BWSchultz

There is a movement in its very early stages to do something about the ordinances so that we can get get alcohol, at the very least wine, in Pearland. I don't know many details yet but as I find out I'll post.

Yes, please keep us posted. If HEB can't have a substantial wine section, I really have no clue what they'll use all that space for. They'll need a car dealership in there.

I hate having them scan my ID.

Buchanans is a total sod ripoff. I got it for $165 per pallet, installed. A pallet has about 500 sf of sod, the price per sf was about 33 cents.

Agreed. $1.50 a square foot? This isn't kitchen tile. I paid $100 a pallet for my new backyard, including the installation.

very cool. i read that in yesterdays paper. Its going to be a huge HEB. With the line off 288 trying to get onto 518, every afternoon, I can imagine how busy that center will be.

It would be really nice if they could use some of the massive space for wine, as the article suggests Plus Stores to have. But that's not possible in Brazoria, is it?

Nope. That's D.C.

In Austin, my only concern with all this development is that the view of the Capitol (spelled with an 'o') from S. Lamar will be obscured. It's one of the things that define that corridor.

If so, ah well... Cest la vie.

I know the Madison Wisconsin capitol building (which is nearly identical to the DC capitol) has a one mile radius stipulation. No building within 1 mile of the capitol can be taller than 187 feet. This is purely for view preservation.

Is Austin growing faster than the other big three in Texas?

Here's a short article:

http://www.click2houston.com/news/9357274/detail.html

Ahhh... I thought some of their pictures looked familiar. They do the Wisconsin State Fair and Summerfest each year. I can't say I've ridden any of their rides for several years but certainly when I was a little kid growing up in Wisconsin each summer.

I just picked up a kitchen table set and a coffee table and two end tables from Star. Then, over to Roomstore for the sofa / love seat. Last stop was Storehouse for a big chair.

All in all, the best experience was at Storehouse. Pricey, to be sure, the chair cost more than the sofa / love seat microfiber combo. But they had numerous fabric samples you can put on the furniture at no extra cost. So I went with a cool striped pattern to add some color to the room. The saleswoman there actually seemed to have a sense of style, unlike all the other places who are just trying to move inventory. I don't have the chair yet - a custom pattern takes about 4-6 weeks to arrive.

I'll say a couple words about Gallery... yeah, it's worth a stop, but I just don't get it. Their prices aren't any better and their selection isn't any greater than Star. The first thing their associates say is... "We can deliver it... TODAY!!" To which I say, "Who cares???" Both Roomstore and Star delivered three days later. Who can't wait three days?? Also, Gallery has WAY too many employees. I don't need to be asked "how y'all doing TODAY?" 33 times by 27 different employees. Just ridiculous. They should give you a special coat to wear if you don't want to be bothered. They're a little too eager to hand out cell phone numbers, business cards, next of kin...

What kind of TV do you have? I've noticed that since I've gotten a 42" plasma HD, that all standard programing looks pixelated & "smudged" compared to HD programing, recorded or not. I do partially blame this on TWC though.

I've also noticed that unless you're running a 1080p, you're going to get pixelation on all your programing as well. I only notice it on certain things however, like fast motion video or certain eletronic scoreboards that are being filmed.

Ok, so we're looking at an apples and shoes comparison (worse than apples and oranges). I just have a standard definition 27 inch tv. Nothing fancy. Using the same cables and the same tv, I feel the directv recording quality is very close to standard broadcast quality. In other words, TWC degrades/compresses the recording more, or so it appears. But like you said, everything on a 42 inch plasma that isn't HD looks kind of crappy. One of the reasons why I don't have HDTV yet. More channels are coming but it's slow.

I have a question: How are you measuring the quality of the two recordings to determine that DTV is infact recording at a higher quality than TWC?

I don't measure anything... I use my eyes. TWC (standard, not HDTV) looked pixelated compared to the broadcast. For instance, I could walk into a room where someone was watching a standard definition program on TWC and IMMEDIATELY tell them if they were watching a recorded show or live broadcast. My feeling so far is that the two are nearly identical on DirecTV. That's all. HDTV could be different but I have no experience with that. Again, this is just what I see with my own two eyes.

See, while you are laying around watching TV, I am out foraging for nuts and stalking my next meal. I have little time for watching television.

See, that's the idea! By skipping commercials, you leave yourself with more time for hunting and gathering.

