We’ve almost got the first week of 2011 under our belts, so congratulations! Have you kept your resolutions? Me neither.

It’s time for the 2011 version of Caught My Eye – where I take a look at some of the news and information that I did not have time to comment about during the week.

Today I write about snow removal, a balloon drop, two idiots, political e-mails, a moose, falling, and much more!

So let’s get going…

The Balloon Drop:

For those who follow me on Twitter, you might have seen that I was planning a balloon drop on New Year’s Eve. Let me just say, it was spectacular! The one balloon I had hit the floor at just about midnight. Next year I may try to add a couple more balloons. I can’t wait…

Volleyball:

I used to love to play volleyball and I guess this moose does, too. The moose got tangled in the net and had to be tranquilized to get the net removed. Look for the moose to show up on the beach volleyball circuit this summer…but first he needs to work on his blocks without getting into the net…but I hear he is great at the dig…

I’ve Fallen…

I took a nice fall over the Christmas holiday (I have the bruises to prove it) and I am glad my wife did not leave me outside to freeze. Thanks honey!

So I feel for Montana State Representative Janna Taylor who took a tumble down the State Capital’s main staircase. Ouch. There’s no word if Culture Club’s hit, “I’ll Tumble For You” is a favorite on her iPod…

Two Idiots:

A couple of GOP U.S. House members (Pete Sessions and Mike Fitzpatrick) were busy during the swearing in on the House floor, but they saw it on TV and raised their right hands…but that’s not good enough. They went ahead and cast some votes, too. What a great way to start out the new GOP majority in the House…

Two Representatives raising their right hands in front of the TV…now that is freaking funny…

The Political Inbox:

As many readers know, I receive many e-mails from politicians and political parties around the country. So I like to let my faithful readers know what’s hitting my inbox!

-The Montana GOP was so excited about the Montana Legislature being in session that they sent two identical e-mails about it. One of the major things they let me know is the Republican legislators have a Facebook page and they blog. Whoopee!

We all know how these social media sites can get politicians into trouble…so we are waiting and watching both the Republican and Democrat sites for goodies….

–Senator John McCain sent me an e-mail with the subject “Send a message to the new Congress.” I would probably say “please ensure you are sworn in before voting” or something like that…

–Senator Jon Tester sent me an e-mail about the Food Safety Bill being signed by the President. He said it “was a victory for all Americans.” He also said, “I look forward to continuing to work across party lines on concrete solutions to keep creating jobs and moving our economy forward.”

Sure he does because his election is coming up…

–Senator Patty Murray (Head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee) sent me an e-mail with the subject “Hands Off.” At first, I thought she was maybe sending the e-mail to a fellow senator…

Murray writes, “The new Tea Party-flavored House next week will consider a bill to destroy President Obama’s biggest achievement to date: health care reform.”

I wonder how Jon Tester will vote on it when gets to the Senate…

-The DSCC also sent out one of their famed e-mails called “The Rant” crying about, “The GOP’s stated goal is to destroy President Obama, and their weapon of choice is the Senate filibuster. This could all begin to change tomorrow when Democrats begin attempts to modify the rules.”

In every new Congress one party or the other tries to “modify the rules.” One rule I would like to see modified is “stop spending!”

–Congressman Denny Rehberg sent out an e-mail telling me he had cut his office budget by 5%.

I guess there goes any chance of a being hired by the Congressman…or raises for those presently employed…

I wonder if Tester and Baucus will do the same…

Snow Removal:

The Great Falls Tribune finally noticed there was a problem with snow removal in Great Falls and did a story about it in today’s paper.

In my humble and honest opinion, the snow plowing process in Great Falls sucks. They don’t plow side streets or alleys. As one who worked for a city street department many years ago, there are much better ways to do this. First, it’s not a 9-5 job when the snow starts falling – it’s dividing up your crew into two 12-hour shifts and keeping the major routes open while the snow is falling and then plowing every street within 12 hours of the snow stopping. Then you pick it up and haul it away from the downtown area. It is overtime and long hours – it’s what we pay taxes for…and who cares if people complain about a snow pile. The roads turn into a mess if not plowed.

By the way Tribune, the photo in the paper was of state-owned snowplows, not city-owned snowplows. The city-owned plows are hard to find to photograph…

Check the Address?

“A Pittsburgh man’s home has been leveled after city officials say a contractor mistakenly demolished it along with a neighboring house.” Read the story HERE.

Somebody’s going to pay out the nose…

Rocky would be Proud:

A woman beat up a man with frozen hamburger. I wonder if he said, “Cut me, Mick.” Read the story HERE.

Attacked With Tree:

A 19 year old woman attacked her parents with a Christmas tree. Yes, alcohol was involved….Read the story HERE. I wonder if she was mad for not getting the gift she wanted…next year a lump of coal for you, young lady.

The Year that was:

Without the help of a newspaper, television or radio station in promoting this website, in 2010 The Western Word saw an enormous increase in readers and my followers on Twitter increased dramatically.

I am an independent writer and hold no allegiance to any political party, nor do I have editors or news directors telling me what to write or to “cool it.”

2011 will be a great year – so thanks for stopping by and don’t forget to follow me on Twitter for little tidbits of info throughout the day.

Most importantly, don’t forget to stretch…