Great vid...... but why in the H-E-doublehockeysticks do they have that massive highway interchange @1:16 with the text "THIS IS OUR PRIDE"???

Great vid...... but why in the H-E-doublehockeysticks do they have that massive highway interchange @1:16 with the text "THIS IS OUR PRIDE"???

 

Hahahah I caught that too and was thinking the same thing. I think only us on here see that lol.

Very nice.

And I have been a big fan of tilt shift filters for years. I sure hope, in this digital picture taking craze everyone is part of, it doesn't get overused..... please???

 

Great video! 

 

They forgot a few projects...cough, cough...University Circle...cough, cough ;)

Great vid...... but why in the H-E-doublehockeysticks do they have that massive highway interchange @1:16 with the text "THIS IS OUR PRIDE"???

 

exactly!  That should have been mass transit or an image of and establish neighborhood.

Great vid!  ...but hopefully Chrysler LLC/Clint Eastwood doesn't catch wind.

 

(in gruff voice) "It's halftime in Cleveland, people!" ;)

I just re-discovered this forum and I have to toss out there that I love Cleveland, it's hometown, but I'm stuck in C-bus!

 

Not that C-bus is bad but Cleveland is where my heart is. My sister, a few peers and myself are in the very beginning stages of forming a non-profit and a private enterprise to help fund the non-profit. If we can't find jobs, we'll create jobs.

 

I'm big into more "urban living" and think the affordability of Cleveland and its surrounding neighborhoods is a major attractor. For many in my generation that is an important asset when looking for a job. I wish I could see a decade in the future to see what Cleveland will become!

Welcome back to the forum, Polis. Hopefully we can welcome you back to Cleveland sometime, too. If you want to work in one of the many health care fields, advanced manufacturing, information technologies, financial services, and a few other fields (restaurants, services, etc), you can certainly find jobs here. And, as you say, if you can't find the job you want, create it. Thus, if you want to find the right, sometimes it takes looking in the mirror. :-D

On MSNBC today they were talking about the swing state of OHIO.  David Gregory started the segment by showing a state map and directly pointing to Cleveland first, saying:

 

"I was in Cleveland last week, and it is obvious the city is currently undergoing a Renaissance."

 

hells yeah it is :D

 

I played a junior version of "Cleveland Tour Guide" this week. I say junior because my good friend Cindy was visiting from DC, but she brought her whole family with her, which is 5 people, including her husband, 3 kids ages 3, 14 and 15 (two teenaged, aloof, bored girls and one playmate for my son). There's only so much you can affordably and reasonably do with that many people (when you add me and my kid to the mix), and the logistics are a bit of a nightmare. Throw in massive heat wave and easily-tired toddlers and it's a little difficult.

 

The cons first: Because I live in a burb and they wanted to stay near me, their lodging experience and immediate surroundings were very boring. They were aghast that they had to drive for 20 minutes to get to a starbucks (HAD to be starbucks) and so they spent a lot of time driving back and forth from Middleburg to Brooklyn, where Ridge Park Square has one, plus a Menchie's yogurt, which apparently is all the teenaged girls want to eat every day. The other con is I got to do very little with the whole group. Me driving my kid in front of their car and calling my friend to narrate what we were seeing just wasn't a feasible way to do things (my DH was out of town - I sent him there, because he is not social and hates when people visit). So most of the family came away with a pretty negative impression of Cleveland, including that there are few places to eat except Perkins, that we don't have enough Starbucks locations, and worse yet, that the chinese takeout is inedible (it is down by me, truly).  It also quickly became way too hot to have everyone (including 2 really little kids) walking around at the Berea rib cook-off, which was our plan for lunch on Sunday, so we had to go to a chain restaurant as it was the only place I could think of that could quickly and affordably accommodate a walk-in party of 7 people for lunch.

 

The positives:

- Took the kids to the big wooden play structure in Strongsville next to the library. My friend said they don't have anything nearly that nice for kids to play on in DC, and remarked about how clean everything was.

- The big dinner at Carrie Cerino's (including husband, so 8 people) was well-received. We were easily the youngest people in there by 30 years as we were there super early (when toddlers eat), but they couldn't have been more understanding or accommodating. The server was very thoughtful and offered several things that helped us deal with the kids at different stages (like bringing their applesauce in advance of the entree). We all got early bird meals and so it was actually a pretty affordable meal, even with all those people and all that food. And the big area out in front before you get to the dining room was, as I expected, a great place for toddlers to let off steam and run around without bothering people.

