NEVER! I Will Become the Martyr of Blogdom First

It has come to my attention that a few News organizations are keeping tabs on this blog. Let me say that if you read it here there is some truthiness in it. I do not make stuff up, maybe augment it a little but if you rip off a few layers of the onion you will find truth.

How do I know they are reading?

When I get an email from the Lieutenant Governors Office asking me to reveal my sources that's how.

NEVER - what did I want to say to him? I wanted to say "TEAR DOWN THAT WALL MR. CHAPPELL!" Well - that is what I wanted to say but that is what I said to Nancy Reagan once and then we all know who got to say it FIRST!! grrrrrrr! Plus . . . . it really made no sense at all in this situation.

I will never reveal my sources - I will go to jail and become the martyr of blogdom. Children will sing songs of me before I tell them a friend of a friend who knew a guys brother that he worked with told me!
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I attended a few meetings last night and this is the blog where people will say "Let's not invite him anymore" and the Town of Columbus will pass a law saying "Rod Melotte will be forced to wear the following t-shirt at all times when he appears in public".

The Auditorium is in a bad way. The roof is NOT just a shingle problem, it's actually the part that holds UP the shingles. Meaning the roof can come down at any moment. This building could be the center piece for Columbus and I urge the city, from a "used to be outsider" point of view, this place HAS to be fixed.

The Auditorium Committee has to wait until the City fixes the roof and they are dragging their feet because, well, some people seem to think a new building would be more cost effective. Long run this building is a gold mine for Columbus! MANY MANY towns would beg to have a structure like this!!

Lots of nice people in the groups that were in attendance and it was a joy to listen to you guys! Well done and if I can help in anyway you know how to contact me in the city jail.

Then I went to a sparsely attended open meeting to discuss how Columbus can reap the rewards of Public Enemies. I say sparsely because there were only 2 or 3 business owners from the downtown in attendance. Were they invited? I would think each one would have gotten a phone call or email telling them to attend. Not sure if that happened. If they WERE invited and did not show up. SHAME ON YOU GUYS!

There were lots of ideas but many that I knew immediately "that will never happen". Not because they were bad ideas but no one wanted to actually put the effort into actually DOING it.

One thing that was proposed by Bob, Photography the way you want it, O'Brion that I think is an outstanding idea is to have Antique Fire Truck Days.

Every town has an old firetruck right? Why not have a day where all the towns bring their antique firetruck to Columbus for a parade and a meet and greet. Kids love firetrucks (I wanted to be a firetruck when I was young), this would bring in families from all over southern Wisconsin.

Bob if you need help, let me know!

Then the next week we could have Antique Car Days, the next week Antique Tractor Days. The infra structure will be there. We just need people to get off their butts and DO IT! If we can have back to back to back Saturdays we can advertise this - it will be BIG!! People will look forward to that stretch of weeks. Full page ad's in newspapers advertising 3 big weekends for Antique STUFF.

Antique is the KEY to Columbus - THAT is already in place! Just expand it.

BUT WAIT - THAT'S NOT ALL!

What Columbus has to do first is do the simple things! If you have an idea that is really involved it'll never get done. So you MUST do the easy things. For instance. Downtown. One simple thing to do with all the empty but beautiful buildings is put up large photos of Public Enemies. People are coming to town to look at the buildings. Photo Bob has 8x10 photos of the movie in one store window and people are ALWAYS looking at them.

I propose, make posters for every vacant window. Give people something to look at. A 30x40 inch photo quality poster is $20. There are a lot of 6meg photos that would work and we could even have smaller photos. Make people NOT look at the empty buildings but at the photos!

Then there was a Master Gardener in the group. Those guys are amazing!!! There were two 5x5 foot gardens boxes across from where I work made by Master Gardeners and they were the most beautiful easy to take care of gardens I had ever seen. Let them put a few of those up in the downtown area.

Start with the easy stuff and once you see the smiles the more complicated stuff will soon not look so hard.

We need people grab onto an idea, grab it by the horns and run with it. Not sit around and discuss it until it's too late. The longer you wait the less chance it will happen.

For instance - The photo book for Public Enemies. I'm not even sure if I can publish it but if I just let it ride waiting for an OK - I am sure it will never get done.

Stop talking and start doing!!
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I received this from Darksmile (I think in the future we will all have names like "Darksmile" and no longer have Rod and Mary style names, plus we will all have HUGE thumbs from the younger people text messaging).

Think about it, your sons son will have a name like "Skates" and will have thumbs the size of a cucumbers!

Click on it and use it as wall paper.

WARNING - ANYTHING with Dillinger on it that is sold YOU WILL be sued! The Dillinger people are being REALLY HARD!!!
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Kitty B'gosh reporting from a frenzied state!

There is a complete whirlwind of activity today as Main Street is nearing the finalization of the transformation. People are heading downtown in droves. It's been decades since we've seen this many people on Main Street.

The billboards have been applied to the wall hiding the sundial (yes, Rod. I have seen photos of that arch you featured today. Maybe our hideous sundial isn't so bad after all.). Final touches are being added to many of the store fronts as well as their window dressings. And the Exclusive Company/Walgreen's is looking FANTASTIC!

I spied some interesting set dressing as I nosed my way in places I don't think I belonged. There were some olde-tymie looking phone booths stashed inside of the Limelight Studios. I would imagine those will be coming out on to the street for filming. Also found a old-style STOP sign. And I found where they have the trolley car parked that came into town yesterday.

Main Street will close at 3 am April 10th. Placement of the cobblestone street is supposed to take place on the 10th or 11th. Reports on whether or not foot traffic will be allowed vary depending upon who you talked to. Some say they will allow foot traffic if they are not filming; others say no type of traffic at all, no matter what.

Finally, on to the Tids and Bits Corner. AngelinaSmurfette says that her other half is to report for his haircut and fitting on the 10th. He will be filming on the 16th, 17th and 18th. My guess is we may be seeing a bank robbery take place on one or more of those days.

Kitty B'gosh is going for a cat nap!
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Check out this video - it was filmed in Oshkosh in 1912 as the "first" home movie.


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I have a bunch more but it's getting long!

You might notice a small change in the filming schedule. Also - JD WILL sing in the movie!! Only one song and maybe not the entire song.

You guys with a script might want to confirm that.

Talk at ya later

Grinder . . . oops Rod