txn4art

I live and work in the Greater Eastwood area and there isn't a good, fully stocked grocery store for miles around to meet the weekly shopping needs of local residents. The small "Kombat Kroger" on Polk@Cullen was cleaned up recently but has a limited selection in all departments. The HEB in Gulfgate. Fiesta on Wayside and Sellers Bros. on I-45 are all merchandised to compete with the small, Hispanic-oriented tiendas scattered throughout East End neighborhoods. A recently-opened Super Walmart on I-45@Wayside has yet to discover the meaning of "fresh produce" -- its grocery prices aren't all that wonderful either. By default, my go-to grocery stores are HEB on W. Alabama, Kroger on Montrose and Randall's in Midtown. Often, I see my neighbors -- of all ethnic backgrounds -- shopping in these same stores.

Anyone who suggests the Astrodome as a great site for a botanic garden hasn't visited many botanic gardens! Establishing a botanic garden takes a lot more work than moving dirt around and planting a bunch of trees and flowers.

I "inherited" a '57 Plymouth from my folks. It was red and white with huge tail fins, and had black and red upholstery with metallic gold accents. The big V8 engine was powerful and definitely not economical, but gas in those days was cheap.

It would probably be okay to plant vegetables and berry bushes in raised beds if the contamination is not in the topsoil. Fruit trees with deep roots...maybe not. The East End covers a large area and not all of it is industrial, so how likely is it that residential neighborhoods developed in the early 20th century have contaminated soil? Of course, there's the lead paint chips scraped off when houses are painted.

About phone exchange names -- my dad worked for a U.S. government agency in the old Federal Building downtown and his office number was on the Fairfax exchange. My parents lived in the East End during the 1940's-50's and had a Wayside number that apparently was changed to WAlnut at some point.

Seems like some of the younger people on this forum need to look up the etymology of the word "gay". Also, if memory serves correctly, the name of the Westbury Square shop mentioned by Iron Tiger was The Gay Dot Party Shop.

When I moved to the Eastwood area several years ago, HEB Gulfgate was a much better store than it is now. At some point, the HEB head honchos decided to re-merchandise it to compete with the likes of other area grocery stores with a predominately Hispanic clientele such as Sellers Bros, Fiesta on Wayside, and the smaller ones. However, many of my Hispanic neighbors drive out of our area to grocery shop at HEB and Kroger in Montrose, as well as Randall's and Fiesta in Midtown.

Grocery stores like Aldi have a limited selection and are not the best choice for an urban "food desert".

When is the new Walmart on I-45@Wayside scheduled to open?

The Soanes Museum, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, Formerly the home and studio of Sir John Soanes, a Georgian neoclassical architect who collected antiquities and Old Masters paintings throughout his life. They are all displayed, just as he arranged them, in 3 interconnected townhouses. Best to check winter hours before visiting.

Due to the lack of decent grocery stores in my area (Broadmoor), I'll sometimes shop at Randall's on Louisiana just because it's fairly close to home.Trying to load all the Just-4-U deals, weekly specials and coupons with varying expiration dates to a Randall's card is ridiculously complicated, but it's the only way to avoid paying inflated prices for food. I may be wrong, but Randall's is the only grocery chain in town that sells bunches of broccoli and heads of cauliflower by weight instead of by the piece! Of course, if one doesn't have to budget for groceries, where one shops doesn't matter.

I'm in Broadmoor as well and, when I heard the explosion around 9:15-9:30, I remembered that the towers were scheduled to come down that night. My dog is a rescue and is terrified of thunder and loud noises; she sat shivering in a corner for several minutes afterward.