Who will the 1,000th commenter be?
Here in my little room behind the scenes (picture the great and powerful Oz hiding behind the curtain), the stats counter is telling me that the site has had 893 comments.
Just think about that for a moment. A little blog about a little town, and it’s not even a year old yet, and we’re creeping up on 1,000 comments. (Heck, one more snow day and Bob C. will probably be bored enough to add 107 comments all by himself!)
And yeah, I still have to go through those 44 screens of comments and do some counting. I know the top commenter is probably me — I do a fair amount of talking back — but who else has the most identicons lurking backstage?
I’m going to have to come up with some kind of prize for the commenter who hits 1,000. Anyone have any ideas? Donations? You can submit them, of course… in the comments.
EDIT: All right, who frantically Googled “Grafton midget porn” seven times? You know how much I laugh when that pops up in the stats, but what is your boss/wife/husband going to think?
Let’s start a conversation re: PAYT & how much we’re probably going to get gouged.
From the sounds of the TA last nite at the BOS meeting, it’s a green light.
But the devil is in the details. Will he & the BOS grab as much as they can or are they simply looking to cover the costs of our trash contact?
My money is on them sticking it to the taxpayer for as much as they can stick it to us for!!!!!
Will this have to go to Town Meeting? I hope so, I think the residents deserve a say in this.
Look for an annual trash fee & then on top of that, a bag fee for every bag you put out. Wouldn’t it be nice to get one bag of trash included in what we are already paying.
Seems a bit disingenuis to be making a huge “profit” off this new fee hike. Last yr a bus fee, this yr a trash fee! What next??
I hear the teachers’ contract is close. I’m hoping they increased there insurance premiums. Isn’t healthcare the big nut in this town budget?? We all bear the cost of higher & higher premiums in the Dreaded Private Sector. Why is it any different for public sector?
What is the town spending on health ins premiums every year?
Still no word on state GIC rates vs town rates.
Thanks for the challenge Jenn. I’ll do my best to accomodate. And, although it is another snow day today, I won’t have a lot of time to blog…I have a deadline to meet by Friday (You know what that’s like)
I know my usual quips don’t provide a lot of insight into some of the local issues that you post about (Although that mention of the need for an Information Technology Committee member kind of piqued my interest). I like doing this for fun…an occasional distraction from writing code. And, I thank you for providing me with this new venue.
But, I figure every blog needs an Internet Cowboy, so…I’m here for you. Thanks for callin’ me out. In the words of the great John McClane…”Yippee Ki-Yay…” (You know the rest)
Any chance that some one could decifer the above mentioned acrynoms?
I figured out PAYT…pay as you throw… but I am at a loss for TA , BOS , and GIC rates?
Thanks
TA = Town Administrator
BOS = Board of Selectmen
GIC = This is the State of Massachusett’s Group Insurance Commission. It allows municipalities to join their health ins program & potentially save them money. You can look at their website http://www.mass.gov/gic/
That alphabet soup is one of my native tongues due to years of excessive note-taking; it took me a minute to realize not everyone reads them as “town administrator, board of selectmen and Group Insurance Commission.”
Not only is there the question of who is Googling “Grafton midget porn”, but you should be asking why did it bring up your blog?
Oh, that’s easy. Just look for the post about the Grafton Flea Market.
I certainly didn’t google Grafton Midget Porn…but…I’m gonna now!
$900k = the annual cost of collecting and disposing of trash and recyclables.
Significant = our anticipated budget shortfall.
Flat = Real estate property tax revenue.
Increasing = all costs.
Decreasing = local aid.
There are simply no more luxuries – and yes, as odd as it seems, zero-fee municipal trash collection is now considered a luxury. PAYT is a logical, practical, and legitimate way of COVERING the costs associated with providing a necessary service. In fact, the building department just went through a similar analysis and raised inspection fees so that the department is now self-funding. In a flat economy, with a cap on tax revenue, growing population, and level demand for services…there is simply no where else to go.
For what it’s worth, the recycling committee could always use some help, insight and perspective as they work with the State to develop and roll-out the program for the community to digest. Yet another opportunity to step up! Go to the town website and follow the committee links and you can get in touch with the Committee chair, Doreen DiFazio.
BTW Jen – a treat to meet you!
Who will ultimately set the rates for PAYT?
TA?
BOS?
Recycling Committee?
Town Meeting?
Also, Mary Ann.
Can you give us any figures on what the town spends on Health Insurance?
Jen! That’s her name. Thanks Mary Ann:-) I’ve meet the Greater Grafton Blogger once, but I’m terrible at remembering names.
I’m still not convinced that there is a “Jen” nor an individual that runs “Greater Grafton.” I’ve heard rumors this whole blog is being run out of Charlie Bollack’s suite/office at the Grafton News. They have some pretty sweet computers in there with big screens. And the person you guys came in contact with & saw on the tube is just some BU journalism intern being paid big bucks to make it seem legit. Its a very clever operation.