Skybar NWA l Northwest Arkansas Off-topic

[strmchsr77]

Sorry, Colby. Yeah I went out of town for vacation. I was going to mention that before I left but my computer died on me as well. I got back earlier this week but I've been busy at work trying to fix everything they messed up while I was gone. Might be a while longer before I have a working computer again. Looks like it's the slooooow computers at the Fayetteville Public Library for me. At least for a little while. But I am working on eventually being able to be back on a regular basis. I've been curious to see what news I missed while I was gone.

Welcome back Rod! I hope that you had a great vacation.

[Mith242]

Welcome back Rod! I hope that you had a great vacation.

Thanks Colby. It was nice but I wish I had come back to a working computer.

[Mith242]

I saw something interesting today. I was a bit hesitant to bring it up because I'm not sure if it will get people worked up. But I thought it was interesting. Unlike the rest of the south and midwest Arkansas has a somewhat high level of adoptions by gay couples. It is an estimate because those numbers aren't being kept officially. But Arkansas is ranked 9th by estimates with 6.5% of adopted children living with gay couples. The national estimate is around 4%. There's also a good chance most of these are occurring in NWA and central Arkansas driving the percentage even higher. Although there is more talk of Arkansas trying to do something to prevent this in the future. But anyway, I just thought it was some interesting info. Just thought I'd mention it and hope this doesn't turn into some big controversy.

[masons_dad1]

I saw something interesting today. I was a bit hesitant to bring it up because I'm not sure if it will get people worked up. But I thought it was interesting. Unlike the rest of the south and midwest Arkansas has a somewhat high level of adoptions by gay couples. It is an estimate because those numbers aren't being kept officially. But Arkansas is ranked 9th by estimates with 6.5% of adopted children living with gay couples. The national estimate is around 4%. There's also a good chance most of these are occurring in NWA and central Arkansas driving the percentage even higher. Although there is more talk of Arkansas trying to do something to prevent this in the future. But anyway, I just thought it was some interesting info. Just thought I'd mention it and hope this doesn't turn into some big controversy.

I don't have a problem with that. There's a lot of children needing to be adopted and most gay people I know seem like they would make good parents and make more than enough money to provide a good home and not to mention plenty of designer clothing:) Also have to remember that marketing is leading job growth in NWA and most gay people I know of are in some form of marketing or design profession.

[Mith242]

Here's something off topic. I recently saw an article talking about prices for parking lot spaces in NYC. Believe it or not, some are about $225,000.

[masons_dad1]

Here's something off topic. I recently saw an article talking about prices for parking lot spaces in NYC. Believe it or not, some are about $225,000.

Believable. Chump change for the tens of thousands of millionaires in New York City.

[Mith242]

I think many of us have noticed robberies and bank robberies seem to have taken off in the area. I had wondered if this was one of the bad implications of our growing metro. But it appears this isn't just localized to NWA. Sounds like this is a growing trend all over the US.

[Mith242]

I read something interesting recently. Since the US became a country we had always been the 'tallest' nation in the world. That is had the tallest people. But that has changed in recent times. We have really started dropping off. Sounds like we're not even in the top ten anymore. And before anyone blames the wave of Hispanic immigrants, they were included in this study. It was mentioned often times the nations with the tallest people have a tendency to be the healthiest. So it sounds like our current health trends are probably to blame.

[Mith242]

This is something from an MSNBC article about stupid travel related questions. I thought they were pretty funny so I thought I'd try to share them over here.

* How can I leave Baltimore at 8:30 a.m. and get to Chicago at 8:35 a.m. when the flight takes an hour? (The plane flies really, really fast.)

* Do I need to carry on my carry-on bags or can I check them? (Why not check yourself and let the bags have the seat?)

* When am I going to receive my paper copy of the electronic ticket? (Uhm, what part of the word "electronic" has escaped you?)

* Well, how will they know who I am if all I have is my photo ID? (Uhm ... ma'am, you forget we have the TSA manning security now.)

* How much is a train to Jamaica? (We are sold out, but if you call Amtrak, they have space. Be sure to ask for a seat on the left side of the train so you don't miss the Lost City of Atlantis on the way down.)

