Monday, January 12, 2009

Done Got Old!

Friday, January 09, 2009

Half-Staff Flag Bleg

Hamilton County flags are at half-staff today. Does anyone know why?

(Someone, please tell me it's not because of the damned cow.)

UPDATE (1/10/09): I believe the flags were lowered in honor of Captain Warren A. Frank, who was killed in Iraq on November 25 and buried at Arlington National Cemetary yesterday. Thanks to the commenters who pointed this out.

Thursday, January 08, 2009

Cranley's Out, Who's In?

Councilmember John Cranley is resigning his council seat after being elected to the office 4 times.

Speculation turns now to the pick for his replacement. Three names have been floated:Tony Fischer, Greg Harris, and Brian Garry. I'm not familiar with Fischer, so have no impression. Garry in my opinion has never been a qualified candidate for office. Harris is by far the best person to fill the slot and stands a great chance of being elected in the fall. He has already announced his candidacy and fits the city Democratic vision well. Are there other possible selections for the Democrats?

Additional speculation will be about Cranley running for Mayor. In the article it states Cranley is not done with politics. What other office would he run for? Will he wait it out and run for County Commission?

Wednesday, January 07, 2009

New Stage Opening: Dying City

Thursday night is the opening for New Stage Collective's production of Dying City. Be sure to get your tickets now! Also, join the cast, crew, audience, and NSC Board at Arnold's for an opening night party after the show on Thursday.

Here's a great video with a behind the scene look at Julianna Bloodgood, playing Kelly.

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Pepper Seeks Input On Bike-Friendliness

Over at PepTalk, Commissioner David Pepper is seeking your input on how Hamilton County can be a more bicycle-friendly community.

I've always thought a community is bicycle-friendly enough when drivers are ticketed for running bicyclists off the road, but what do I know? Head over to the Commish's blog and take the survey.

Monday, January 05, 2009

Local Politicians Move Into New Offices

Today marked some changes in Hamilton County offices. Wayne Coates was sworn in as County Recorder. Greg Hartmann began his term as County Commissioner. Judge Pat Dewine began his term as Common Pleas Court judge (occupying the seat formerly held by now-retired Judge Davis). (The term of Judge-Elect Jerry Metz, who defeated incumbent Judge Fred Nelson, does not begin until February 10.) And Patricia Clancy began her term as Clerk of Courts.

The most visible change of the switches (for now) is the new banner on the Clerk of Courts website. Here is the old Hartmann banner:And here is the new Clancy banner:This is far from a substantive criticism, and I'm sure Ms. Clancy will do an excellent job as Clerk, but the new, yellow-highlighted banner is a little grating on the eyes. My very non-scientific survey ("Do you like the new banner?") yielded a unanimous preference for Hartmann's red-and-blue color scheme. (If I remember correctly, the yellow-and-blue matches the colors Clancy used during her campaign. And perhaps the red-and-blue preference is just a sense of familiarity with Hartmann's banner.)

Nevertheless, as much as this is a difficult time for HamCo government, it should also be an exciting time, as the County sees some new faces (or at least some old faces in new places), and with it, hopefully, new ideas and energy. So welcome to the new office holders!!!

Saturday, January 03, 2009

Enquirer.com Redo 3.0

Well it appears the Enquirer has changed its page design yet again. The background color has gone back to white, thankfully. It again appears to be loading faster, but that may just be me. I am getting dizzy from all of the changes.