---

I had breakfast on Sunday with neighbors Jack and Dorothy Weirich (No that's not them above. You'll have to read the whole column to find out about the picture!) and they were talking about watching the UW Badgers men's basketball win over Kansas State Saturday. Dorothy said she thought she saw more commercials then she did the game. I haven't had a chance to see much of the tournament, but Sunday afternoon, remembering what she said, I watched some of the Duke-Michigan game. There was a stretch at the beginning of the second half that I realized she was right. I think there probably was about five minutes taken off the game clock with time played and I must've seen a dozen commercials - and there weren't any time outs called by the teams or fouls with free throws being shot to stop the clock. As the game progressed, however, the commercials at least became shorter in time and there was more of the game being shown in repetition. I know the advertising is the means to any revenue for the TV stations (just like it is in our newspapers), but I don' t know how any of the teams could really get into a flow with the number of commercials being shown.
*****
Brother Patrick and I went to the Kohl Center in Madison on Saturday to take in the WIAA State Boys Basketball Tournament finals. We can usually find some "local" ties at the tournaments and this one was no different even though we didn't have any really local teams taking part. In the Division 5 finals, champion Randolph's point guard is Mike Thoreson, son of former Dodgeville High School wrestling coach Dale Thoreson. Also, Carson Schneider, a sophomore from Division 3 champion La Crosse Aquinas, is the son of former Dodgeville graduate, Kim Potterton and nephew of Keric Potterton, Potterton Rule Real Estate and Insurance. He didn't see any playing time, but received a gold medal, something he'll cherish for the rest of his life!
*****
Also at the state tournament at halftime of the D5 game, a classmate of mine - Tom Hughes, one of our class members from Ridgeway - sought me out and we had a nice talk for a few minutes. Tom and I went to many a UW Badgers football game back in the "old" days!
*****
This coming Saturday is the annual  Iowa County Humane Society Annual  "Artist to the Rescue" Art Auction. It will be held at Folklore Village (east of Dodgeville on Cty. BB) with viewing starting at 2:00 and the auction at 3:00. The following Saturday (April 2) will be the annual "Paws Fur a Cause" 5K run/2 mile walk. The humane society is now located on County YZ near the A&W Drive-In.
*****
Japan went through a terrible disaster with that tsunami that occurred recently. Power went out in a lot of places and in one case, it was Dodgeville True Value to the rescue. Last Christmas Eunice Jewell purchased a very bright lighted mini flashlight with some "bells and whistles" on it for a grandson. His father made a trip to Japan and was there when the disaster happened. He was in a hotel that had all of the power lines cut and guess what saved the day for people to move around and get out of the hotel? You guessed it that little old flashlight that was bought right here in Dodgeville at True Value!
*****
People always give me grief about some of the things I say about my late buddy's place, you know that downtown Dodgeville bakery! So, the photo above should make up for some of the things I "supposedly" said that people thought were a little fictitious! Here, Brian and Julie Crubaugh are shown with Dodgeville Chamber of Commerce President Terry Fischer after that business was named "Business of the year" at the annual chamber banquet last Thursday night at Dodger Bowl. And, as anyone knows, when you go into the bakery and talk with Brian (or Chris) you really do "get the business"!