If Dick Weber were alive today, he'd be cussing up a storm.

That's because the International Bowling Hall of Fame and Museum, located on Dick Weber Lane in downtown St. Louis, closed its doors forever this afternoon forever in the Gateway City.

The closing isn't a surprise - that was announced this summer. Did you know the exact day it was closing? If so, you're more in-the-know that yours truly.

The powers-that-be in bowling closed the door on communication about the Hall of Fame after announcing its move.

I saw no advance notice the exact closing day and found out about it today when in the car, heard Bob Hamilton report it during hourly news on KMOX radio at 4:07 p.m.

The Hall and Museum locked its doors for good in St. Louis seven minutes earlier.

I'm angry. I wanted to go one last time. My mother, who used to bowl years ago, wanted to go before it moved. OK, it's my fault for not picking up the phone a few weeks ago to call and ask their staff the closing day.

But their lack of communication highlights again the problem with bowling - lack of information. Maybe the date was announced. But if it was, it sure was a big secret because it wasn't done enough.

We just ended a presidential election and the biggest complaint is that people were tired of hearing and seeing the same message repeated daily.

Well you know why a message is repeated? To make a person remember. Name a top soft drink. Chances are you'll say Pepsi or Coke. Name a top fast food restaurant. You'll most likely say McDonalds. Name a popular car brand. You'll get a variety of answers for this one, such as long-time GM lines like Chevrolet. Ford, Chrysler, Toyota and Honda will get a lot of mentions. I wouldn't expect anyone to identify Hyundai or Daewoo as a top-of-mind brand recall.

What they all have in common is they repeat their brand name over and over until it is indelibly etched in our memory. Bowling doesn't do that. And because of it, people forget. And when people forget, they don't participate in bowling like they could.

For that, I promise as editor of the Bi State Bowling Times to be more informed then let you know what's going on in the world of bowling.

If there's a positive for the Hall and Museum's move to Arlington, Tx., it's a destination for me when it opens in 2010. I grew up in nearby Fort Worth before moving to St. Louis in 1965. Hopefully my mother will still be alive at 88 to join me on that trip.

Finally, Dick Weber Lane remains on Walnut St. between 7th and 8th St. But is it appropriate for the block to be named after him when there is no bowling monument there?

I have a solution. Erect a small building on the block and put a couple of lanes inside for people to use like a park. Bowling lanes on Dick Weber Lane has a nice sound. And it'll be an infrastructure improvement to the area with Lake DeWitt (named after St. Louis Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt), a.k.a. Ballpark Village, next door north of Busch Stadium - now going on its fourth year behind schedule.

Given that development's well-publicized problems getting off the ground, maybe bowling's problems aren't as severe as we think.