware Senate Candidate Christine O'Donnell said she wanted to endorse you...wouldn't you say no??? She said on CNN today that she decided that Mitt Romney was her guy because, "he's been consistent since he changed his mind." I don't know what to say.

Newt
While we're talking Republican Caucuses, I saw a clip of the Occupy protesters invading Newt Gingrich's appearance in Iowa City. First, I will miss the human microphone when it's gone. Second, are these people listening to themselves?
"Mr Gingrich we are here to protest your speech!"
Nothing says power to the people like restriction of free speech.
And while we're on the subject of Occupy, the news releases we're getting in the newsroom talking about Occupy are starting to look like a who's who of protesting over the last ten years in Des Moines. They used to send us news releases under the names CCI and...well...Ed Fallon. Now we're supposed to believe this is a group of people rising up to fight the 1%? This is more like an Protesting All-Star team. Same people, same issues repackaged.

Vets
That's what it will always be to me. But the Polk County Board of Supervisors announced it sold the naming rights to Community Choice Credit Union. I live in the real world so I understand why naming rights make sense. I don't understand how this one played out.
We got a news release that said the Events Center and the County wanted to continue to honor Iowa Veterans with the naming of the building. Great. Honor them by taking the name OFF the building??
Even more or a fumble, CCCU. Why not give em the two and a half million and then tell people it's to PRESERVE the name Veterans Memorial Auditorium? That's the right thing to do and would be so out of character for a corporate naming rights deal that the publicity you get would be worth every dime. people would switch to your Credit Union because you actually showed you respect Veterans! This one is a major blunder and CCCU should move to change course as soon as possible.

Off Air Debate
We had a good one going this Morning about the speed cameras. Brad and Jeriann say they are Big Brother watching over you. Jeriann sees a scenario where cameras are on every corner and someone is looking into your living room monitoring your treatment of your kids...
I think they are just mad cause they actually have to follow the posted speed limit. It's not even that bad...you can still break the law...by eleven miles and hour! I think 71mph is plenty fast on 235. We drive the roads knowing at any time or around any turn...someone could be monitoring our speed and could give us a ticket for breaking the limit. You didn't have a problem with that before these cameras came out...now you do, just because there's not a human behind the radar gun?
Of course this isn't about safety...that's a political argument...it's about $$. Cities shouldn't count on this revenue, but I have no problem with collecting fines from someone who is breaking the law.
Now we need fines for people who go to slow on the interstate and the ones who can't seem to master the art of merging into traffic. Those are public safety problems!

Well there's a lot to yell at me about today...so have at it.
See you tomorrow!
PWD

Cameras (again), Being Iowans, and Period (space space)

Good Morning!
The starts of my day gave me another gem from my son.
JT was asking Sally to wake me up this morning after he got out of bed. Sally told JT that I was at work andthat we would have to "call Daddy". JT proceeded to scream, "DAAADDDDDYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!" I'm not sure he's clear on the phone concept yet...but we're working on it.

To the News:
Cameras (Again)
Windsor Heights is talking about putting up those speed cameras on I-235 and a mobile speed camera in various locations around the City. I got a call on our newsline. The woman was looking for Jan Mickelson's voicemail...Anyway she wanted to tell me that these cameras were simply about Big Brother infringing on her freedoms.
I'm sorry I know the argument about these cameras being about safety is bogus, but the other extreme isn't the answer either. Infringe on what? Your freedom to speed? Is someone arguing that the City is taking down data about your car or your movements or where you buy eggs? I doubt it. A City that can't even staff the streets with enough people to control speeding isn't exactly a candidate to track your personal movements.
there's a simple answer to this. It IS about money. the City needs it and you don't want to pay more in taxes. This is a way for Windsor Heights to get people from Des Moines and Urbandale and Altoona to pay for services in Windsor Heights.
there's also an easy solve here. Don't speed, and don't run red lights.

