Author Archives: Katherine Wikoff

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About Katherine Wikoff

I am a college professor (PhD in English, concentration rhetoric) at Milwaukee School of Engineering, where I teach film and media studies, political science, digital society, digital storytelling, writing for digital media, and communication. While fragments of my teaching and scholarship interests may quite naturally meander over to my blog, this space is intended to function as a creative outlet, not as part of my professional practice. Opinions are my own, etc.

Tic-Tac-Toe Office Windows

Posted on January 22, 2016 by Katherine Wikoff

That’s what all the different light-fixture patterns inside all the window squares put me in mind of, anyway 🙂

Posted in architecture, Milwaukee, Photography | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Approaching “Lake Effect” Snow

Posted on January 4, 2016 by Katherine Wikoff

A high-pressure system to our north is causing a strong breeze to come in from the northeast. As the cold Canadian air crosses over the warmer water of Lake Michigan, it is picking up moisture, forming it into dark clouds … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Milwaukee, Nature | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Menomonee River, early morning January

Posted on January 2, 2016 by Katherine Wikoff

I had an appointment that took me along the Menomonee River Parkway early this morning, and as the sight of morning winter sunlight on the snow beside the river is one rarely glimpsed in the normal course of my daily … Continue reading →

Posted in Milwaukee, Photography | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Crow amid empty branches, December 31

Posted on December 31, 2015 by Katherine Wikoff

Crows are sometimes seen as bad omens, even signs of impending death. But they are also seen as omens of positive change and messengers from the gods. I much prefer the latter interpretation, especially as catching sight of this one … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Nature, Photography | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

12 Days of Christmas Songs (#5) – “Barbara Allen”

Posted on December 28, 2015 by Katherine Wikoff

“Barbara Allen” is a real downer of a song; no question about it. And it isn’t really a Christmas song, but I have always associated it with this time of year, dating from my first viewing of A Christmas Carol with Alastair Sim … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Life, Music | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

12 Days of Christmas Songs (#4) – “Silver Bells”

Posted on December 26, 2015 by Katherine Wikoff

Christmas shopping when I was young meant pausing at magical window displays while trundling along snowy sidewalks in heavy coats and boots between the fancy department stores and the Woolworth’s and Kresge’s five-and-dime stores. Tinsel, pine boughs, and strands of multicolored lights … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Music | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

12 Days of Christmas Songs (#3) – Handel’s Messiah

Posted on December 25, 2015 by Katherine Wikoff

Merry Christmas! For today’s post, I thought the most appropriate “song” might be Messiah, the most significant musical work ever composed about the life of Christ within the context of Biblical Old Testament prophecies about his birth and Gospels about his life, … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Life, Music | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

12 Days of Christmas Songs (#2) – “Have a Merry Merry Merry Merry Christmas”

Posted on December 24, 2015 by Katherine Wikoff

During my childhood in Ohio in the 1960s, my mom (and grandmother and great-grandmother, for that matter) were fans of Ruth Lyons, a pioneering Cincinnati radio and television personality who began her career in the earliest days of commercial radio in the 1920s. … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Life, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

12 Days of Christmas Songs (#1) – “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming”

Posted on December 23, 2015 by Katherine Wikoff

The “Twelve Days of Christmas” is actually the 12-day period beginning on Christmas Day and ending on January 5th (the day before the day the three kings/Magi/wise men visited the Christ child, aka “Epiphany“). So I’m getting started a little early. Backstory: … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Music | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Looking forward versus looking back

Posted on December 17, 2015 by Katherine Wikoff

Strange how a shift in perspective changes everything. I was walking north with the sun at my back this afternoon when I noticed this interesting pattern of shadow and light reflections on the sidewalk ahead of me.After walking a little farther, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Photography | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments