houstonmacbro

I've thought about this also. Though not on such a grand scale as TheNiche (hundreds of acres), but maybe 10 or 20 acres somewhere between here and Austin. I really like the Washington county area just for the rolling topography and wildflowers, but the cost of cleared acreage seems to be in the $10,000 per acre range that close to Houston. It gets better as you move toward Austin until you get in commute range and then prices head back north. Just based on land and house prices, there must be people that make the commute or just want to be close to Houston or Austin, but further out in the country. I wonder if these prices will come down drastically as gas prices rise.

I have a 100% telecommute job and homeschool my kids so the major roadblocks most people face aren't there. I don't think I can convince my wife to totally leave the city though (she's a confirmed city girl) so we might end up having to buy some land on the cheap and build something small as a weekend or week-at-a-time country getaway. How long I could stay out there would depend on how hard it is to get high-speed internet. Has anyone had any experience with getting internet in the country or small towns? I've also been contemplating building my own small house/shack to save money and maybe just to say I did it myself. Does anyone know if you have to have building permits and inspections if you build way out in unincorporated areas?

Yeah, those big estates are also very expensive. Unless you're raising cattle or crops or have some big bank, it takes a lot of money and time in upkeep.

From Chron:

Wow. That's almost half of the people who say they will vote for McCain. How does this happen?

Paraphrasing Colin Powell, "so what if he is?"

It's funny. On one hand these same folks are saying he is a fervent supporter of Rev. Jeremiah Wright, and on the other he is Muslim.

Which is it?

I got the Facebook note. Thanks for keeping us updated.

I prefer Sudoku on my iPod touch and the news in my NetNewswire news reader.

What happened to the article. Was it wishful thinking on the part of the Chron editors?

Another one bites the dust:

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/chronicle/6081958.html

It always amazes me that people still read the paper. I know that sounds odd, but I mean actually read a physical paper from end to end.

I actually have mixed feelings about this myself. I want gay marriage to be a right since it's an equal rights issue. But I also view marriage as a religious proposition, and since we're not religious people, my partner and I have little interest in marriage.

My take is that the government should only 'certify' civil unions, regardless of whether the couple is straight or gay. This would offer equal rights by providing the same legal framework for straight and gay couples.

The couple's church would then be left to sanctify it's concept of marriage, under it's own banner, if that's important to the couple. This would take the impetus out of the anti-gay marriage crowd, at least from a national political perspective, and churchgoers could join the church that best meets their needs/prejudices.

Yes, keep the government out of the marriage act and let it just legalize the union. Let churches that want to or not actually marry people.

Well, "Poltergeist" for me I guess. I think we had a similar thread last year?

I've mentioned this before as well, but there is one movie that is not a horror film, though the main plot is sort of macabre. It's not gruesome or scary or anything of that sort, but there is about a four second scene in this movie that is the most unsettling scene I've ever witnessed in a movie. I'm sure everyone would disagree, because it isn't that big of deal, but I avoid this movie like the plague because of that one scene. I think I've seen it twice. Once when I was about 10 and again when I was a teenager and that scene had the same effect on me each time. I will not watch it.

And no, I won't name the movie because as soon as I do, sure enough someone will find a picture and post it here, and I'm serious about this.

The Exocist

and

That other movie with the funny little ball that would whiz through the house and hit you in the skull, drilling a hole in your head...

Forget the name.

Good Point, I much prefer using MERCs over our military to kill off a few crackheads that are taking potshots, at law abiding citizens in dire need, because they need a fix. I don't want our military personnel being spit on for doing their job, protecting me, and they happen to kill a few crazed crackheads. I'll let crazed mercanarnies do that job any day of the week. I am sure those Kent State protestors would have not been so giddy, if they had seen a bunch of men all dressed in black with skimasks and M-16s coming at them, they would have ran for the hills and dispersed immediately.

You must live in a BAD neighborhood that is stuck in the 80s. Crack is so out now and meth is the drug of choice for 'crackheads'.

I find it odd that Metro is using NYC and LA to justify a fare increase because when you look at the cost of living in these cities and the quality of transportation options and services, you're actually getting quite a bargain. Compared to those cities, the service we get in Houston is barely worth .50 cents.

Yeah, we are paying more for much less service. That is certainly not a justifiable increase to me.

I like some of the European approaches to marriage. No matter IF you get married (male-male, male-female, female-female) in a church, the government has to legalize the 'marriage'. You can just have a civil union or go all out with a fancy dress and carriage if you like.

No one ever talks about implementing socialized medicine (certainly not Obama or mainstream Democrats)... which would involve the US government dissolving the entire private health insurance industry in favor of a single-payor system. This simply would never happen in the US, so you are essentially building up a Straw Man to beat down on this issue.

And I think this is key. There are a lot of doctors, hospitals, and drug companies that would go berserk if that ever came to pass.

It's called being angry and bitter... they are just being an "Obama-hater".

..and probably clinging to guns.

There is not a single bordertown I would set foot in today. It just ain't worth it!

Mexico has a serious drug problem. Seems like it has moved from Columbia to Mexico.

I am from eastern PA... the better half!! ha ha ha Western PA (what Murtha was talking about) is a little bit more "backwards"... there are racist people there... but there are racist people everywhere, including where i grew up. Everyone thinks Pennsylvania is liberal b/c it's in the Northeast... the cities are very liberal, but most of the state is rural / suburban... these areas are obviously more conservative.

Are people form rural areas more racist or just more conservative?

I make 23,000 a year before taxes. Yeeah!!! BABY! BABY!

I'm impressed.

Still not unreasonable compare to other cities.

Boston: $1.25/$1.50 cash

Chicago: $1.75/$2.00 cash

Dallas: $1.50

DC: $1.25/$1.35 cash

Denver: $1.75/$3.00 express

LA: $1.25

NY: $2.00/$5.00 express

Seattle: $1.50/$1.75-$2.25 peak times

Although I read recently about some city (MPLS? Denver? I forget) that has managed its mass transit so well that it's actually reducing fares.

I was very surprised and impressed by the quality of mass transit in Los Angeles. LA is a town that lives and dies by its cars. Chicago is a town that lives and dies by the CTA. But in LA bus and train service was FAR more plentiful than in Chicago. LA's service is so good the slogan is "Service so frequent, you don't need a timetable."

I live in LA in 1999. I was very impressed with their transit system too. I was able to get just about anywhere I wanted to go on either the bus or the metro (rail) and do it quickly. I wish Houston would get on the ball.

I just bought Tina Turner Live in Europe. A lot of her 80s hits but done live. Nice recording and I think it showcases her voice a bit better than studio stuff.

I don't think he will win Texas, but I don't think the spread is going to be as much of a slam dunk as in the past 2 elections.

Damn ! The guy elected to replace the previously disgraced official........REALLY ???

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5997043&page=1

Either that picture is pixelated badly or she is hideous. He could have done a whole lot better. She looks like Batman's Joker.

Ick.

There's an interesting article on Bloomberg today about how Dubai's financial position isn't nearly as rosy as it used to be, or as the hype would suggest. Now Dubai wants to borrow money from its neighbors to pay its bills.

Some key quotations:

By comparison, the U.S. GDP is $13.84 trillion, while the debt is $10 trillion. But the U.S. has a lot more robust and diverse economy than Dubai.

Man, I thought they paid cash for all that building. You mean to tell me it was financed in loans?!?

Me too, but I get a mix anyway because I like both, with spicy sauce.

The sauce was yummy. Tell me ... exactly what are those veggies? I thought it was spinach, but then I wasn't so sure.

And yes, Doozo is so fantastic.

I enjoyed the pork a bit better than the veggie.

I'm excited about HP, but there's something that I'm more excited about...

Healthy competition. Houston Center is now going to have to up its game to keep the lunchtime patrons. So much so that they'll seriously have to think about expanding their hours to evenings and maybe even weekends. Then they'll also have to diversify their retail offerings to lure people away from the one or two good ones that HP has. We've set the stage for a restaurant and retail war for downtown Houston, but it's a war that everyone is going to win.

I really wished they were open on weekends. I've always thought they could have those electric helicopter competitions in all that open air space they have. That could be a big draw.