Being Iowans
There's been a lot of talk about an article in The Atlantic about living in Iowa. It was authored by a University of Iowa Professor who's lived here for 20 years (thought living in Iowa City is NOTHING like living in the rest of Iowa).
Read the article and draw your own conclusions. Here are a few of mine:
He makes some points that are hard to refute. That said, I am wondering what his article has to do with the lead-of Caucuses? You can write the same article about any state in the Union. Each would have characteristics that make it a less than ideal place to hold first in the nation influence in the nominating process. What the author misses in the fundamental argument for the Iowa Caucuses. There is no other place in the country where a less well known candidate could come and succeed. The cost in any other state would be prohibitive and then we'd all complain only the truly well funded candidates could win.
I'd also argue that Iowa is unique in that the voters here...Republican and Democrat take the responsibility seriously. Name another state where voters would be as engaged in the process. Name another place where employers would give employees time (and a place) to hear the candidates speak during the work day. Name another place where you can go to a neighbor's house and talk to a man or woman that might be President some day. You can't do it.
Iowa's size is EXACTLY the reason it should remain first.
As for Iowa's diversity, I seem to remember the pundits talking about how forward thinking Iowa voters were when it was the Democrats giving President Obama the Caucus win. How is it that Democrats in the state can be so progressive and Republicans so backwards?
Iowa opens the process to a broad field. That isn't always comfortable for some people. But shining light on the fringes of the political spectrum is good for the conversation overall.
If you've got a better system, I'm all ears, but it's going to be hard to convince me that any other state could handle the responsibility of being first like Iowa does.

Period (space space)
I just wanted to admit I'm doing it wrong...or at least this article says I am. Slate.com says we shouldn't put two spaces after each period in a sentence. One of the fundamental rules of my childhood is apparently wrong. So I guess it's one space from now on. I don't know how long it will take to break me of this rule. I will try harder tomorrow.
Feel free to comment...
Have a good one
PWD

The Bet, Ship it, and Cereal Killer

Good Morning!
I hope you all had a good weekend. We really did. Back to work find us without or regular Producer and reminds me this will be the stretch of the year where at least one of us will be missing for a while. It's our Producer Lisa this week. Next week it's Brooke and JR...the week following it will be me. All well deserved breaks!
To the News

The Bet
I am shocked, shocked I say, that everyone is focusing in on the amount of the "bet" Mitt Romney offered Rick Perry Saturday night. Has no one ever offered up, "I'll bet you a million dollars!" I have. Does that make me out of touch?
It's a figure of speech. Actually, I have a running total going with my wife. At this point I think I am up two and a half gazillion dollars. Though she is fond of saying she hasn't sent me her bill yet.
It does show a lack of preparedness on Romney's part. You knew that one was coming. How about..."I'll bet you $1000 donation to your campaign" ...or "I'll bet you $1000 to your favorite charity." Better yet, if you're Romney get in a good dig and say, "Thanks for the opportunity to correct you (slight pause) again."
On Perry's part, why push this one? I know you think everyone is looking for a reason to hate on Romney but you also open yourself up to this kind of story. The headlines say you're mistaken...again.

Ship it
It's Green Monday...another color coded shopping holiday. I guess you are supposed to get online again. Shipping deals are going to be my goal. We were trying to complete a few orders last night and we actually just clicked off a few places that didn't offer free shipping. This is what you get. If companies are going to offer so much free shipping, people will come to expect it. Now it's totally unreasonable for me to expect they will ship me this stuff at significant cost to them, but no cost to me...still, I do.

Cereal Killer
What a buzzkill to find out so many of the guilty pleasure cereals you like are simply sugar snacks...as if we didn't know that already. The fact that Fruit Loops were at the top of the list reminds me of the breakfast I used to down before High school every once in a while. I ate two of those small boxes of Fruit Loops and a Mountain Dew before class. Oh, to be young and be able to burn three thousand calories a day.

Off to buy milk for the kiddos.
PWD

Roadside Mystery, Payroll and Who's Coming to Dinner?

Good Morning!

We're celebrating Brooke's Birthday today. I brought some cookies in this morning..Bridget brought cheesecake...Jeriann brought Red Velvet cake. So we're all going to be fat, and Brooke's having a Happy Birthday.

Add your well wishes if you like.

