From the editor

Sometimes I want to go back to teeter-totters and tire swings. When I was a kid, scrapes and bug bites tattooed my legs from sleepless nights of flashlight tag, the crawling game and midnight swims. A mug of hot chocolate and a mountain of marshmallows could cure my frozen limbs, numb from the endless hours I spent catapulting myself down an icy hill on a saucer. The only things I balanced were my Barbie carrying case in one hand and a glass jelly jar filled with captured fireflies in the other.

The freedoms of youth disappear as we grow older. They are replaced with a lifestyle that offers the choices and decisions we long to make but then end up dreading. Reality sets in, and the magical world of make believe suddenly comes true. We aren’t teaching a class of our favorite stuffed animals; we’re actually molding young lives. Monopoly money gives way to rent, mortgage and monthly bills. Once imaginary technologies come to life as cell phones beckon and BlackBerries addict.

This edition of curb is all about balancing the professional with the personal, the recreational with the responsible. It’s about giving you the security to step out in a world that has no guarantees, but unlimited options. It’s about maintaining stability among the constant changes and doing so with grace and ardor.

I admire you for making it this far. You have begun to live the life so many warned you about and chose to do it in the great state of Wisconsin. A long list of new responsibilities fills your calendar now, and I can only imagine what you’re going through. Just keep walking, one foot in front of the other. curb will be here to help you keep your balance.

Jenna Elliott
Editor