The DirecTV recordings are higher quality than TWC DVRs, without question. It still does have a few pet peeves of mine that TWC still had:

1) Say a show is on at 8pm and you start watching at 8:30. Now, even skipping commercials, you won't catch up by the time it's over. At 9pm, the DVR blips and goes live because the show is done recording. You now have to go back into the list and fast forward to where you are. This absolutely kills me when I'm trying to "catch up to live" on a show and I miss it by about 2 minutes. Then I have stop and fast forward for what seems like ages only to watch 60 seconds. The good news is that DTV DVR Fast forward is much faster than TWC. So you can get there quicker. From what I remember, Tivo Series 2 did not have this problem, seemlessly making the transition between live buffered program to previously recorded program.

2) Shows that run long, such as live events, NBA playoff games, National Spelling Bees... stuff like that. TWC and DTV can't figure that out so you could miss the end of something great. Don't remember if Tivo handled that.

From what I've seen so far, DTV DVR is more capable of finding a show if it switches nights or times. Another thing I really like about DTV over TWC is when a show you're recording is in progress, TWC will start you from live point and you have to rewind to the beginning - really bad for sports where you can catch a glimpse of the score. DTV starts you at the beginning so you don't have any spoilers.

The other big Tivo advantage: It could detect when commercials were over so if you pushed play roughly when the show came back, it would flip for a second and then start right on time meaning you had to watch zero commercials. TWC and DTV are more akin to trying to fill up you gas tank so it ends in a round number, say exactly $30 (the perfect pump from Seinfeld fame) - you could get lucky but more likely you'll be off by a few pennies. Thank goodness for the few seconds snap back button.

In Group E Ghana is considered weak, and both Czeck and US strong. US is considered a hot outside chance, but Italy is favored to make it to the finals. Should be interesting.

Yep, the consensus seems to be that the winner of the US-Italy match will take 2nd place in the group (assuming everyone else beats Ghana). However, the US certainly can't take any of the games lightly. I'm definitely looking forward to an extended lunch Monday to watch the US-Czech match.

Do you know if SCR Phase II is going to be more residential or shopping centers, etc? This is the first map I've seen that shows anything south of 518 for SCR.

It's all residential. With two lifestyle centers to straddle 518 on the west side of 288, they won't need much more shopping. I don't know who owns all the land in SCR but with the way the homes have sold, it was a no-brainer to expand. I think sales are around 2000 homes a year and expanding. Phase I of SCR was 6800 homes. I think the first home was sold around October 2004 but I'm not sure. I know Perry was the first home to sell in SCR (big surprise). So you can do the math on how fast it is filling up.

I just saw another map that lists SCR as 8000 homes but they have a new section on the west side of 521 but I have never heard about that. I only know about the section bordered by 518 extended, 521, and Kingsley extended. Also, I did see some big trucks over there yesterday so it must be starting.

I think all of SCR is in Alvin ISD. I live west of Kingsley and it's definitly Alvin ISD in my section and the current elementary on Kirby is Alvin ISD.

Yeah, you're right. I'm west of Kingsley, too. No kids in my immediate future so sometimes these things slip my mind. I guess I was counting as third what it SHOULD be... Pearland ISD. Doh.

I know the whole Alvin ISD has kept a lot of Pearland residents away as well as the taxes.

Also FYI....the new sections of SCR West of Kingsley will be going to FORT BEND ISD.

So you're telling me SCR will be split into three school districts?? Wow. Who are the ad wizards who came up with THAT one?

Ok, a few updates on this...

I went to Crosswell Greenwood's site and they have some more details on the plan.

Here is the direct link to the pdf: SCR Village

Remember, this is the planned retail center at the NE corner of Kirby and 2234. They are showing a Walgreens and a Kroger's there. They even changed the little sketch of the buildings to say "KROGER" instead of "GROCERY." Also on their handly little retail map is the proposed HEB at the NW corner of 518 and 288. So there you have it. I don't know how long it will take to build either of these but it appears that they are in progress. Another interesting point, from the two plans, they show Kroger's having 65k sf and HEB having 150k sf.

And lastly, Phase II of Shadow Creek Ranch is shown on the map at the SW corner of 518 and Kingsley. They haven't even cleared the land there yet.

Seems like it will be more than HEB - The project name is Shadow Creek Ranch Town Center.

Located at Highway 288 and FM 518 (Broadway). Grocery-anchored with retailers, restaurants and service retail. Designed in an upscale Mediterranean village setting.

Construction already started.

Yes, the Shadow Creek Ranch Town Center will be on the NW corner of 288/518. They are clearing the land there now. Here is the little information from the SCR website:

SCR Town Center

To the south of the SCR town center is the Pearland Town Center but that construction hasn't started. There is a sign there that says 600,000 sf of mixed retail (although the CBLproperties webpage says 750,000 sf). The Pearland Town Center sign is on the SW corner, adjacent to the faux park and ride. Macy's and Dillard's will anchor the late 2008 opening. TWO AND A HALF YEARS???? COME ON!

