"I go way back to the 60's on State Street. Back in those days Madison was a hot bed of antiwar activity. There was often a hint of weed and tear gas in the air. State Street is where it was cool. People were friendly and outgoing. We thought we were going to change the world....alas, it didn't happen.\n\nState Street is still a very interesting place to take in. There are some great restaurants and cool little shops that are hard to keep my wife out of. I'm the same way with the book stores. Still a lot of energy on the street. This time I walked from the campus to the capital building and back. I handed out 14 one dollar bills to panhandlers along the way. I purposely broke a $20 for ones to give away. I still think generosity is a virtue. These hard luck cases are the only people who will talk to you. The students scurry by hoping to avoid eye contact. Is it because they have no face-to-face interpersonal skills, or because they are terrified (not that I blame them for the way things are going these days)? The only folks who will actually say hello in passing are people in their 50's or older. Disappointed that the Veterans' Museum is closed. Stopped for a slice of pizza and an Earl Grey tea. It's still fun to people watch. Plenty of benches to sit and drink your beverage of choice. I had a good time that walk. Some of the panhandlers are very interesting people. If you have the heart and the nerve and a pocket of change you can hear some unique stories. Back in the 60's people would offer you weed on the street. That doesn't happen any more (some people would call that a good thing). I can only say that walking down State Street can still be an adventure"^^ . "1"^^ . . "2018-05-25T00:00:00"^^ . . "1"^^ . "4"^^ . . "2"^^ .