Jeebus

It's hard to find a place (at least in my experience) in Houston that serves an authentic creole style gumbo. Given how many transplants we have from Louisiana, that seems odd. Many places I've been to serve a gumbo that is more like soup than gumbo. I'm looking for a bowl of something with a dark roux, preferably with seafood instead of just chicken and andouille sausage, not loaded with too much rice and too much okra, and without a watery consistency. Anyone know any places where I can get some real deal gumbo without crossing state lines?

Actually.. What you described as what has been passed to you as authentic Creole gumbo sounds like exactly what authentic Cajun gumbo would be. Thin soupy roux with a medium brown color and chicken & sausage but no seafood, is as Cajun as it gets. The okra is hit or miss literally depending on the town.

I would say EVERY place I've been to in Houston that serves "authentic Cajun gumbo" has usually been passing off the Creole gumbo that you've been looking for instead. Try any of the southern Seafood houses like Pappadeaux's or Landry's.

Good luck.

It's illegal for cars to pass bikes at 10 over the speed limit with inches to spare, too. Just pointing out that this gives us a chance to reciprocate the favor.

Two wrongs don't make a right.

What's the different between this, compared to a large group of "professional" bike riders like what I see out here in the 'burbs every weekend? I don't understand why this is even an issue? Is the group targeting busy intersections or trying to purposely slow/stop the flow of traffic? Is there a devious plot to the bike ride, or is it truly one of mass enjoyment?

And can we please stop referring to Montrose as Neartown? Please? The push has been successful in renaming Fourth Ward/Little Saigon to Midtown and the Galleria to Uptown, but c'mon, Montrose is the most established neighborhood name in the city. What's with this push to give Houston's neighborhoods Manhattan-styled names? At least in Manhattan, Uptown, Midtown and Downtown are geographically accurate. What's next, the Heights is SoHo and East End is Greenwich Village? We can call the Fifth Ward Queens and the Third Ward Brooklyn while we're at it. The possibilities are endless!

EaDo is easily the worst offender of them all.

It takes a lot more effort and intrusion to prove that someone is illegal than to simply force a blood test which will easily conclude whether someone is drunk or not.

Have the local law enforcement SCREEN for illegals when enforcing the law is far easier and cheaper ANY anti-DUI program out there - especially one where medical technicians are needed to draw blood and run tests.

I know this isn't quite apples to apples... but on the flip side... if ethnic minorities want to rename streets in their area, would it be too un-pc to rename them back once/if they've been gentrified away?

e.g. eado's chinatown, vietnamese street signs in midtown. Only a matter of time till those are obsolete.

Funny you mention this. On the south end of Midtown, around Austin and Louisiana, I noticed NEW Vietnamese Midtown District signs.

As for renaming Hillcroft, don't. Instead, dedicate a portion of the road to Gandhi, and call it the Gandhi Memorial Corridor. The street remains Hillcroft, but gets a little namesake upgrade. Everyone wins.

NEVER give them cash. Give them a meal. I (on rare occasion) will ask them what they want to eat - pick any fast-food. Most of them tell me to ________ off. Oh well. No meal, no money, no pity.

Sugarfree RedBull personally.

So accounts are coming forward defending the woman. Good. I hope this cop, and possibly any others that were abusing powers get reprimanded and punished for this.

I have no idea if it was the same guy, i was infront of the gas station down near Dunlavy. Twice this officer rode by the crowd pushing them back and the horse actually touched people in the crowd. On one instance the horse randomly side stepped and at least two people fell over. My friends and I started yelling "HORSE" whenever the officer came up so everyone could all get out of his way as he was going fast, and didn't seem to be in good control (i'm no expert but i am familiar with horses). I'm probably wrong, but i swear the officer looked angry with us because we were preventing him from being able to push the crowd back??

Now you're just being paranoid. You know they ONLY pick only the horses that are genetically proven to NEVER get spooked, and officers with the patience of Shaolin monk to ride them.

I encourage you to google mounted patrols and crowd control. You'll (apparently) be very surprised at how useful horses are in crowd control, as well as how common it is.

I have no need to google anything. I am very aware of the history of the mounted patrol and its importance in helping control large crowds. Because of that, and personal experience on Bourbon street (not during Mardi Gras) I know first hand how aggressive those mounted officers can be and how hard they push their horses.

To say its never happened before does not automatically preclude them from fault either. But don't worry, I'm getting the vibe loud and clear from the forum tonight: "That ______ had it coming and got what she deserved."

as with most events with large crowds, it's better to be proactive rather than reactive.

I agree 100%. Understand I'm not knocking the police. I'm knocking some of their tactics. I wasn't there, so ultimately I would probably be a better cow and just continue to graze.

However, I want to know why this happened and I don't believe the HPD version of it. The girl got her face stomped in by a horse. That's not normal at all! I wonder if perhaps some photos of the area where this happened around the approximate time will surface on flickr? I just want to see how unruly the crowd was at the pride parade that HPD felt the need to send the mounted patrol down the edge of the street in the first place.

Red, you're just playing Devil's Advocate. Had I posted harshly in favor of the actions of the police you'd be slamming those keyboard keys right now lecturing me on that girl's civil rights.

Not sure what the point of your pictures were, except to thinly veil the insinuation that you think I'm a lush. Your first picture implies that the crowd at the PRIDE parade is as unruly as the drunken fools on Bourbon Street, and in the second picture they're simply patrolling during the day, and not at a parade - so I'm not sure what the point of the picture was, except that mounted patrols do still exist in other parts of the country - which no one ever argued.

Also, I'm not sure why you had to bring "redneck" into the conversation either?

Having a police presence at any event this size is a must. Having them on horses at big outdoor events is necessary for them to see and be seen by those that might need them.

It sounds like an unfortunate accident.. and the family can be pissed all they want... but that doesnt change the fact that having a visible police presence at big events is a good thing and

I'd rather a horse knock a ladys teeth out than the absence of police lead to a drunken mob burning my car.

On another note.. i live but a few blocks of Westheimer and the entire day was quite festive and everyone seems like they had a lot of fun.. and I for one would like to thank the cops for the spledndid job and allowing me to wake up to having a car in one piece that wasn't vandalized by a drunken mob.

Its one thing to have a police presence, its another thing to do things the way HPD does - which is always over the top. I'm also pretty sure had it been your wife, family member, or friend, you wouldn't be so quick to say that they were "just doing their job."

You say you'd rather have a girl lose a few teeth rather than the absence of police. Why must it be one extreme to the next? I've been to quite a few parades (many of them being Mardi Gras) in my life in many cities and off hand can't remember there EVER being a mounted police force for crowd control. Why here and why now? Is the gay community that unruly in large numbers?

They're lucky that half-ton beast didn't crush her skull and kill her. I'm sure many here would just shrug it off as an accident to a trouble making rebel-rouser though.

Lawsuit and News coverage. That's what I'd be demanding if that happened to my wife. Especially after this lame B.S. comment:

Police say the officers, and the horses, were just doing their job.

“They were using verbal commands and using whistles to get people out of the streets. People were pouring into the street,” said police spokeswoman Jodi Silva. “Everybody obeyed except this one person.”

The officer, P. Hernandez, and his horse, Kato, moved closer to Reimers to urge her onto the sidewalk, Silva said.

“Officer Hernandez was shouting at her and moving forward slowly on his horse,” Silva said. “He continued to tell her to move back (and then) Kato accidentally bumped into her.”

What a crock. HPD needs to realize that they are not NOPD and this is not Bourbon street. I guess their lame excuse is that because it was an animal that its not police brutality. The question has to be asked, do you think this woman would have been as injured had an officer confronted her, she refused to move and they arrested her? NO.

The Motorcycle Funneral patrol is just as bad. They violently cut you off in traffic, nearly causing a rear-end collision, then yell and scream at you because no matter how fast you stop - it wasn't fast enough.

THEY'RE DEAD - WHAT'S THE RUSH!?!?

Get a grip you power-hungry A-holes.

I saw him at the Conan O'Brien show and he looked healthy. Sad. He was a very young daughter, too.

I suspect a slow brain bleed:

Mays, 50, was on board a US Airways flight that blew out its front tires as it landed at a Tampa airport on Saturday, MyFOXTampa.com reported.

US Airways spokesman Jim Olson said that none of the 138 passengers and five crew members were injured in the incident, but several passengers reported having bumps and bruises, according to the station.

Authorities have not said whether Mays' death was related to the incident.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,529328,00.html

It's a mixed blessing and yes, it probably sounds like a contradiction. I think the cultural integration is a good thing overall, as it allows folks to see that most gays are just normal people. It helps to erase prejudice. I wasn't around to see the crazier stuff of the 70's or 80's but I've heard stories, and maybe it's a good thing that it's toned down.

Ricco makes a good point too. The trade off for wild rambunctious parties seems to be public acceptance. Of course, EVERYTHING was better in the 70's and 80's, depending on who you ask.

I do understand your complaint about the floats. Its a parade, make it festive. Now that there is a surplus of entries, perhaps the parade committee (whoever they are) needs to put some rules out for float criteria.

Looking at a person's iPhone screen really can say a lot about them. I don't have one (I love Verizon too much) but my wife does. It looks nothing like yours though. Thanks for sharing.

Had to make room for Dominque, the "home-town girl".

but it's gotten to where it's so safe and family-friendly it's boring at times. I'll probably go anyway with some friends for something to do, but I actually wish it was a little crazier and less corporate.

You want the public to support the Gay community, but don't want them at your events "toning them down".

lol.. Can't have your cake and eat it too I guess.

Beyond the proximity to downtown (and everything west of downtown) and the architecture - I don't see the appeal either. And no, I'm not trying to compare it to any other neighborhood - I just don't see the appeal period.

Its nice though. I'm not knocking it, I just don't get it.

There is NOTHING bleeding heart or Liberal about charity towards a senior citizen. Any act of kindness towards them by a young person is proof we are still a truly a civil society.

Thanks for the story, but why mention his race? Is it because you thought it unlikely that an elderly Black man would have as much success charming a free ice cream from the young lady as much as an elderly White man perhaps would have? I'm not attempting to call you out as a racist or anything like that - I'm just merely asking out of curiosity.

How is Biodiesel not "green"?

Green is not how its harvested, but the emissions it leaves when burned.

Diesel is diesel - no matter the source.

Don't agree with it at all.

Just curious, what were you driving, and what color was it?

Does it say anywhere on the ticket how he obtained your speed?