shs96

Why is that bad? There are still people with good credit and the income to live in a house at that price point. My question, is the house/development and area worth $700k? That would be my question as well. Considering they listed them at that price point just goes to show the value of waterfront real estate, regardless of what body of water it is on...so let's get that FEB project going again!

Great pics! The river had been frozen over from the mouth to about the curve by Hooples until the temperature warmed up this weekend. So it looks deceiving as it's hard to make out where the river is since it's snow covered in that section all the way to the Lake.

Wait for it on TV: Between HBO, Cinemax, or Showtime it will be available a few months from its release date. Or if it's a movie I really want to see, head to the theater.

Nice pics - looks like fun! I've only been to Maui...Honolulu definately looks like more of a city, yet equally as appealing. Did you make it to Pearl Harbor? (Disclosure: I would like to see your high quality photos of the place if you did :))

I agree with KJP and MTS. Outside of my mortgage, I have no debt. No car payment, no credit card debt, no student loans. Assuming I keep my job (granted, that's questionable) nothing for me has changed, other than some investments tanking...but I don't need that money now anyway. Even if I do lose my job, my wife's job is recession proof, we have plenty of reserve cash on hand, expenses can be immediately slashed, and I am sure I can find something to earn some kind of income to help pay the mortgage - I am not above doing any sort of work. Oddly, during the post 9/11 recession I knew many more people who lost their job and got stuck in a bad financial spot than I do now. Actually, I don't personally know anyone who has been impacted by the current recession via lay-offs, etc.

Ohio is different not only by major city, but pretty much every corner of the state. But Ohio does have a distinct culture and, frankly, that's the main reason I love it here. Much of it is generic to the Midwest. I kind of like to call it the WYSIWYG personality (for those not familiar with editing software, that's What You See Is What You Get). Obviously, everyone is not the same, but there are less $30,000 millionaires and general pretentiousnous that exists in other parts of the country. Rarely the first question you get when you meet someone is "where do you work?" a la the East Coast. As far as places to go in Ohio, I will tell you what my wife (from Ft. Lauderdale) particularly enjoyed when I first started showing her around that are unique to Ohio (in no particular order). This is going to be skewed from a Clevelander's point of view, so take that for what it's worth. 1. Cedar Point: No other amusement park has rollercoasters that compare. 2. Lake Erie: There's a lot to "Lake Erie", but most people don't realize the size of it. Take a cruise on the Goodtime, head up to the Islands in Western Lake Erie, find yourself a fishing charter, get to Edgewater in the summer, etc...it might be Ohio's most unique feature. 3. University Circle Museums: The Natural History Museum is one of my favorites. Museum of Art and botanical gardens are cool too. 4. Attend any major sporting event: Let's face it, Ohioans are passionate about sports. And if you're from the west, it's a noticable difference. I attribute this mostly to the fact that many who live in non-East Coast time zones are transplants so there isn't as much "generational" passion about a sports team as there is in Ohio, especially with football. My wife is a University of Florida alum where everything that isn't SEC in regards to football is just second class (it's really hard to argue with her at this point, given the recent history of UF / OSU) but even she admitted when she first went to a home Ohio St game she'd never seen anything like it. But both Progressive Field and Great American Ballpark are great places to watch ball games and the Cavs are playing some pretty good ball right now. 5. Food: Ohio is underated for food, but there have been some shows recently highlighting Ohio's food quality. Anthony Bourdain came to Cleveland (featuring Sokolowski's, Hot Sauce Williams, and Lola's) and Man vs. Food went to Columbus (featuring Schmidt's Sausage Haus, Thurman Cafe, and Ohio Deli). I've been to all 6 places and each is worth a visit. I'd throw in Panini's and Buffalo Wild Wings too, even though their fare (and in the case of BW3) can be found around the country. But they were founded in Ohio (although I think Primanti's in Pittsburgh was before Panini's). Check out Cleveland Foodie's blog for other ideas of where to go in Cleveland...I enjoy her thoughts on local fare. 6. Food 2: Gotta get to the West Side Market. My "make an event out of it" reccomendation: Go Saturday morning, hit up the Market Cafe for breakfast, find something that looks awesome to be grilled for dinner (I dare you to just pick 1 item), then head across the street to Great Lakes Brewery for some beer/lunch after shopping. 7. Tailgate for something: I know I mentioned sporting events, but you could tailgate for a concert too...or just "tailgate" in your back yard. But to make it "Ohio" esq, make sure you play cornhole and drink PBR or something else dirt cheap. OK, I could go on, but this post is getting long and I have to attend to other matters! Should be a good start anyway.

I am SO available for these boards... and capable Yeah, "capable" is not necessarily even a criteria. it's more of an "in the loop" type thing.

Hang out at the Ritz bar...that's where they stay. And here's to the best winning percentage in the East!

Just consider the bus from W 25th & Detroit to the West end of Lakewood takes 31 minutes...that's all of 6 miles. You're not even coming from downtown. Driving dow Detroit can in your car is no different that the bus. The shoreway/Clifton takes 15-20 minutes depending how many lights you hit. It's easier for me to meet friends in Independence or even Brecksville - 15 miles away - than it is for me to get to the west end of Lakewood. It's also just as fast - if not faster - for me to walk from the west bank to CSU (~2 miles) than it is to drive or take public transit. I did this all the time when I had night classes at CSU and tried several different options to see which was the fastest. The best was walking to W6th and catching the Trolley (if you timed it right), but that would only work on the way there (stops running at 7). I'm not complaining about Cleveland traffic at all - and for the record I loved waking to class each night - I'm just saying 327 has a point. Getting across downtown can be time consuming - be it public transit, walking, or driving. Eliminating a route through downtown is going to cause some headaches. 77N is a log jam as it is coming into downtown...diverting all I-90 traffic onto 490/77 would only add to it.

Great video! They also had a segment on the early news this morning (don't ask why I was up at 5:30am). It's really nice to start seeing rail travel gaining momentum in the public eye.

Yeah...think air boat thaat you would see in the Everglades (or other swamp area) but going over the ice.

Thanks - It was a ton of fun! I've actually come to enjoy PIB more in the Winter, Spring, and Fall than the summer...but that's just me. Below are some videos my friend put on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X74uDtaN8xM&feature=channel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGps44ISp6A&feature=channel As far as getting there in the winter, you can fly (from Catawba Island or Sandusky) or take the hover boat. It is also possible to drive over depending on how solid the ice is. The couple who took the video I posted above drove over on thier snowmobiles from Marblehead where they live. You better be familiar with the Lake before you do that though because there are places to avoid based on currents, etc. And when I say "drive" I mean on a 4-wheeler or snowmobile. People in the past have taken cars across - ice cars they call them. Basically an old piece of crap car with the doors removed so you can bail if you get caught in a bad spot. As you might imagine, there are some pretty good stories about that, as well as some tragic ones. But it needs to be below freezing for a couple weeks with little snow in order to get the ice thick enough across the lake to even think about taking a car. The snow acts as an insulator and prevents thick ice from forming out in the middle of the lake where the current is stronger. The ferry starts running in late March. I've been on it while there was ice still in the lake; the ferry just plows through it. But it has to be mostly melted with just icebergs floating for that to happen.

Better they feel like outcasts than bring down those who are interested and show the aptitude for learning. And perhaps that same negative social pressure that they would apply to students who are interested (i.e., calling someone a sell out for doing well in school) will have the same, but opposite, affect on them (I better focus so I don't get left behind). You are tested right from the get go, even in your elementary class, to join various levels of reading and math groups. This continues throughout all education, even at the highest levels. Think about college - the application process evaluates what level of student you are. K-12 is no different, except you aren't rejected, you're just assigned to your appropriate level so you can receive the appropriate level of instruction. They also do this so they can identify the really bad problem kids and make sure classes aren't overloaded with too many of them.

Couldn't figure out how to comment below pictures but: 1. The hole in our shanty 2. Overview of the ice party - picture courtesy of Port Clinton newspaper 3. The bowling alley we set up. Picture also courtesy of the PC newspaper; pins and balls courtesy of PIB Lakewood (and now permanently left on Island). 4. Making Lobster Bisque from the Boardwalk - always a good treat in the winter! 5. The group I came up with - I'm on the left. 6. Had to take a picture of the bonfire on the ice, if for no other reason than to show people yes, it happens and no, the ice doesn't melt. 7. Truck in the middle of the harbor.

I was up at PIB this past weekend for some winter fun. Unfortunately my camera broke right before we went and the spare camera I keep at the Island had a dead battery. So I was left with what my wife took with her phone and was willing to email to me. Someone has also posted a video on You Tube of some Ice Party footage, but I can't view You Tube at work so maybe I'll post it later. Anyway, thought I would share what pictures I have...

Segregating kids in terms of reading, mathematical, and all other educational ability is essential to a school system. You need to separate those who want to learn and those who don't immediately, along with specific curriculum's tailored towards vocational, college prep, and honors students.

PNC employees will likely not be affected. 61 NCC branches (and their employees) are being divested as part of the deal, so that will remove many employees from the new org but they won't actually lose their job, they will just be employed by another bank. Operations and branch employees at NCC should be safe. Mortgage and Credit Card support functions at NCC will also likely be safe. Corporate employees in redundant positions - mostly in Cleveland - will be eliminated. Some will have the opportunity to apply for new roles. The timing of this is TBD...soon, but not imminent.

Would you throw a party is it was high forties and foggy all year long? Walkways yield the suburban equivalent of an urban area. See Las Vegas.

Yeah, the arguments against the flats site need to stop referring to it as "waste of lakefront space" or "blocking lakefront access". Lakefront access is already blocked there with or without a convention center (or anything else). Note the train tracks, massive piles of rock, and big warehouses. The site proposed - assuming it would be in the space Eaton was to occupy - isn't even riverfront. It's inland, boxed in by the waterfront rail line.

Speaking of the hipster coffee house bit, that McDonalds commercial with the two guys who get excited about the new McDonalds coffee drinks cracks me up. My favorite two lines are 'I can shave this thing off" and "We can call movies, movies again and not have to call them films" McDonalds (or Dunkin Donuts or other simlar place) needs to start advertising something like "I have inexpensive coffee that tastes good and does not require knowledge of any sort of insider jargon to order." They should compete with Starbucks by trying to be the opposite, not mimic.

I bolded the section in the article where it states "it was very easy to borrow money". That was the biggest mistake made. Slashing interest rates was only part of it though. Legislation had been passed in the 90's encouraging more lending: capital requirements to back investments was lowered, performance standards were clarified establishing specific metrics to be measured against including "percentage of subprime securities held" (more being better), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency allowed lenders to claim community development credits for loans made to sites when it was part of an effort to revitalize a low or moderate income community. Without this, the large volumes of loans dolled out to people who otherwise had no business being loaned money would not have been possible. Additionally, the excess amounts of money being loaned out to people who should have been given a lesser loan amount would not have been possible (b/c they wouldn't have been able to sell their old home and upgrade since there would not have been so many new buyers in the market) http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/01/29/economic.crisis.explainer/index.html (CNN) -- The U.S. economy is clearly in terrible shape. What is less clear is how we got here. An index of home prices in 20 major metropolitan areas fell at a record annual pace in November of 2008, according to a recent report. Opinions vary on when and where to begin the story, but many experts trace the origins of the current economic situation to the housing bubble that came about earlier this decade. ...

^ What's wierd is I never felt lucky about any part of my career until recently. I entered the "real world" in January 2001 working for WorldCom. I was in the last group of people hired prior to their bankruptcy filing. I was working for all of 2 months before layoffs began on a regular quartely basis. Layoffs occurred my entire 4 years there nearly every quarter until I left. Now I am 75% certain I will be laid off from my current job (irnoic, I think, considering I survived WorldCom). Yet I still feel pretty lucky. Honestly, I am hoping I get laid off as it frees me of my 2 year commitment after finishing grad school. I just need to time it so I can get severance and then be getting a paycheck...double dipping corporate style :)

I read this statement and thought "really?". I graduated with a degree in communications and was making over $40k/year at my first job - as was everyone else who I knew that graduated from my major at OU. Not to mention many of my friends with other majors (and at other schools) who seemed to be doing well for themselves. I read more and more of the board and suddenly feel lucky to have graduated college when I did, even though it seemed the economy was starting to slump then too. Well, it was, but not like today.

You should have pelted her with a snowball and said "this here is what we neanderthals in Ohia do to foreigners"

Starbucks is not selling coffee, they are selling an experience/culture (which has been touched on with the hipster bit). Their whole marketing program is centered around selling an experience, not a product. The coffee is ancillary.