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by Jeff Ash
August 2, 2006
 GREEN BAY, WI —
Greetings from Green Bay, where it is anything but the Frozen Tundra lately:
12 summers ago, back, back, back in the days before blogs and a grown-up
Web, I started posting daily updates to a Packers forum on AOL. Then I
started e-mailing them.
Not long thereafter, our son, Evan, came along, and the updates became
weekly. Eight years ago, we teamed up with the South End Zone.
But as you know, the updates have become few and far between over the past 5
years. I looked it up. The last time I wrote them anywhere close to weekly
was 2000. I wrote them about once a month in 2001 and 2002. Since then? You
probably can count them all on both hands.
All good things come to an end, and so it is for the updates.
I still work in sports at the Green Bay Press-Gazette, and some of our
recent changes make it easier for me to end the updates. (Not a plug, just
FYI.)
First of all, we've closed our Packers pay site. All of our coverage is free
at http://www.packersnews.com
And, we've added a blog with live updates during and after training camp
practices. It's at http://packerstrainingcampupdates.blogspot.com
Daily updates? Hmmm, where have we heard that before?
My updates have been a labor of love, even if there were a lot of late
nights at the Mac. We've met a lot of nice people, most via e-mail but a few
in person -- even some folks from Australia. (And, yes, Linda, we still need
to make it to St. Augie's for fish.)
So what's next?
Next, as in this weekend, is our big rummage sale. Janet's mom passed away
at 93 just after the new year and we are nearing the end of the estate
matters. We're cleaning out 20 years of our accumulated stuff to make room
in our tiny house for some of the things we are keeping.
Next, as in next week, for Evan, is a week at church camp at Green Lake.
It's his big summer adventure, although he already has had a few. Last week,
he went to an intro-to-middle-school class at his new school. Yes, Evan is
11, growing tall and headed off to middle school next month. He plays the
sax, burns his own music CDs, writes stories and comic books, plays PS2 on
weekends and briefly was bummed when soccer ended, even though he is not one
of the better players.
Next, for me? Last year, I discovered audio blogs, in which people write
about music they enjoy and include mp3s for readers. There are lots of good
ones (like the one written by JB, who has been an update reader), and I'd
like to start one of my own. I'm not quite there yet, though. ... Later this
year, a story I wrote for my dad will be published in Trains magazine. We've
done a couple of interviews, but we need to do more to preserve family
stories and more of his railroad stories. ... As Evan goes to middle school,
there may be new volunteer things for us to do at his school. I coached
5th-grade basketball this year and coached the runners and walkers for a 10K
run the last 3 years. Janet supervised a reading program and collected all
the milk caps for one of the fundraisers. ... And, yes, I'm still out
blading in the summer as the weather allows. Next month, I'll skate in my
11th inline marathon. (Tony, send me some suggestions for good places to eat
outside of Canal Park!)
Remember, you can always find me at jeffash@new.rr.com
With that, I'll leave you the way a delightful older gent left me after we
chatted last summer about the glory days of East-West football in Green Bay.
Peace, out.
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