It is with mixed feelings that I announce All Things Appleton will be going on indefinite hiatus beginning immediately. Sudden, unexpected changes at my work have resulted in me needing to markedly increase the hours I work for at least the rest of the year if not beyond. While working overtime every single week for 3 months will certainly be financially lucrative for me, it also means that, in order to give my family and children appropriate focus and attention, I need to reduce the time I spend on personal hobbies, All Things Appleton being the main such thing.
I had initially planned to continue things as normal through this week and recap the committee meetings as usual, but one of my children woke up sick this morning and has to stay home from school and requires extra attention and care. So, I took that as a sign that I should make the announcement now.
It has been a great pleasure reporting on local government activity over the last 5 years. I believe local government is an area that does not get nearly as much attention as it should. While state and national politics are certainly important, the actions of local elected officials influence our daily lives as much if not more than politicians on the state and national stage. I hope one day to start reporting on it again. Until then, government meeting agendas, minutes, and raw videos are all available for any member of the public to view whenever they want.
The City of Appleton meeting details can be viewed here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx
The AASD Board of Education meeting details can be viewed here: https://www.aasd.k12.wi.us/district/leadership/board-of-education
Thank you for your dedication to covering what is really going on in Appleton… someone has to. The commercial “local” media is pathetic – from what they consider newsworthy to the incomplete coverage by inexperienced people is a disservice to the people. If we only had non-profit newspapers like Oshkosh and Neenah, but I digress. This site has been extremely informative and my go-to in my RSS reader. I am grateful for your dedication to it, and to your family. Of course saying that is with mixed emotions, for there will be nobody to pick up the slack and show the actors for who they really are.