Pete Bach of The Post-Crescent recently did an article about the exciting firm I work for, Innovation Edge. The story is "Former Kimberly-Clark Exec Leading Innovation: Cheryl Perkins Reinvents How Firms Plan Their Futures" from the Dec. 23 edition. Nice work, Pete!

I'm amazed at how much innovation is going on in Wisconsin and even right here in the Fox Valley. While we have clients all over the country as well as in Western Europe, Russia, and the Middle East, I'm especially happy to work with local inventors and companies looking for help with their innovation strategy -- always great to see exciting opportunities closer to home.

In the video below, Appleton's Mayor Timothy Hanna demonstrates that he can do more than just conduct city meetings. Now he's conducting French horns - 91 one of them, in fact. This event, Horns-A-Plenty, took place on Dec. 21 at the Avenue Mall in downtown Appleton, one of our holiday musical traditions. Don Krause organizes this event that brings together numerous French horn players from around the Fox Valley and beyond.

Some other photos from the event are shown below. The first one is my son, Daniel, home for a while before returning to college at Brigham Young University.

The day after I returned from an amazing trip to Russia, I ran over to Appleton's local outlet of Russian foods, Russian Delights at 2171 W. Wisconsin Avenue, almost next to the Flowerama shop. Nice selection of Russian specialties. I bought some borscht, some pickles and pickled cabbage, some Russian dumplings, some more chocolate (but they don't carry the topline brands like A. Korkunov), and other items. The owner is very friendly. Fun place.

Appleton has a sister city in Russia, Kurgan. I understand a delegation from Kurgan will be here again in March with some technical folks. Hope to meet them! I really enjoyed the many Russian people I met in Moscow recently. Many fabulous scientists are there.

Seems to be a lot of interest in Russia in this community, based on how popular Russian language materials are in Fox Valley libraries.

I've had a number of guests come into the Fox Valley recently and tell me about their hotel experiences. Based on their feedback, I think I can strongly endorse the Wingate Hotel in west Appleton, the Copperleaf Hotel in downtown Appleton, and the Bridgewood Resort in Neenah. There are a variety of other good choices described on my main page about Appleton, but these are three excellent choices if you're coming to town soon. All offer good wireless Internet access, good service, and comfortable rooms.

Are you worried that Appleton is always bitter cold and frozen? Chill out! The climate is often quite pleasant and quite manageable, as I explain in this video. It was recorded a little earlier in 2007 by a friend as we were driving to a business lunch.

The Best Western Bridgewood Resort Hotel and Conference Center was just given two awards at Best Western's North American convention: "Best of the Best in Quality" and "Best of the Best in Design," according to the Post-Crescent, Dec. 2, 2007, p. E-2.

Two friends of mine who have traveled to the Fox Valley many times told me that this is their favorite place to stay now. They liked the wide variety of room choices, the cleanliness, the design, and the service. I've been there for many meetings and really like the design. Have no qualms in recommending it, though I usually tend to recommend the Copperleaf Hotel or Country Inn and Suites. The Fox Valley has a number of good choices for places to stay.

A friend of ours, Pearl Hu, has a column in the Post-Crescent about her experience in Japan. This brave young lady spent a couple months in Japan this summer learning about the culture and language while working at a youth camp helping Japanese kids. What a great experience!

Many residents of Appleton have increasingly reached out to other nations and cultures to widen their horizons, and we are increasingly finding visitors from all over the world on our streets. Cool!

(And I can hardly wait for an upcoming trip I have to Moscow, as part of an amazing contract InnovationEdge has to help Russian scientists find ways to commercialize their inventions in the West. Wish me luck!)

I've had a chance to try a few additional restaurants in the area recently. Here are some thoughts on pizza:

Boston's Gourmet Pizza: Outstanding! True gourmet pizzas with high quality ingredients and carefully crafted flavors. I had a Florentine pizza with rich, bold flavors (artichoke heart, relatively moist sun-dried tomatoes, spinach and basil) and a wonderful crust (relatively thick). A genuine treat. Bread sticks were great - not too greasy. They also offer salads, pasta, burgers, and other dishes. Nice decor, good service. Pleasant atmosphere, good for a business lunch or family outing. 3470 W. College Ave. Phone: (920) 882-3777.

Cranky Pat's Pizza - from one of the partners that first popularized pizza in the Fox Valley in the 1950s with Frank's Pizza Palace. As with Frank's, they specialize in oven-fired, thin-crust pizza with great toppings and plenty of flavor (see menu). Very high flavor to calorie ratio! I've normally shied away from thin crust pizza, but Cranky Pat's reminded me of what it can be. Who needs lots of crust when the sauce and toppings taste so great? They are at 905 S. Commercial St. in Neenah. They've been there a long time and the place could use some refurbishing, so don't expect elegance. But it's a fun and tasty place. I tried the lunch buffer ($7.60). The salad bar was meager but adequate. The pizza is what it was all about. Not my favorite pizza place, but worth considering if you enjoy thin crust. Phone: (920) 725-2662.

Appleton is now using energy-efficient LED lights for Christmas lighting. Nice move.

By the way, I'm actually planning to invest in a major LED supplier, Cree (ticker: CREE), an innovative manufacturer of white-light LEDs. I was invested in them a while ago, sold at a profit, and think the time may be right to get more.