Influent Screen Replacement mmmm yummy

Happy National Crab Stuffed Flounder Day! If you had my calendar you would know that  . . . or maybe not, I might have missed that one!

Wednesdays are the days I try to keep out of trouble after council meetings. I just get so excited I can't control myself.  Probably good I don't work for NSA.


One thing I have to figure out is that on some Tuesdays I have library board before council and after 5 straight hours of meeting I get home about 10:15 and am famished.  So after stuffing my face I go to bed right away  (I have to get up at 5:45) and then have a stomach ache all night!

It was an interesting night to say the least.  At library board we had to deal with a citizen complaint about pornography in the library. Well . . . . . it was a book called "It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health".  Pretty much says it all right there!  Looking on Amazon there is one review that says

 "Yes, sure, kids are curious and explore themselves and each other as kids... and they'll learn to do that on their own like they have been for thousands of years. They don't need pornographic images to guide them along the way. " 

sigh!  It's #12 on the ALA most challenged books but has won 10 prestigious awards. Perhaps parents, if they have issues, should not let their children look at the book in the first place.  At what point should a bastion of science and knowledge start to censor what is allowed into a library.

And while I'm on the subject.  Our amazing library in Columbus has gotten so small there is talk about renting another building. We just can not have events in such a small space.  The first LEGO event drew 25 children and was a huge success but the only room in the library for this event is way too small. In fact many of the events for kids are over running the small space. 

I will admit that I did not understand how important our library is to the community.  When I played a computer simulation called "Civilization" The Library was one of the wonders of the world and it still is.

The Library increases the science output of the city, speeding up a civilization's acquisition of new technology. It is the first science building, so it's a must (all other buildings from the science chain require it), and its effect is greater the greater the population of the cities it's built in.   

And the Columbus Library is getting some pretty good street cred these days and was one of 10 library's in the country to be awarded a special grant.  Check out the Transforming Libraries on the ALA website (photos be yours truly - the ALA pays good :-).
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Better not hear anyone whine about streets - HA! - like that will happen.  In all the books and SIM City simulations on City Management and all the notes on how the world works in reality the one thing that is repeated over and over is that you will never ever win the road battle. Citizens will always always complain about roads no matter what you do.

WITH THAT SAID - the next 6-7 years Columbus will be road construction central. With six DOT projects plus a few million maybe going to road construction (this is where I can get in trouble as I cannot say it WILL go to roads because no votes have been taken yet on what to do with the $$).

A new project slated for 2021 is a complete reconstruction of Farnham (Hwy 89) from Park street all the way to the country.  Add 2015 the 151/73 Hospital intersection, and the area by the travel center including stop lights towards ShopKo and two more set of stop lights to get onto 151.  We will be a 5 stop light town. There will be sidewalks all the way to ShopKo.  Are we becoming pedestrian friendly?         

There are new plans for 4 more bump outs going down the hill on James street to slow traffic a little (psychology). Along with the major projects Folsam, Fuller, W Prairie, Mill and Church Streets are being looked at and ranked on when these MIGHT be on the schedule in the next few years. 

Coordination with Water & Light and sewer are on going. If you tear up a street you might as well fix what is underneath at the same time.  Bang for buck you know.

But the most entertaining part of council was  listening to the Influent Screen Replacement plan for Columbus at the waste water treatment facility.  mmmmmmm boy the visions that was putting in my brain. How they have to manually carry all of the things being caught on the screen and bag them.  mmmmmmm
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Well, there is much more including kid drop off and pick up changes coming. Garbage developments to make life easier. New flags for downtown and bunting for the Pavilion.

But I must share this - the worlds most dangerous toy.

 
 The Gilbert Atomic Energy Lab that contained four different types of uranium and three different radiation sources. And for FUN, a Geiger counter which could tell parents exactly how contaminated their child had become while playing with it.

This was produced in 1950 and was a whopping $500 in today's money.   See that tiny white tag on the bottom right of the top of the box?  It says  $10,000 Reward from the Government of the United States if you find Uranium Ore. SWEET!! 

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BUT I have a new fun game for Christmas this year.  A Fifty Shades of Gray play along kit for children of all ages.  Includes plastic handcuffs, "find me" blindfolds. Adult supervision is recommended.

Wiener down Wiener down!