The Disappointing Tribe, Beach Glass & Local Music: Listening To Local Voices

1. Remember when the Cleveland Indians had a commanding lead in the Central Division?

I'm not saying they're that far out of it -- they aren't; they are only a half game behind Chicago as of Thursday -- but their play has not been that encouraging as of late.

reflects on how these sudden cliff dives .

"Cleveland Indians baseball is like the love of your life: There are so many great moments between you two and you will always love them. But when you get swept by Chicago, then go 1 out of 3 between the Royals and the Twins, they make it hard for me to love them," he writes.

.

2. Summer means a lot of things for a lot of people -- family vacations, boating, tube tops (probably not all three in conjunction.)

For Jane Skoch, it means beach glass. She writes about how she enjoys combing the local beaches for beautiful baubles.

I suspect she's not alone. ?

3. , a musician, offers some reflections on the local music scene .

One of his reflections -- the music scene is just like politics.

See .

4. Patrick Giusto -- the self-proclaimed defender of common sense -- muses what it must be like for someone like Mitt Romney proposed by some of the fringer proponents of the Republican Party.