Hello Hillsboro: We have 12 months for a tough decision

Jack Knowles

Hillsboro Sentry-Enterprise Associate Editor

Updated: Jan 21, 2015, 12:33 AM

Published: Jan 21, 2015, 12:46 AM

You would think that, with Christmas just behind us, few Hillsboro folks are thinking about next December’s decorations. You would be wrong!

Our city leaders have decided that those semi-ancient lamppost candle decorations have burned long enough, and they are looking to purchase new, festive lighting for the next Christmas season.

There is no question that it gives the downtown area a cheerful glow, attracts shoppers, and gives residents a sense of pride in their hometown.

So, they are asking business folks along the regular routes on Water Ave. and Mill St., what their preference is in new Christmas lighting.

Sounds like an easy decision. How many options are available?

Well, for openers, consider the fact that many people enjoy holidays long after the main attractions, and really don’t like to give up the spirit without a good dose of it.

However, other than a religious theme, which is usually considered a “no-no” by people spending government funds, many ideas have a limited time frame.

For instance, Rudolph and his reindeer buddies have carried Santa and his empty sleigh all the way back to the North Pole before most kids have even finished opening presents! Would we like to look at his shining likeness while he’s already got the elves working on a new batch of toys?

However, consider the seasonal and traditional snowmen, who are happy to stick around for weeks bringing untold fun and joy to local kids and adults!

And that is sort of where it stands at this time in the preferences for our new outdoor holiday lighting.

It may come down to a long-lighted snowman or a Santa in a time warp. Tough decision, isn’t it? I would really hate to be on the committee that will have to rule. It’s going to be close, with husbands and wives even in disagreement!

At least we have quite a while to ponder the dilemma.

***

On a much darker note, have you recovered from the TV torture that was offered Sunday afternoon?

At least, if you watched the incredible spectacle, you can say that you saw a football game that will stand the test of time in suspense endings.

Anybody who wrote that script would have been fired on the premise alone!

One thing, however is certain. The Patriots are going to have as many cheesehead fans pulling for them as New Englanders in the Super Bowl!

Mice paddling a canoe?

Random Thoughts, August 3

This is a reproduction of a Huppler card drawing, done with tiny black dots. He gave it to me in 1961 when he was living in Muscoda with his father.

Mice paddling a canoe — This is a reproduction of a Huppler card drawing, done with tiny black dots. He gave it to me in 1961 when he was living in Muscoda with his father.

Wendell Smith

Updated: Aug 10, 2023, 3:25 PM

Published: Aug 10, 2023, 3:24 PM

MUSCODA - Probably few folks in this village remember when mice in Muscoda paddled canoes and/or drove a Hudson roadster automobile. Don’t worry, the little rodents existed only in the mind of a Muscoda native and artist, Dudley Huppler.

Huppler was born in Muscoda August 8, 1917. He attended high school in Muscoda where he developed a life-long interest in reading. He then enrolled in the University of Wisconsin-Madison, receiving bachelor’s and master’s degrees.

He first worked for the WPA, a make-work federal program during the Great Depression when jobs were scarce. He later returned to the U.W. as a teaching assistant.

Through the years he made frequent visits to Muscoda to visit his family who operated a meat market here. I interviewed Dudley in September, 1961. By then he was an international traveler with many connections throughout the art world. He also spent time teaching at the University of Minnesota and had studios in Santa Monica, California and New York City

As an artist Dudley developed a system of tiny black dots to portray mice and other characters. He used the method in children’s books and on sets of cards that he marketed in New York City and small places like Ed’s Store and Ruth’s Dress Shop in Muscoda.

One of his books has characters who lived in “Mouscoda” during the 1920s, including a young girl who is given a croquet set and struggles to learn the game. 00

His books for children are not among the collection at the Muscoda Public Library. However there is a book on local shelves that chronicles Huppler’s life and accomplishments.

His life ended in August, 1988 in Boulder, Colorado. By that time he estimated he had created more than 38,000 drawing and paintings.

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