Putting the Green in Greendale

Hello again Greendale,

There's nothing like springtime in our little Village. Birds nesting, daffodils poking through the ground, baby bunnies hopping about, joggers running and little village girls rampaging around the pathways pilfering lawn decor. Wait. What?

Apparently there's a gang of young ladies running roughshod through lawns and gardens making off with lawn decorations. Now, that just doesn't fit with one’s view of serene village life. Not to worry, Greendale's men in blue are on the case. We're talking fingerprints and DNA here. So, a solution to the spree is surely imminent.

You should know that my daughter discovered a clutch of baby foxes along with the parents have taken up residence underneath the shed in her back yard. The foxes are fun to watch, but it is bad news for the chipmunks scampering about the rock garden. Plus, mother fox has definite opinions as to who is welcome in the yard. This does not include my daughter or her dog.

I hear that High School students will be planting a community garden somewhere on school ground. The fruits of their bounty will reportedly be used in school lunches. I think it's a grand idea to teach self-sufficiency to our young people. If the economy stays on the present course this also might be a life saving skill in the future. I can think of other useful skills that might just come in handy. It could be useful for them to learn how to chew on squirrel hide in order to make leather for their shoes. Plus, that would be a way to rid certain bird feeders of hungry seed thieves.

I just learned about a new Greendale event. Green Up Greendale will be held on May 7 at Greendale Middle School. The event will provide tips on ways for villagers to be more eco-friendly and will help us learn about green practices and how you can save a little green too!

Plans are already in the works for Greendale's 75th Anniversary Celebration. One of the projects is a calendar depicting various Village scenes past and present. So, if you have a clever, memorable or nostalgic photograph of any building, street scene or other goings-on in Greendale the committee will be looking for standout photos. Want to be considered? All interested individuals, families and groups should email Dave Bauer by April 15. Dave’s email is dbauer@greendale.org. If you have any questions, just email Dave - or give him a call at (414) 421-5026.

Personally, I can't wait until the anniversary is over and done with. Since the village and I share the same birth year, I expect to be reminded on a daily basis of just how old I really am so let's get this show on the road folks.

It is time to vote again people. We should all remember that in America if you don't bother to vote you are not allowed to wail and moan about the results. That statement comes directly from the Constitution. Look it up.

Gump, the cat, cleverly found a way to open up one of the bottom cabinet doors in the kitchen in order to climb in and explore. Predictably, the door closed behind him. This is when I discovered that among his other shortcomings, Gump is clinically claustrophobic. Using every ounce of his now eight pound bulk, he threw himself at the door resulting in the hinges popping out, leaving my kitchen cupboard door lying askew on the floor. And, there he was in the middle of the floor hissing and growling at me as if I was to blame. I’m pretty sure his sister Nosferatu was laughing at him. It's hard to tell with a cat though.

I thought the idea of posting Greendale homes for sale on the Patch website was great. There are a lot of homes for sale here and this is such a fun place to live with so many wonderful community assets. Maybe we ought to hire an official Village salesperson to talk up all the pluses of living here. It is just a thought. Or perhaps create a brochure about life in the village for each realtor to hand out to prospective buyers.

Anyhow, must run for now. Have to call to have my car serviced. I was so happy that, after all this time, the temperature gauge finally got all the way up into the red zone. Apparently that's not a good thing.

Until next week.