Magnetic North

It was in late May or early June 2003 and we were camping at South Dakota's Custer State Park. This immense park is known for some unique natural features. We had a camp site at Sylvan Lake Campground. It was a sunny late morning and I decided to hike behind our campsite and look for some kindling. I recall the area being covered with tall trees, and little underbrush. It was actually rather pleasant and so I kept walking. Without a map or compass, I took note of where the sun was in the sky and knew which way was west, so the sun would gradually head that direction. This was one time I wished I had a compass to help guide me, with the compass taking advantage of the magnetic located deep in the earth's outer core.

My I-Phone Compass App

What occurred, is that the clouds moved in quickly and with the landscape looking the same in all directions, I became slightly disoriented. I had to try and figure out which way our campsite was. As it happened, I somehow reoriented myself and found myself in the campground, although at a different loop. Being a trained geographer, I know that I never get lost, I am just searching new territory, as I did that one fine late spring day in 2003. As far as my wife knows, I was just on a walk in the woods. 

But, a compass has to be recalibrated based on where the magnetic north is, although in many situations, one may not need that degree of accuracy, although it appears you could be off, depending on relation to the magnetic north by as much as 20 or more degrees. The difference between true and magnetic north is called magnetic declination (or variation).  But, magnetic north moves, and its rate seems to have increased over the past few decades, moving from Canada to Siberia. Magnetic north is currently moving about 27 mph, and in 30 or 40 years will be situated in Siberia, as Siberia is 750 to 1000 miles from the magnetic pole depending on which point is chosen. Its highest known speed was 31 map but has now slowed to about 22 mph. 

Accurate records of the magnetic pole movement have been kept since the 1830's, but there is sufficient data in the historical record to have fairly accurate assessments of some earlier positions. The change, and the rate of change can be noticed in the below map. A CNN article from January quotes a member of the British Geological Survey as saying "The current behavior of magnetic north is something we have never observed before." That change in speed is the biggest change they have seen.

Movement of Magnetic North, 1600-2025, Source: CNN
Asterisk is north pole

The movement of magnetic north is due to a variety of factors, changes in the magnetic field of the earth, 1800 miles below surface, and with it growing stronger in Siberia and weakening in Canada. Mostly it is due to the changing nature of the fluid dynamics of the molten iron and nickel that starts at that 1800 miles below the earth's surface. The shift may not have seemed major to me and my compass, but it plays a large role in a variety of fields like aviation, shipping and military equipment all depend on magnetic north for guidance. The US and Great Britain collaboratively update the declination every five years, which caused more problems when the rate of change was greater. They have a website, the World Magnetic Model, that will provide the declination for use by those that require it.

Earth's Core
Source: Google images

It has occurred to me that perhaps President Trump may still believe magnetic north is by Canada and that is why he desires it to be a 51st state. Or, if he does know that it is magnetic north moving, perhaps he is not really after Greenland, but is using it as a ruse to go after Siberia? So, the big picture question is can the movement of magnetic north explain his  geopolitical views? What magnetic north may realize, now that its rate of movement toward Siberia has slowed is that Siberia may not be an attractive location, either climatically or politically. 

I-Phone Compass App also
provides latitude and longitude

Today, hikers may depend on GPS on their phones (provided sufficient battery), or event a watch, two of many options over an old fashioned compass.  I grew up learning and using a compass in Boy Scouts. I still have that compass, that I received as either a birthday or Christmas gift, and take it camping. It was, in recent times, more used to position the solar panel on our camper than for hiking as I tend to now stick to trails. Yet, since most places we camp are rather heavily wooded, that is kind of a fool's errand, but one never knows what ray of sun may peak through with the sun high overhead. However, now I have an i-phone, which if charged can make that that compass is obsolete as I have the compass app on the I-phone. The I-phone app even asks if I wish to use true north, as I suppose as opposed to magnetic north.

Servant

For over five hours as over a thousand people filed past the casket of an elderly lady at Loyola Chapel in Denver. It was June 9, 1918. They came to pay their respects to Julia Greeley, who was a servant. Born into slavery in Hannibal, Missouri, she was a servant, or domestic worker, first in Missouri and later in the Denver area where she moved in or about 1878. It was through her domestic role in the household of Governor William and Julia Gilpin that she first learned about the Catholic faith from Mrs. Gilpin. Julia Greeley was baptized in the Catholic faith in 1880. She would go through trying times in her life, to which she responded with charity. Taking her servant duties to a whole other level in helping the poor in Denver, she has become recognized in Denver as the "Angel of Charity" and she is also known by the Catholic Church as a Servant of God. This is a summary of her remarkable story of this little known former slave.

Only known photo of Julia Greeley
pictured with Marjorie Urquhart
source: Wikipedia

It is unknown what year Julia was born, but most sources place it somewhere between 1833 and 1848. There are few records of births of those born into slavery such as Julia Greeley was near Hannibal, Missouri. But, for her remarkable efforts she could well have been lost to history. She lost sight in one of her eyes, when, as a young girl of about three or four she got between a slave master and her mother when her mother. Her mother was about the be struck by the whip of the slave master, but the whip instead struck Julia's eye. For the remainder of her life tear fluid would constantly drip from damaged right eye. She was freed by the Missouri Emancipation Proclamation (Missouri was not part of the Confederacy and therefore not subject to President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation),  in 1865, and was employed by the Robinson family until her move to Denver in 1878. No one seems to know what caused William Gilpin to turn against Julia Greeley and later his wife, but a contentious filing for divorce from is wife brought Julia Greeley into the case as he referred to his wife as bringing in a "lewd and unprincipled woman" (ie Julia Greeley) into the house. Due to this she had trouble finding employment until she was exonerated at the divorce trial.

