Quadsville

I stepped on the scale this morning and was happy to see the needle only swing three pounds higher than it did a week ago. What about you?

I wish you all the happiest of holidays. Stay warm, stay safe, and keep it fun.

Here's looking at 2010!

I only live half a block from a main artery, so even though my little brick lane doesn't get plowed immediately, I don't have too far to go before the streets are mostly clear.

What's it like in your neighborhood? Do the plows get to you fairly quickly or are you stuck in the snow for awhile?

Are you fretting the storm? Or does it take more than a little ice/rain/snow to scare you?

Keep your fingers crossed for me and let me know what your plans are. I'll cross however many fingers and toes are needed to give us all good luck!

And take a sec to vote in the poll. We're going totally by title, here, not plot. But if you want to read Linda Cook's reviews of any of these flicks, look for them here!

Take a minute to vote, and if you have any suggestions of places for her to profile in 2010, please leave them in the comments below!

This is as far as we got by 5 p.m. Friday. You'll see what's in red on Sunday's Quadsville page in the Times.

First 2 lines are started. Chime in with whatever bits of brilliance strike you. Let's finish this! (And Pen, I hope you don't mind that the plot revolves around your icon being the hacked.) :-p

’Twas the Sunday before Christmas, when all through the site,
Not a blogger was stirring, not even to fight.
The laptops were all snuggled up in their cases,
After being pounded all day and put through their paces.
The bloggers were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of comments danced in their heads.
And mama in her Snuggie and I in my clogs,
Had just logged off and let out the dogs,
When out in Quadsville there arose such a racket,
I sprang to the keyboard to see who had hacked it.
Away through the login my fingers did fly,
But the Captcha code stopped me: L or I?
The lamp on the desk in the dimly-lit den,
Cast a glare on the monitor, but soon I saw Pen.
When, what to my disbelieving eyes should be there,
Not a smiling cat, but a fierce grizzly bear!
With a creepy expression that changed with each click.
I knew without question — this hacker was sick.
More rapid than Google, I flagged the account,
Then, to tip off my friends, sent a bulletin out.
“Now, Chowdogz! Now, maris! Now, Wheezy and reuther!
“On, Alan! On, Svenska! On, Haley and cruiser!
“To the back of the Port! Through the corporate firewall!
“Now hack away! Hack away! Hack away, all!”
As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky.
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of Toys, and St Nicholas too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St Nicholas came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot.
A bundle of Toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler, just opening his pack.
His eyes-how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly!
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself!
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk.
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose!
He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!“

I'm toying with coming up with one for Quadsville for our end-of-the-year page in the Quad-City Times. I also think it could just be a pretty fun(ny) list to come up with just because.

Let's get it started. What should be on the list of Top 10 Reasons to Join Quadsville? Serious and satirical responses are equally solicited.

When Utah adopted this schedule, they saved lots of money in overtime costs - apparently people tended to complete their work during their regular 40 hours when they worked 10-hour days - and in overhead, such as utilities. A study projects Iowa could save $2 million if it moves to this schedule.

What do you think? Should the state alter its work week? Interested in comments below from folks who would visit these offices and from folks who work in them. How would the change affect you?

Jan recently lost a former colleague to CO poisoning. The family did not have a detector installed in their home. Just today, our paper broke the news that a young mother and her 2-year-old son died in an apartment fire in Clinton. No word yet on whether smoke detectors were installed or functioning.

And I guess it's the "functioning" bit that prompted this poll. A detector is only good if it's working. If you haven't tested the detector in the last year, now would be a good time to pop in a new set of batteries and make sure it works. If you don't have CO or smoke detectors, PLEASE GET SOME! Here are guidelines from the National Fire Protection Association on where to install and how to maintain smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors.

Stay safe!

But I've heard plenty from Q-C residents who lament the proposed changes, picturing traffic backed up for blocks during morning and evening rush hours.

What do you think? Should the one-ways go back to two-way streets?

But don't stop at the sweater. If you can't wear a tie that lights up in the dark days of December, when can you wear one?

Which of these have been part of your holiday wardrobe? (And if you check off "mistletoe head gear," we expect a story in the comments below.)

I saw several Black Friday Part II ads today (really?) and I know, despite the economy, most people have not shied away from the shops as our gift-giving holidays approach. Even if you're not giving presents, you might be having people over for a party or to dinner and that adds up, too. I'm embarrassed to tell you what the vat of eggnog I'm making tomorrow costs.

And if you use kids' winter breaks to travel and see family: cha-ching!

I'm having a pretty thrifty Christmas, with lots of homemade presents and ornaments, but there were a couple big-ticket purchases (spread out over the last several months, thank goodness) that put my total above where I would see myself.

