Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Last weekend, the Brewers headed to Boston to begin a 15-game interleague gantlet that includes a road series against the New York Yankees, a home series against Tampa Bay and the usual home-and-home "regional rivalry" with Minnesota.

The team the Brewers are chasing in the NL Central race, the St. Louis Cardinals, don't play the Red Sox or Yankees in interleague play, home or away.

SHIOCTON, Wis. -- From 50 yards, it appeared as a reddish lump at the gray base of a mature ash tree.

At 20, several rows of spots were visible on the tawny shape.

Animal or plant?

If you've spent any time searching the Wisconsin landscape for a specific type of the former, you know the latter -- especially peeling bark -- is more likely.

But as we approached to within a few paces, a shaft of sunlight penetrated the canopy and highlighted the forest floor.

A black nose glistened, a pair of ears stood alert.

MILWAUKEE -- The poster in the Milwaukee Brewers' clubhouse reminds players that there will be a skin cancer screening for the team May 24.

Outfielder Mark Kotsay has his pregame rituals like any other major-league player. Spraying on SPF 15 has become one of them.

"We've had teammates who have had moles removed that were precancerous," he said. "Bobby Kielty (who was Kotsay's teammate in Oakland) was a fair-skinned redhead. He would apply so much; you'd have to get out of the training room. He sprayed it on, and it would be all over the place."

I always forget the soy milk.

How nice would it be if, whenever I walked into the grocery store, a text message popped into my iPhone reminding me: "Dude, do yourself a favor and remember to get the soy milk."

Michael Massie, a Milwaukee software developer and designer, and Bob Ralian, a local engineer and entrepreneur, are building a solution that delivers gentle reminders to your smartphone.

Airrand.com, which launched its beta late last month, is a smart to-do list that sends text message reminders when you visit specific locations.

MILWAUKEE -- What Simona De Silvestro says makes complete sense, yet that doesn't make it any easier to comprehend.

It's perspective, I guess.

When I was 16, I wanted to borrow the car to go hang out with friends. When she was 16, De Silvestro was making plans for her next move in racing internationally.

MILWAUKEE -- It's always easier to spend someone else's money.

Take two examples from the past week.

1. An accident at Richmond International Raceway sends four-time champion Jeff Gordon slamming into a wall on the infield side of the racetrack, concrete not protected by the SAFER barrier system. The impact hurts. A lot. And the admonitions rain down: It's ridiculous a car can still hit an uncovered wall in a NASCAR event. There should be soft walls everywhere .