Due to the divorce trial of her friend, Mrs. Gilpin Julia became focused on Jesus, and took special devotion to Jesus of the Sacred Heart. Her death on June 7, 1918 was on the Feast day of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. She attended mass daily, at Sacred Heart Church in Denver. She was present in the 1879 founding of the church. It was likely at Sacred Heart Church, where she was baptized, that she first came into contact with the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The coincidence here, is that the book club I am completed reading on Tuesday, Feb 18, 2025, Dilexit Nos, Pope Francis' encyclical (He loved us) on the human and divine love of the heart of Jesus Christ. The encyclical's conclusion notes the following (paragraph 217): "The present document can help us see that the teaching of the social Encyclicals Laudato Si’ and Fratelli Tutti is not unrelated to our encounter with the love of Jesus Christ. For it is by drinking of that same love that we become capable of forging bonds of fraternity, of recognizing the dignity of each human being, and of working together to care for our common home." (Bold by blog author) Julia Greeley understood this, and I have to think that being impoverished herself, she would well understand what Francis says in paragraph 218:  

In a world where everything is bought and sold, people’s sense of their worth appears increasingly to depend on what they can accumulate with the power of money. We are constantly being pushed to keep buying, consuming and distracting ourselves, held captive to a demeaning system that prevents us from looking beyond our immediate and petty needs. The love of Christ has no place in this perverse mechanism, yet only that love can set us free from a mad pursuit that no longer has room for a gratuitous love. Christ’s love can give a heart to our world and revive love wherever we think that the ability to love has been definitively lost.

It was her love of Christ that drove Julia to clean Sacred Heart church to earn money to pay the rent at the boarding house at which she lived. It is said she earned about $10 or $12 a month (about $380 a month in today's valuation). In addition to her work at the church she did other odd jobs. With this little money she found enough to live and to help others. She often found herself the victim of charity fraud schemes, but she felt it better to give than to be too careful and deny assistance to a person in need. She well took to heart and by deed the Gospel passage in Matthew: “Just as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” (Mt 25:40).

Present day photo of what was boarding house
where Julia Greeley lived. Walnut St. Denver, CO
She lived in the boarding house from 1903-1916
Google maps

The Colorado Encyclopedia indicates that Julia loved and took care of varied children. In one exchange she predicted that a woman, said to not be able to bear another child, had a child the following year.  Julia is in the top image of this blog post with that child. The Colorado Encyclopedia, had this to say: 

One day in 1914, Mrs. Agnes Urquhart asked Julia to mop her floor. Noticing religious pictures on the walls, Greeley asked if the Urquharts were Catholic. When Mrs. Urquhart said yes, Julia asked where the children were. There had only been one child, Mrs. Urquhart told her, and he had died from an inability to digest food. Mrs. Urquhart was unable to have any more children. Julia told Mrs. Urquhart that there would be “a little white angel running around the house. I will pray and you will see.”

Julia experienced many trials in her life, from the psychological torture of Gov Gilpen, to being half blind, crippled due to severe arthritis in most of her limbs and extremities, and being a black woman she still found herself ministering to the poor in Denver, and at 98% white at the time, many of the poor she assisted were white. Because poor whites could lose any semblance of respectability if found to be helped by an African-American, she did so at night. She would venture out with food, and is known to have carried a mattress on her back for a family in need. She also delivered coal and other fuel. Even though she lacked much money herself, she gave to the poor, and even took up collections to benefit them. 

Perhaps the most sorrowful thing I have read about Julia Greeley is that she thought when she got to heaven she would be white. This clearly shows the discrimination she must have gone though as a black woman in the US and a former slave. This poor, illiterate, disabled woman lived a life of virtue. As per the Julia Greeley Home post "the designation 'Servant of God' means that the Catholic authorities in Rome have determined that a preliminary investigation into her life has revealed her to have lived a 'heroic' life until her death in Denver on June 7, 1918. It means the Church has determined that Julia followed the will of God to an amazing degree, even beyond what a 'good' and virtuous person would be expected to do." An issue with her being illiterate there is a lack of records detailing her life or writings. Lack of historical records added to the complexity of her situation.

Every first Friday of the month she made a 22 mile trip on foot to distribute Sacred Heart literature to the varied firehouses in Denver. Every firefighter in the city knew who Julia was. They gave her enough votes (ten cents a vote) to win a beauty contest and earn the $350 which she used to provide for the poor. She purchased the leaflet copies herself, but she could not read, write or count. 

For thirty years or more she undertook many of the corporal works of mercy, fed the hungry, provided clothes and fuel to those in need, visited the ill, and provided spiritual encouragement. She walked around with her little red wagon picking up discarded items such doll to repair to give to a poor child, to find scraps of wood for fuel. Fr Burkey is quoted in an article saying: “Her charity was so great that only God knows its extent. She was constantly visiting the poor and giving them assistance from her own slender means. When she found their needs so great that she could not help them with her own goods, she begged for them. Her charity was as delicate as it was great."

While I recalled hearing about Julia Greeley before, a recent article I read last Sunday made a comparison of this Catholic convert to more famous Catholic convert--Vice President JD Vance and his recent comments on immigration. Pope Francis took issue with Vance's take on the order of love, and the administration's general immigration actions. Julia Greeley showed an expansive love to those outside her inner circle of friends. Even though she herself was in poverty, and at times needed assistance, she helped the impoverished.

Julia Greeley shows one need not be a person of means to help others. In Julia's case ,perhaps in recognizing her own poverty, she felt she could best help others. Pope Francis' encyclical Dilext Nos quotes a number of Catholic saints and their devotion to the Sacred Heart. We can pray that perhaps one day Julia Greeley will be added to the saints who had a devotion to the Sacred Heart. Julia Greeley born as a slave in the lowest station of life, worked as a servant, and now has the title Servant of God. Hopefully, she will have intervened to have the necessary miracles to reach sainthood. Julia Greeley was an ordinary person who did ordinary acts of kindness and charity, but with great love and devotion, that is what set her apart, that is how she became a true and faithful servant.

KC Thiefs

This past weekend Super Bowl LIX (59) was played in New Orleans, between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. Controversy ensued during the KC playoff games when it seemed calls by the referees went in their favor. Is the NFL rigged? The KC Thiefs may not have won this past Sunday, but that does not mean games are not rigged. Let me explore the situation a bit.

My theory of rigged games goes back to the Super Bowl on Jan 25, 1998 (1997 season) between the Green Bay Packers and the Denver Broncos. Denver won the game 31 to 24, or by a touchdown and extra point. The Packers had defeated the New England Patriots in the game in 1997. There are two points about this game being rigged in favor of Denver. The NFL wanted to give John Elway a Super Bowl title, which he also earned in 1999. But, the more important reason is money which controls the NFL. The NFC had won 13 straight Super Bowls and 15 of the last 16. The television contracts, which are the NFL's big money makers, were out for bid at the time of the Super Bowl, with Pat Bowlen, the owner of the Broncos being in charge for the ownership group. My thinking is that they had to have the AFC win a Super Bowl to show that they are competitive with the NFC and able to compete, and hence increase the value of the AFC games for the TV contracts. A 14th straight win could dampen the television payout for the contracts which were opened a week or so after the Super Bowl. The money theory is also important, for KC, with the NFL and networks enamored, since last year, by the Taylor Swift, and Travis Kelce relationship. Many persons have pointed to the favorable calls KC got during their two playoff games. 

Zach Baun, from WI with his interception of Mahomes

After the KC--Houston game, two bad hits on the Thief's star QB stood out at critical times during the game. One Mahomes was in the pocket and a defensive player was called for a hit to the face, when he was hit in the chest. It would not be so bad, but that another game that weekend, Lion QB was hit in the face by a Washington player and no call was made. The second play Mahomes was doing his dancing and took off running, he faked a slide and stepped into the field to try for some more yards, and slid down as two Houston players converged. They hit each other more than hitting Mahomes, but they were called for unnecessary roughness. One ref explained that it was called because Mahomes' head moved "a little bit." Apparently his head does not move when being hit or tackled except a direct hit to the head, which makes me wonder more about the stupidity of the ref than any magic Mahomes power neck. Mahomes has become the new Tom Brady, where he gets favored status. 

There was also controversy over a Buffalo first down or not near the end of the AFC Championship game. The NFL responded that they may use technology to let them know if the placed ball is a first down. That does nothing to make sure the referees got the correct ball placement. In got so bad, the NFL had to have Roger Goodell and the referee association make statements claiming the games were not rigged. Just having to make such statements, not only makes one wonder that something is up, but adds fuel to the controversy. If you are in the right, why do you need to defend yourself?  When I worked I said that perception is 99% of reality. The NFL saw the narrative of inconsistent officiating getting away from them.  

So, you ask, what happened this past weekend? Two simple explanations. First, the NFL had to show at least some semblance of impartiality. The Taylor Swift draw may not what it once was; a clueless Tay apparently got booed by the pro-Philly crowd when she was shown on the jumbotron, asking seatmates, "What is that all about?"

Mahomes was intercepted twice, once by  Zach Braun who is a WI native, and went to the UW.  The other returned for six by an Iowa native who played at Iowa. He also had a fumble. Philly plays a four man front, and never once blitzed to add a fifth or sixth rusher. Although a couple times they dropped a lineman to coverage and rushed a linebacker. They dominated the KC offense and its line through almost 3 quarters such that even the refs and Roger realized they could not give the Thiefs a win. The refs best work their duty to Roger's almighty dollar in close games. An ESPN article already ranks the teams for next year and their two top teams are KC, and Buffalo. The Eagles are projected as fourth. This means that the Thiefs will still be favored by good calls next year. Although, they should be fired up, unlike the Packers after their Super Bowl loss to Denver when the team just quite.