- We had tapas at my place Sat night for dinner and I got to employ both some good local cheeses and some really nice imported cheeses they hadn't had before, all of which I bought at the west side market and heinen's.

- They remarked how fresh and clean the air was where I live.

- I took them all to the WSM Saturday morning and they really liked it, though they didn't buy anything.

- We hit the Greek Festival in Tremont for lunch and everyone stuffed their faces.

- Sunday, I got to go out alone with my friend, so I took her on a driving tour of Cleveland. Down around the flats and downtown so she could see our architecture and rust belt elements. The Good Time was on the river and throngs of people were out on the W bank for the downtown rib cook off so it looked great. She loves our bridges and old churches. I drove her around downtown a little and then we went down Euclid all the way, so she could see the good, then the bad, then the good again and how things are building up. I noted a few of our major construction projects going on like the medical mart and the recent casino. She really started to perk up when we got to University Circle and I drove around Cle Hts a little so she could see the houses, which she loved, but commented that they seem to have no yards to speak of and that the houses are on top of each other - too close together for her liking. We went up through Little Italy, which was hopping, and Coventry, which is where she said she would live if she lived in Cleveland. We went around Shaker a little (and yes MTS, Shaker Square) and she said gee, the streets are really confusing over here. No kidding!

- Landed back in Tremont, where I took her to Lolita and held our breath that we could get a place to sit. 2 tables opened up at the bar right after we got there and we enjoyed an incredible meal, she was very impressed with the food. Went for a stroll down to the Deer Hunter church and I talked up various things. Again it being a Sunday, many things were closed (Banyan Tree for example, Velvet Tango Room, where I took her, not knowing it was closed) so that was disappointing, but she got a much better feel for the city from the tour.

 

 

^You had me worried there till I got to the last four bullets :)

:)

I'm surprised you didn't take the kids to the Science Center or on the Goodtime. Next time they're in town, let me take care of the accommodations and itinerary. Not one dissatisfied customer yet!

 

PS how did you of all people end up with anti-social hubby who hates when people visit?? I live for visitors!! :)

^$$$.  You taking care of the budget as well?

Exactly. Everything I considered, when you added up how much it would be to take 7 people there, um, no.

 

@KJP - it's a perfect match. No competition for attention, spotlight, nobody wanting to go do item A when the other wants to do item B, etc.

The teenagers, by the way, would have been MAJORLY bored at the science center. It was considered and discussed before the trip. As was the rock hall, botanical gardens, children's museum (for the 3 year olds), the art museum, the natural history museum, the SS Mather, and lots of other stuff. It's not like I don't know what there is to do around town :)

I understand. I forgot what it was like to be a teenager. And if I ever have kids, I will carbon-freeze them when they turn 13 and thaw them out when they reach 21.

I'm surprised you didn't take the kids to the Science Center or on the Goodtime. Next time they're in town, let me take care of the accommodations and itinerary. Not one dissatisfied customer yet!

 

PS how did you of all people end up with anti-social hubby who hates when people visit?? I live for visitors!! :)

 

I might be the only one, but I found the Goodtime to be quite boring. Slightly depressing too because it was right after a river tour in Chicago.

Try the evening lake cruise with dinner and dancing. Both the Goodtime and Nautica Queen offer this. If you get a good sunset, it's even better.

And these were teenaged GIRLS. Not to stereotype, but all they are interested in is texting people and eating fro-yo. They couldn't care less about science. I just took little RNR to the science center a couple of months ago and he's still too little for pretty much everything in there except the toddler play area, and it's a lot of money to pay just to take your kid to a play area - I can do that at the mall and it's free.

 

If it had just been me and my girlfriend, I could have taken her all kinds of places and made a better impression, but it was just tough with the brood along. Plus I was on my own with the kid so had to try to do things he could handle as well.

 

I forgot to mention that we did make it to Edgewater, they wanted to see the lake. They said it was much, much bigger than they anticipated and it was really pretty along the rocks. Until we had to take our 3 year olds to the bathrooms there. Horrible smelling and big holes cut in the middle of the wooden doors (I suppose to prevent lewd acts from taking place?) But really, no woman wants to sit on a toilet and have people look at her as they walk by. My kid could not pee on the potty because he was scared of the flies around the toilet and distracted by people walking by. And the doors to the stalls don't lock so I couldn't go either, because he kept opening the door as soon as I tried to take my pants down to go, and I couldn't have him running off while I'm sitting on the pot.

