¡Hola! Acabo de regresar de mis vacaciones en México. ¡Fue impresionante!

Here in Wisconsin, behind the cheddar curtain, that translates to; “Da wife and I just got back from a vacation in Mexico and, man, it was awesome!” We like to visit Mexico once a year ’cause we love it there. Now don’t get me wrong, I still bleed Red, White and Blue and I still believe we live in the greatest country on the planet. But there are aspects of Mexico that feel like the “old” U.S.of A.

It brings you right back to the days of your youth when you see a guy riding in his huge Chrysler with his 8 year old son on his lap. He’s smoking a huge Cuban cigar and he’s letting the kid steer. That’s America circa 1968 right there. About 10 years ago we tried to get our local community to put a speed bump on the road. The red tape was incredible and we never did succeed. Down in Mexico, though, they are serious about having you slow down. If you’re driving and you see a speed bump, you had better slow to a crawl or your front bumper, and a few of your teeth, will be laying on the road.

Another flashback of my youth is hearing a huge percentage of Mexicans speaking (at least) 2 languages. My grandparents spoke other languages and I’m always embarassed that I don’t. Sure my Rosetta Stone has helped, but once I’ve asked for a beer and a bathroom, well I’m almost tapped out. And remember America before all those lawsuits? Mexico isn’t lawsuit happy. They don’t dumb everything down to the lowest common denominator. You actually have to pay attention to where you’re walking or driving. Sure it’s more dangerous, but we’re all adults, aren’t we? And, you haven’t lived until you’ve zip-lined or para-sailed in Mexico, it’s awesome. You don’t have to sign and notarize 8 copies of a release form. There’s this unspoken rule that simply says “Yeah, I know this is risky and dangerous and kinda stupid and I might get hurt bad, so let’s do it!!” Add some tequila and make it even more fun.

And who needs HMO’s, co-pays or scripts from your doctor when you can get almost anything at the Pharmacia? Antibiotics, anti-depressants, and even some narcotics. Sure they may be sudstandard or even counterfeit but it’s a proven fact that placebos even work on some people. Give ‘em a try if you dare. Just don’t try to smuggle them into the USA. That’s a huge no-no. Though, I did accidentally bring back some aspirin. I had a headache and I bought this medicine that was labelled “E.D. Aches. For Amigos with E.D. Problems”. In fact, I took one 4 hours ago. It must be one of those placebos ’cause my headache hasn’t gone away. Somehow, though, I don’t seem to care ;~) >ver lejos a mi mujer. ..adios

The results are in …

And the winner of the Foresters’ Most Caring Radio Station in North America is 107 in Columbia, Mo.

Carole and I would like to thank everyone who stepped up to the plate and voted for WKLH 96.5 during this three-week contest. Our community is quite special, and we should feel very proud of our efforts. We truly are blessed to have such a wonderful, nationally known, state-of-the-art pediatric facility right here in Wisconsin – and better yet, right here in our own backyard.  You stepped up to do this for the kids, and we’re so proud of the Wisconsin community.

Over the weekend, we received hundreds of e-mails from listeners who want to help raise the $50K themselves – one listener at a time – one donation at a time. So, in response to our listeners, we’re going to prove how special of a community we are.

We’ve developed a special online pledge page in response to this contest that will run until Friday, Feb. 12. If we can get 500 donors to give $100 each, we can raise $50,000 for Wisconsin kids. You can pledge online at chw.org/wklh.

As an added bonus, between 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Thursday, February 11, Forester’s will be matching our donations. Let’s see if we can make it to $50,000 for the kids.

Thank you again for making a difference! One vote, one donation at a time.

SUPER BOWL THOUGHTS
 

*I think Sean Payton totally out coached Beloit’s Jim Caldwell. From Payton’s clock management at the end of the first half to the onside kick. And how about Caldwell having 42 year old Matt Stover attempt a 51 yard field goal?

*I think no city in America needed a moral victory more than New Orleans.  Karma wins again! The Saints played with heart and intensity and their coach played to win. The Colts played not to lose. It seems like teams that play not to lose always do.

*I think it’s time to go in a different direction for the Super Bowl half time show. The Who just didn’t work for me, but Zak Starkey (Ringo’s spawn) was awesome on the drums. Why did Roger Daltrey and Pete Townsend play so many of the bridges of their hits? Hooks, lads, hooks…

*I think Pete Townsend needs a bigger shirt. That pale belly was just not attractive, especially in HD…

*Since the game’s in Dallas next year, I think the halftime show should be a Scott Joplin tribute performed by ZZ Top, Los Lonely Boys, and Vanilla Ice. Hey, they’re all from Texas :~)

*On the outside chance the Cowboys actually make it to the Super Bowl next year and play in their home stadium, Jerry Jones surgically altered head will explode.

*I think his head might explode if they don’t make the big game in 2011.

*I think CBS can keep James Brown and Bill Cowher and fire the rest of those talking heads on the pre game show. It’s painful.

*I think that Google ad is an all time classic. I loved it.

*I think whoever schedules the commercials needs to be asked; “Why would you put 2 spots back to back where people are in their tighty whities?” 

*I think Jay Leno will try anything right now. I don’t blame him.

*I think Danica Patrick needs a new manager. Or GoDaddy.com needs a new ad agency, or both.

*I think Brad and Angelina are fine. I mean why else would you take her to the Super Bowl? What’s that, a photo op? Oh, yeah.

*I think that the only way I can get my wife to watch the game is if they do those syrupy background stories on the players, like the Olympics do. “And that’s how Mr. Bush met Ms. Kardashian; and now back to Reggie for this punt return”.

*I think Drew Brees knows that you don’t EVER have to force a pass deep downfield. Not all quarterbacks know that. Brett? Brett??

Okay, here’s the deal. A little town called Columbia, Missouri wants to take Milwaukee down. A company called Forester’s is holding an online contest to determine “North America’s Most Caring Radio Station”. The station that wins will have $50,000.00 donated to their local Children’s Hospital.
The issue is that Milwaukee had the lead until today when a radio station in Columbia, Missouri decided to hold a vote-a-thon and involve all their sister stations, as well as the University of Missouri. Their mission is clear; they want to ‘beat Milwaukee’.

As you may know, we do “The Miracle Marathon” every year to benefit the kids at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. To say that we’re lucky to have such a place in our community is an enormous understatement. This place really does make miracles happen and many of you know that first hand.
If you are a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, sibling or neighbor of a sick child, there is no other place that can provide the care that Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin can. So I’m begging you to step up and make a difference. And it’s as easy as a few clicks of a mouse.

Now is your chance to make a miracle happen. Help the kids by voting for WKLH in this contest. I honestly don’t care if you’re a big listener or not. That misses the point. If ‘KLH gets the most votes, the kids get the cash. It’s that simple! You can vote up to 10 times per day per e mail address. Please log on to wklh.com and you’ll see the contest link on the front page. Dare to Care…

wklh.com

I’m at work and as I write this, I have my Droid by my side, my Facebook friends are chatting with me, I am periodically checking home and work e mails and people are tweeting all around me. In fact, a few of the folks have their ear-buds in and they’re oblivious to the world. We’re all so connected that we’ve begun to ignore ourselves.

Tom Joerres, my boss, always dreads getting a phone call from me in those warm, summer months. Why? Because he knows that I’ve been out cutting the lawn. And I don’t wear headphones or ear-buds. I spend the time alone with my thoughts, usually coming up with some goofy idea that goes nowhere. But I digress.

The point is that we have devolved into a society that is hyper-aware and ultra-savvy when it comes to technology. But all we do is consume. Rarely, do we create. A disproportionate amount of the correspondence I receive is simply someone forwarding someone else’s creativity to me. Usually there’s some sort of smart a** remark attached. Hey, I’m as guilty as anyone else.

So, while we are connected 24/7, it’s mostly passive consumption. We watch TV, we listen to music (hopefully to KLH ;~) we are online, watching youtube videos and reading blogs. We play video games, we’re on our smart phones, we tweet, text and check out Facebook. We spend our spare time playing Mafia Wars, Farmville, Halo, or Madden.

I remember reading the USA Today article back in 2008 about the most creative TV commercials of the last 25 years. Not one of them was produced after 1999. But I’m not just talking about creativity as it relates to media or to the web.

Creativity is the missing link that can help create jobs, reform health care, education, and elevate us all. But how can any of us, especially young people with whom the future resides, be creative in the current environment? Most of them can’t spend 10 minutes without some sort of passive stimulation. Hey, its not just teenagers. I know plenty of people who can’t even take a walk or go running without staying connected.

I’ve started unplugging myself from the world from Friday afternoon until Sunday night and it’s been awesome. Want to know the best part? I figured out that spending 2 days with my own thoughts is about all I can handle.

