The word is....

I live in Milwaukee, the Brewers are home tonight but I had a charity obligation, I'm 36 years old, and my wife is 6 months pregnant. So when she's flipping through the channels and stops at the national spelling bee being held in HD on ABC on a Friday night I bite my tongue.

It's only about 2 minutes before the unintentional comedy has me laughing and offering my fake commentary.

Seriously, for anyone that reads Bill Simmons at ESPN's page 2 this event is just screaming for a play-by-play like he does with the NBA draft.

Some noteworthy questions from my 20 minutes of viewing...

The 13 year old competing for the 5th time? Was she really in this thing for 5 years or is there like A, AA, AAA and then the show?

How is this in HD and I can't even get the Wisconsin Badger games on want on any channel?

Why was there a camera man wearing Under Armor gear? Why were there multiple camera men?

What was Erin Andrews reaction when her bosses told her she would be working the sideline here?

How can a 12 year old boy spell any words when he's looking at Erin Andrews?

Do you really need to name your home school? Wouldn't it just be your address?

If you are 12 and need to shave isn't that a disqualification?

Final thoughts, to really spice up the show there needs to be more trash talk. No more of this clapping for your opponent. I want some smack, maybe some chest bumping. How about the winner giving an impromptu moon following the victory word?

The word is hairbrained. "Can I have the definition? Can I have the origin? Are there any other pronunciations? Can I have the origin again? Can you spell the word? No, okay.... I-A-M-S-C-R-E-W-E-D."

Cliff Reuschlein

So my Grandpa died today. I wasn't there. I said goodbye to him and told him I loved him a week ago. It's sad though. Mostly I've been thinking about how much more time I should have spent with him. He taught me to ski when I was three or four. He held me up on my tiny skis between his legs going up the tow rope. My parents would take us to Cascade "Mountain" where my grandparents would meet us. My grandmother would stay in the chalet while my grandpa skied with us. In fourth grade we all went to Michigan's upper peninsula skiing. That is probably the last time I skied with him.

My grandpa liked sports cars. I can remember sitting in the hatch back of his Nissan 280Z. He was driving us to either IHOP or York Steak House. I remember watching Wisconsin hockey games at their house. I didn't really like hockey but for some reason that is still a really fond memory.

When I was about 10 or 12 grandmother and grandpa retired and moved to El Paso, TX. I visited them there once when I was about 13 and once when I was 33. Thankfully they came back to visit often.

Until today all 4 of my grandparents were still alive. I am very lucky. For some years now I've thought a lot about how I value(d) each of them.

You see when I was little this grandpa and grandmother (Cliff and Beth) lived in Madison. I think we visited relatively frequently but from what I remember those visits seemed a little formal. Not very little kid driven, more adult oriented. I remember Christmas presents being things like sweaters.

My other grandparents (Gene & Lee) lived on the east coast. Visits were more exotic to me. I had close cousins out there, those grandparents lived in a neighborhood with kids and presents were things like walkie talkies and race tracks.

Based on these interactions as a little kid I developed what would be my opinion of each set of grandparents that held up through at least my mid 20's. It's with deep regret that I didn't realize some of my skewed perceptions sooner. I hope I made up for it these past few years. I hope my grandpa knew I was trying to make up for it.

Some things I need to thank my grandpa for:

• He's not bald, thus I still have hair.
• His business sense.
• Teaching me to ski.
• Gifts far greater than anything I earned.
• Having a master plan for his future offspring.
• Pride in the University of Wisconsin.
• Loving me unconditionally.
  

Some things to know about my grandpa:

• He was a world war II vet and had good stories about it.
• He was the president of H&H Industries.
• He was a UW grad.
• He grew up on a farm in Plain, WI.
• He met my grandmother while working in a munitions plant.
• He has 6 children.
• He knew I was going to have a baby and he was excited.

I love you grandpa! Thanks for all you've done for me and continue to do. God bless you.

