I’ve had the good fortune to be traveling a lot to Europe lately. Certainly opened my eyes a bit more. I thought everyone was like the French in Europe. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a Francophile. I love the French and France. I just thought every other country would insist on your speaking their language first and then go for English. I still try to pick up key phrases but it’s kind of pointless in the Netherlands for example. So, it’s been very fun. Couple of observations.

• I got really frustrated with Charles de Gaulle airport outside of Paris. It never seemed to be well-marked, kind of had to know your way around somehow, know the language. Then I realized the airport was actually in France and I understood.
• The English really seem to like themselves. Whole TV channels dedicated to combing through the details of being English. I can respect that but damn, I’d like to know the score of a Steelers game.
• Amsterdam. Ah, yes.

Well, I’ve finally taken the step of separating my personal blog from my professional blog with the introduction of Seeing Forests. That’s where I’m going to concentrate on professional blogging in the context of Local 2.0. Not going to be as much all over the map (and hence generally irrelevant) when it comes to professional posts. This blog is now going to be all about being, well, me. I’m really going to focus on just amusing me (and maybe one or two others). I’m also formally claiming this blog in my Technorati Profile.

I created a transit page that has my personal SE LightRail and I70 Traffic Cameras on it. Very simple page, primarily for use on a cell phone.

A little over 3 years ago I posted this little ditty about Colorado Public Radio. It wasn’t as funny as I remembered it to be, but then most of the things I write I think are funny while I’m in the middle of writing them and they’re really not funny then either, so no surprise there. It was, actually, a rant, mean in the typical way I can be mean when I am in-between girlfriends. But, if I’m going to rant then I should derant (retrorant?) when things change. And things have definitely changed at CPR.

First, no more bi-monthly fund drives! More news, less badgering. And I understand funding levels are being maintained. Bravo. Tough, but good work. Next, Colorado Matters. Still doesn’t but at least there’s been much improvement. First, I can understand the topic from the beginning. Always a plus. And putting a little summary segment for the show at the end of the hour in the regular news drive is good. Not really sure I like the focus on news (liked the historical and nature segments more). In fact, I think it should just be the segment and not a show. Could save money.

But, a minor point. Onto the real reason I have to make this post.

Someone got to Theresa Schiavone!

Yes, no more leads into the weather with the cryptilicious: “Get out that sunhat and put those gardening gloves on…” or “You might think about getting out that polkadot slicker and matching umbrella…” or whatever she used to make up to read the damn weather. God, it used to drive me NUTS. I’d think, “But, I don’t want to garden today” or “Does she mean my matching CHECKER slicker and umbrella? I haven’t seen them in a while. I wonder if they’re in the back closet”

And, no more starting off weather reports with some random little town that she’s feeling sorry for! Pueblo. No offense but I don’t where the f Pueblo is. No, DENVER (and the East) is like first! Like, where most of the people live! Yes! Then the Mountains! Where most of the people GO! Then Grand Junction (Western Slope). Where most of the other people live (the Rapture has taken everyone in Colorado Springs). Yes, the weather provided in that order! Day after day! I can process the weather forecast practically subconsciously. I don’t have to stop and take out my little Schiavone codebook and decrypt for a half hour. BRAVO! Of course, it would still be nice to get the damn weather right but I almost don’t care. It’s the weather. It’s like that. But we can control how we talk about the weather and that’s been delightfully normalized. Thank heaven, someone taught her that providing information clearly and concisely in a consistent manner is the soul of reporting - all the more important the more routine the information.

Of course, Howie Movshowitz should be taken out back and beat with a baseball bat. Or maybe the Program Director as he or she still thinks it’s OK to air his segment over the bottom of the hour news summaries. I could tolerate him if he was at the end of the hour but, seriously, why do we need a local film critic going off on Taladegha Nights? It’s a Will Ferrel film for crissake. I don’t need to be told it’s full of a lot of sophmoric humor in a disjointed plot. That’s what I’d PAY for. Go away. NPR provides an LA film critic in the national feed. I’d prefer to ignore his opinion. Should save some money too.

All in all, though, good job, CPR, you weenies.