So, once again it ends with a pick. Another Brett Favre mistake that cost his team a chance to play in football’s ultimate game. All he needed to do was run for 5 or 6 yards, and he could have, and let Ryan Longwell split the uprights. But that’s not Brett’s style. Sure, you can blame Adrian ‘Butterfingers’ Peterson, or the porous offensive line, but all anyone will remember is the pick. That’s the life of a quarterback. They get all the credit and all the blame. But that’s why they get the big bucks, isn’t it? 

All I know is that it was damn entertaining to watch. Brett Favre. It always is. I don’t care if you’re still rooting for him or against him; we will all miss #4 when he decides to call it a career. Think about all the talk Favre has generated in the last 19 years. And I’m not just talking about all those touchdown passes and all those interceptions. His life has been the #1 reality TV show for us for as long as we can remember.

I honestly believe Aaron Rodgers will lead the Packers to multiple championships before he’s finished. I guarantee you Rodgers would have gained those 6 yards with a run and a slide and let the kicker do his thing. Rodgers is a cool, calculating assassin. By throwing for 4,000 yards in each of his first two seasons, he’s already done something no other QB has ever done in the NFL. And I get the feeling he’s just getting started. But for some reason we just don’t connect with Rodgers like we do with Favre.

We relate to Favre. He’s like us. He makes some really stupid mistakes, says some dumb stuff, but he survives. Like us, he’s more comfortable in jeans and a baseball hat than anything else. Yet, he’s human and superhuman at the same time. For almost two decades, we have followed his every move. We saw him overcome an addiction to Vicodin, deal with numerous personal tragedies, and we watched as his wife fought breast cancer. His emotions became our emotions. His joy was our joy and somehow we felt his sadness. Thousands made a pilgrimage to little Kiln, Mississippi just to see the town he called home. And when he started the retirement soap opera, we hung on his every word.

Even on Sunday, dressed in that weird purple and white uniform, he added to his legend. He was hit more often, and harder, than we’d ever seen him hit before. He even added a little WWE to his act by limping off, only to return and lift his team once again. Brett Favre is more than a football player, he’s the ultimate entertainer. He’s a warrior; he’s an iron man, and just plain fun to watch. Is he the best QB of all time? No way. But I will miss watching the Favre show when, and if, it gets canceled.

I don’t know what I don’t know, but I know I don’t it. In other words, life is a mystery wrapped inside an enigma stuffed inside a riddle. Here’s the most current list of things that make me go Hmm:

*If Conan was so concerned about saving his staffers jobs, why didn’t he just agree to move his show back 30 minutes? Don’t they just tape those shows anyway? If ‘KLH told me that we were going from 5:30-10:30 a.m. instead of 5-10 a.m. the last thing I’d do is pitch a hissy fit. Oh yeah, I’m not in line for a 32.5 million buyout.

*Why is no one mentioning that the Packers need at least 2 more GREAT linebackers to make that ‘3-4’ defense work? The Ravens and Steelers are loaded at LB. We have one Pro Bowl caliber guy and a few okay guys. Linebackers are the key to winning with a ‘3-4’.

*When mentioning the unemployment rate, why don’t national and local pundits do a better job of explaining the numbers? If we calculated the rate like we used to (until 1994 or so) and used the U-6 number the unemployment rate isn’t 10 percent it’s closer to 17.4 percent!!!

*Why would a Chinese company plan to open a Chinese themed mall around here? The Chinese company that purchased Northridge is opening “Amesia Plaza” in August featuring hundreds of Chinese shops and vendors. The company initially is focusing business recruitment in Ningbo, Milwaukee’s sister city. Did you know Ningbo was our sister city?

*Why don’t more people care about the details of health care reform? Here’s a detail to ponder from the New York Times “The biggest problem with the health care bill isn’t the bill itself. The problem is so much of the bill is based off a highly flawed system - the federal poverty level. One of the tables the CBO put out was predicting the FPL for a family of 4 in 2016 to be $24,000.” That’s 2016, folks. I think a family of 4 in 2010 would have a heck of a time on $24,000 and still plenty have to do it. Now, when you take into account all that inflation, it really gets ugly.

*Finally, I’m usually pretty good about noticing when my wife gets a new coat or a new pair of shoes. But that’s only because she’s never hidden 34 coats and 476 pairs of shoes in another building. I’m just sayin’…

“Excuse me, sir you have to put that out. There’s no smoking in here. Want another old fashioned?”

Am I the only one who senses the irony of the no-smoking ban that goes into effect in July of this year? One vice is fine but we have to draw the line.

