sheeats

That's why I qualified my statement with "major." I've flown Southwest all of once in the last ten years. It simply doesn't go very many places.

Oh yeah?

Harumph.

One more reason I stick to Southwest whenever humanly possible.

Agree. I just don't see the Govt. ever trying to work hard and employ continual service improvement for non-paying customers.

And wait lists are not just for procedures. Even simple things like CAT scans can take months.

QFT. My husband moved here from the UK six years ago, where he'd lived for the first 27 years of his life. He hated/still hates the UK healthcare system, both when he had private insurance (until he finished university, through his parents of course since it's so expensive) and when he had regular, state-run insurance. The way he tells it, there's no happy medium between the two -- which is what we have here.

If you can afford private insurance in the UK, then you're treated like royalty to almost embarassing extremes. But if you can't, or simply don't want to pay an exorbitant amount of money for it, then you're stuck with the government-run system, which is appalling. Months-long -- sometimes years-long -- waiting lists for even simple procedures, the government arbitrarily deciding piddly stupid things like whether or not you'll be allowed to have general anaesthetic during dental surgery, a shortage of qualified doctors (the good ones move here!), etc. My husband is thrilled with our healthcare system and talks endlessly about how much better it is over here.

Now, personally speaking, I'm in the for-profit healthcare business as a career. So you probably don't want my somewhat biased opinion on it.

We had a Texas Roadhouse in Waco and -- along with Red Lobster and Olive Garden -- it was the nicest restaurant in town. ....yeah. I saw many a high school pre-prom dinner and scary "fancy date night" there.

Never was a huge fan of the Roadhouse, but it's a better option than On The Border (we had one of those, too...blech).

Tried to go to Java Java - lazy asses weren't gonna be open until 8:30. What kind of breakfast place is that? If the baby ever sleeps past 6:30 on the weekend maybe we'll try Java Java.

So...we ended up at Frank's Diner on Mangum, and it was awesome. So much food for so little money. I had a waffle, grits, bacon (best bacon in town), biscuit. All good, and great service.

Yay for Frank's!!! I'm so glad you liked it!

I'll probably be there tomorrow morning myself...

I never liked Onion Creek or Dry Creek. Too much money for mediocre food. I love, love, LOVE Yale St. Grill, though.

But I'll second the suggestion to hit up Washington Avenue just south of the Heights, and further suggest that you head over to Guadalajara Bakery. I know they aren't "breakfast" tacos, but I like their chicharron tacos the best. They also have chorizo, eggs and beans, pork, etc. Damn good stuff.

Shade serves a mean brunch on Saturday and Sunday mornings, but only if you're willing to pony up some cash. That said, their challah French toast plate (with eggs and applewood bacon) is to die for.

One of my other favorite Heights breakfast activities is going to Canino's early on a Saturday morning to score some fresh produce, then walking across Airline to El Bolillo for some fresh pastries and coffee. They also have really good kolaches, believe it or not. After stuffing my face with pastries, it's off to B&W on Shepherd for some meat...but that's another thread altogether.

Last but not least (and, again, not exactly in the Heights...), you have to try Frank's Grill on Mangum (by Delmar Stadium). Awesome breakfasts, possibly some of the best in town. Porkchop and eggs, hashbrowns, chicken fried steak and eggs, pancakes... *DROOL* The Mangum location is totally run-down, like everything else in that area, but the food is delicious AND cheap and the service is great, too. Make sure you get there before 10am, though -- it gets packed after that.

Only 50 signatures so far? There have to be more people who care about the Jim West Mansion than that. Please forward the link along to anyone you know who has ever taken even a passing interest in the mansion! It may only be an online petition, but it still serves a good purpose.

I feel so stupid now.

Don't feel bad. Redscare's brand of sarcasm is subtle and understated; the gentle yet deadly sarcasm of yore.

Touched a nerve...

I'm just gonna quote myself in my defense:

Then again, looking at all the options I've just listed, I guess the Galleria area isn't exactly the place to get great Mexican food. Maybe a Pappasito's would fit right in with the mediocrity.

They're all horribly average. Pappasito's included. Sorry.

Oh, now come on, y'all. Enough with this Pappasito's foolishness. Y'all know there are much better Tex-Mex places in town (that also cost a lot less money and aren't as full of loud parties and screaming kids) than Pappasito's. You're killing me!

If you're that desperate for Tex-Mex in the Galleria area, there's a Ninfa's right there on Post Oak (marginally better food than Pappasito's) and a Los Cucos on Westheimer (marginally better as well). Paparrucho's on Sage does a good happy hour. La Tapatia on Richmond ain't bad either. Then again, looking at all the options I've just listed, I guess the Galleria area isn't exactly the place to get great Mexican food. Maybe a Pappasito's would fit right in with the mediocrity.

AAAIIIIIEEEEEEEE!!! Does this mean I can get a sushi fix at 2am? Because -- in all seriousness -- sometimes I feel like I would be willing to stab someone for some sushi after a long night. I don't know what this says about me and I don't care. Late night sushi is an awesome prospect. Yay!!!

