ssullivan

Yeah I think they're kind of like a Waffle House, with a little more focus on non-breakfast food. They're usually in very small freestanding buildings. I've seen them all over Georgia and the Carolinas.

I am very against this, but I also don't think it's anywhere close to a done deal. A possible Continental-United merger has been a rumor in the frequent business travel community for years now, and has been something that has been generally looked upon very negatively by frequent travelers from both airlines. I believer the meetings the two airlines have had regarding a possible merger have been more of a reaction to US Airways' ridiculous proposal to acquire Delta. There's almost no way Continental and United are going to commit to a merger unless they are forced to by two major competitors agreeing to merge. In the end, I think both would rather remain independent, but they are willing to merge if they feel they have to based on what the competition is doing.

I'm generous with tips in restaurants for good service -- but if the waiter is rude or just doesn't seem to care, the tip will suffer some. I usually tip the lady who cuts my hair about $4, which is around 20%, but sometimes give her a little extra if it's around the holidays or she works me in when she's really busy. I don't usually tip hotel housekeepers, mainly since I spend about 200 nights a year in hotels, and they aren't paid below the standard minimum wage. I do usually leave a tip in larger, very expensive cities like New York though. When I do use a bellhop at a hotel, I give them $1-2 per bag handled. I always tip cab drivers and food delivery people. As for the guy who changes my oil, person who runs the cash register at the grocery store, and other similar workers I might encounter, I do not tip them. At times I get frustrated with the expectation of tipping -- to me it should be a little something extra for excellent service, not something that is automatically expected. I've seen a tip cup out in places like Whataburger before! I'd much prefer tipping as most European countries do it -- it's not expected, and when it's done, it's because the service was exceptional, not just ordinary. Of course, that would also require that restaurants pay their staff appropriately, which is not going to happen any time soon.

LOL, and how did you, as a young'un, know this?

Interesting article -- but not really news to me. But I'm sure for those who aren't as informed about such matters as domestic partner benefits and employee networking groups for gay and lesbian professionals it's very informative. I do consider myself fortunate to work for one of those 263 Fortune 500 companies that offer equal benefits to employees with same-sex partners, and provide an organizational atmosphere where I don't feel like I have to hide certain aspects of my personal life or my career will suffer. In fact, out of 33 people in my practice area, 5 are gay or lesbian, including one of our team managers.

For me, 2007 will bring a major decision regarding whether I move or stay in Houston. And if I stay in Houston, probably the purchase of a condo or townhome. At work, hopefully a year that is a little less busy than this one has been, but still busy enough that my job and income remain secure. And in my personal life, hopefully closer relationships with my existing friends, new friendships with people I have not met yet, and hopefully the development of a special relationship with someone.

Sure, I'm up for it if others want to do it.

I don't get into all the Friday after Thanksgiving hype. This year I was content with staying home and working on projects there most of the day, and enjoying a day off. I did venture out to Circuit City to pick up a new LCD monitor for my home PC that I ordered online, and waited in line about 10 minutes to pick it up around 1:00 PM, but I was still in and out of the store quickly. And yes, the monitor was on sale, but that was just a bonus to me -- I was probably going to buy one over the weekend anyway. But this business of people camping out overnight at stores, or stores opening before 7:00 AM is ridiculous. I really don't think the stores make all that much money on those sales anyway, because they are often selling many of the biggest bargains at or below cost. I'll do most of my shopping on weekday evenings when the stores are less crowded, and online, where I don't have to deal with going to the store at all.

Great pictures!! I'm planning on a weekend in London in late January and can't wait to go back -- it's one of my favorite cities. And you lucked out with the weather. I've never seen it so clear in my previous trips there.

I don't know about the mall in Syracuse. I was actually working over in Utica, so didn't spend much time in Syracuse except at the airport.

I don't think any of this will happen, at least not with US Airways acquiring Delta. Doug Parker is obviously out of touch with reality on this deal, especially since the "new" US Airways is still such a mess and still operating as two completely separate companies at this point. At least with the US Airways/America West merger it sort of made sense, as one was strong only in the West, the other strong only in the East, and both were pretty crappy all around. The two also had pretty similar fleets. But with Delta, there's a ton of route overlap all over the nation, almost no fleet commonality, and even though Delta is a shadow of its former self, the company has done a great job in the last year of turning around its image, improving service, and positioning itself to be a profitable, full-service airline. Being bought out by US Airways would ruin all of that, and just make problems at US Airways worse than they already are now. Doug Parker needs to focus on fixing the many things that are wrong with his company now, not trying to grow through hostile takeovers.

Wow, how sad. I've been out of town the last couple of weeks and too busy to keep up my HAIF habit during that time, so I had no idea. I was just in there about five days before they closed too, and wondered if something was up just because there seemed to be a lot less variety in the take-out cases. I still have some cookies I bought on that trip there in the freezer. I'll definitely miss Eatzi's. While I can cook quite well, with my work travel schedule stocking up on groceries and cooking doesn't always make sense, and Eatzi's was one of my regular spots to run in and get a good meal to take back home. I will definitely miss them, although places like Whole Foods, Central Market, and Yapa are still around with similar things. And I ditto MidtownCoog's vote for Pret a Manger in Houston! They could make a fortune with locations in areas like Downtown, Uptown/Galleria, Greenway, and the TMC.

Well these days I'm back and forth to MSP a lot. So I'm bracing for a long, cold, snowy winter.

Yeah and there's no way they'll be able to stay in business flying that plane with so few passengers.

No, haven't been to Asia yet. Just saying it would be great for IAH to have more nonstop service to that part of the world. Yeah, the EWR delays can be bad, although I have a good track record there. But most of the time when I'm in that airport I'm flying to/from NYC, not changing flights there. However this Friday I do have to change flights there. Hopefully won't be any issues this time!

Yeah, wouldn't mind seeing a couple of new IAH-Asia flights on them as well. No as for EWR, it's not all that bad. Sure I've had my issues with the staff that are full of the Jersey attitude, but I have had some good experiences as well. Just last Friday, when my SYR-EWR flight was delayed for several hours due to air traffic control not giving us a slot to get into EWR, my three-hour layover at EWR evaporated into less than 20 minutes. I ran through the terminal and still made my flight to IAH, and fortunately they hadn't released my upgraded 762 BusinessFirst seat. But the amazing thing was my checked luggage made it too. So despite being trapped on a little ERJ next to the SYR runway for over two hours waiting for takeoff clearance, I still made it home right on time, with my luggage in a very comfortable seat. So I have to give some props to the EWR staff for not releasing my seat and getting my bag transferred on a very tight connection.

It depends for me. I absolutely love to fly, which is good since I'm on a plane every couple of days for work. However, there are times when I want to make getting to my destination part of the adventure. Then I don't mind a road trip. I've also done a couple of long distance train trips when I didn't want to drive but still wanted to enjoy the scenery along the way. But if I'm going someplace just for the weekend, and just want to get there, flying is the way to go. When I do drive, I'm not the type to drive all day and night though. I have to stop along the way each night, with no more than about 6-7 hours of the day in the car, or else I go crazy.

No No No No No! The last thing I want to deal with on my weekly commutes by air is 100+ people around me chattering away on their phones, especially since 90% of them will feel the need to yell into the phone loud enough half the plane can hear them. I'm sorry, but if you're so darn important that you can't go a couple of hours without talking on the phone, then you can either charter a private jet or drive. Give those of us who fly commercially a break.

Me too! Should start seeing them in Houston in 2009.

Had no idea he was ailing either. What a shock.

Yes it does! It looks nice too... adding it to my list of potential places to consider buying should I decide to stay in Houston next year.

Yeah, was thrilled to hear that on the radio this afternoon while out on my lunch break.

Mine's nothing exciting - first initial and last name.

Nothing that I know of, other than the fact that she's from San Francisco, supports things like equal rights, raising the minimum wage, expanding health coverage, etc. You know, the stuff that makes ultra-conservatives so upset. And for that she was made the poster child of liberalism that the Republicans and religious righters could throw darts at. Well said! I'm sick of the crap that has gone on in our government for so long, and this "you're either with us or you're against us" mentality that has prevailed for far too long. Truth is, neither party has a monopoly on what's right for the country. It takes a balance of both sides. But this business of not allowing the minority to even have a voice is nothing but childish bullying. Now that the balance of power has shifted, let's hope the Democrats stick to their word to bring civility, respect, and cooperation back to Congress.

There's also the current Harris County Jury Assembly Building. From the outside it looks like an office building, but almost all of it, excluding a couple of lower floors, is a parking garage.