Pearland Town Center

There will also be a couple shopping centers along 2234 surrounding Kirby and Reflection Bay. They've poured some concrete up there but I haven't heard any word on which retailers will be there. My guess is there will be either an HEB or a Kroger's there and the other will be near 518 and Kirby in the SCR Town Center.

Ugh! I heard that and I hope it's not true. We all know whatever series they air in its place is going to flop.

Well, I think it's a good thing. The problem that plauged LOST this season was the inconsistency of episodes. Two on, one off; three on, one off, recap episode, 3 on, two off. You never knew when there would be a new show.

The current plan approved by ABC is to do 7 episodes in the fall, say October 18 - November 29. Then take December and January off before doing the remaining 17 from February 7 - May 23. Two big stretches. I just made up those dates but you get the idea. The winter break would be tough but I think this format will work much better for the show. And then maybe LOST can gain back some of its first season audience from the current 548 hours of American Idol programming.

And it's going to be a long summer. Season 3 is not rumored to start until mid October.

Charlie is different somehow. He saw, heard, felt something that changed him. Changed how, I don't know. But the implication is that the something pretty amazing happened at the hatch - we don't know what and it could be anything - and Charlie escaped. A "normal" person would have sprinted back to the beach to tell the story. However, he was really indifferent about it. Didn't seem to care that Eko and Locke (and Desmond) had not returned.

DJ, I like your #8 idea about the island being able to move but I don't think it's true. An island of that size, even if it were moving, would still be easy to find. The EM field created on the island seems to "hide" the island from searching methods. Which still would not explain why people can't SEE it. This is not meant to be a science fiction show. There's something about the island, maybe the EM, that "deflects" all form of travel to and from the island, with the possible exception of the 325 heading.

Next season seems to be geared towards understanding the Others. Season 1 was the Survivors, Season 2 was the Hatch. I would guess a couple of them, including Henry Gale, will get island flashbacks.

I thought there was a Henry Gale in "Wizard of Oz"! I guess it's pretty common knowledge, but I meant to check anyway. I thought about that too.

Quoting myself:

I got that wrong. What I meant to ask was, did that guy say "I think we found you" or "found it" or "found him"? I couldn't make out that very last word. The last word spoken in the episode.

I believe it was "I think we found HIM." But it could be "IT." It doesn't really matter. It refers to Desmond on the island. Penelope was rich. You can find anyone when you're rich, even a mysterious island that doesn't seem to show up anywhere. What I don't know is how Penelope knew about the electromagnetic field on the island. The only idea I have is that her dad, Charles, is part of Dharma and she was able to get something from him directly or stole information from him about the nature of the island, in order to get Desmond back.

I did notice that Kate, Jack, Sawyer, and Hurley were brought to Pala Ferry, the same place/boat the Pearl inhabitants were told to go/use after their 8-hour job was complete.

Also, how cool was the giant pile of tubes from the Pearl?

I thought last night was a great season finale. Some big questions answered and it left several characters lives undetermined.

Just wanted to give status on this.... Kingsley now goes all the way through Shadow Creek Ranch from 518 to Beltway 8. You can drive north on Kingsley out of SCR towards B8. There you join the B8 feeder and head towards 288. You can bypass the toll west of 288. However, because of that toll, there is no entrance ramp to B8 from the feeder here (nor will there be one from Kirby when that is finished) so you still have to go through the stoplight at 288 before entering B8 just east of 288. Kingsley is not accessible by the westbound traffic on B8.

When the Kirby extension is complete (early June from what I know) Kirby will be an exit to eastbound traffic and accessible from the westbound feeder. It will not have an exit for the westbound traffic so if you want to take Kirby here, you will need to exit 288, go through the stoplight there, and stay on the feeder until B8 crosses Kirby a mile down the road.

I did 18 months in Wisconsin, and visited Madison a few times.

Hated it every time.

I think of Madison as Austin with more cheese. You could probably swap the two towns and no one would notice. Some day I'll sit down and try to figure out why I don't like either Madison or Austin.

See, you would probably like Houston or Milwaukee more. It's a matter of opinion.

Everyone likes to compare Madison and Austin (Madison/Austin is the Austin/Madison of the north/south) but the fact is that Austin is 3 or 4 times bigger than Madison so it's really hard to compare. It's a little like comparing, oh, I don't know, Houston and NYC. Could you swap those two without anyone noticing?

After suffering through the winters, of course everyone's in a good mood!

True... although most of that is related to the lack of daylight. Watching the sun go down at 4pm is NOT cool.

But breaking out the short pants when it's 50 in March is something special.

I am always impressed with how nice Milwaukee always looks.

