A homeowner in Waukesha for 20 years, Steve is president of the Waukesha Dog Parks Organization and enjoys motorcycling, fishing and staying on top of politics.
I believe it was Joni Mitchell who sang Big Yellow Taxi which contained the refrain “Pave paradise, put in a parking lot” That was joined in the same song, “Don’t it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you’ve got ‘till it’s gone.”
I was recently transferred from our corporate headquarters in Pewaukee to our new store and offices in West Allis very near the old Allis Chalmers factory. Once inside the office, it is actually a better work environment for me than in Pewaukee. The problem is the trip to and from there.
When in Pewaukee, I had a nice ten-minute drive past Golden Gurnsey, the airport and then north on whatever the current name is for Hwy J and then a twisty drive through the Pewaukee commercial park to the office. A pleasure if I was taking one of my motorcycles to work that day.
Now it is Grandview to I94 and wait for the staging light to let me try and match speed with the traffic. Sometimes the drive in and back home is uneventful and takes only 20 minutes. The other day the Brewer’s game let out at rush hour and it took me an hour to get home.
One other nicety when I was stationed in Pewaukee was that it was possible to drive home for lunch. However, I usually packed some food and ate at a near-by park or even took a walk in the little known county park known as The Ryan Property. It is just one of many places within driving distance where I could regain some sanity halfway through a day of solving other people’s problems.
Around West Allis, there isn’t much green space to park and enjoy serenity. The closest is the Menomonee River Parkway. Other than the small stagnant pond area in Jacobus Park, the appearance of being in a wooded area is just scrub thick enough to block the view of the back yards and commercial areas a few feet on the other side. Underwood Parkway would be nicer but is just a bit too much driving away. It also has a reputation where…. Well, lets just say I’d rather not visit there by myself.
Joni was wrong in her song. I knew what I had. I just didn’t have a choice in the matter!
