Month: March 2024

Hello?! Is this thing on??

After eight years or so, I decided to bring back my personal blog. I feel like I have some things to say and need an outlet to say them. Yes, I’ve said a lot on Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social profiles, but those are on platforms where I don’t necessarily have full control of that content. Not that anyone will be turning off Facebook anytime soon … but I’d sure like to pull my Top 8 from MySpace. I had a pretty fly MySpace page — back in 2006.

After starting at St. Peter’s in 2015, I quickly learned that someone was always ready and willing to take a social media post out of context. So I pulled back—several times. At one point, I booted almost 100 “friends” who were connected. This was after a pretty innocuous post was printed and sent to the Pastor. The post was something to the effect that after running a highly successful “friend-raiser,” I could have a career in event planning. It was sarcasm at its finest, and someone took it as I didn’t like or was unhappy about my job.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be adding backdated posts — migrating them from my social channels again, so I have that history where I want to keep it. But we’ll also be moving forward, writing on topics that interest me or that I just have something to say about.

If you had asked me in high school, I never would have guessed that a good portion of my adult life would involve writing. I went into television initially so I wouldn’t have to write, but now I write something almost every day.

Hopefully, they’re constructive, opportunities to spark discussion or just questions. I don’t want to be the next Karen/Ken — just looking for a place to complain.

If you’re here to read. Thanks for taking the time.

Since last week’s tornado in the northern part of the county… There has been a lot of discussion about the fact that there are no tornado sirens in the City of Mansfield.

Here is my question…. Are they needed, and Is it worth the cost in 2024?

• Sirens are not designed to be heard inside your home. We were 1/2 mile from the nearest sirens when I lived in Indianapolis. On a clear day, when they ran the monthly test, we could hear them outside. In the middle of a thunderstorm, it depends on the wind and the amount of rain falling.
• All smartphones and US cell carriers are now part of the WEA (Wireless Emergency Alert) system. It will (if turned on) automatically alert your phone if you are inside a warned area – for both a tornado & flash flood.
• All smartphones and US cell carriers are now part of the WEA (Wireless Emergency Alert) system. It will (if turned on) automatically alert your phone if you are inside a warned area – for both a tornado & flash flood.
• Dozens of weather apps are available and can send you push alerts for weather warnings.
• Local radio and TV still broadcast alerts, and the Cleveland TV stations almost always provide wall-to-wall coverage with tornado warning weather.
• NOAA weather radios with battery backups are still available and affordable.

Warnings from the NWS are no longer issued for the entire county. They are polygons based on where the storm is tracking. Would the sirens activate everywhere or just inside a warned area? (Yes, I totally understand that the EAS/TV/Weather Radios still use more broad county-wide warning areas.)

Based on last week’s tornado in Northern Richland County, would folks in Mansfield and south be needlessly panicked for the sirens sounding for a storm that was well to the north?

I think it’s a good discussion for city officials, I just wonder if it is worth the cost for the true value it could have in saving lives. We could provide weather radios to anyone who desires them.