Almost 2 years ago as I was looking for a new place to live I went to these places with my realtor to look at a couple of the units. Given the prices and location it seemed like a good deal. When I got there there were so many red flags suggesting the condos were in bad shape. Crumbling mortar everywhere, rusted steps, and on top of that as I recall the monthly association fees were over $500. That immediately told me that either a) the association didn't use the money to fix the property or if they did, this complex was on the verge of a massive one time levy from each homeowner to fix everything. Had to walk away...no other choice. Its a great location though, but given the difficulty in developers to secure financing now, I can't help but think these may sit around as condemned units for a while...

$500 a month for HOA dues? Damn! And I thought our HOA dues were ridiculous... But at least we can see our dues at work every single day over here. No crumbling mortar or rotting staircases. Those poor people...

When is it schedule to close, Vertigo? Which station was this on?

Soooo.... It's still on the market. Surprise!

http://swamplot.com/neighborhood-guessing-...zed/2008-08-07/

Herman park is already packed on weekends. IMO they don't need more attractions. If anything, it needs more green space.

And personally, I don't really care to smell burning cattle carcasses while I'm trying to enjoy the park. I get enough of that from the Becks when I visit Memorial Park. But I guess you can't have a park in Houston without the smell of burning meat everywhere.

Burning cattle carcasses??? :lol:

Man, did you ever pick the wrong city to live in if you don't like the smell of meat cooking... I hear San Francisco is lovely; why not give it a try?

The Oceanaire is one of the restaurants participating in Houston Restaurant Week, so if you've really been wanting to give it a shot but (like me) can't afford it on a regular basis, then try it during Houston Restaurant Week when it's only $35 per person. Here's their menu for that week:

Amuse Bouche - a special little treat from Chef White

1st Course - Choose One

Caesar Salad

House Salad

New England Clam Chowder

2nd Course - Choose One:

Grilled Idaho Rainbow Trout

with Habanero Barbeque Sauce & Shrimp Creole Slaw

"Black & Bleu" Pacific Red Grouper

Dirty with Sweet Onion Confit & Blue Cheese Butter

Seared Massachusetts Diver Sea Scallops

with Bacon Wilted Spinach & Roasted Garlic Butter

3rd Course - Choose One

Oceanaire Key Lime Pie

Scoop Of Ice Cream or Sorbet

Warm Chocolate Chip Cookies and Milk

Pretty sweet deal for $35, especially at the Oceanaire...

Can we make this a thread about avoiding those 10 airports whenever possible? I've never once flown through ORD and had an on-time arrival or departure. Not once. And it's never just a little delay, either -- it's always one of those "glad I brought a travel pillow, where's the nearest shower" delays. I also never understood why a major transportation hub would have developed in a region that has so many snow days...

ATL has gotten a lot better in recent years, but I still hate the fact that Delta routes every single one of their flights through ATL before it goes anywhere else. My mongrel idiot of a cousin made travel plans recently (without consulting anyone else) that involved her flying to ATL from DFW to get to Phoenix, courtesy of Delta. WTF?

We never fly into LHR. Manchester's airport is awesome -- the Love Field of England, if you will -- although I suppose it isn't for everyone, especially if you're only flying into the country for a few days or only want to see London. But the trip from Manchester to London is a very short two-hour train ride through some lovely country. I equate it to flying Southwest into Little Rock and then driving to Memphis to avoid the extreeeeeemely expensive rates at MEM.

Now that I read this, I'm thinking I might have weird travel habits...

Anyway, I'm surprised to see that Frankfurt is so far down the list. They used to be crazy busy.

This rendering is missing the lovely, upscale chain-link fence that actually divides the Beltway feeder (top) from the Beltway itself (bottom). Hate that nasty thing.

The Randall's isn't too bad of a walk from CityCentre, honestly. There are shaded sidewalks the whole way, no major streets or thoroughfares to cross, and the shortcut around the back of Pines Presbyterian cuts the walk time considerably.

Some interesting and random updates (I'm thinking primarily of the granite in the kitchen, very incongruous to the cabinets, and the ugly tile in the bathroom), but a gorgeous house nevertheless. The entrance is stunning. I love the back view and the little study with tiny fireplace.

I think it embiggens a lot of people, too.

I was at Marq*E this weekend to catch The Dark Knight and was floored by the near-complete lack of tenants. I hadn't been there in a while, I guess, since last time I was at the complex there was a Coldstone Creamery, a cute little French coffeeshop (Vietnamese-owned), an EB Games, a Hot Topic, the A&W restaurant, another gaming store (selling D&D type stuff) and a few others. Yesterday? Nothing between Claire's and Cafe Adobe. The whole place looked like a ghost town. Even Dave & Buster's looks weary and tattered.

What is going on here? And can someone please explain to me why they're building pad sites when they can't even keep tenants in the main complex?

Great find, Pi!!! I can't see how this is going to fit into the current footprint yet, but it still looks damn cool.

My first impression upon looking at the plan was to totally agree with you. The parking in front of the stores will not only give the 'strip-mall feel', but it will be congestion nightmares. Especially if they don't put any traffic lights in the center, where the streets cross (I'm thinking they may use signs instead of lights for the aesthetics).

I agree with the strip-mall assessment, unfortunately. I really thought this was going to be more pedestrian friendly, but now we're seeing that it's just a huge parking lot which happens to have a few stores plopped down in the middle of it. It would have been a better idea to have green space or a courtyard or something between the buildings, but it's just more parking spaces. Very disappointing.

When did Macy's and Dillard's become high-end?

Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! Good question.

While we're on the topic...

www.homeforthedynamo.com

Thoughts?