* What language do they speak in England? (Swahili. Would you like to purchase our "Learn Swahili in 10 Easy Steps" manual?)

* The water is murky. I did not come to Jamaica to swim in murky water. (As I recall, a Category 4 hurricane just pelted the island and yet you insisted that you had to go. Right?)

* The hotel would have been fine but all the employees were speaking Spanish. (The next time you are in Mexico, we will order some French-speaking Mexicans for your convenience.)

* Does the water go all the way around this island? (Not on Tuesdays.)

* Is Canada still the largest state? (They seem to think so.)

* Is this a wide-body plane? (Yes.) Good, because my mother has a big butt. (I imagine this was followed by a swift upper cut.)

* Don't they take American Express? (No, in China they take only French francs, but we still need to get you a visa.)

* Why do I need to change clothes in Chicago? (Planes, ma'am. Planes. You change planes in Chicago.)

* Do these stairs go up? (Not this set, sir. The up stairs are on the lower level.)

* How do they get power to the ship? (Very long extension cords.)

* Do you know what time the midnight buffet starts? (They are cutting costs, so now it is offered between 4:30 a.m. and 4:35 a.m.)

* Does it rain in the rain forest? (Does a bear shi ... oh, never mind.)

* Will the 24-hour caf

[zman9810]

This is something from an MSNBC article about stupid travel related questions. I thought they were pretty funny so I thought I'd try to share them over here.

* How can I leave Baltimore at 8:30 a.m. and get to Chicago at 8:35 a.m. when the flight takes an hour? (The plane flies really, really fast.)

* Do I need to carry on my carry-on bags or can I check them? (Why not check yourself and let the bags have the seat?)

* When am I going to receive my paper copy of the electronic ticket? (Uhm, what part of the word "electronic" has escaped you?)

* Well, how will they know who I am if all I have is my photo ID? (Uhm ... ma'am, you forget we have the TSA manning security now.)

* How much is a train to Jamaica? (We are sold out, but if you call Amtrak, they have space. Be sure to ask for a seat on the left side of the train so you don't miss the Lost City of Atlantis on the way down.)

* What language do they speak in England? (Swahili. Would you like to purchase our "Learn Swahili in 10 Easy Steps" manual?)

* The water is murky. I did not come to Jamaica to swim in murky water. (As I recall, a Category 4 hurricane just pelted the island and yet you insisted that you had to go. Right?)

* The hotel would have been fine but all the employees were speaking Spanish. (The next time you are in Mexico, we will order some French-speaking Mexicans for your convenience.)

* Does the water go all the way around this island? (Not on Tuesdays.)

* Is Canada still the largest state? (They seem to think so.)

* Is this a wide-body plane? (Yes.) Good, because my mother has a big butt. (I imagine this was followed by a swift upper cut.)

* Don't they take American Express? (No, in China they take only French francs, but we still need to get you a visa.)

* Why do I need to change clothes in Chicago? (Planes, ma'am. Planes. You change planes in Chicago.)

* Do these stairs go up? (Not this set, sir. The up stairs are on the lower level.)

* How do they get power to the ship? (Very long extension cords.)

* Do you know what time the midnight buffet starts? (They are cutting costs, so now it is offered between 4:30 a.m. and 4:35 a.m.)

* Does it rain in the rain forest? (Does a bear shi ... oh, never mind.)

* Will the 24-hour caf

[Mith242]

I read another funny story I thought I'd share. Now there are more things to fear from spicy food. A Thai restaurant in London's Soho district found this out. They have an extra spicy dish they prepare, but recently I guess the bad weather kept the exhaust from the kitchen from dissipating upwards. If you've ever grilled very spicy chile peppers then you'll know what I'm talking about. Anyway people nearby started coughing and such and people freaked out and thought it was some sort of chemical terrorism. The roads and that whole area were sealed off and people with special breathing masks were sent in. Only to find out it was a spicy dish that was the culprit.

[masons_dad1]

That's funny, but at the same time pretty scary. With all the talks of an imminent major terrorist attack againtst the US I'm wondering if we shouldn't be as alert as the UK. We really need to be cautious this coming winter due to so many illnesses people seem to be coming down with. It may be normal, but there seems to be a lot of people I know getting sick. I realize its the flu season, but its also an opportunity for a biological attack as people are more prone to write-off illnesses as normal and not the effects of a biological weapon.

