Well, it's been a week of surprises. I've been trying to shape up some of the behavior of the web site in preparation for doing a complete site upgrade and tuning the server performance. In the process, I managed to forget that I'd left the server in an odd mode while I was debugging something, and the upshot is that this morning it completely ran itself out of memory. The technical term in the system administration for this is "Httpd faw down go boom".

WisCommunity is published by Steve Hanson, who is the primary employee at the moment. We are working on expanding our staff and may be taking on an intern and perhaps a part-time employee soon. 

Learn more about Steve on his profile page.

Yes, it's late for Festivus - but the airing of the grievances happens all year long. For a change I'm going to write about them. Don't worry, some time between now and New Years I'll talk about the things in 2020 that I am happy about.

Many of our readers have been following the live streams of the Menomonie School Board meetings. We've been providing this live stream because we think that schools are important to the public, and because the school board is one of the very few government entities that has been meeting in person rather than virtually since the pandemic started.

It is going to be a Halloween like we've never seen before. Only small stabs at Trick or Treat. No big organized parties. No costume parades. Please try to stay home and be safe tonight even though -yes, it's sad. I am going to watch the Rocky Horror Picture Show Live Stream tonight - last year I went out with friends to have a few drinks and some food, and to dress up a little. There's no denying, life is different and at the moment I don't see it getting better any time real soon.

We're interested in you, our readers. And we want to know more about what your interests are, and how we can serve the community better. Besides, I'm taking a class and am doing a research project as part of that. I'm asking that you consider taking a little time to help WisCommunity grow and improve. 

In some ways after yesterday's court order this poll is moot. But it is still interesting to see what our readers think. The small unscientific poll results show a very mixed set of ideas about re-opening the state:

Today we ask for your help. The COVID-19 pandemic has been stressful for news organizations around the globe both in having an entirely new beat to cover, but more because it has so impacted our revenue.

Many businesses and organizations in the Chippewa Valley are suffering during the pandemic. Restaurants are short of customers and trying to make do with pickup service and selling gift cards for when life gets back to normal. Farmers are having a tough time of it and are working more on direct sales to consumers. Non-profits are struggling and looking for donors.