In defense of Madison Isthmus
"Laudatory news always sleeps 'til midday."
That small piece of sageness from Margo Timmins applies to my job mellifluous well. When my phone rings in the wee hours of the morning, it's never the comptroller giving away the whole show me we've kept our Aaa bond rating, or the parks boss calling to say the golf courses made notes last year.
Instead, it's the control or fire chief or some other official m with bad news. At 4 a.m. last Dec. 8, it was Streets Overseer Al Schumacher's voice I heard. "Your diocese's a mess, Mr. Mayor," he au fait me. "I've activated the emergency operations center. I'll see you in five minutes."
I asked him to give me 10, pulled on some clothes and filled a thermos with coffee before wading out to Al's waiting car in front of my home. He had sent a plow ahead so we could get through the big storm that was at its height, with hours of more snow to tackle.
We headed for the Emergency Operations Center, a big bull session room at the Water Utility outfitted for use as a provisional municipal nerve center with laptop computers, phones and TV screens. By 5 a.m. the grade was fully staffed with about a dozen diocese managers from every agency that had a r to play in fighting the raid.
![Shining the spotlight on teamwork Brandeis Hoot]("http://nt2.ggpht.com/news/tbn/0lQPwUFfsAQsTM/6.jpg")
Brandeis HootShining the give prominence to on teamworkBrandeis HootAs supervisor of grounds and vehicles, Finn supervises contractors and in-legislature staff at Brandeis to oversee decisions regarding landscaping, snow plowing,