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monsoon

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Has anyone here been to the Mecklenburg region of Germany? Are there similarities?

I've wondered the same thing myself, Wiki tells you that it is generally rural, underpopulated and econonomically insignificant today, though historically it was much more significant. I've asked my father in-law (3rd gen German-American who speaks the language and has travelled the country several times) but he had never been there and didn't know much about it.

I'm determined to visit Mecklenburg one day (supposedly I have an ancestor from nearby Lubeck).

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^ Thanks for the pic! I really like what I can see of German Mecklenburg. Maybe we can airlift a few of their downtown blocks....and the river...hey we are cousins after all.

The reusable shopping bag topic has been touched on before by another poster but I wanted to strongly concur....Lately I have made a concerted effort to take my bags with me on a variety of errands. The reactions I get are hilarious and sad at the same time. Store employees seem to be stunned and insulted when I hand their plastic bag back to them or ask not to be given one. Especially sad when this occurs in a store I bought a bag from! It's like I am doing something wrong and crazy by recycling. These experiences are anectdotal of course but for me it's a great illustration about how far outside of green thinking Charlotte is compared to many other cities nationwide. We really need to work on catching up!

Edited by voyager12
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The reusable shopping bag topic has been touched on before by another poster but I wanted to strongly concur....Lately I have made a concerted effort to take my bags with me on a variety of errands. The reactions I get are hilarious and sad at the same time. Store employees seem to be stunned and insulted when I hand their plastic bag back to them or ask not to be given one. Especially sad when this occurs in a store I bought a bag from! It's like I am doing something wrong and crazy by recycling. These experiences are anectdotal of course but for me it's a great illustration about how far outside of green thinking Charlotte is compared to many other cities nationwide. We really need to work on catching up!

Its not been as bad lately at the grocery stores I go to, but you have to watch out for how they bag. It actually takes a minute of thought to figure out the bagging order, which most minimum wage baggers aren't going to do. With plastic you just throw seperate stuff into seperate bags. With a big cloth bag (love my big free Food Lion one from Charlotte Clean & Green) I can usually get all of my food from one trip, so you don't get the easy quick and dirty seperation.

I did have another issue with Kohls, though, following an earlier post. On a more recent trip I didn't have any reusuable bags handy, so I asked that I just take my single pair of jeans without a bag. I swear I've never had so much trouble buying crap before. If its a security issue I have a bloody receipt right there in my hand, just let me go bag free!

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^ Bear in mind that the people who bag your items are under corporate rules, which as far as they are concerned are more important than your personal preferences. They just don't want to deal with their uptight manager chewing them out for not following company rules, and for what they are being paid they're willing to let you leave angry rather than have to deal with the hassle.

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Lately I have seen California plates almost every day! Word is definitely getting out out there.

As an ex-Californian (4th generation native to SF Bay Area) who made the move with my family in 2001, I can say word has definitely gotten out among those I know. We moved here after visiting friends who had moved several months earlier. I remember being impressed by the housing they got for their money, the trees [which sadly are disappearing], uptown, and the airport [i did not expect Charlotte to have anything like it]. Part of it was having lived in CA all my life [my wife too], we wanted a change. We love the climate here as well - [occasional snow as well as 75-degree days in winter, thunderstorms in summer (I love them!), and no 55-degrees with fog rolling in almost every evening in summer ["get out of the pool or you'll freeze!"] - although that would feel pretty good about now :lol: . You never get snow [except occasionally on the hills] in the Bay Area and thunderstorms are extremely rare there as well.

I know of 2 more families who were mutual acquaintances from the same town who also made the move after visiting. I've certainly done my part in singing the praises of Charlotte and have tried (unsucessfully so far) to talk some other friends and family into moving here. While I think many moving here are attracted by the large homes on big lots with big trees in places like Ballantyne / Providence Country Club [something they could never afford in CA], qw actually ended up moving to PM after trying a stint in a big home in South Charlotte. I got tired of the commute to uptown [got worse every year] and wanted to live in a more pedestrian oriented, laid back, pub-going community, near uptown [and thus my interest in UP as well].

I assumed the housing slump / credit crunch would slow the influx of Californians [i'm sure it has to some extent] so I too am surprised at how many CA plates I have seen lately [not as plentiful as FL, NJ, NY or OH but perhaps more worthy of noting considering the distance involved and the myth that CA is all wonderful]. I miss CA sometimes, but Charlotte feels like home now and I have no desire to move back [although if I could afford a home in say Santa Barbara or Tahoe I'd go back in an instant :P ].

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The apt building I recently moved into does not have a laundry room. It's old. My last place had a communal washer and dryer out back but it was a SpeedQueen, god knows how old and it ate my clothes! Today I finally decided to go to Norges Washerette! Not a laundromat mind you...a Washerette! ;) Next to Ed's Tavern it's close to my apt. I have passed by it for years but never went in. The inside is very clean and unintentionally retro. So if any of you are in a bind Norges is a clean and cheap option for laundry.

Edited by voyager12
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The reusable shopping bag topic has been touched on before by another poster but I wanted to strongly concur....Lately I have made a concerted effort to take my bags with me on a variety of errands. The reactions I get are hilarious and sad at the same time. Store employees seem to be stunned and insulted when I hand their plastic bag back to them or ask not to be given one. Especially sad when this occurs in a store I bought a bag from! It's like I am doing something wrong and crazy by recycling. These experiences are anectdotal of course but for me it's a great illustration about how far outside of green thinking Charlotte is compared to many other cities nationwide. We really need to work on catching up!

What about those of us that do one shopping trip for several weeks or even a month at a time? Should we buy 10 reuseable bags? I'm all for reducing waste and everything and am just wondering what the opinion is. