Monthly Archives: February 2009

From the Files

Posted on February 26, 2009 by Ranger Bob

Place: Greenport, New York, at the eastern terminus of the Long Island Railroad mainline. Shelter Island visible across the water. Date: August 1974, as best I can determine. Subject: ALCO RS-3 locomotive and coach. Hey, Kat — ring a bell?

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News From Old Cape Cod

Posted on February 25, 2009 by Ranger Bob

Ah, yes… brings back fond memories of drunks I locked up in my Provincetown years… Man burned after setting fire in his car in Hyannis Cape Cod Times, Feb. 25, 2009: HYANNIS – A 24-year-old Marstons Mills man was taken … Continue reading →

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One More Dragon Attack

Posted on February 25, 2009 by Ranger Bob

God, I used to hate it when this happened- you’re sitting at your desk, trying to slog through mountains of paperwork, and a damn dragon busts into the office and goes after you. What- you don’t believe me? Park ranger … Continue reading →

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Superintendents Behaving Badly, Part 51,454

Posted on February 24, 2009 by Ranger Bob

News from Gettysburg: FUNDING MISUSE? Feds investigate Latschar’s fence near his home Gettysburg Times, February 24, 2009 Federal investigators are probing whether Gettysburg Battlefield Supt. John Latschar misused $8,700 in park and non-profit funds to construct a fence near his … Continue reading →

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Mackinac Island, October 2004

Posted on February 23, 2009 by Ranger Bob

Click for closer look

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Out At The Caves

Posted on February 22, 2009 by Ranger Bob

Took some friends out to the sea caves on the mainland shore near Cornucopia yesterday. Hadn’t seen the caves in quite a while, though there was a time in the mid-1990s I used to spend just about every winter Saturday … Continue reading →

Posted in Apostle Islands, Parks, National & Otherwise | Comments Off

Of Rangers And Specialization

Posted on February 20, 2009 by Ranger Bob

Those interested in ranger-related issues will do well to read a paper recently posted on the web site of the Coalition of National Park Service Retirees. Based on a broad sampling of member comments, the document was compiled and distilled … Continue reading →

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The Recession Hits Home

Posted on February 19, 2009 by Ranger Bob

One of my favorite stores is closing this weekend: Forslund’s Building Supplies, in Ashland. That’s a place where I’ve bought fence rails, lumber for innumerable projects, stain for the back deck, the new sink for the downstairs bathroom… the list … Continue reading →

Posted in Cheeseland, Current Affairs | Comments Off

Grade Inflation In A Stetson Hat?

Posted on February 18, 2009 by Ranger Bob

An article in yesterday’s Times reminds me how much I do not miss first-line supervision: Student Expectations Seen as Causing Grade Disputes New York Times, Feb. 17, 2009: Prof. Marshall Grossman has come to expect complaints whenever he returns graded … Continue reading →

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A Challenge to Cheesehead Pride

Posted on February 18, 2009 by Ranger Bob

One of my favorite spots to take out-of-state visitors is Fred Smith’s Concrete Park in Phillips, Wisconsin. This is a wonderfully wacky folk-art folly: several acres filled with statues made from beer bottles and concrete. It doesn’t matter that bar … Continue reading →

Posted in Cheeseland, Weirdness | Comments Off

Is It Time To Give Up On Baseball?

Posted on February 11, 2009 by Ranger Bob

I dunno. I’m feeling pretty discouraged with the latest news. I never thought that A-Rod belonged on the Yanks to start with; the team had Jeter at shortstop already, and moving Rodriguez over to third seemed a waste- just another … Continue reading →

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The Day The Music Revived

Posted on February 9, 2009 by Ranger Bob

Okay, that’s an oversimplification, but there’s no question that the arrival of the Beatles transformed rock immensely, and put some spark back into a scene which had fallen into a Tin Pan Alley rut. And it was forty-five years ago … Continue reading →

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