MayDay

I don't know how often this happens, but I'm with DanB on this one: "He's clearly an expert in many areas!!!"

People do realize that the baseball stadium's previous name was that of a real estate conglomerate with a national portfolio, right? I mean, it's not like some Mom and Pop shop decided to build the joint :roll: Great photos, Ctown - nice to see some different angles there.

Sorry - Richard Simmons made me blurt out "WHAT in gay hell is THAT?!?" Anyhoo - great set of pics - gives me ideas for the weekend! :-D

Oh, people are incredibly stupid. I once worked at Tower City with a gal who had grown up in greater Cleveland, moved away to do all kinds of Peace Corps. work and she'd go on and on about how easy it was to get from A to B in whatever decrepit third-world city she'd been in, but Cleveland was just awful. Seriously, every other sentence was "Ohhhh, when I was in ______, we'd just hop on the train to go anywhere." A few weeks later she complained about Tower City Center's parking fees going up, and I asked if she lived anywhere close to the Rapid. Her response? "Well, I'm over by the West Side Market but that's nowhere close, is it?". :roll: Needless to say, she was pretty thrilled to realize she could hop on the train and spend about $5-$8 less per day than she would if she drove. But yeah - people amaze with their stupidity almost daily.

What? I agree with him - not every trip, but it's a doozy sometimes.

Alright, Sammys Metropolitan it is - let's meet a little before 12:45 under the dome of the Huntington Building lobby (the one in the distance in the photo):

That's just stupid and this survey is bupkis.

Okay, take your pick folks: Sammy's Metropolitan (Huntington Building - kick@ss views, not as pricey as you'd think): http://www.sammys.com/menusettings-metro.shtml Octane - wraps, salads, smoothies http://www.octanecafe.com Owned by "Siren" of American Gladiators :-D Saigon - Vietnamese http://www.saigoncleveland.com/lunch_menu Or if any of these are unfathomable, I'm open to suggestions

"And in Columbus, Ohio’s capital, state workers — who aren’t counted — represent a significant portion of the downtown work force." I'm confused - are they not counting ANY government workers?

Alright - 12:45! Stay tuned for location.

Pope, does 12:45 work for you?

Noonish?

Just come into downtown, we'll get you to a CVS. There are two - one on East 9th across from One Cleveland Center (the silver chisel) and one on Euclid Avenue @ East 9th. Oh, and make sure you grab a window seat so that when you're facing forward, you're on the RIGHT side - best view coming into downtown that way. :-)

Okay folks, ajknee's gonna be in town - who is available for lunch downtown (somewhere between East 9th and West 9th) today? Roll call!!!

Yet another beautiful set :-)

^Restaurants and farmers markets - we're in total agreement. Retail shops? I'd LOVE to see Shaker Square match up with Beachwood/Legacy but nope.

^No, I meant Miss Ross as in Diana from the Supremes era (helLO, look at the ensemble!), and yes to the best of my knowledge Melissa Ross is still kicking up her stilettos :-)

^Pssst! ;-) "9. There are a few greasy-spoon places - PJs Luncheonette in the Colonial Marketplace is alright."

As I said, there's a balance - and this guy was so far off the deep end of curmudgeon and quirky, I have little sympathy, which is saying something because my parents are in the same business.

^I prefer places where the owner has a passion for what they do, an odd quirkiness with how they do it, but STILL manage to 1. acknowledge that someone who could help them pay rent walked in the door, 2. realize their customers may not have all day to sort through their cluttered helter-skelter store, and 3. set aside whatever issues they have and not scowl at customers who interrupt their reading session or look down their nose at someone who doesn't look as crunchy-bookish as they'd like. Sorry, it's unfortunate but hardly a surprise. A quote from the article: "We have this mythological belief that these types of bookstores are necessary," O'Brien said. "But if people aren't putting down their dollars, we don't exist." Well folks, it's not just the customers responsibility to keep a store open, but I guess it's a lot easier to blame them for its demise.

Okay, Jane Austen has nothing to do with this thread, and I know the title sounds potentially smutty but no. I went to Cleveland's Pride festival on Saturday, and I have a few random shots just lying around so I piggybacked them into this thread. Since Key Tower makes an appearance in so many of these shots, some appropriate music: First, the piggybackers! Rotunda of Cleveland City Hall: Cleveland's new BRT vehicles getting ready to roll: And now onto Pride - a decent day, and like most Pride festivals - a washout a few hours after I arrived :| A great place to catch one of the musical acts with the skyline in the background: So THAT'S what they look like! People taking a breather: A world of NO!!! But the crowd seemed a little sparse - oh that's right, we need to go to the BEER GARDEN! "Where... the boys are... and babes.... and beer..." And the four-legged contingent: This performer goes by the stage name of B!tch (sic so those of you at work don't trip the profanity filters). The lesbians LOVE her, so I tried to see what she was about. After the 7th time she repeated "I am a land mass", accompanied by hushed guitar - I decided that I could never be a folksy lesbian music enthusiast: I think Mother Nature wasn't pleased that I didn't care for the earthy music :-( And the mass exodus: Luckily we had VIP parking! I snapped this pic - sorry about the blur but it was absolutely surreal: windy and drops of rain at the festival - raining SIDEWAYS further south on East 9th Street! Yeah, that blur amongst the skyscrapers was NOT from my camera! :-o But it's all good - Miss Ross took it all in stride: And with that, I bid adieu:

"But I have to tell you to go to Shaker Square instead (take the RTA Blue/Green lines from Tower City or any Waterfront Line station). As an urbanist, I'm sure you'll like it more (the restaurants and setting are great). Plus its North Union Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings is awesome...." That's all well and lovely, but sending someone wanting to find Beachwood-style shops (per their original post - "a wider selection") to Shaker Square? Let's see: http://www.shakersquare.net/directory-ss.htm Or http://www.beachwoodplace.com/html/storedirectory.asp I love Shaker Square but not for shopping.

1. Best for day-to-day stuff? Reserve Square. Best for prepared foods/specialty items (but still with some day-to-day stuff) - Constantino's in the Warehouse District. There's also Daves in Ohio City and Asiatown - probably slightly lower prices than either of the above. 2. Steelyard Commons has both - about 2.5 miles south of Public Square http://www.steelyardcommons.com/ 3. Good question - I'll defer to someone else. 4. There's CityWheels (similar concept to ZipCar) http://www.mycitywheels.com 5. Tower City Center - Red Line rapid - about a 20ish minute trip from downtown to the terminal inside the airport. 6. Another question I'll defer to someone else... 7. Beachwood Place has the better upscale stores http://www.beachwoodplace.com 8. Cleveland Orchestra concert on Public Square - free. Fireworks are usually set off at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River so basically anywhere along the lakefront is a good spot. 9. There are a few greasy-spoon places - PJs Luncheonette in the Colonial Marketplace is alright. Pure diner? Let me get back to you on that. 10. Feel free to join us at forum lunches and/or happy hours. :-)

"a fraternity is VERY hard to understand unless you are a part of one." It's so cute when boring white people try to create their own mystique :lol:

I'm getting a little misty-eyed... better drink it away! :drunk: