editor

It's on my big list of things to see.  I'd love to get out there and ind out what birds there are.

On 7/12/2023 at 8:36 AM, Naviguessor said:

As if all RMHC did was to rent rooms with a little extra space and a kitchenette... Really, dude!? 

I have no personal experience with RMH other than seeing its TV commercials, and when one went up in my neighborhood, that's how it positioned itself as a place where sick children can stay for free while getting medical treatment.  At least that's how they presented it on television and to the neighbors in order to get construction approval.

I went for a little walk this morning, and found that all three MetroRail lines downtown are closed for construction.

They're digging up the tracks connecting the southbound Red Line to the eastbound Green/Purple Line

They're also fixing the bricks at westbound Green/Purple/Red frog

And they're actually finishing the east end of the Central Station Capitol platform, which has been unfinished for at least two years.

There maybe other work happening, as there's lot of trucks parked on tracks around the area.

3 hours ago, IWantTransit555 said:

Many articles have shown the high amounts of fecal and other bacteria at Texas beaches. People also say that the poo comes form runoff from the many rivers that empty into the Texas Gulf. So the question I am asking is what can we do about the poop filled runoff? We can't just put filters across all the rivers the empty into the gulf!

It depends on whose poop is the problem.

A number of beaches on Lake Michigan were closed over the Independence Day weekend because of poop from birds.  It hadn't rained in a long time, then it rained just before the 4th, and shoosh — lots of poop in the water.

If it's people poop, that's something that can be handled.

Modern cities have separate storm and sanitary sewer systems.  Cities like Milwaukee have a unified system, so when it rains too much the whole thing overflows, and poop goes into the lake. 

I have no idea what kind of sewer arrangements Houston-area cities have, but I'm sure there are smart HAIFers who do.

1 hour ago, hindesky said:

TXDOT is installing barricades around the empty lot next to Graffiti Park. Talked with the same TXDOT worker I saw at the old Mexican Consulate lot they now own. At that time he mentioned they were going to install them here too. He said they have gotten lots of complaints from the neighborhood about crimes being committed here and by city council person who is over the district. He said Sekai uses it for valet parking and they don't have a contract to do so. Again he doesn't know a timeline for construction since he and his crew work for the maintenance division of TXDOT. The highway realignment is the responsibility of the construction division. He mentioned they will be installing more as business move out and they buy more properties between the current feeder and St Emmanuel St.

He mentioned the barricades came from a piece of property TXDOT owns at Long Dr. and IH610 south loop. Said they will finish today.

Interesting tidbit but unrelated to this, he mentioned that TXDOT is turning over ownership of Allen Parkway to the city. He seemed to think it could be turned in more Buffalo Bayou parkland if the city decides to go that way with it.

Imagine a pedestrianized Allen Parkway…

On 7/8/2023 at 2:48 PM, bobruss said:

Thats what the banners are for.

What banners?  The few banners that only exist on one small section of one small street, while the rest of the building presents a blank face to the world?

Is it a National Guard armory?  Is it a prison?  Is it a central chilling station?  There's certainly nothing about it that tells me that it's either a museum, or that it has any interest in welcoming the public.  It's perhaps the most artless art museum I've seen.

Prime advertising space.  Put a big Corn Poppy on it.

Nothing to see here, citizen.  Move along.

As a point of reference, I am a paying member.

I hope that Santa Fe car gets treated well.

On 7/8/2023 at 10:31 AM, Chris said:

Has anyone seen the new WLS-TV Chicago ABC O&O affiliate's new graphics package? I read that all ABC O&O stations will soon be moving to this new package that took nearly 3 years to develop. Its a pretty nice package, I can see this being used at KTRK. They are way overdue for a new graphics package. Take a look below.

 

With the fake pagination arrows, fake scroll bar, and map icon, it looks like they're trying to make the broadcast signal look like a web cast. 

IMO, a bad idea.  Each medium has its strengths, and should be utilized that way.  A one-size-fits-all solution rarely is.

The camera-panning-around-a-bookshelf cold open is… pretty old.  BBC Bristol has been using that for its Bargain Hunt open for at least a decade.  This is an older version, but you get the idea:

On 7/8/2023 at 10:56 AM, Naviguessor said:

Coloring the bayou would make us a punch line of every late night comic and a laughing stock for years to come.

If we dyed it blue, sure.

But if it were dyed different colors for different holidays, that would be less subject to ridicule.

You could make a half-day festival out of sequentially dumping in different colors during pride weekend.

