After a week of sitting in court listening to testimony in a case where a 28-year-old Waukesha man faces up to 80 years in the overdose deaths of two people, one of whom was 24-year-old Jamie Hansen of Muskego, I'm worn out thinking of how all of our kids are just one bad decision away from death. However, it's nothing in comparison to what parents and other family members endure when they struggle to keep a loved one clean and sober and alive. Heroin use is truly a trip down the rabbit hole for everyone and while it doesn't always end in death, it always requires a herculean struggle to keep…

  I know, I know....the vast majority of people who make New Year's resolutions break them by February. However, I like making them, even if they're a re-do from last year. So, here's my pitch for 2013: to take care of myself first. In fact, it's something we should all do. It wasn't until recently that I realized that most people identified me as either being an editor or a mom. So, as my daughter's departure for Arizona to attend school there after graduation looms, friends fretted over what would become of me. That was a wake-up call to me to redefine my priorities. I'm generally the …

  As I look forward to a long holiday weekend - crossing my fingers that no major local breaking stories command attention - I can't help but be overwhelmed with gratitude for the humbling gift of being the editor of Muskego Patch. Growing up in this city since I was 3, I never really left, despite a seven-year hiatus (my folks still reside in the home they purchased in 1968 near Little Muskego Lake). So, like a friend of mine recently noted, I 'have roots here.' I have known this city through young eyes, and although I moved back in 1998, I never realized how much more there is to learn …

Contrary to popular belief, things DO happen in Muskego, and we've got the stories to prove it! Muskego Patch will be counting down the top most-read stories of the year, and barring an alien landing in a farm field, figure this list will remain in tact even though it's not quite the end of the year yet. Our internet metrics calculator, PatchTrack, keeps tabs on who's reading what, and while some stories are a given, others were surprisingly absent from that list. With such a politically charged atmosphere, I'm also removing two stories that were pulling readership from nationwide searches. …

I was on my way into work downtown when the discussion between Jim Irwin and the morning team on 620 WTMJ about the recent Packer game was interrupted. The news man broke in and I thought at first "how rude." Then as he explained the crash, I thought, "what a terrible accident." By the time I got into the parking structure, news was leaning toward the plane being a commercial jet, and I still felt that something must've happened to the pilot to create this situation. However, as events unfolded, we soon realized things were indeed very different and would never be the same. I recalled at one …

When it comes down to it, behind just about every small business is an entrepreneur hoping to turn their passion into a paycheck. But, as many wise business advisers have noted: Hope is not a strategy. Business owners need support to turn dreams into reality. That's why Patch is pleased to announce a new partnership with SCORE, a nonprofit organization with 12,000 business experts nationwide who provide free mentoring to small business owners. The partnership makes sense because we believe that when local commerce grows, the whole community gets stronger. Patch already provides free listings …

It was shocking and saddening to read as events unfolded on Sunday, and I don't know that I was prepared to deal with it. I'm not talking about the shooting at the Sikh temple. I'm talking about the tone of the conversation that followed the articles that were posted. In a time like this, people need healing, consolation and support. What they got was a continuation of people so entrenched in their own political and social beliefs that they couldn't take their eyes off of themselves to realize others were hurting around them. Granted, there were a few of you who tried to remind people where …

The question I am most often asked perhaps is whether I am really up every morning at 5 a.m. furiously writing stories, and thankfully the answer is no. There are some days however when I feel the laptop is surgically attached because news just won't quit. That's a great thing for everyone because Muskego has gone from a few dribs and drabs of news, to daylong coverage, and much of it now coming in from you readers through announcements, events and blogs - good for you!! However, it's time for a break. So, as I pack up the car to do absolutely nothing scheduled, formatted or regimented, I …

I'm generally the person who 'gives at the office,' but like most editors in Patch, I really don't have one any more, so when the opportunity presented itself to help the Muscular Dystrophy Association, I really couldn't say no. In addition, the woman who enlisted me is herself dealing with a fair amount of personal health issues and I was touched by her selflessness in sharing 'cell space' with me. So, I'm off to jail on July 26, but am hoping to raise 'bail money' in the form of donations to MDA, and there is nothing more I would like than to make a decent showing, even if I do fall short. …

It is a curious little town we live in. We can talk ourselves blue in the face over what the proper zoning should be and where it should be applied, but perhaps the biggest issue the city has faced in the past year goes virtually unnoticed. As time ticked away Tuesday night during the series of public hearings held during the Common Council meeting, the fewest comments came in with regard to the request for an ordinance change that would give the city the first right of refusal on its cell towers. The Muskego Police Department is hoping to make relevant use of the technology and upgrades it …