I've always been partial to Madison (they're seems to be fundamental split even among the Wisconsinites about which city the like better). The two cities are remarkably different for being 80 miles apart.

I see Milwaukee as a city of great possibility that has slumped over the years. I disagree with the decision to build Miller Park away from downtown. I didn't know where else to put it but a lakefront stadium would have been something to be really proud of for the state. The lakefront and river offer tremendous possibilities and are showing promise lately. The summer festival scene in Madison is ready to kick off. Is summerfest still the world's biggest music festival? I think it is. Then there are all the ethnic festivals every weekend on the summerfest grounds, too. I miss the summers in Wisconsin... it seems everyone is in a good mood all the time.

Nice pics.

Good shout out to Madison, where I spent five glorious years as an undergrad. Top ten public school, #1 party school, university intregrated into the community, and truly a great place to raise a family. I'll be married two blocks from the capitol in just three months. Just an incredible city to live, work, and play for all ages.

Still, you have to pay $500.00+ upfront for something that will eventually be outdated? That seems like a high premium just for a service that is "marginally better".

Well, the current $500 receiver will not be outdated soon. As the article implied, if you buy now, you'll be good for quite some time. It's the old HD receivers, like Red has, that are now obsolete for new HD programming. The new ones use mpeg4 standard.

As for "marginally better" it's certainly the opinion of the user. I had TWC for nearly three years here and their prices went up about 40% and their services or quality did not improve. Besides the latest news that TWC will be showing Rangers/Astros in HD, they have done very little in three years to improve their product. After using DirecTV, Tivo, and TWC DVRs there is no comparison. TWC is as reliable and has the same level of quality/sophistication as a VCR. I can't tell you how many times TWC DVR decided to not record a program because it felt like it.

But yes, I'll agree that DirecTV is more expensive because of the upfront costs on HD. You can either live with that or not. The monthly costs are about the same.

BWSchultz, I have the elliptical dish that was required to receive HD in 2004. I receive the HD package, but not local HD. This is getting confusing, because, the more I research it, it is beginning to look like I need a new receiver to get local HD. DirecTV's website suggests that Houston DOES have local HD. However, I cannot receive it. If it is because I need the new $1000 receiver, then I have made the right call in putting up an antenna.

Some of the tech TV blogs I've read seem to suggest that when DirecTV put up more satellites to handle more HD, it made the pre-2005 receivers obsolete for getting local HD. I'm not sure if I am correct on this. Anyone know something along these lines?

EDIT: Jeebus, I think that $1000 box is a DVR.

Red, that's very possible that you need a different dish. He just explained it to me that it's like the standard 18" dish... only twice the diameter. This may all be very new so it's possible that your dish is not compatible with their current system. I guess it's up to you if you want to pony up the $500 for the new receiver.

As I did mention, DirecTV doesn't use Tivo anymore for their DVR software. So far I like the interface just fine. It's not perfect but it is much better than TWC DVR. Wow.

Here is the Best Buy link to the DirecTV HD DVR. $500. And like I said, I "think" they will switch out your dish for free (or maybe only a service fee) but I haven't verified that.

Best Buy - DirecTV HD DVR

That's 250 GB and allows for 30 hours of HD programming. I can get about 100 hours on standard DVR but I'm not sure about the hard drive space. All I know is that the playback quality on the DirecTV DVR is far superior to the playback on TWC. TWC was more akin to a VCR recording.

As for how much DirecTV HD system would run per month.... well....

Here's what I entered on DirecTV.com

1 standard DVR

1 HD DVR

Startup costs $498

Monthly

Total Choice Plus $49.99

HBO $12

HD Programming $9.99

DVR Service 5.99

Extra box lease fee 4.99

Total: $72.96 per month

Each additional box would cost $4.99 per month. However, you only pay the DVR service fee of $5.99 once per month, regardless of how many boxes you have DVR on.

Total Choice Plus gives you 185 channels. "Total Choice" gives you 155. I don't think there is much in that 30 channel list that is even worth $5 for me. So after my intro month, I will have:

2 DVRs, HBO, Total Choice plan for $58.97.

I just got rid of TWC. I paid....

47.99 digital value package

5.00 HBO (normally 10)

7.00 DVR box

6.95 DVR service

Total: $66.94

So, once my HBO promotion ran out, I would have paid $13 more per month. With DTV I get a 2 DVRs with better quality and more recording time. That's why I switched. When I go HD, it will be a substantial up front cost but then I think it will better than TWC.

Just found this article that may clear up some of the confusion - note that the article is over a year old but seems to detail Red's problem. Also, as I said, it looks like the receiver price their quoting is old. Should be $500.

TVPredictions - DirecTV HD Local