 

I forgot to mention that we did make it to Edgewater

 

 

Somehow I knew that whatever followed this statement wouldn't end well.

 

 

 

Well, I was surprised to find that new metal pier thingy, I obviously haven't been down there in a long time, and we all enjoyed walking on that, except for the hyperventilating by the parents about the small children sprinting up it alone :)  And they were pleasantly surprised not to see debris floating in it or whatever. They asked me if the beach was man-made or not and I honestly didn't know. I said I didn't think so.

It would have been a drive for you..... but I bet Mentor Headlands would have been a big hit for everyone.  All the toddlers need is the sand and the teenage girls could have spent their non-texting time boy-watching

It was just too hot for the beach in any fashion. They are not beach people, for reals. We were all miserable stomping through the grass to get to the beach area, it was just too hot and the little boys made us carry them. I'm lucky mine is only 29 pounds but hers is closer to 36 so it was tough. Plus it was 94 when we got there and little kids burn really easily. This is why we had a lot of trouble with the beach last year - I'm going to invest in an umbrella I think, so we have some built-in shade.

"too hot for the beach"...... does not compute for me ;)

me neither dude, me neither. Mr. RNR vacationed to Scottsdale in AUGUST one year, when the residents leave because it's too hot. But our kid does not yet seem to be cut from the same cloth. He'll get there.

"(my DH was out of town - I sent him there, because he is not social and hates when people visit)."

 

Who knew that in our midst was RnR best wife ever. ;)

 

I have an inlaw relation somewhat like this.  He flat out cannot relax unless it's just me or his youngest brother visiting (we're agreeable personality types).  Everyone else causes problems, picky about food, or some other type of baggage or high maintenance personality.

 

Awesome you got to spend some one on one time with your out of town friend.  Those always seem like the best moments for my older family life siblings; perhaps sadly because the moments are few and far between.

They sound like typical Washintonians.  "Would only have Starbucks"...  Since there really are not any independent coffee places in DC (well there are some now but you have to seek them out), Washintonians think the only coffee is Starbucks (which they do have on nearly every corner), and actually dims compared to some of Clevelands local places..

 

And while the streets can be confusing in the Heights and especially the Shaker Lakes (where I spent this past weekend learning every street), I dont see how she could say that with the confusion and difficulty DC is...  The streets that are difficult to learn and most people cant figure out due to the various grids and overlays etc., and the added difficulty because of the extremely rude Washintonians that inhabit them. 

 

It was only rather recent that DC even had any creative or even good restaurants, before that it was best to go to chains here due to their higher standards :|.     

New pro-Cleveland facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Why-CLE/305833662781202

 

Besides the other main staples:

 

https://www.facebook.com/BelieveInClevelandNow

 

https://www.facebook.com/unmiserablecleveland

They sound like typical Washintonians.  "Would only have Starbucks"...  Since there really are not any independent coffee places in DC (well there are some now but you have to seek them out), Washintonians think the only coffee is Starbucks (which they do have on nearly every corner), and actually dims compared to some of Clevelands local places..

 

And while the streets can be confusing in the Heights and especially the Shaker Lakes (where I spent this past weekend learning every street), I dont see how she could say that with the confusion and difficulty DC is...  The streets that are difficult to learn and most people cant figure out due to the various grids and overlays etc., and the added difficulty because of the extremely rude Washintonians that inhabit them. 

 

It was only rather recent that DC even had any creative or even good restaurants, before that it was best to go to chains here due to their higher standards :|.     

 

True but at the same time, the "Park" streets are confusing.

And while the streets can be confusing in the Heights and especially the Shaker Lakes (where I spent this past weekend learning every street),

 

So you've made a final decision?

And while the streets can be confusing in the Heights and especially the Shaker Lakes (where I spent this past weekend learning every street),

 

So you've made a final decision?

 

Oh God...there good the neighborhood!  he he he he he he

No need to worry, MTS.... nothing will change.... the Shaker Lakes will be all-wight 

 

(I kid Willy, I kid).

No need to worry, MTS.... nothing will change.... the Shaker Lakes will be all-wight 

 

(I kid Willy, I kid).

