The Beaver House was originally built as a farm house in the Kickapoo River valley north of La Farge in the early 20th century. As most houses built during that period, its wood frame was built from large, dense and durable wood… virgin timber indigenous to the region. Many homes from that era remain sturdier than similar homes of much more recent vintage.

The Beaver House was so solid that it survived a move of nearly 20 miles, over a ridge and into the next valley along steep and winding roads. In the late seventies, construction started on a dam that would have put the Beaver House at the bottom of a lake, so the house was picked up and deposited on a piece of land in the headwaters of the Pine River valley north of Yuba.

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Something cool happened in the sky tonight.

When Venus is high in the sky after sunset, every month there is a chance that the passing crescent moon will pass close by.

But we are struggling to remember the last time we saw them this close.

Here’s the ‘wide’ look at the sky.

This next shot was taken at 6:30…

At about 8, I went out to get another picture, where you can see how much the Moon moves in an hour and a half…

Sorry if you missed it!

I could not believe this:

McCain and his wife arrived at the La Crosse Center under heavy security, including Secret Service protection and officers from the La Crosse Police Department and La Crosse County Sheriff’s Department.

McCain stepped out of a silver Chevrolet Suburban at about 10 a.m. The motorcade — which followed a short route from the Radisson — included about 20 vehicles. McCain entered the La Crosse Center on the far south end of the building, using a Jay Street entrance.

Here is the route of the 20-vehicle motorcade:

Now it’s hard to see from this picture, but there is a walkway that leads from the Radisson’s second floor to the second floor of the La Crosse Center, and it’s not that hard to find your way to the South Hall from there. I’ve been on that path several times, so it shouldn’t be too hard for a security person to show him the way.

The following map (it’s rotated a bit less than 90 degrees from the photo above) shows how to get from the walkway on the upper right to the stage at the left. The cluttered nature of the map makes the route look more difficult than it actually is.

Total walking distance: two blocks. Do we really want a president who can’t walk two blocks, and would prefer to drive TWENTY SUVs instead?

Presidents and their campaigns love to come to La Crosse. Every cycle, each campaign seems to come here at least once. Last week it was Barack Obama’s turn.

(click here for a youTube slide show)

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Save the Planet, Save Money, and Save Your Sanity by Not Driving

Hybrid vehicles and bio-fuels may help, but they are not the solution. Solving the global warming problem will take dramatic action, and becoming car-free is an action with a lot of impact.

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