MayDay

Well folks, Tom has decided that he's not able to agree to disagree so he now has a substantial amount of time off. For the record, we welcome contrarian opinions from any perspective, but not if they're presented with abrasive insults from the get-go. Tom has demonstrated he has no problem dishing out insults but whines when he gets called out on it. Please feel free to continue the discussion of the downtown Akron arena.

Tom, apparently you can't distinguish my screen name from Living in Gin - he's the Moderator who initially called you out on your behavior. Upon reviewing your comments toward him, I (fyi - I'm an Administrator, not a Moderator) suspended your account for two weeks, and posted the explanation so that others wouldn't follow your example. If you want to continue to be combative, you'll have yourself more time off - it's your choice.

Are you using a site like flickr, or are you trying to upload photos via the forum's attachment feature?

"I agree that EOG is a candidate for residential conversion. But I don't see it happening anytime soon. Question - Isthat the original facade?" Yes, that's the original facade. I was actually referencing conversion of the *Eaton* building, not East Ohio Gas. The Eaton Building bears a strong resemblance to the former Bank One Building in Fort Worth, Texas: However, it was severely damaged during a tornado and scheduled for demolition. Instead, they gutted it and used the chamfered (angled) edges to create balconies, and converted it to residential: But that's another topic for another thread in another state (clap!clap!clap!clap! "deep in the hearrrt of Texas!")

In the morning - mostly because I get really warm while sleeping; usually during the winter I'll wake up and have two pugs and a partner clamped on me like iguanas on a heat rock. In the summer on the hottest and muggiest days I might hop in during the evening just to cool down. I usually wear Crush during the day and Angel (aka A-Men) for night; in the summer I add something more citrusy like Issey Miyake. And yes - I got my swirl on once (dated a black guy) who was a stylist but relaxing his hair? Uhh, NO. His lady clientele, sure - but never him. ProkNo, you just found an odd bird to shack up with!

Folks, this thread is for discussion of PROJECTS AND CONSTRUCTION within the Warehouse District.

To put things in perspective, this is the same person who let the insurance lapse on his landmark business "to save money" - and he's the chairman of the board at RTA. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/12/lancers_owner_vows_to_reopen_l.html

It's Calgary http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Calgary1-Szmurlo.jpg

Added a few more pics today :-)

^That's a good question - I'll ask around. I added another small batch of pics - there's more where that came from :-)

I added a photo - there will be plenty more in the next day or so :-)

"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is odd, indeed, for a kid's movie. I never realized how f'd up that movie was until I *started* to watch it with my kid last year. It got turned off." I think it's a great movie for kids: "What do you get when you guzzle down sweets Eating as much as an elephant eats What are you at, getting terribly fat What do you think will come of that I don't like the look of it" "Gum chewing's fine when it's once in a while It stops you from smoking and brightens your smile But it's repulsive, revolting and wrong Chewing and chewing all day long The way that a cow does" "What do you get from a glut of TV A pain in the neck and an IQ of three Why don't you try simply reading a book Or could you just not bear to look You'll get no You'll get no You'll get no You'll get no You'll get no commercials" " Who do you blame when your kid is a brat Pampered and spoiled like a siamese cat Blaming the kids is a lie and a shame You know exactly who's to blame The mother and the father" And toward the end - "So shines a good deed in a weary world." :-)

I added an option for those in my boat - attended college, but no degree. I left Kent State before finishing my degree - several reasons, but the biggest was that I had to take a break after a close friend was killed in a horrible car accident. It had been a stressful semester regardless, but when that happened I realized I needed to give it a break and if the time came, I'd go back to finish. I was also seeing my debts mounting from student loans so I started working shortly after - and have kept working since. I'm probably about a year's worth of classes from finishing but some of the classes I'd need are only offered every other year, usually during regular working hours, and then being an hour-ish commute (each way) on top of that - it's just never been practical for me. I wouldn't want to transfer credits to a closer school, and most colleges won't permit it if you have a certain amount already invested. It's easy for people to say "go back and finish!!!". Live my life and then realize it's not that simple. Sure if the situation was ideal, I'd go back in a heartbeat and finish but not having my degree hasn't been *that* big of a detriment. I don't lie on my resume, I simply say I've completed ___ amount of credit hours. Employers have asked, I've explained the situation and none saw it as a huge issue. I can't complain - I've been gainfully employed in a field that I love for 17 years, I've been able to do some really fun creative freelance work in design and photography, I've become a published author, and had one of my photos used on a TV show that's been seen by 33 million people around the world. Yeah, it'd be nice to have the degree, but there are plenty of people who need to go back and finish more than I do :-)

^47% of "us people" voted for someone who supported the 3-C project.