I do not smoke. In fact, I HATE the smell of cigarette smoke when I’m trying to eat. But I do know that I have never heard of a nicotine impaired driver killing a family of four by crossing the center line. Why don’t we worry more about getting the drunk drivers off the road and less about who’s firing up a Marlboro? And if you listen to our show you know we like smokers. They’re risk takers and generally more fun to hang out with. When you wake up after a night in a smoky bar you know you’ve had fun. The smell of your clothing tells the whole story. We don’t feel the same way about people who get hammered and get behind the wheel. And we have far too many of those people around here.

According to federal data, Wisconsin has the highest number of drunk drivers in the nation. Wisconsin boasts more liquor licenses per capita than any other state. Wisconsin has led the nation in binge drinking every year since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began its surveys on the problem more than a decade ago. Binge drinking is defined as five drinks in a sitting for a man, four for a woman. Around here, that’s just a typical weeknight.

Yeah, I know that we just “toughened up” our drunken driving laws, but we didn’t go near far enough. Until now, drunken drivers in Wisconsin were not charged with a felony until they had been arrested a fifth time. Finally, first-offense drunken driving is a crime in Wisconsin, just like it already was in all 49 other states. Well, sort of. The first DUI offense will continue to be a traffic violation, not a misdemeanor as it is in many other states, unless a child under 16 is in the car. The new bill will also make a fourth DUI offense a felony if the fourth offense occurs within five years of a previous offense. In addition, repeat offenders and first-timers with high blood alcohol contents must get ignition interlocks. As far as I know Wisconsin law prohibits sobriety checks by the police, which is a common practice in other states.

Want some more disturbing facts? A new survey by the State Department of Public Instruction shows that 41 percent of students say they had at least one alcoholic drink in the prior 30 days. Also, 25 percent said they had consumed four or more drinks in a row within the past month! Right here I could be a smart a** and ask how many of those kids were between 11-14 years of age riding in a limo with a Mom from Kewaskum who was serving them hard lemonade, but I won’t go there. Wait, I think I just did.

Drinking can no longer be a “destination”. “What are you guys doing tonight?” “We’re going drinking.” We need to change the culture. We need to take back our highways and stop putting up with politicians who’ve been busted five times for DWI.

If I don’t want to smell somebody’s second hand smoke at a bar I don’t have to stay, or I can ask to be moved. If I’m driving next to someone who has spent the last 5 hours pounding Vodka, I might not know it until it’s too late.

As I watched the Packers lose in overtime, 51-45, to the Cardinals it hit me. An idea that was so preposterous, so utterly ridiculous, that I initially shrugged it off. Before I present my thesis to you a few things you need to know:
 
*I like Brett Favre.  He was a phenomenal player and was a regular on our show for several years. I still remember back in early 1999 when he announced to the world that Deanna was pregnant with baby #2 (Breleigh). It was a spontaneous, honest, emotional moment.
*I don’t know Ted Thompson or Aaron Rodgers personally.
*I don’t know what happened between Brett, Ted and the Packers.
 
Now, on to my preposterous thought: Ted Thompson is doing an excellent job. I can’t believe I just wrote that, but there it is. I know it’s crazy. Ted haters (T’aters?) have much to complain about. He gets rid of Favre, drafts Justin Harrell and doesn’t pursue big name free agents like Randy Moss.  And what about his coaching staff? The defense didn’t show up on Sunday, the offensive line was way too porous early in the year, and how about all those penalties?
 
So what has he done to make me believe he’s doing a great job? I mean, didn’t he sign guys like Marquand Manuel and draft Abdul Hodge. Sure he did. But for every Hodge there’s a Johnny Jolly (6th round, same draft) and for every Manuel there’s a Ryan Pickett. Hey, it’s an inexact science, at best. The object is to be right at least as often as you’re wrong. Sorry ‘T’aters’, but if you’re looking for someone to build you a team of the future, Ted’s your man.
 
The more I looked into it I realized that Ted is every Packer fans football Dad. He’s making us do things that we hate doing because he knows they’re good for us. And the fact that he does it with that distant, I-don’t-give-a-damn-what-you-think-look…well, that just makes us hate it even more. Favre is leaving? You’re hiring WHO as the head coach?
 
Thompson set the tone when he took over in 2005 by drafting Aaron Rodgers with his first ever Packer draft pick. Rodgers makes the Pro Bowl in only his second year as a starter and becomes the only QB in NFL history to throw for 4000+ yards in his first two seasons as a starter.
 
