As much as I dislike running into creeps occasionally on Craigslist or MySpace, I’ve come to appreciate these Web sites for their use in exposing creeps.

I'd like to tell a story about abandoned houses in Scott County. I know of a couple in the area, but am looking for more. I'd also be interested in other buildings that may be of worthy note. I'm not talking about foreclosed properties that are now  vacant, but buildings that have been just sitting empty for a while for who knows what reason. If the property is close to Scott County, I'd also be interested. E-mail me at sfiecke@swpub.com or post the location and info here. Thanks!

If any group of people is more self-promoting than chiropractors, real estate agents and multi-level marketers, it's got to be musicians. 

As a former daily traveler of University Avenue between St. Paul and Minneapolis, I always thought that if any place made since for a light rail line, that would be it. The road is super busy and is a major conduit between the cities, with much of the population likely to use transit.

I just received the following group e-mail from Rep. Mark Buesgens, R-Jordan, in which he makes some good points about the cost of the project. Read it and tell me what you think:

One of the best parts of growing up on a farm is being able to drink straight from the bulk tank. Although my family lived in town (but close enough to the country for a savorywaft of manure on windy days), my grandparents operated a dairy farm just outside of Winsted. Sometimes when we visited, we brought back a gallon of milk. Unlike milk from the store, which is homogenized, this a was very creamy whole milk. My mom would skim the cream that rose to the top and set it aside for cooking. When she wasn't looking, I'd sneak a spoonful of the cream from the refridgerator.

As I entered the picnic shelter outside Jackson Town Hall I quickly realized I was out of place.

On Saturday afternoon, I was worried about time, not dress, as I rushed from a meeting in St. Paul to take pictures at the Shakopee Lions Ice Golf Tournament, with plans to leave as soon as possible to fit in a scheduled apple strudel-making session with Grandma before heading back to St. Paul to a different Lions Club charity benefit and then on to Minneapolis for a bachelorette party.

The more I've messaged on MySpace or Facebook, the more technologically illiterate it seems I've become. For the past few weeks, I've tried to decipher what people mean when they write :D or :P at the end of their sentences. I only know :)  means smile and :(  means frown.

The other day, my 16-year-old brother instructed me to use ;)  for a wink. I always thought ;) was just a typo as someone attempted to :)  My brother also told me LOL means "laugh out loud." I had always used it as "lots of love." Which definition do others think is correct?

The Metropolitan Council has done a nice write-up on the process