Mahomes was sacked six times
Philly never brought more than four rushers

KC fans point to a hit to the face that occurred to Mahomes after he fumbled, but that is one of only a few to not go their way. There was a penalty against Philly on the play, but I never figured out who it was on, and since it was after the fumble may have been recovered it may well have been that call. The thing is, in KC's three prior Super Bowl wins (2020, 2023, 2024) their offense was not once called for holding, not once. In the two losses (2021 and 2025) they had at least one holding call. Just going a game without a holding call is suspicious, particularly against a front as strong as San Francisco's was last year, when KC won in overtime 25-22.  

Many talking heads are saying it was the worst game of Mahomes' career, almost as if the defense had nothing to do with it. I think Vic Fangio saw what Tampa did not Mahomes, and they took that doing it better, strong rush of four, leaving little room for him to maneuver and most importantly often turning the play inside, not allowing him outside the pocket. Mahomes never got in a groove, due to the defense, and partway through the 2nd quarter, because of the score, the Thieves became a one dimensional offense. It was the first time Fangio defense as an assistant or head coach had beaten Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes. 

Mahomes had three turnovers

ESPN asked 67 experts in football who would win the Super Bowl and 41 picked KC to 26 for Philly. This is a clear example of the anchoring tendency. You see it in college football as how often Alabama or other SEC teams are ranked. The SEC was upset that Bama did not make the college playoffs, but the Georgia loss to Notre Dame shows why it was a wise choice to keep them out. People just cannot get in their heads that some one may beat Reid and Mahomes. 

The NFL is not so much about competition as it is now about entertainment. The players are not unlike Roman Gladiators in the Colosseum with the US President watching in place of a Roman emperor. Roger and the owners understand this, and they have been able to wade through controversies of concussions to expand the sport. The season has expanded from 16 to 17 games, and an 18th is in the works. It is expanding its international footprint, with the LA Rams set to play a "home" game in Australia in 2026, half way around the world. All in the pursuit of money. Philly may have known they had to dominate the first part of the game in such a manner as to keep the refs and Roger out of the game. In that they were successful in keeping the Thiefs from a three-peat. Roger and the refs may have it back to KC next year, however. 

Images from varied Facebook posts

95 Years

In May 1866, a Madison newspaper had an article on the demolition of an ornate red brick outhouse built in 1844 on the grounds of the state capitol. The outhouse was being replaced by an in-building water closet, basically similar to today's toilet. However, the water tank had to be filled by hand since there was no pressurized water system in Madison at the time. (A pressurized water system would arrive in Madison in the 1880's during the Sanitary Revolution.) The main problem with the water closet was that for many years there were both private and municipal sanitary pipes that emptied into the Madison lakes. The lakes at the time, were also the source of Madison's drinking water. Population, technology, environmental issues, all worked to evolve wastewater from chamber pots and outhouses, to sewer lines and treatment plants. The Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) was created 95 years ago, on February 8, 1930 by action of then District Court Judge George Kroncke. 

The district took over sewage treatment in Madison, and its immediate vicinity. The Nine Springs Treatment Plant was constructed in 1928 by the City of Madison. The plant is on the southside of Madison. Currently, Nine Springs has two outfalls both of which bypass the Madison lakes. The main outfall is to Badfish Creek near the V of Oregon (flows to the Rock River), and a second, put in place in the 1990's, of less than 4 mgd, goes to Badger Mill Creek (flows to the Sugar River) near the C of Verona. The district has received WIDNR approval to close the Badger Mill Creek discharge. The district was formed in 1930, but it took three years for the turnover of the Nine Springs Plant to MMSD. At the time of district formation, Dr Harper of the State Board of Health noted that up to 85% of small treatment plants are not properly operated, and given the number of small plants in existence, there was a recognition that a more effective option was required.

Current MMSD boundary with pump stations
and major force mains and interceptors

Clean water is a requirement for the survival of the earth and its varied species. Only .5% of the water in the world is available fresh water. Water sources and quality vary by community, by nation and by continent. In the Madison region today water is drawn from municipal wells in lower aquifers often over 1,000 feet deep. Much of the municipally used water in the Madison region is treated at the Nine Springs Plant operated by MMSD.  MMSD serves 24 customer communities consisting of over 429,000 persons. The district, serving a land area of 188 square miles, reaches from Morrisonville (unincorporated) and the Village of Dane in the north to lands around Lake Kegonsa in the south. West to east it goes from Verona to Cottage Grove. 18 large regional pump stations are used to help flow get to the Nine Springs treatment plant, with over 145 miles of interceptor pipes. Some pipes used by the district are older than the district, showing that the clay pipes installed 100 years ago are better than some concrete pipes installed in the 1970's. Today, the Nine Springs plant treats on average about 37 million gallons a day, which is actually down from about 40 mgd received in the early 1990's even though the population has increased. This shows that water saving devices have worked, along with tightening up the sanitary sewer lines to avoid inflow and infiltration (known as I/I). A few years ago the district brought on an engineer whose sole purpose is to work on I/I as more can yet be done. The geography of the region, many low lands, makes constructing sewers and keeping them tight from inflow and infiltration difficult. 