 

Take Me Back to the Rust Belt City

Posted: 05/31/2012 11:27 am

 

At the recent CEOs for Cities Spring National Meeting in Cincinnati, AOL co-founder and former CEO and Chairman Steve Case noted that the most important factor for a city to thrive is attracting and developing talent. Indeed, many speakers at the two day gathering focused on the importance of a skilled and educated workforce. And, for as long as I've lived and worked in Cleveland, there have been at least a dozen initiatives aimed at curbing the malaise that is Brain Drain. All of this got me thinking about why I am where I am and have been since graduating college in 2005.

 

For me, it had and has everything to do with my generation and its inherent me-ness. While this is not generally considered a positive trait, it is derived from wanting to continuously learn, be challenged and, most importantly, have an impact. Of course, this all has to be done in a place that is unique and quirky. In a city that has suffered some serious hardships throughout the course of the 20th century and has worked arduously to revitalize itself in the past couple of decades, the ability to have all those things abounds.

 

Over the past seven years, I've been fortunate to have worked for a nonprofit that helps mid-market companies grow in value; an art and technology festival; a collaboration of philanthropic organizations and individuals working to strengthen the economic competitiveness of a 16-county Northeast Ohio region; and, most recently, a startup initiative looking to reimagine democracy in the 21st century through online and offline tools that foster collective action. I'm on the board of a foundation dedicated to improving, maintaining and celebrating the vitality of regional freshwater resources and a partner in a philanthropic venture fund that supports nonprofit organizations in Cuyahoga County. Along the way, I've worked with and learned from top business consultants, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, journalists, academics and artists.

 

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-shafarenko/take-me-back-to-the-rust-_b_1559277.html

^I absolutely love (and can completely relate to) this quote from the article.

 

""Rust Belt Chic" -- "about home, or that perpetual inner fire of longing to be comfortable in one's own skin and one's community. Yet this longing is less about regressing to the past than it is finding a future through [one's] history.""

 

 

Ohio history blog focused around bearded men. Haha

 

I find the "Presidential Beards" post to be quite interesting.

 

http://beardsofohio.blogspot.com/

Oh, those kinds of beards.

^that's what I thought, too

LOL...only on this board.

Seems like people are Fleeing to the Cleve for construction jobs (VIDEO):

 

http://www.woio.com/story/18678722/construction-business-booming-in-cleveland

Cleveland Browns longsnapper appears to be enjoying the city.

 

https://twitter.com/TheYount/status/211565904545333251

Cleveland Browns longsnapper appears to be enjoying the city.

 

https://twitter.com/TheYount/status/211565904545333251

 

You have to be a big-time Browns fan to be following the tweets of the team's long snapper! ;)

^ Haha I was a kicker so I respect the position  :lol:. And he has some funny ass tweets.

Cool. I'll have to follow him.

Cool. I'll have to follow him.

 

Haha its interesting to see someone experience the city from California. And he joined the team late last year, so prior to this summer, he only got to experience the winter.

 

The only reason I really know he exists is because Im a huge fan of Phil Dawson, and the former longsnapper, Pontriband, was really hurting Dawson's field goal percentage with some really terrible snaps. Also prevented him from tieing a NFL record  :x

This little lovebubble for the Cleve was syndicated nationally, so people across the country got to hear about BrandMuscle moving into the city, people on 4-month waiting lists for apartments, etc. This was an absolutely glowing review. Yay :)

 

A Comeback For Downtown Cleveland

by David C. Barnett, NPR

June 11, 2012

 

Long the punch line of late-night comedians, Cleveland is now part of a new trend as old industrial centers shed their Rust Belt images and become urban hotspots. David C. Barnett reports from member station WCPN.

 

http://www.npr.org/2012/06/11/154740024/a-comeback-for-downtown-cleveland

I heard a bit of that on the radio down here in Cincy this morning.  Sounded great! 

I heard this listening to npr while I was waking up, and a friend of mine at work brought it up as well. It's interesting that this is probably the least detail-rich piece I've seen on Cleveland resurgence, instead of citing any impressive numbers it cites.. a blogger who said the numbers were significant lol, it certainly got amplified a lot more than others due to the kind of audience that listens to npr.

Yeah, I think that story was more of a puff piece than anything else.  There could have been a real piece in there, but seemed to have gotten lost in the fuzzy "downtown renaissance!!" formula story, which is kind of trite at this point.