The News:

Roadside Mystery

Polk County Sheriff's office says it's investigating how a man got badly injured last night near Highway 141. They're telling us someone reported the person by the side of the road around 9 last night. When Paramedics showed up the victim couldn't even communicate what was wrong. The man did have severe injuries. The Medics took him to the Hospital but The Sheriff's office wants to know what happened...so if you were in the area and you think you can help call the Sheriff's office or Crimestoppers.

Payroll

So the President is throwing down with Congress telling them to stay on the job till they pass the Payroll Tax extension. We'll see. This is one where everyone wants it to pass but how to pay for it is up for debate.
I just don't get the Republican strategy here...approval ratings are at an all time low, you are FOR the tax break...but you attach a bill approving a Pipeline for the OIL INDUSTRY?!?!? Why would you connect one of the things people like best about your party's politics(lower taxes) with something almost no one likes (the oil industry)?

Ads
I'll be covering the Perry Campaign Caucus night so I am watching the debate over Gov Perry's new ads with some interest. I think I see what the Gov is trying to say(please do not read that I am agreeing or disagreeing with any of the statements he made)...I'm just unsure any of that message is going to make it through the firestorm these ads have created.

Aside from the ad, I just don't understand the debate. If the premise is that Christians are being discriminated against in some way, why is it that I can't swing a dead cat without hitting a Christmas tree in December?

If you want to call it a Christmas tree...that's what it is.

If the State calls it a Holiday tree to avoid littering the Capitol rotunda with every religion's holiday paraphernalia..do you really care? It's still Christmas and no Government can change that...whatever or however you want to celebrate that season. There is no mandate on how you personally celebrate. Your kids can wear shirts that say Merry Christmas to school. You can give people gifts anytime you like. You just can't foist your religious beliefs on anyone else. In a school run with public tax dollars, you can't force kids who may practice another religion to celebrate Christmas if they don't want to.

You have to think of this in the reverse. If the majority of Americans were Jewish, would you want your kids to be forced to celebrate Hanukkah? I also find it ironic that the people who complain about this want to be able to practice their religion and force their beliefs on anyone they like, but when someone tries to make a symbol of the holiday a little more inclusive...they get bent.

It doesn't seem at all in line with the message of the season complain and argue about this... Why can't people look at the message of Christmas, or Hanukkah or any other holiday and try to reflect personally on how that message might apply to them, or how they might incorporate that message into their life to make the world a better place?

Tantrums

The message of our story about kids and tantrums was interesting...but I'm not sure it's practical. The story talked about the stages of tantrums and that you should try to move kids quickly through anger and sadness and right on to consoling them. The other big piece of this was just to ignore kids. Easier said than done.

Each kid is different and each parent is different. The best response I saw on Facebook was to be firm and consistent. I think my job as a parent is to set boundaries for my kids and keep them safe. It's hard to remember sometimes that the behavior is normal, and not take it so personally.

Who's Coming to Dinner

We ran a story about a poll where people identified who they'd want to invite to dinner and who they would want to cook for them. My top Chefs/guests didn't even make the list. I think I'd have to have Giada come cook for me....errr... us. Sally likes her recipes.... Bobby Flay or Michael Simon would also be good choices. I'd love to get some schooling in better grilling.

As for guests, John Stewart sounded like a good choice to me. What an interesting conversation that would be.

As always we want to hear what you have to say. Please feel free to comment or question anything I've said here. I enjoy hearing your thoughts.

PWD

Monday Catch-Up

Good Morning!
Looking to catch up a bit on the news this morning so here goes:

Occupy Caucus
I'll be interested to see how the Occupy Protesters will handle the Caucus protests. If they come in and interrupt a candidate and just yell at them...I think they lose A LOT of credibility. Agree or disagree with them, the Iowa groups have been largely peaceful, law abiding and civil.
If they disrupt a Candidate's campaign event by yelling at them...that degrades the movement to heckler status. I hope, instead, they go to events as any other Iowa voter would, raise their hand, and ask an issues based question the candidate can answer. Then, I hope they let the Candidate give their answer.
You may not like the answer but if we're talking about "engaging candidates" in "Civil discourse", that's the way it's got to happen.
On a side-Political note, Sally and I saw Ides of March while we were in Chicago ofter Thanksgiving. What a depressing movie. We both walked out of the movie and said, "I bet that's EXACTLY how it works."

