Adams Supermarket is open now on the south side, but what’s the name of the guy who owns it?

I always thought it was a guy named Ahmad Abud — at least, when I went down there many months ago and talked to him, that’s the name he gave me. But when Jennifer Davis interviewed him for a story on the new grocery store in the Journal Star, he told her his name is Hussein Alsalahi.

I wouldn’t necessarily have noticed except that when Jenny’s story ran, there was a large picture of Abud/Alsalahi accompanying it. I pointed out the name difference to Jenny the next time I saw her, and she followed up on it. At the supermarket’s grand opening, she noticed that many people were calling him Ahmad, so she asked him why he had told her his name was Alsalahi.

First, he tried to make it seem like I didn’t interview him, but his older brother. When I said, No, you and I talked, then he changed his story and said he gave me his brother’s name because he was the head of the company. I asked him why he would do that and he said that’s the name he thought I should have.

Abud/Alsalahi’s company is called Pulaski Express, Inc. According to the State of Illinois’ Corporation File, the agent name on record for that company (File #62635517) is “Hussien Alsalahi.” He’s also been identified as Alsalahi in The Community Word.

So is Alsalahi his name or his brother’s? Or does he go by both names? I suppose there’s nothing inherently wrong with someone going by two completely different names. It’s just weird to me, I guess.

Work, family, church — these are all taking away my blogging time! 🙂

Of course, they’re more important. In the meantime, here’s an open thread — please feel free to discuss whatever you want.

Because of products like this one from Miles Kimball:

Motorized Ice Cream Cone

Motorized cone does the work while you have all the fun — rotating automatically as you lick! Sturdy plastic cone lets you enjoy leisurely licking without drips or leaks. Uses 2 AA batteries (not included). Assorted colors; we’ll choose for you. 5″ high x 1 3/4″ diameter.

Who is so deplorably lazy that they can’t turn their own ice cream cone while they lick? I love the last line in the description: “Assorted colors; we’ll choose for you.” Yeah, obviously — because if you’re too lazy to turn your own cone, you’re too lazy to pick out a color.

Here’s a picture of an electronic billboard that you can see at the intersection of west-bound War Memorial Drive and University Street. It looks pretty much like an old-fashioned billboard, except that the image changes instantly approximately every five seconds (I didn’t time it).

Obviously, these are going to become more and more prevalent, and there will be pressure from advertisers to continually push the envelope with how quickly they can change their images. Right now, it’s a series of static images. But it’s essentially a really big computer monitor, so you could have it do anything, technically. If the city allowed it (which they don’t), advertisers could run full-motion ads just like you’d see on TV or on a stadium scoreboard, albeit without sound.

So, my question is, what’s your opinion of these kinds of signs? What should the limits be? Are they too limited now? Are they not limited enough? Do you think they’re too bright or not bright enough?

Feel free to comment on whatever you would like today.

Here’s my comment just kick things off: Thank goodness the Minnesota bridge collapse wasn’t due to terrorism or you know we’d all end up having to take off our shoes and submit to a full body cavity search every time we wanted to cross any river in the U.S.

Something on your mind this morning? Type it out. It’s therapeutic.

What’s on your mind today? Tell us all by commenting in this open thread.

My wife and I had just finished dinner, and our kids (Maggie, 4; Jackie, 6) were still sitting at the table; James (2) was in his highchair. We walked into the kitchen and were talking when Maggie walked in and started this bizarre exchange:

Maggie [walking into kitchen from dining room]: “Mommy, Jackie just licked Jamie’s foot.”

Mommy [talking to Maggie, but loud enough for Jackie to hear]: “Yuck. Why would Jackie lick Jamie’s foot?”

Jackie [yelling her explanation from the dining room]: “ACCIDENTALLY!”

I have writer’s block or something. I haven’t felt like writing about much of anything the past couple of days. Until I get inspired again, tell me what’s on your mind these days.