Emily Matthews RE Agent

09/09/2026

09/09/2026

British joke (steering wheel) from Blethering Glasgow Toon

09/09/2026

A higher-for-longer Fed rate means smart investors get disciplined, not sidelined. 💡

Local markets show steady prices and activity. For investors, that means returns are less about hoping for big jumps in value and more about staying strategic with how you finance and manage deals. 📈

Leverage amplifies upside but can squeeze cash flow quickly in today’s environment. Prioritizing conservative financing, fixed-rate loans, and keeping ample reserves are the keys to staying resilient. Every property you buy or hold should pass a stress test, not just on today's numbers but under tighter scenarios down the road. 🔍

The strongest opportunities now favor steady income and long-term stability. That’s why I work with investors to spot deals that make sense even if rates drift higher or appreciation slows. Want an edge? Focus on deals that hold up when things get tougher, not just when everything goes right. 💼

How are you rethinking your leverage and cash flow strategy this year?

Emily Matthews, RE/MAX Universal Realty, 513 Water St, Sheboygan Falls, WI 53085
[email protected]

09/09/2026

County Highway "X" Closure Notice - September 14

CTH “X” between STH “67” and CTH “A” will be closed Monday, September 14th, 2026, for a culvert pipe replacement.

The work involves replacing an existing culvert in this section of roadway.

The closure will occur from 6:00 AM to 4:00 PM, weather permitting, and is expected to be a one-day closure.

A detour route will be in place as follows:

From the east: CTH “A” south to CTH “XX” west to STH “67” north to CTH “X”

From the west: STH “67” south to CTH “XX” east to CTH “A” north to CTH “X”

09/08/2026

On September 8, National Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nurses Day recognizes the hardworking and dedicated professionals bringing care to patients every day.

09/07/2026

🚗 Manitowoc is shutting down city-owned Flock license plate cameras after weeks of privacy debate. See link below ⬇️

📸 Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

09/07/2026

In 104 AD, Roman engineers broke ground on a bridge over the Tagus River in what is now Alcántara, Spain.

No concrete. No steel rebar. No modern adhesive. Just granite blocks, cut and fitted with a precision that still puzzles civil engineers today.

The bridge took roughly two years to complete. When it was finished, Emperor Trajan commissioned an inscription for a small temple at its center. The inscription read, in part: a bridge that will last forever.

He was not wrong.

The Puente Romano de Alcántara stands today, nearly 1,920 years after the last stone was placed. Trucks cross it. Tourists walk its six arches. The Tagus still runs beneath it.

The arches rise 48 meters above the river. The longest single span stretches 28 meters. Engineers who have studied the structure note that the granite was quarried locally and transported without the benefit of mechanized equipment, yet the tolerances between blocks are measured in fractions of a millimeter.

The Romans used a technique called opus incertum for the core fill and dressed the exterior faces in ashlar granite. The arches rely on the geometry of the voussoir, wedge-shaped stones that transfer load outward through compression rather than fighting it with tensile strength. Roman engineers understood that stone is strong in compression and weak in tension. Modern concrete is the opposite problem managed differently.

The bridge has not had an easy 1,920 years. It was partially destroyed in the 8th century during the Muslim conquest of Iberia. Rebuilt. Damaged again in the Peninsular War in 1812 when a span was blown up to slow Napoleon's forces. Rebuilt again.

Each time, the original Roman stonework remained. Each repair grafted itself onto the Roman core.

In 1988, heavy flooding struck the Tagus valley. A modern concrete bridge downstream, built decades earlier, collapsed. The Roman bridge did not move.

There is a phrase in Spanish engineering circles, not quite a joke: si quieres que dure, que lo hagan los romanos. If you want it to last, have the Romans build it.

The Puente de Alcántara is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is classified as one of the finest examples of Roman bridge construction in the world.

Almost two thousand years old.
Still open to traffic.
Still exactly where they left it.

09/07/2026

Did you know? Wisconsin is number one in ginseng production in the United States. Our state produces about 95%, over one million pounds, of ginseng each year. Wisconsin’s rich glacial soil, combined with warm summer days and cool nights, and cold winters make our location excellent for growing gold-standard ginseng. Ginseng was made our state herb in 2017. More than 90% of Wisconsin’s ginseng is grown in central Wisconsin’s Marathon County, generating about $40 million each year for the county. Most of our ginseng is exported to China.

American ginseng is a slow-growing short perennial herb, with leaves that look similar to a strawberry plant and has small red berries. But the bulky, gnarled, beige roots are the real stars in medicinal herb production. The word ginseng is taken from the Chinese term, jin-shen, which means “in the image of a man,” because ginseng roots often take the shape of a person with thick bodies and leg-looking roots.

Ginseng seeds are planted in the fall for a spring germination, but it takes at least three years for a ginseng plant to grow enough to be harvested. Wild ginseng, also found in Wisconsin, grows in shady forests. Cultivated ginseng needs shady growing conditions too. Farmers create artificial shade using posts and fabric. When driving around Marathon County, you may see many of these tented crops.

Once ginseng is harvested, it cannot be replanted in the same soil. The soil is fine for other crops to grow in after ginseng is removed, but ginseng farmers must find new land to plant new ginseng seeds. It can take 50-100 years for the land to recover and be able to produce ginseng if planted.

📸: Workers preparing ginseng beds in northern Wisconsin | 1938 | W0127E4

09/07/2026