Official Obituary

Reuschlein, Clifford Joseph, MADISON

Clifford Joseph Reuschlein, a local engineer and businessman who played a part in the Manhattan Project and lobbied tirelessly in his later years for people with mental illness, died Sunday, May 11, 2008, at his home in Madison. He was 89. Mr. Reuschlein graduated in 1942 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in mechanical engineering. He was an engineer for DuPont during World War II when he was assigned to the Manhattan Project at the Hanford Engineer Works in Richland, Wash., the site of one of three federal locales developing a secret defense project. Aware only that his work was a part of the war effort, Mr. Reuschlein contributed to the development of the atomic bomb. He was a Navy veteran, serving aboard the U.S.S. Kenmore in the South Pacific in World War II. In 1946 he resumed his engineering career, joining Hyland Hall and Co. (H and H Industries/H and H Electric) in Madison, where he became president and retired as chairman of the board 37 years later. He was appointed by President Dwight Eisenhower to the Apprentice Advisory Committee to the Secretary of Labor, where he served in his capacity as an engineer and businessman. He was a member of Pi Tau Sigma International Mechanical Engineering Honor Society; the National Society of Professional Engineers; the American Society of Mechanical Engineers; the Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning Engineers Society; the Construction Specifications Institute; and the Society of American Military Engineers. He was a fellow, board member and president of the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors' National Association. He was a founder and board member of Maplewood Nursing Home in Sauk City, Wis. He was an avid boater, water skier and downhill skier and enjoyed carpentry as a hobby. Mr. Reuschlein devoted his retirement in El Paso, Texas, to advocating for the mentally ill and their families. An activist for better treatment, government accountability, and caregiver support, he spent his days counseling families in crisis, working with local and state mental health professionals, influencing legislators and judges, and producing a newsletter to draw attention to mental health issues. He helped establish a local chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), serving as its director for 12 years. He was a member of the NAMI Homeless and Missing Network steering committee and a board member and past vice-president of Texas AMI. He was named 1991 Citizen of the Year by the El Paso Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers and 1992 Outstanding Volunteer of the Year by El Paso United Way. The El Paso Mayor's Advisory Board on Aging inducted him into the Older El Pasoans Hall of Fame, and he was honored by the El Paso Life Management Center for outstanding service to individuals with mental disabilities. During his Madison years he was a member of Blessed Sacrament Church, Knights of Columbus, Elks Club, Kiwanis, and the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. In El Paso he was a member of NAMI and EpAMI. Mr. Reuschlein was born Feb. 5, 1919, in Plain, Wis., the son of Henry and Christina Paulus Reuschlein. A serendipitous childhood encounter with Frank Lloyd Wright proved prophetic when Wright admired the button collection he'd sewn to his cap. Wright told him, "One day, you'll make something of yourself," and Mr. Reuschlein grew up to design the mechanicals for at least two of Wright's buildings: the Unitarian church in Madison and the Spring Green Center in Spring Green, Wis. He married Elizabeth Ginevra Starr of Huntington, W. Va., on Feb. 25, 1944, in Kennewick, Wash. He is predeceased by his parents and his siblings, Florence Schrock, Dorothy Kayser, and Earl Reuschlein. He is survived by his wife; four daughters, Cathy (Bill) Taylor of Columbus, Ohio, Carole (Mike) Ecker of Black Earth, Connie Reuschlein (Dan Gaytan) of El Paso, Texas and Nancy Reuschlein of Madison; and two sons, C. Randy (Mary) Reuschlein of Stoughton and Tom Reuschlein of Colorado Springs, Colo. He is also survived by 10 grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at BLESSED SACRAMENT CATHOLIC CHURCH, 2131 Rowley Ave., on Friday, May 16, 2008, at 10:30 a.m. with Father Ron Kreul, O.P. officiating. Burial will immediately follow at Forest Hill Cemetery. A visitation will be held at JOYCE-RYAN FUNERAL HOME, 5701 Odana Road, on Thursday, May 15, 2008, from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. and then again at church on Friday from 9:30 a.m. until the time of Mass. The family requests memorials be made to the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, P. O. Box 759155, Baltimore, MD, 21275-9155 or www.nami.org.
Joyce-Ryan Funeral Home and Cremation Services 5701 Odana Road (608) 274-1000 www.ryanfuneralsevice.com