Baker's heartbeat

       That's the big bird feeder whipping in the wind on Dec. 15. I eventually took it down and put it back up the next day.      Last Wednesday I was at a grocery store in Davenport to buy food and a couple of gifts.     I was in a hurry as the oncoming Dec. 15 windstorm had been predicted and was the main topic of news. This forecast meant I needed to return home to take down all sorts of items that could fly off, such as Christmas decorations, bird feeders and the like.     As I exited the store a gust of wind came, and several items flew off the cart. Two Good Samaritans --  including an elderly woman and a young man -- managed to capture the items that included an extra shopping bag and three of those big, padded, beige mail envelopes.     I apologized to the kind folks and made my way to the SUV and home. It took some time to take down and store all the items that would seem to be at risk in a big wind.     We got hit by the extreme wind later that night. We watched the rada

     The Interstate 74 Bridge opening to the public was on the "must do" list Dec. 1. What a wonderful, historic way to welcome the month of December to our area!     Here are the 'Top 10' impressions from yours truly, who moved to the Quad-Cities in 1982 -- around the first time the idea of the bridge came up:     10. Porta-potties: Yep, there were several, on both sides of the half-way mark on the new bridge.      9. Security: It was everywhere. The photo is of dump trucks, full of sand, parked diagonally.       8. The Big Screen: This was huge, and it showed pictures of how the bridge was built over the past few years.     7. The buses: From Metrolink of the Quad-Cities, the shuttle buses moved hundreds of folks from the main lobby of The Taxslayer Center. The headlines reflected the joy of the day:  'I-74 WE MADE IT."      6. Speech-makers: Mayors from the area spoke to a happy, appreciative crowd. My favorite was Moline Mayor Shangeetha Rayapati, who tal