During and after large storm events flow to the plant dramatically increases. Basement flooding goes to the sanitary system, inflow from manholes, greater infiltration into the sanitary lines and laterals, and even owners who have their sump pumps drain to the sanitary system all contribute. I recall, when I was still working, that the Fitchburg flow to Nine Springs saw a dramatic increase. The source was found to be the basement of an apartment building under construction that hit bedrock and the aquifer, and piped the water to their sanitary line. The peak flow of the plant was over 100 mgd, and that occurred several years ago. Flow not able to processed, due to plant limitations, is stored in the former sludge lagoons and then treated as capacity becomes available. Being open to the elements, of course this also includes a great deal of rain water deposited into the lagoons. 

Commission Meeting, c 2016

Much has changed in the world of wastewater treatment over the past 95 years. Today, the plant is a complex operation that involves a myriad of electrical systems, pipes, valves, tanks, filtration and resource recovery (struvite being one example) and utilizes many of the most recent advances in waste water technology.  Yet, it depends on some tried and true methods of operation, such as control of varied bacteria and microorganisms in the treatment plant process. In a sense its combination of tried and true methods (bacteria and microorganisms), with newer technologies is meant to provide the best efficiency and more importantly cleaner water to the receiving streams. Wastewater is 99% water, but yet the treatment of that other 1% is critical to human health. On the Nine Springs plant grounds there are underground pipes that no one really seems to know where they are from or where they go, perhaps until one springs a leak.

In 1986 the district moved to Ultraviolet light disinfection, and at that time it was the largest UV disinfection system in the world. By MMSD sponsored research at UW Madison, the district pioneered the use of UV disinfection. A new UV system was installed in 2021 which uses fewer and mor efficient light bulbs (LED). The greater efficiency allows the system to be more easily maintained. This system, and the pioneering work of MMSD, are a few of the reasons why the WIDNR instituted a three month extension to the district's disinfection a few years ago, with it now running from March 1 to Nov 30, instead of April 15 to October 15. This, however, makes for a much narrower window for cleaning and maintenance. It is the first treatment plant in the state to have such a long disinfection season. The disinfection mainly handles e-coli removal.

MMSD 1935 Construction activity

The district has pioneered other methods, such as using Adaptive Management to help control phosphorus flow from the plant. Instead of doing an over $100 million dollar plant expansion to handle removal of phosphorus the district teams with local municipalities, farmers, and non-profits to remove the pollutant closer to the source, such as farms. It is a complex undertaking, but saves money and builds partnerships. The sewer district continues to lead this collaborative effort among varied governmental units, non-profits, and varied other organizations.

The district also is able to harvest phosphorus out of wastewater that forms with a complex item called struvite that is hard and difficult to remove when allowed to accumulate in pipes or at pump station impellers. The phosphorus is bagged and sold to a company that uses it in a fertilizer product. Interestingly, our neighboring states lack phosphorus requirements for wastewater, making Wisconsin and outlier, but showing the leadership the state often has had on environmental issues. 

Everyone can do their part to not only conserve water, but reduce or eliminate your use of materials containing PFAS compounds. PFAS do not come about in the treatment plant process, but are in everyday objects, like dental floss, non-stick cookware, Gore-Tex, stain resistant carpets, and many other common day materials, (not to mention fire fighting foam which has likely contaminated some wells and potable water supplies) which means they make their way into the sanitary sewer system. This poses a very large issue for biosolid handling. Further, limit salt use on walks and drives in the winter, and make sure your water softener is properly tuned and working. There is no such thing as a flushable wipe, except toilet paper, regardless of the marketing. Further make sure you properly dispose of your old or unused medications, and pharmaceuticals, including over the counter medications, at a med drop. Use caution to limit your use of personal care products which may not have their elements removed in the treatment plant process either. 

MMSD Construction activity, undated

The work of the district is undertaken by 120 employees who work in maintenance, engineering, planning, resource recovery, and business aspects. The district is governed, since 2015, by a nine member commission made up of five appointees of the City of Madison, three by the villages and cities (other than Madison) served by MMSD, and one by the towns which have territory served by MMSD. Prior to October 2015, the Commission was served by a five member commission appointed by the County Executive. 

1935 Construction at MMSD

I am fortunate, and privileged, to continue to serve on the Commission since being first appointed by then County Executive Phelps in 1992. I was then reappointed by two other county executives, Kathleen Falk and Joe Parisi, and now, since 2015, to one two year and then three consecutive three year terms by the "small" cities and villages served by MMSD. I have served as Commission president since the restructuring in 2015, being reelected every year to the position by the commission. I have served on the commission for over 32 years, or 1/3 of its existence. I have helped hire three executive directors, the last being appointed in December 2024. I have been fortunate to work on the commission with intelligent, dedicated commission members who have a wide breadth of experience. Dedication of commission and staff have allowed my tenure to to seem shorter than it has. 

When I started as a commissioner the prevailing attitude was for the district to avoid news and engagement. Today, a more engaged and proactive approach is necessary to meet the water quality demands of the day. Engagement and proactivity  brought about Yahara WINS, as one example. The staff has expanded, with staff for communications to get out district messaging, undertake asset management, additional engineering and financial systems. We lacked human resources staff, but that now exists. When hiring the Executive Director who came on board in 2011 we had to rely on staff from Dane County to assist with the hiring process. The maintenance workers used to take breaks and lunch in shop one, eating next to the sink they washed in, and next to the dirty equipment and clothes worn for the work. They may have had extraordinary immune systems. They now have a modern state of the art maintenance facility with dedicated lunch room and showers. 