It's been two weeks since David McCullough, Jr., English teacher and son of historian and author David McCullough, told graduates at Wellesley High School in Boston, "you're not special." After early reaction, which ranged from 'how dare he' to 'go get 'em, McCullough', there's a key point that hopefully everyone has discovered in the commencement address, and it's my wish as well for students graduating this year, and really any year. The point was not to belittle students for who they are, or what they had done in high school, nor was it an attempt to knock them down a few pegs from an …

Feeling crowded lately? It may that as you're reading Muskego Patch, you're being joined by millions doing the exact same thing in their own communities. File this under 'tooting our own horn,' but I'm proud to say May of 2012 was Patch's most successful traffic and revenue period in the company’s history. And you can pat yourselves on the back for that, too.Patch served a record 11.7 million users in May, according to comScore, which tracks internet site usage, representing a 14 percent increase over April (10.3 million users) and an 11 percent increase over its previous traffic record (10.6…

Some press releases - and we editors get a lot of them - make you pause, and say, "really?" Such was the case when I received this one from Catholic Memorial High School (CMH) in Waukesha, which has served many students opting for private high school in Muskego and throughout the area. Mr. Patrick Farrell, Associate Principal for Student Life, will retire effective January 1, 2013, after more than forty years of service to the CMH family. Students and alumni like me just knew him as 'Farrell.' He is that guy that perhaps never taught you in the class room, but was nevertheless an influence on…

Muskego Patch has often been 'accused' of being pro Chamber of Commerce. As a business that is a member of said organization, we stand guilty as charged. After all, if the point of any Chamber of Commerce is to promote business, existing and potential, and the lament among many here is that we don't get or retain enough business to help with taxes, it's not a bad stance to take. One of the newest businesses, Island Ice Cream, has come on scene and unwittingly united folks who were dug in on opposite sides of the lake park debate. The Common Council approved the business agreement in a …

My mom always reminded me to conduct myself as if she were standing over my shoulder. It was good advice then, and remains so. Decency is simple, really: Do unto others as you would have done to you. Don't assume you know someone without really getting to talk to them, and more importantly listen to them. And a personal favorite: God gave people two ears and one mouth for a reason. Frankly, I have no idea why disagreement has to become so ridiculously juvenile. I've heard from all camps in the past few weeks, and no matter what side of what issue people stand on, the question is the same: …

Apparently someone has it in for the Chamber of Commerce in Muskego. Otherwise it escapes me why someone would take the time to comb through Walker recall signatures to tell radio host Mark Belling, who occupies a chair at the WISN 1130 studios from 3 to 6 p.m., to tattle on Executive Director Tina Weiss. Apparently, Weiss signed a recall petition around the time she was hired on at the Chamber of Commerce last year. Oh, the horror. His point was that the chamber is a conservative, pro-business organization, and Weiss' action of signing a petition to recall Walker is in direct opposition to …

I'm rarely in any one place for any period of time, but again, it's Outreach Week, so I'm being given a pass from getting to every meeting to instead grabbing every opportunity to meet as many of you as possible. The nice folks at Muskego's High Tide have allowed me to take up a little space in their upper level dining room, and I will be doing just that from 10:30 to 4 on Wednesday, Feb. 29. It's leap day and I couldn't think of a more perfect day to do something out of the normal routine. If you have a chance, stop in and say hello. Ask your questions about Patch, about Muskego, about me; …

Truthfully, meetings are not my cup of tea, but I know we've had quite a few of them in recent weeks, and for a change I'm not the only person sitting in the audience. So when I learned I along with my colleagues were taking a mandatory week off from meetings in order to refocus on our communities in a different way, I had mixed feelings. Beginning Monday, I will be seeking out businesses and organizations that perhaps I haven't had the chance to reach face to face, one on one, because of those aforementioned meetings. It is hands down the best part of my job to connect with you. So, I start …

A Wednesday night Common Council meeting in an off week is odd enough, but add in a 10-minute discussion on whether to allow a speaker an additional two minutes to speak publicly and visions of a Monty Python skit couldn't help but come to my mind. Jim Lindhorst came to the microphone during the public comment portion of the meeting, and requested that his time be given to fellow resident Kurt Blomdahl to make his presentation. Current rules allow for two minutes per speaker, so Lindhorst (and eventually others) was hoping to allow Blomdahl additional time to present information, complete …

Perhaps it's just because there's been more and more of you jumping into the conversation - and believe me, I couldn't be happier about it - but there appears to be 'twins' in Muskego, and I wanted to point out who's who. Suzi Link and Suzi are NOT the same person. I recently deleted a comment posted by the latter Suzi that appeared to attempt to confuse people into thinking it was Ms. Link instead.That's crossing a line. While I understand the right to use your own names (and in fact I find people who have the chops to post as themselves and not hide behind a handle quite admirable), please …