"If its the casino, i don't see what the cost has to do with our position on it." From everything we've heard and what we were told prior to the casino vote, Gilbert is going to be sinking some serious money into the casino - making it "part of the urban fabric". That no doubt helped him gain the votes he needed to get this approved. Well, doing all that and delivering something worth mentioning (at least as far as a casino goes) costs serious money even if we weren't talking about geo-engineering the Cuyahoga. So let's say he's planning to spend $600+ million on this - if he has to allocate a good chunk of that because his architects/planners are so flipping ignorant that they'd disrupt river traffic, cause untold damage to a recuperating aquatic ecosystem just to add even more f#cking parking in a city that's beyond blessed with it unable to come up with a better solution, guess what gets valued engineered out? That would be the funding that was planned for the casino's overall aesthetic. It's cheaper for casinos to build a gussied up windowless box, so the more they spend a good chunk of that $600+ million on things like adding parking (and the excavation of the river, etc.), the less they'll be spending to provide a building that has any aesthetic appeal. This would be one time where some less than vocal leaders *cough*Mayor*cough*Design Review*cough* need to be the party of NO.

I think my first post on the forum was something along the lines of "BANNED!!!!!!"; but I think it was lost during a server reboot. The earliest post I'm aware of was a photo thread of the cancelled Ameritrust Center.

^As in "internet sweepstakes cafe"? Ugh...

This shot is absolutely gorgeous - it's such a completely different setting, but the clerestory windows and structural supports remind me of the Arcade.

Folks, "Tom" started out by posting some rather abrasive and insulting posts toward other forumers. Then he decides to blatantly disrespect a Moderator because said Mod called him out on his behavior. Then, instead of sending a PM or posting something in the "Forum Issues" thread, he takes *this* thread off topic to vent his grievances. He's been given two weeks off - we hate making an example out of someone, but sometimes there's no clearer way to convey "what not to do".

For the record, I listen to dance music, but I do NOT like the "Hi-NRG" speed techno crap. My beef with energy drinks? The parents who let their children drink them as though they were just any other soft drink. Then they b!tch up a storm about their kids being fidgety.

No snow at all in Tremont, at least nothing that stuck.

I've managed to keep things stable - I was let go from my old job in February 2009; took about a year and a week until I landed another graphic design position. The pay is less, and the environment is a little stuffier than I'm used to, but it definitely helps to know my current company is stable (growing, actually) and can allocate funds for my projects (for example, where I used to work - there was NO money for a photo budget and there were always people being let go). Most of the people I work with are really nice, so no complaints there. The worst part of the year off was that weekly "stipend" ;-) I received; enough to stay afloat but certainly not enough for proper retail therapy. So, I learned how to cook - not in the sense of 'someday I want to be a chef', just learned how to make a lot of different dishes, got to really know the food and vendors at the West Side Market. If someone had told me that I'd know how to make several variations of beef wellington, I'd have said they're a loon. I sometimes miss the free time I had to be able to do things like go to the Market on days OTHER than Saturday, but I'm grateful to be where I am now. There's no way I could have managed without my partner and his being so supportive - I *know* how fortunate I am.

Let's leave the political speculating where it belongs - in the Politics thread. Thanks.

^The actual ceremony was in the Gazebo but we also got pics at the Pavilion (though there was some oddball new-age dance class going on). Yeah, it was absolutely beautiful that day.

"If it were'nt for (forgot her name)"... if it's who I think you're referring to, her name is Ursula. And she's fabulous. :-)