Much has changed in the Madison region since 1866 (159 years ago) when that ornate red brick privy was torn down on the capitol grounds in favor of indoor water closets. Even more, however, has changed over the past 95 years with the treatment plant at Nine Springs, its eleven major additions and other work. In addition, the region and population served are much larger meaning more interceptors. The district may have reached the soft spot with what water saving devices are able to accomplish. Regulations and requirements have changed, new challenges come about, and yet the district has and continues to strive to enhance the public health and safety through efficient and responsible waster water management. 

Images from: www.madsewer.org

Rescue

Last week Wednesday I "rescued" my wife, not once but twice. Not from drowning, or from a potential injury, but from doing a chore that did not need to be accomplished, and a misplaced item. She used the term rescue, not me. 

Wednesday is one of two laundry days during the week, generally towel day, and some clothes. The other laundry day, Sunday, is sheets (bedding) and also some clothes. Luckily, we get out of bed at the same time, so I could have an early morning rescue for doing a chore that did not need to be accomplished. On that morning, after getting up, she started to strip her side of the bed. I was on my side starting to make the bed. Obviously, there was a disconnect somewhere. When I noticed her starting to pull the pillow case, I commented that it is not the day to launder the sheets. If I had not said something she would have moved onto the sheet and would have wondered why I was not following her lead, but instead making my side. For some reason being laundry day made her think of washing the sheets. I think laundry rates right up there with her favorite chores. After all, while she lets me move the laundry from washer to dryer (or hang up on the line in good weather), haul and fold, she does not allow me to put clothes into the washer. She reserves that sub-chore for herself. Hence, I can only conclude that she really likes doing this household chore. She likes to be kept busy, so this helps. 

The second rescue involved much more time. She had a box of freezer wrap that she had used and needed it again, but could not find it. We searched the house, mainly the basement and first floor, but could not locate the box. The clue came when she mentioned something else she had used at the same time and found it at her craft table. Well, that got be to look more intently at her craft table area. I found the freezer wrap between her table and a small book shelf in an area not much wider than the box itself. Somehow it must have fallen off the table, into this craft gutter. This, along with other incidents makes me wonder if a ghost is in the house. Alexa is set to to play a news when we say "Alexa, play news briefing." Instead this week we have gotten a podcast. We are not sure how to rectify that situation.

Craft gutter

Usually she rescues me from misplaced items. Two come to mind this year. First, was my cell phone, which we searched the whole house a few times to locate. We knew it was in the house because it showed up on the "Find My" app at our address. I called the cell number, but the problem was the silencer was turned on to keep notifications off. It was eventually found in the pocket of my bathrobe. I had gone downstairs, to get it since it had to finish charging before going to bed that night. I put it in the robe pocket going back upstairs, but when I got upstairs I forgot to take it out. 

The second item was my tape measure. It was found in a basement storage cabinet, which we had been rearranging and measuring boxes to see if they would fit in the intended space without pulling out and trying them. I have become accustomed to putting my tape measure in the same place so it does not get misplaced, but moving boxes into the new cabinet it must have slipped my mind to make sure it got back to its place on my workbench. I could measure the width of her craft gutter, but I would probably misplace my tape measure. That craft gutter could be our own version of the Bermuda Triangle.

To be fair, I guess it is usually I that has to be rescued.  I was happy to assist in locating the freezer paper, I guess it may start to even the score from all the times she has assisted me. Some every day items are easy to misplace, when you use them and forget to put them back where they belong, it is hard to remember where you were using it. I always wonder what I would do if questioned like on the crime shows, what were you doing is tough enough, but to know time frame is even more difficult. "Where were you on September 15, 2018 at 10:00 am?" I don't know what I was doing on Sept 15 last year.  Who could remember that? 

The thing is, the object is found in the last place one looks. Isn't that funny how that works. Anyway, joke aside, it seems that sometimes a ghost is present to knock, for example, the box of freezer paper off the table. I am not sure how the wrap would have fallen off unless my wife left it hanging over the edge. Or, maybe when she was sewing she did some big sweep of a quilt or her hand and it knocked it off. I like the ghost theory, as that explains other occurrences too, like strange noises my wife usually hears, and I some times hear, and the weird response of  this week with Alexa giving a podcast rather than news. Is it coincidental? 

I do know that we spend a great deal of time looking for misplaced items or items the ghost moves. I have a habit of putting stuff in the basement up between the floor joists so as to keep it out of the way. It is easy to forget about that stuff, too. What I realized is that marriage, as seniors, is one of helping the other find a misplaced item, and in so doing coming to their rescue.

Lilies

In 1882, my great uncle Edward Hovel became the first baptism at a newly formed Catholic parish in Manly, IA. It was then in 1882 and today the only Catholic Church in Worth Co., IA. Ed was baptized in a school, as no Church existed. Later that decade the first church would be built. In the 1930's a new church was built, and Ed helped lay the block for the foundation walls. I thought of this as my wife and I recently watched the movie "Lilies of the Field" on a streaming channel.

Ed Hovel, unknown photo date

The movie earned an Oscar for Sidney Poitier as Best Actor. Released in 1963 the movie was a creation of its time, and in a sense represented some cultural issues. My wife and I both realized how the main song in the movie, "Amen" references much of the Gospel readings since Christmas, and presages the Gospel readings of Palm Sunday and Easter. As much as some today seem to diss the movie there exist some important messages.