The problem, though, is that the bayou's rate of flow is erratic.  The rate of flow of the Chicago River is almost always  precisely controlled, and generally runs pretty slowly compared with Buffalo Bayou.  I once had an apartment looking down on the main branch of the Chicago River, and can tell you the green color lasts about a week with its slow flow. 

On 7/9/2023 at 1:41 PM, brucesw said:

Egg Plant Parmesan - 😊 - the eggplant could not possibly have been unknown to Houstonians, could it?  Just a typo?

Spelling was a little more free-form back then, especially in non-national settings. 

"To-day" was also very common.

It seems like there was a big push toward more standardized spelling after the demise of the campaign to adopt words like "thru" and "thoro."  That, incidentally, was the brainchild of newspaper barons like McCormick, who were trying to save money on ink and paper.

20 hours ago, BeerNut said:

OPEC has more to do with gas prices than Biden.

You're not wrong.  But as they say, "all politics is local."

See also: "If you tell a lie enough times, it becomes the truth."

7 hours ago, IntheKnowHouston said:

2211 Congress St was sold in December. The property is owned by an entity called 2211 Congress Investments LLC. According to entity filings, the entity is from Charles Kalas. Kalas is the proprietor of Joystix at 1820 Franklin St.

County records also shows Kalas purchased the 2201 Congress St parcel last month.

I don't know what is in store for the properties. However, a subordination of lease agreement on file with the county lists Joystix as a tenant. 

I may have briefly met him a few months ago.  I was walking by the building and admired his collection of machines through the window.  After I'd moved on, he came out of the store and called after me asking if I wanted to buy anything.  I told him, I didn't have room for that sort of thing, and asked him for suggestions for an arcade nearby. 

Unfortunately, I forgot the name of the place he told me, so I never went.

But from our brief interaction, he seemed at least neighborly and helpful.

4 hours ago, ChannelTwoNews said:

You can now officially add ExxonMobil to the list.

https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2023/07/10/exxon-mobil-headquarters-move-spring-official-sec.html

"Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) officially changed the headquarters it has listed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to Spring this month, making it the largest publicly traded company headquartered in the Houston area."

I wonder when/if Chevron will follow suit.

Surely, there are tax benefits to being headquartered in Houston, compared with California.

3 hours ago, samagon said:

and how much water do those bayous move compared to Buffalo bayou?

They all vary from hour to hour. 

Today's peaks so far:

• Brays Bayou - 3,100 cubic feet per second
• Buffalo Bayou - 1,200 cubic feet per second
• Greens Bayou - 1,300 cubic feet per second
• Sims Bayou - < 1,000 cubic feet per second
• White Oak Bayou - 190 cubic feet per second

On 7/10/2023 at 9:45 AM, Pleak said:

I dunno.   I have always heard that a lot of very wealthy people fly in to Houston expressly for being treated at TMC.    And I imagine some of their stays are for a while - with families.

They do.  I know someone who interacts with people like this. 

But they don't stay with other people.  They rent (or in some cases buy) houses for the duration of their stay, because often they are here for the better part of a year or more.

There never seem to be enough extended stay hotels near large medical centers.  If there was, Ronald McDonald House wouldn't be needed.

On 7/8/2023 at 8:48 PM, Highrise Tower said:

I wonder the percentage of hotels sitting empty, and that are very active, in the TMC area?

Medical Center hotel occupancy is currently at 62%.  That seems low to me, since other large American cities are reporting revenue exceeding pre-pandemic days.  But all I've heard is revenue figures, not occupancy, so that could be a reflection of soaring hotel rates.

10 hours ago, samagon said:

yeah, seems odd to me, but I was at Green Street and there's a workout thingy there, and they had an espresso bar.

I don't understand, but I guess there are enough people that are wanting to get a shot of espresso post workout that it's a thing.

Maybe it's a real estate maximization strategy, like why limit your building to one demographic, when you can being in two.

Similar to how restaurants realized that they were paying rent 24/7 on spaces they only used a fraction of the time.  That's why every fast food company now does breakfast, and why some restaurants rent out their kitchens overnight as ghost kitchens or for companies to make bakery goods to deliver to coffee shops in the morning.

I think that's enough Trump talk in this section. This is supposed to be about state politics. There's a National section for Mr. Trump. 

On 7/2/2023 at 7:30 PM, JLWM8609 said:

The closures already occurred back in 2020-21. There's 32 locations left now.

