Bump

Weekly update #333 6/7/2026 to 6/13/2026

When my daughters were little I would use a variation of the phrase “If a frog had wings would he bump his butt when he hops?”. Before that though, let me share some of my week serving as mayor of the best small town in America.

This week, I joined a meeting with Seymour team members and representatives from Indiana Department of Transportation to work through pieces related to O’Brien Street phases one, two, and three that stretch from Burkart on the south end to 4th street. This particular meeting was related to utilities through this corridor. If I remember correctly, there are nine different utility companies that we have to coordinate with for this over two mile stretch of O’Brien. If you have noticed the staking in this area that is so utility companies can begin their process before what most of us would consider construction can begin. To say projects like this, 2nd Street a few years ago, and Burkart Blvd before are quick easy projects would be a major understatement. Thank you to everyone that has been working on this project over the years. I appreciate you all.

This week, I had a chance to lend a hand at the Freeman Municipal Airport. When I shared with my wife that I was mowing she responded with, “I think you have mowed more as mayor than when we lived at our previous house,” and she is probably correct. During the course of the morning, I did manage to get comfortable on the equipment and mow a section that is scheduled a few times a year. It also gave me a few minutes to visit with some old friends from other departments that have transferred and now spend most of their days mowing at the airport. Thank you to the team out there for all you do above and beyond mowing. 

So if a frog had wings would he bump his butt when he hops? As I was driving somewhere this week, I hit the button on the steering wheel and asked this question that I used many times when my girls were little to see what response I would get. The response started as I would expect. “That’s an old joke/riddle: The idea is that with wings, the frog could fly or at least glide instead of landing hard on its backside after a hop.” Then it got a little deeper until it eventually landed on a piece I wasn’t expecting. “It’s one of those goofy southern-style sayings that’s less about biology and more about a humorous ‘if things were different, things would be different’ observation.” Just a few years ago, I didn’t have a car that I could hit a button and ask silly questions as I drove. When I was a kid, if you wanted to find your friends you jumped on your bike and started looking for a yard full of bikes. You didn’t pick up your phone and text the group to see where they were. Since 2012 corn production in Indiana has increased by 66% and soybeans have gone up 49% despite the fact that farmers are farming less acreage. I can remember that in 2016 I heard someone say that a street should still be white picket fences, and we should ignore multiple studies from decades before and businesses already along the corridor as we considered a petition to rezone. Ten years ago, the Farmers Market was smaller and vendors could set up everyday if they wished. Then about seven years ago, the organizers decided to move to a twice a week format and a slightly higher vendor fee. Just last week, I heard from the organizer that they are trying to figure out how to allow more vendors because they are full when everyone shows up. I share all this not to say everything has to change, but to remind myself and others that things are different and thus things will be different. Changes happen and each contributes to how the present is shaped.