A quick summary of the movie. African-American man, Homer Smith, stops to add water to his radiator at a small rural convent in the American Southwest. He agrees to help the nuns in exchange for food and pay. The sisters have no money to pay him, yet he ends up staying longer to help with other projects. He takes the nuns to Sunday mass, which they used to walk the distance, and meets the priest who travels over 400 miles a week for masses at many parishes. The nuns are so poor one egg and one piece of bread was common for breakfast, and little for dinner. With pay from his construction work, he buys food for the nuns. Who knew that watching this would bring about what is occurring today in the Madison Diocese where a few priests say mass at up to five different parishes, and have to travel some distance. Lacking a church, or other building to use in the hamlet, mass is outdoors in the blazing sun and desert winds of the southwest US. Homer finds out from an agnostic diner that the nuns crossed the Iron Curtain to arrive in the US. Homer decides to help build the chapel, but leaves part way through due to a dearth of materials. Yet, he comes back. With assistance from local Mexican-Americans he completes the chapel. On a Saturday night, before the first mass in the Chapel, he leaves as the nuns, except for the Mother Superior, sing the Amen song. So what can we learn from this movie?

Mother Superior in front of walls of uncompleted building
that will become their chapel

First, the group of German nuns, at least the mother superior, see Homer Smith (they call him Schmidt) see him as the man to build them a "shapel" or chapel. There is not a hint of racism from these women, in this early 1960 era setting.  The incident of racism in the movie is when the white construction company owner refers to Homer, a couple times, as "boy", but he even agrees to hire Homer for work running heavy machinery. Homer agrees to two days a week, and when the construction company owner asks about the other days Homer says I am going to build a chapel. Through her sheer will and faith, mother superior got Homer's commitment to build them a chapel.

Second, Mother Superior did not like to say thank you to a person, believing the gift of Homer came from God, and God should be thanked. Interestingly, she takes some pride in Homer, and introduces him to the congregation of Mexican Americans who attend mass, which is outdoors due to no church.  When Homer departs saying he will not return, the nuns receive some inherent scorn the following Sunday from the congregation. But, Homer returns three weeks later, and finds that he too has to eat some of his pride. The nuns are happy to see him and feel vindicated in their prayers. 

Third, after his return, the residents of the area, poor farmers and ranchers, and shopkeepers, show up with donations of materials and desire to help complete the chapel. Homer wants to do the work himself, even putting up signs on the materials reading "Do Not Touch."  Later, he reluctantly watches as the town people take over, only to join in again when controversy erupts over wall height. They only have a few sketches by Homer to go by.  Homer enters in to settle the dispute and takes charge as the chapel is completed with the help of many of the congregation. Even the construction company owner shows up with some bricks, even though it is being built of adobe. He had wanted to avoid the nuns and the request for building materials, some of which he had already donated, as a write-off. The bricks are used to build the bell tower. An interesting part of the movie is when the seemingly non-church going diner owner shows up and talks about how the chapel and mass are assurance if their is a God. This is a play on Pasqual's statement, if we are not sure whether or not there is a God, a rational person would play it safe rather than risk being sorry.

Homer Smith teaching the nuns English

Fourth, Homer knows he will not get paid, but is doing out of respect for the nuns crossing the Iron Curtain. It is a good work on his part.  Homer, is a Baptist, and his idea of good works is not consistent with Protestant teachings.  Protestants do not tend to attribute good works as a way to get to heaven, whereas Catholics do. Catholic teaching is that being in good grace with God leads to good works. ON the other hand, most Protestant sects believe in faith alone as justification for heaven. The back roads from McFarland to Stoughton there is a small Evangelical Church with a message board that once took a swipe at Catholics when it read something to the effect that "Faith not works gets you to heaven." Pope Francis has written that "Jesus knows every one of our intentions and small acts of charity." (Dilexit Nos, paragraph 41)

Fifth, a mutual respect is created between "Schmidt" and the mother superior. There is no ill will shown by the Latin Americans (mainly Mexicans, and Mexican Americans) between them and Homer. There exists a gratitude among the nuns for the work of Homer and townsfolk. It is the opposite of rampant mid 20th century racism. The movie was released the same year as MLK's Washington march.

We often think of the large massive Cathedrals and churches as gifts to God, but small chapels and churches speak just as much to God, for it too comes from the heart of the local population. Here these farmers and ranchers, lead by Homer completed the Chapel he had started using some of the ruins of a prior building. The chapel was not only for the nuns, but they were creating a parish church, a spiritual gathering space. This inspires the Mother Superior to dream bigger, a hospital and school. Homer left the night before the first mass, as the nuns, all but the mother superior, were singing the Amen song he taught them.

Homer Smith was an itinerant handy man looking for himself. I think he found part of himself in helping the nuns in the desolate desert of the American Southwest build their chapel. My great uncle, literally helped build his home parish church in Manly, IA. Dedication and giving of one-self leads to gratitude, self-respect and a greater sense of love. When a task is done with love it is not a burden. That is the final message of Lilies of the Field.