So how much are you going to shell out for holiday-related expenses? Do you set a budget and keep it? Do you buy gifts throughout the year or have a Christmas Club-type account to save? Share your best secrets for a thrifty holiday.

The latest comments made by a member are now visible on their profile page. Want to see what your friends are commenting on? Just click over to their profile page and you can then go to any story and discuss with them.

Try it out and tell me what you think!

Reporter Tory Brecht is a perfect example. In an e-mail, he wrote, " I keep going back and forth. 

Thus, every time I have heard the phrase "blizzard warning" today, I've thought about ice cream (thanks!).

My favorite Blizzard flavor is either Oreo or Snickers, depending on if I'm in a chewy mood or not. What's your favorite flavor?

Just kidding...

Whether you are concerned about travel, giddy about a possible snow day or just thinking, "It's winter. It's the Midwest. Deal," one thing is certain: There's gonna be some snow to clear tomorrow.

How do you get rid of the white stuff in your driveway and on your sidewalks and stoops? I'm pretty low-tech, myself. Just a simple shovel. Nothing fancy like this Wovel that was featured in Quadrants on Saturday or a high-powered snowblower. Do you have a certain technique you use?

Be safe during and after the storm, folks. Follow these guidelines for shoveling, drive like you've spent a winter in Iowa and stay warm. And if you are just hanging around the house, let Kay Luna know what you're doing on your snow day. Or snap a photo to enter in the Winter Wonderland photo contest.

And don't forget: You can find (or submit) weather closings and cancellations here: http://www.qctimes.com/app/closings

This weekend, I'm getting my bake on with my friends from college at our annual holiday baking extravaganza. There's actually not a lot of baking that happens. We do a lot of pretzel dipping and fudge making. But the wonderful thing is that if we each come prepared to make a triple batch of two of our favorite recipes, we all go home with a splendid variety of goodies to put on our holiday trays.

I've tried to include most traditional holiday treats in our poll today, but I know I couldn't possibly have included everyone's favorite or specialty on the list, so please add your own! It doesn't have to be a confection associated with a holiday. Goodness knows I don't need a special day to indulge my sweet tooth (though it's a convenient excuse).

I would LOVE it if you included recipes for your favorites in the comments below. When I get back from my bake-a-thon, I'll do my best to remember to bring in recipes for what we're making: Cranberry fruit nut bread, "hamburger" cookies, 5-minute fudge, and "Betcha Can't Eat Just One"s. Pretzels dipped in almond bark and mini-twists with a slightly-melted Rollo pressed in the center are self-explanatory.

My mouth is watering...

It'll be back soon. I think I'm going to finally switch over from my autumn trench coat to my winter overcoat tomorrow. Two snow shovels are standing at the ready on my porch, just waiting for the first big storm to dump on us.

Are you ready for the snow?

(Photo by Kevin Schmidt/Quad-City Times)

Fly on the Wall made excellent time from D.C. and arrived with V just after 7 p.m. We caught Uber Patriot on a lucky day when he was in the Q-C and not trucking across the 50 states, so he came down to visit, too.

We had a hefty crowd of Twitter followers, many of whom are Quadsvillagers, too: Alan, Klowner, Justin Anderson from Crazy Eyes Productions, Jaimy Marie, Robbi, mckra1g, arronlorenz, jack_ola, CozLindsay, Steven Quartell and kurtlokenvitz. Times reporter Kurt Allemeier joined us for a bit, too.

It was a record turn out and record length for a meet-up. I left at 9, when Great River closed down, but it sounds like the majority of folks moved the party elsewhere and didn't get home till after midnight. Where did you all go?

Conversation was all over the place. Justin came from the Bettendorf Chamber of Commerce meeting and reported on the success of the vote to merge with the Iowa QC chamber. Sounds like his business is doing well, with some great contracts for training videos with the Arsenal, but there are some more humorous ones in the works. Keep an eye on his profile. 

Fly showed off his slick new Droid phone (I want, I want!) and told us about his upcoming deployment. We also had a very interesting discussion about Fort Hood, the definition of terrorism, and how international laws need to be updated to reflect the nature of modern warfare. (It may sound heavy, but it was a lively discussion -- trust me.)

I heard about mckraig and Jaimy's Thanksgivings. CozLindsay and I discovered we had some friends in common. And Robbi updated me on what sounded like a terrifically fun outing she'd had with some other Quadsvillagers to Penguin's Comedy Club a few weeks ago.

I can't wait till our meet-up in January. I'm thinking mid-month and maybe same spot. Is Monday night OK for people? Give me some feedback and, please, chime in with your stories from last night's gathering.