Shoe Column: Odds and ends

By Tim “Shoe” Sullivan

It’s time now for some odds and ends. This and that. A little here … a little there.

So let’s get right to it.

• One “odd” thing that I personally witnessed in Stevens Point happened several years ago, and it happened right in the middle of our city. Do you know where the First Baptist Church is? The one with the nifty wooden floor indoor basketball court?

Well, several years ago, I was outside next to my friend’s house, which was located exactly across the street from that church. And next door, just south of my friend’s house, was an older house.

In the backyard of that older house was a big garden.

I looked at that garden and saw a little old lady kneeling down, planting something. She was really focused on her project.

And suddenly … a deer came out of nowhere and jumped right over the lady who was kneeling!

The lady never saw it.

I saw the whole thing. I was stunned.

The deer jumped into the garden and continued running.

I ran over there. I asked the lady if she knew what had just happened.

She said, “No.”

She obviously didn’t believe me.

But she then did believe me when I pointed out the tracks the wayward deer had just made.

What a crazy moment.

• Stevens Point natives from way back probably remember the wonderful post office “Point” had downtown. The one with those terrific Italian marble pillars in the front.

The post office was demolished many years ago. The marble pillars were all broken up and placed along the banks of the Wisconsin River. The pillars are still there, about two minutes from the former Mead Park swimming area.

• Two of my favorite people in Point are moving south in Wisconsin. They are Mags Ann, the outstanding bartender at the Final Score, and Leah Hazzard of Aspirus Cardiology. They will both be missed a lot by many people. Both are really class acts.

• Once and for all, let’s explain where Stevens Point’s “downtown” and “uptown” are.

Let’s start with the Clark Street Bridge. A block or so east of the bridge is the area known as “The Square.”

The Square is on the end of downtown.

Or uptown.

So, which is which?

Well, if you are on the Southside, like by Skipps, and you head north, you would be going to uptown. If you are north, by like the Final Score, and head south, you will be going downtown.

The uptown and downtown are the same area.

If, however, you are on the Southside, you can’t go downtown because you’ve already passed it. And if you are on the Northside, you can’t go uptown because you’ve already passed it.

Are we all clear on this?

If you are already downtown, you can go north or south or even east, but you can’t go west because that’s the river.

If Petula Clark was singing about Stevens Point’s “Downtown,” where the lights are much brighter, the song was only meant for Point people on the Northside who will be going south to downtown.

Petula would then have to come out with a new song called “Uptown.”

That would be for all of the Southsiders going north.

And the Clark Street Bridge was NOT named after Petula Clark.

However, you CAN see the Italian pillars along the river by Mead Park if you look really closely from the bridge.

• I had a 50-year-old kid’s record player stuck in my basement closet. It was in there because it didn’t work anymore. Needed a needle.

I asked all around Point, uptown and downtown, to see if anyone could fix it.

Nobody could.

Then I met Tom Smrz. He’s a mechanical genius. A local guy.

He fixed it in one day. Brought it back, and it plays just like it’s new.

• I recently discovered Channel 189 on TV. The “Movie” Channel.

There are many great movies on that channel.

Black-and-white classics from the ’40s and ’50s. Edward G. Robinson. Bette Davis. Walter Brennan. Gene Tierney. (She’s a beautiful gal.) John Wayne. Gregory Peck. Ray Milland.

And some classics from later years. “The Dirty Dozen.” (Pinkley’s a general!) … “Kelly’s Heroes.” (“Always with the negative waves, Moriarty.”)… “Patton.” Lots of neat war movies.

Just watched “The Ron LeFlore Story.” Detroit Tiger fans will remember him.

I saw a photo of the old Point Southside. I never bought a brand-new Schwinn bike from Hetzer’s.

But I sure wanted to.

Like I said, Hetzer’s was on the Southside.

In other words, south of uptown.

There will be a quiz on this in the future.

• And if you ever want to know about walleye fishing in the area, look up “Walleye Dave” on Facebook. He’s a local, wonderful bus driver. He knows everything about the Black Bridge and the island and walleye hot spots.

He’s kinda like the Tom Smrz of walleye fishing.

A fishing genius.

And he knows how to filet and clean ’em.