“Change is inevitable. Change is constant,” — Benjamin Disraeli

Change is all around in Madison. Drive by where University Square was once located, past the Chazen Art Museum and the addition to Granger Hall.

Change is not limited to campus. Downtown is in a constant state of flux. The west side continues to grow. Even the suburbs seldom remain the same.

For those not from Madison, change is noticeable when you visit your hometown. A favorite clothing store is replaced by Target; the local drug store is now a Walgreen’s.
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This is one of a number of articles I wrote about the changes at The Capital Times shortly after the announcement was made they would move to the web. Rob Zaleski is a writer that took the buyout, and Friday was his last day. I have not talked to him since, but I wish him the best in future endeavors. Read his CapTimes.com porfile here.

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“The times have changed so dramatically since I got into this business,” says Rob Zaleski, a columnist for The Capital Times as he paces before a room of aspiring journalists.

“You might think twice about going into the newspaper business,” says Zaleski, admitting it is the first time he has ever said this.

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I was surprised when I popped on the television early this morning and was surprised to find the draft already in process. Then I remembered they had an extra round to do on Sunday this year, and it made sense.

Interest in the draft is still minimal. My normal Sunday morning tradition inivolves sitting down with my multiple newspapers and trudging trhough them while listening to the classic country music station on cable. However, I decided to flip to the draft during and noticed the Packers were within three picks of their next selection.

The Packers address one of their needs, taking tight end Jermichael Finley from Texas. Finley is a pass-catching tight end that needs work on his blocking.

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The NFL Draft. In past years, draft weekend was a holiday for me. I would plan to watch the entire first three rounds from my couch, cheering and jeering my favorite and least favorite teams.

Over the last two years, my interest has faded significantly. When a friend asked if I planned to watch the draft this year, I told him no.

Then something happened. I was out running errands when the draft was about to start. The normal pompous ESPN crew was spieling crap about who would be the best player. Still no interest. Then I noticed another television. The Detroit / Colorado hockey game was about to start.

I knew it was time to race home.

Over the past two years, I have become more of a hockey fan. While I’m not a Detroit or Colorado fan per se, I’ve grown to dislike the Red Wings enough that the game is of interest.

But the ultimate question still lingered, which would I watch more of – the draft or the NHL?

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Congratulations to reporter Dave Umhoefer and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for winning the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting.

The Pulitzer is the most prestigious award a news writer can win. Umhoefer won the award for an investigation published last summer detailing pension deals for county workers.

This is the first Pulitzer for the Journal Sentinel, and I congratulate Umhoefer on the honor.

Read more at JSOnline.com

Advertisement surrounds us. We encounter one product placement after another in our daily lives.

When done right, advertisement is an art. Some of the best art from overseas was on display last night at the British Television Advertising Awards at the Monona Terrace.

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It’s April Fools Day, the day where any sane person expects anything they read or hear to be a joke. Still, some of us manage to forget, and are fooled the clever initiative of others. It’s a day where every news source has the opportunity to pretend it’s “The Onion.” Personally, I think on April 1, The Onion should do real news to really throw everyone off.

While so far I can say that no one has “got me,” here are a couple of my favorites I’ve stumbled across today.

MPS forced to cut art, English – from OnMilwaukee.com

Favre to rejoin the Packers for ’08 season -also OnMilwaukee.com

Teacher’s head explodes due to Wi-Fi, mobe radiation – from The Register

Google to acquire U.S. Government -  InfoWorld

and my personal favorite from ThinkGeek – Betamax to HD-DVD Converter

April 1 is also the 3-year anniversary of Dane101.com. I have written for them for just over a year, and I am proud to be a part of their team. Happy Birthday to Jesse and the gang that makes it all possible.