Cuts
The Des Moines City Council has some hard decisions ahead of it. I wouldn't want to be in their shoes. That said, informed Pubic input on these decisions might help. The City is looking at cutting more than three million dollars from its budget each of the next two years. That won't happen without cuts to services and some lay-offs. I predict there will be a loud group of people who will complain no matter the decision. We've now covered each of the public forums talking about each of the departments that could potentially be cut. We told you about this morning's budget forum, and we told you there will be more public presentation on the budget in the weeks to come. Lets see who gets informed, involved and engaged in the City's future.

Bowling
As a Missouri Fan I expected the Big 12 to totally screw with the exiting member of its conference. Everyone is saying the right thing, but the fact is, Bowls associated with the Big 12 are looking at the future of the relationship and taking teams that will still be around. Missouri got passed over for three bowls by three teams they beat by a combined 54 points...
That said, I am happy for Iowa State. Those kids exceeded expectations this year and deserve a post-season reward.
Iowa fans can't complain about going back to a warm weather bowl. Good luck with Oklahoma.

Zach and Tiger
I had a lot of fun watching Zach Johnson go tow to toe with Tiger Woods Sunday. Zach showed how gritty he is and just how good a player he is when he's putting well.
That said, anyone who doesn't think Tiger Woods is back in top form is kidding themselves. He will win at least one more Major in 2012.

Vacation
Overall vacation was just a chance to get away with Sally (which we did for three days in Chicago). A chance to catch up on some sleep (which I did), to catch up on my Honey-do list (mission partially accomplished) and to relax.
We caught up with some old friends in Chicago and remembered how much we miss being with people who we've known our whole lives. We also got caught in mid-week traffic in Chicago and remembered why we love Des Moines.

I hope you all had a good start to the week. As always, please feel free to ask questions, comment on stories or share your two cents. We love hearing from you!
PWD

Whoot Whoot... it's Friday!

I loved hearing some of the comments about staying healthy this time of year. Between the healthy drinks, proper diet and exercise, I think the suggestions are good ones. And, there certainly is something to be said about a balanced diet and a little exercise to keep your body in shape to fight off illness. I suppose there isn't a so-called "silver bullet" for fighting the flu, but Jeriann and I suspect getting sleep is also a key element. 2:30 a.m. wake-up calls are probably not part of the healthy living plan. :)

Pinterest

Have you been on this website yet? My neighbor got me hooked and now I am officially addicted. It's basically the best pictures, decorating ideas, crafts and recipes from the best magazines all in one spot. Everything looks so pretty and perfect that you cannot look away. Not sure who actually takes the inspiration to the next level and actually USES the tips.. but it's fun to dream.

Here's one recipe that caught my eye last night. And NO, this doesn't fit into the balanced-eating-trying-to-stay-healthy routine. :)

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 king-sized milk chocolate bars (e.g. Hershey’s)
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff (not melted marshmallows)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combined.
Divide dough in half and press half of dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan. Place chocolate bars over dough. 2 king-sized Hershey’s bars should fit perfectly side by side, but break the chocolate (if necessary) to get it to fit in a single layer no more than 1/4 inch thick. Spread chocolate with marshmallow creme or fluff. Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff (most easily achieved by flattening the dough into small shingles and laying them together).
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Newt's New Confidence
Newt Gingrich seems is the candidate with all the buzz right now. A recent Rasmussen Poll asking Iowa Republicans to rank their favorite contender, put him ahead of Mitt Romney by almost 20 percent. Gingrich told ABC News that he predicted he'd be the nominee. The timing of his rise seems perfect. And, six months ago the people who talk about politics for a living would have laughed had anyone predicted this. You gotta love politics!

Hope you have a great weekend. Stay safe on Saturday with the ice and snow expected to hit. See you Monday morning with Pat back in the saddle again!

Brooke