The only Luby's downtown I'm aware of is the Luby's Etc. in the basement of the Civil Courthouse at 201 Caroline. It's only open from like 7am to 3pm M-F, and they serve smaller portions at concession prices. I'm not even sure it's under the Luby's umbrella since Luby's sold its Culinary Contract Services Business to Pappas in 2021. 

Yeah, that's the one I was thinking about. I haven't been there, but they put a sandwich sign on the sidewalk some days. 

On 7/2/2023 at 6:17 PM, k5jri radio said:

Mall of the Mainland addendum: Previous comments about this shopping mall located in Texas City TX were mostly from the point of view of Galveston County and Harris County residents who were familiar with where this mall was located and how to get there. From what I've read on various postings, The Mall of the Mainland was not visible to motorists driving on I-45 (Gulf Freeway) between Houston and Galveston. Most tourists (myself included) who traveled on I-45 between Houston and Galveston would have been unaware of its existence unless they had prior knowledge of the mall's location, what exit to take to get there, and how to get back to I-45. Keep in mind this was during a time before the era of smart-phones and other electronic aids.

 

 

 

 

   

I don't think that's right. I knew about the Mall of the Mainland in 1999 just from driving by. It had a big sign facing I-45. 
 

The reason nobody stopped was because it was set far back from tree freeway and there was no obvious exit for access, especially at 70MPH. 

On 7/2/2023 at 10:28 AM, 79ta said:

What do you guys think about these estimates? What steps will each city and Texas in general have to take for this level of population to work?

https://www.movebuddha.com/blog/visualizing-us-cities-2100/

 

https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/houston-population-growth-2100-18177002.php

 

 

Not a reputable source, and too far out for any kind of certainty. 
 

Look at how much turmoil there has been in the last 20 years. These people are trying to say they know what's going to happen over the next 80? Not a chance. 

On 7/1/2023 at 7:55 PM, Ross said:

Father Troy was the pastor at Sacred Heart. He was too popular with the church goers for the Arch Diocese, hence the transfer out West to St John Vianney.

How long was he at the cathedral?  
 

i ask because priests get transferred all the time. A priest I was going off got transferred once and when I asked him about it, he said that unless there's a school attached to the parish, it's unusual for a priest to be stationed at a church for more than five years. 

On 7/1/2023 at 7:57 AM, trymahjong said:

..as for me, I live very close to Montrose Collective in one of those 100+ year old houses. I have tried to turn my backyard into a meadow of sorts with dandelions, clover,allysum and spreading ground covers all surrounded by Texas native blooming bushes and flowers- but no fireflies- ever in 20 years here- sigh

Glad to hear you're doing the right thing in terms of re-wilding your lawn.

As for fireflies, don't be disappointed about not seeing one.  According to Smithsonian Magazine, they're hard to spot much beyond the east coast:

Quote

Well, you can see fireflies in the West, but you have to look a lot harder, says Marc Branham, a research associate at the National Museum of Natural History and an associate professor of entomology at the University of Florida. There’s kind of a firefly Continental Divide, and it has to do with flashing behavior among adults. Among Eastern species, males flash while they’re in flight to attract females; those species don’t live farther west than Kansas, except for a few isolated populations. Out West, it’s the adult females that glow, but only while they’re on the ground, and very faintly—so faintly their glow is hardly detectable even to a human eye fully adapted to the dark. And few people venture out without a flashlight or other light on.

I once read that seeing fireflies is very hard west of the Mississippi.  I know someone from a very rural area of the Midwest who's never seen one.

Following up to my own somewhat-off-topic post, I got a letter in the mail today from Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York, and it makes a distinction between the parish and the cathedral, too.

It reminds me that there is a basic distinction between a church/cathedral and a parish in modern Catholicism.  There are plenty of churches and cathedrals with multiple parishes (many in Chicagoland), there are parishes with no church (I've seen this in Seattle), and even churches with no parish (Las Vegas).

I think that was the root of my confusion above.  I've long seen the two as distinct entities.

19 hours ago, Amlaham said:

I hate it soo much :(, I know we technically need gas stations, but why do they have to be in such prime intersections and have 105 pumps?!

They're going to feel pretty foolish in ten years when the freeway is gone.

8 hours ago, Highrise Tower said:

I found a postcard for the Allen Park Inn motel located at 2121 Allen Parkway.

I believe it flooded during Hurricane Allison and was unable to recover. The AMLI 2121 Apartments replaced the old motel inn.

Anyone have any memories here?

 

I think it might have been torn down before Allison.  I worked a block away from 1999 to 2003, and have no memory of that place.