In the same draft Thompson also picked Pro-Bowl safety Nick Collins and LB Brady Poppinga. In the 2006 draft, Thompson drafts A.J. Hawk with his first round pick. He also gets Greg Jennings, Jason Spitz, Daryn Colledge, Will Blackmon, and current Baltimore Raven Tony Moll. That was also the year he signed Pro-Bowler Charles Woodson and DT Ryan Pickett as free agents.
 
In September of 2007 Thompson trades a 6th round pick for Ryan Grant. Harrell was his pick in the first round of the ’07 draft and he missed badly on that one. But he did get James Jones, Brandon Jackson, DeShawn Wynn, Korey Hall, Allen Barbre, Desmond Bishop and Mason Crosby in that draft.
 
In ’08 Thompson gets Jordy Nelson, TE Jermichael Finley (how good is he!!??), G Josh Sitton and backup QB Matt Flynn. And his ’09 draft may be the best of them all. In addition to B.J. Raji, he used the extra pick from the Favre/Jets trade to trade up and take LB Clay Mathews who made the Pro Bowl in his first season. He also got tackle T.J. Lang and LB Brad Jones who did really well went Aaron Kampman went down.
 
So there you have it. No Brett Favre to cheer for. But, a core of exciting, skilled players who went 11-5 and lost to the defending NFC champs on the road. Heck, if not for Santonio Holmes making the greatest SB catch ever, the Cards are the defending NFL champs. Not bad for the youngest team in the league. And based on his history Thompson will add 5 or 6 more skilled players to this year’s roster, the coaching staff will address what needs addressing and when training camp rolls around the Packers will be one of the few teams projected to win the NFC crown. And T’aters will still grumble. Just like when Dad made us get up early to shovel.
 
And for those of you who still miss #4, well, he’s playing this weekend. Here’s the Morning ‘KLH Favre song to get you fired up …  Download The ‘KLH Favre Song

I’ve lived in Wisconsin since 1984 and every winter it has snowed. Prior to moving here I lived in upstate New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio. It snows in those places too.  It is not some sort of ethereal, otherworldly, unexplainable phenomenon. Can somebody get the word out? I realize that weather can be dangerous and that we need to keep watch on the old folks and the little ones. But why do we have to act like every 5-8 inch snow storm is going to kill us all?

It’s hard to believe that in 1995, only 15 years ago, The Center for Media and Public Affairs listed the top-ten topics on the nightly network news and weather coverage was NOT on the list. By 2006, weather/natural disaster stories had climbed to #2 on that list. It’s near the top every year since. How did we survive? How did we intuitively know that the ‘white death’ falling from the sky needed to be shoveled off the roads and walkways? That we needed to slow down when the roads are wet and slippery?

How did we go from weather as an afterthought to the mass hysteria that is now the norm? To quote Woodward and Bernstein, “Follow the money”.  Do you know how much money trades hands when weather is involved? I’m not just talking about all those people who fill up their SUV’s and stop for milk and bread (why milk and bread? Are they making bread pudding?). Great local TV ratings=higher ad rates and weather fascinates us. The Weather Channel has become part of America’s DNA and has even spawned its own celebrities.

Did you know you can trade weather futures? I will admit that I have done my share of day trading and was surprised when, back in the 90’s, I heard about the first weather derivative deal. Then the Chicago Mercantile Exchange opened a market in weather futures in September of 1999. What I’m saying is that while weathermen and women on TV may get a nasty phone call or e-mail when they mess up, there are some who have lost their life savings when the hot side stayed hot and the cool side stayed cool (homage to the McDLT).

I also know some local business folks who own small businesses and dread the onset of weather hysteria. Employees call in and say they don’t want to drive to work, people cancel appointments, stay away from restaurants, stores (except for milk, bread and maybe eggs) and hunker down, all because it might snow.

Instead of the wind chill index, I’d like to see an accuracy index. You can tell who’s right/wrong at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange just by looking at their bank accounts. But how do we know which forecaster/station is correct most often?  If they can figure out how to come up with a passer rating (158.3 is perfect…really?) someone can figure out a forecaster rating.

Speaking of passer ratings…GO PACK!! The only thing they cover more than the weather on local TV is Green Bay Packer football. And that’s why none of us will ever forget the Ice Bowl. I’ll close with two predictions; the Pack wins big Sunday and it is definitely going to snow again this winter. If I go 0 for 2, well now, that IS a story, isn’t it?