[Mith242]

Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving.

[masons_dad1]

I want to apologize to everyone who was subjected to my negative posts, especially to cocothief, whose own posts have always been positive and optimistic even when others were not. I will continue to read these forums, but will not post unless I have something positive or at least non-disruptive to say.

And thanks to Rod (Mith) for removing the negative portions of the Non-Profit thread, of which I was responsible for.

Mike

[Mith242]

I keep forgetting to mention this. Has anyone seen the section of Hwy 16 that's collapsed after all the rains we've gotten? It's done to one lane and not in the best of locations, there's a curve near there. It probably won't be fixed till sometime this summer from the sound of it. The bad thing is if we keep getting more rain there's the chance more of it could shift and collapse.

[zman9810]

I keep forgetting to mention this. Has anyone seen the section of Hwy 16 that's collapsed after all the rains we've gotten? It's done to one lane and not in the best of locations, there's a curve near there. It probably won't be fixed till sometime this summer from the sound of it. The bad thing is if we keep getting more rain there's the chance more of it could shift and collapse.

Haven't heard about it- where's it at?

[Mith242]

Haven't heard about it- where's it at?

It's near Patrick in Madison County. I've been a little surprised I haven't heard more about it. I'm pretty sure Hwy 16 gets quite a bit of traffic on it. But like I also said earlier, what's really bad is that it's on a curve. You have to be pretty careful because it's hard to tell if anyone is coming from the other side once you get to that one lane.

It's not great but I found a very small pic that shows what it looks like.

[Mith242]

Not sure where to put this really. Sorry I've been away. Unfortunately I had some things to come up. Figures now that we've had some problems arise as well. Unfortunately it might be another week and a half or so before I'm around on a regular basis again. Hopefully we won't have too many problems during that time.

[zman9810]

Not sure where to put this really. Sorry I've been away. Unfortunately I had some things to come up. Figures now that we've had some problems arise as well. Unfortunately it might be another week and a half or so before I'm around on a regular basis again. Hopefully we won't have too many problems during that time.

Good to have you back around- hope everything works out for you. Isn't that the way it always happens- take off for a little while and the whole place goes to crap.

Not really- just some angry reactions to social problems that always are just below the surface. Maybe a site about urban development isn't the place for that type discussion.

[Mith242]

Anyway I'm back now. Good to see that things weren't totally dead around here. Luckily there only seemed to be the one incident. I really wish I had been around when it happened so things didn't play out the way they did. But anyway I should be back for good now.

[Mith242]

I came across this and thought it was interesting. Even more so when I found out there was a local connection to it. People have speculated for a long time why Stradivarius' violins have such a great sound. A Dutch scientist and a Fayetteville violin maker might have discovered the secret. The wood used in those instruments have a unique even density. Although that doesn't answer all the questions. Is the wood that way because of the particular climate during that period? Or maybe how the wood was treated or aged? Perhaps it could have been a little of all.

[Mith242]

Don't know if anyone watched the opening ceremony for the Olympics. But they were pretty spectacular. It was done by Chinese director Zhang Yimou. If you've seen a few Chinese movies there's a good chance at least one of them were by him. I think I heard China spent $300 Mil just one the opening ceremony.

[Mith242]

Have I missed something? Seems like I've heard 5 or 6 low flying jets so far today. Almost feels like I live next to XNA all of a sudden. I hardly hear any where I live except when there's a football game.

[zman9810]

Have I missed something? Seems like I've heard 5 or 6 low flying jets so far today. Almost feels like I live next to XNA all of a sudden. I hardly hear any where I live except when there's a football game.

I heard that they are the jets in town for the flyover at the start of the Razorback game game today. The paper said they are from Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Fallas, Tx.

[Mith242]

I heard that they are the jets in town for the flyover at the start of the Razorback game game today. The paper said they are from Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Fallas, Tx.

Weird, I just don't recall hearing those jets come in before every game. That and it almost seemed like they kept flying around or were coming in just one at a time.