That Demographic

For Christmas I asked for, and received, a portable CD/DVD reader to attach to my laptop. My previous laptop had a CD/DVD drive built in, but that laptop aged out. My new laptop, purchased a few years ago, does not contain this type of drive. Apparently, other people, particularly in my demographic group had the same desire or need for a portable CD/DVD reader. 

I do genealogy and other related things, and I was trying to straighten up and organize all my genealogy ephemera, photos and the like. I also came across old CD's or DVD's which are marked, but not detailed, so I really have no idea what is actually stored on them and if they made the way to the hard drive on this computer, or a portable hard drive. They could also be copies of something from the hard drive. Hence, my desire for the DVD reader. My wife got me the DVD device for Christmas, but had checked with our oldest son who works for Best Buy Corporate, mainly leading television sales, but being a millennial, he knows exactly what to recommend. Anyway, to help out one of the Best Buy retail stores, and as a team building exercise my son and his team worked at a retail store for one day. This makes a lot of sense to me, kind of like an architect should know how to use a hammer. When I opened the gift and thanked my wife who gave me the gift. Our son noted that when he worked at the store, during Christmas shopping period, he had about twelve men, yes all men, in my demographic (generally 65 to 75 or so) desiring the same product. Not only that, they generally wanted it for the same reasons--genealogy research and/or review stored photographs. 

I know I am average in terms of size, intelligence, capabilities, and what not, but know I have to add interests into the mix, too. Yet, this shows something larger. Twelve older men, with the same interest, all on the same day. Twelve older men at the same store on the same day, desiring the same item for the same two reasons. This is proof that us Baby Boomers still have weight in the retail sector. Albeit a desire for an outdated technology, but such devices are still produced because a market remains, and it is apparently related to us old folks who desire to find out what is on DVD's or CD's that they have laying around. 

The move from DVD/CD to thumb drives is all part of creative destruction, technological changes that make older items or ideas out dated. I suppose there are generation Z (1997-2012) and Alpha (said to be 2010 or 2013 to 2024, years vary depending on whom you ask). Alpha makes no sense, since it is only a 11 year time span. Has cultural change occurred that quickly, or some marketing person decided what to do? Anyway I am sure some members of these generation groups have no idea what a CD or DVD is. Maybe I will need to ask my neighbor kid who was born in 2011. Blockbuster store went out of business over ten years ago, in 2014. 2010 is the year the I-Pad was launched. It is also hard to find a person that uses a desktop computer anymore. I recall, the early days of computers being in offices, and there was a limit on file names to eight characters. That is because they could take up too much space on the hard drive, which required the use of floppy discs. Back then hard drive capacity was measured in kilobytes, now we have megabytes. Of course, prevalent today is "cloud" storage which causes massive server facilities which require cooling 24/7/365 and not only devour significant amounts of electricity, but also water used for cooling. Our interconnected world, through the internet, is amazing, but has lead to hacking. Even the US Treasury Dept servers were hacked by the Chinese. It wonders how much they have hacked and people do not know. 

This all comes at a funny time. For example, many of us our concerned about climate change, and there is a strong desire for a decrease in carbon footprints, and conserve water, yet these large server  facilities are massive users of valued resources. When you have an outage of Wi-Fi, or internet provider, one is out of luck today on getting anything done at work or otherwise. Connectivity and convenience come at a cost. The thing is we are an out of sight out of mind society. There is (was) a clamor for electric cars, with disregard for the huge cost of mining the rare earth minerals, and Lithium and other elements, necessary to build the electronics and the batteries. Many of the mines are located in South America or Africa with little concern for the environment or, worse, for the human toll of child labor working in the mines. 

Baby boomers have significantly defined the nation, simply by the sheer mass of its generation. Some figures point to 1957, the year of my birth, as the largest population birth in the nation at 4,308,000 with births per 1,000 population being 25.3.  By contrast, the largest Millennial cohort was born in 1990 at 4,179,000 but with a birth rate of 16.7. Baby boomers, and later generations have continued to spread out births as women continue to give birth later in life. Further, the national birth rate is at an all time low. Low birth rates will have an effect on the economy. In fact, due to a variety of factors, college enrollment has been on a steady, but gradual decline since 2010. Graduate school enrollment has increased slightly. Some of the two year college campuses in Wisconsin have closed, others are trying to reinvent themselves, and still others not sure of what to do. 

Population Pyramids in 2000, 2010 and 2020 for the US
US Census Bureau

Demographic change is part of reality. It is estimated that the state of Wisconsin will lose over 200,000 persons over the next 25 years. Dane County is expected to see a significant increase in population. This will pose significant issues of housing, and services in much of the state, but rampant growth, and the other side of a coin for housing and services in Dane County. Housing will become a distribution issue too many in rural areas of the state, and too little in a few urban areas. It will pose issues for school districts and state funding. Social security was based on retention of a population pyramid, which is starting to invert, leading to catastrophe for that important government program that many seem to simply ignore.

Demographics are important. Social and economic trends were moved by the Baby Boomers. Today, those same boomers seem to be driving sales of portable CD/DVD players so as to view what was on a common method of storage for computers. That DVD drive desired by a dozen of my demographic at a Best Buy store in the Minneapolis area, is a sign of larger societal trends, in technological and demographic change. I am not the only old guy, that demographic, that needed a device to view our old stored photos or genealogical materials.