sarahiki

Eight years of the federal government reducing access to birth control and sex education can't have helped. We ought to be handing out condoms in homeroom every day.

Sounds to me that they don't want to fix things, and don't want to be bothered with the list of demands following an inspection. So they're saying, if you want to leave the house standing, it's your problem, not ours.

"acquired taste" is my favorite so far. "easy living" is second. In my humble opinion as a yankee and former resident of New York, they're related concepts. It's easy to love NYC, but hard to live there. So people might quickly come up with superlatives to describe the city, and if you've got money, it would be a great place to live. But otherwise, it can slowly suck the life out of you. Houston, on the other hand, doesn't present its fair qualities so readily. But the living is easy, and over time, one comes to really appreciate that. Then, it's easier to also appreciate the architecture, the green space, the cultural diversity, the museums & restaurants, and so on.

I think it's a good idea to have a 12-month option. Some students want to stay and do research/writing, especially graduate students. It's very disruptive to be told you have to leave during the semester break or the summer. And as the previous poster said, if you don't want a 12-month lease, choose a different place to live.

I don't want a tree branch or anything else flying through a window.

My experience with stained concrete was in an Urban Loft townhome. The floor was poorly done. It looked gorgeous, but it had a sealer on it that just never seemed to have set. It was almost tacky (in a tactile way). Rug pads, rubber balls, even sneakers left on the floor would adhere to it, and then pull off the sealer and some of the color when you removed them. I looked into having it redone or fixed, and was told it was better to have it polished but then have nothing put on it... no sealer. Then you have the durability of concrete, instead of a sticky floor that shows marks and flaws.

We are going this week to get plywood cut for our windows. Hopefully, we won't need it, but I can't deal with the idea of fighting the crowds for scraps at the last minute.

Thanks Musicman, I'll do that. Pumapayam--I like the idea, esp. the built-in blinds. But I don't have room for a slider. It's just a single door.

We have a 1963 ranch with a single, windowless door to the patio. I would like to replace it with a full-glass door. I want it to be energy efficient, but also solid in terms of security... I don't want anyone kicking or breaking this door in. I really don't know where to start... what material door to get, where to get it, or who to have install it. Should I contact a professional door & window company? Thanks for any advice. And feel free to PM me if you know any good people. -Sarah

Ha! No, I only torture my own children with goodies like baked kale. For school, it's crowd pleasers... pumpkin muffins disguised as cupcakes.

Here's a really healthy one: baked kale. Same process, but cut up the kale and bake it til it's crispy (but not burnt). Quite yummy. I swear. I am impressed with all the posts. You HAIFers are healthier than me, by far.

You are talking about different ideas using the same term. This distinction is in the first paragraph of "Creationism" on Wikipedia; it's a pretty basic idea. As you put it above, "creationism" is used very loosely, referring to some divine power being involved in the creation of life. In contrast, the "creationism" espoused by the politicians discussed in this thread is the second kind (quote from Wikipedia): So the creationists are rejecting evolution by natural selection. Many people who believe in evolution do not reject God or a divine role in the process. So no, I don't think anyone is insulting millions of Christians, Jews, and Muslims. Just the ignorant ones who refuse to accept science.

People walk all over NYC, despite steady traffic at every intersection. You don't need a bridge or tunnel for people to cross the street. Just a culture where cars actually look for a pedestrian, and don't try to run them over.

That Nissen Leaf is pretty cute. Electric, or hybrid?

I happen to agree... I used to live in West Philly, and people there, for reasons I still don't understand, would abandon cars pretty often. Twice, cars were abandoned in front of our house, taking up our only parking spot. Other times, neighbors would park and leave their car there for days, as you describe. It was a little different because on-street parking was the only parking available, so we were really in a fix without our spot. But the annoyance of seeing someone's junked-out car in front of your house every day was very real. It's rude and inconsiderate of your neighbor. I don't know what the solution is, however, outside of convincing the neighbor not to park there.

I think it looks nice as is. Wouldn't it lighten the place up to take those dark blinds off the door?

I don't see how popping in and out of an event means he has no class. Popping in and out is typical of any politician. They have multiple events every evening, they make their appearance, say a few words and discretely leave. I'm not arguing for or against Brown; I don't know enough about him (except he supported our efforts to get trash cans at Calumet Lofts a few years ago, which of course I appreciated). Just saying it's not unusual or bad behavior.

I like that: bougainvillea = barbed wire.

The house we've just moved into has a lot of overgrown landscaping, including an indeterminate number of bougainvillea bushes. One is blooming; the others just lurk, waiting to attack you with their horrible thorns. We keep cutting and cutting and they grow back overnight. Like evil alien spawn. The funny thing is, I always wanted to have bougainvillea in my garden because I thought they were so pretty. Little did I know how evil they actually are!

Try the website for NAEYC (national association for the education of young children). They list programs that have received their accreditation, which is stricter than that of the state. PLenty of good schools don't have this accreditation, but you can be pretty sure that the ones that do are good schools.

A quick look at har.com for 77096 suggests that it's no longer too pricey for the neighborhood... the McMansions have arrived, some at over a million bucks. I don't like everything about this house... the scale, to me, is too large for modern authenticity, and I really don't like the bathrooms. But it's still nice to see new construction that doesn't have that stucco, spanish-tile roof look. I hope that as Meyerland continues to change, it also continues to be a place of architectural interest.

There's probably nobody I'd rather see a street named for than Gandhi. However, I think it would be confusing and disruptive to have part of a major artery have a different name. Nonetheless, it would be a pretty nice way to acknowledge the south Asian community in that area. I will not be surprised if they are able to pull this off. The local Indian community can be very persistent, as I observed regarding something similar a few years ago. They are also pretty well-connected at City Hall and pretty savvy about getting stuff done.

I think this is a very ignorant statement. Labor may be mobile, but uneducated or poorly educated people generally are not. They are not going anywhere. How healthy can a state be if it is saddled with undereducated, underemployed people, who as a result of those factors are also unhealthy and under- or uninsured. People can take the bootstraps position all they want, but if we're not providing children with a quality education, there's only so far they can pull themselves up.

I don't think anyone mentioned Napoli's Flying Pizza. I like it... NY style, thin crust, not soggy. Lacks the refinement of Dolce Vita, but it deserves mention.

This is a great relief, after talk that Cynthia Dunbar, who doesn't believe in public education (since it undermines the authority of parents and God), was also being considered. Edited to RETRACT my relief, after reading this, about Gail Lowe: http://www.chron.com/commons/readerblogs/evosphere.html?plckController=Blog&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&newspaperUserId=f12fd84e-253f-46cf-9408-ee579f9a3a0b&plckPostId=Blog%3af12fd84e-253f-46cf-9408-ee579f9a3a0bPost%3a5697d763-4253-4fc4-bb7c-37f07a6dd87d&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest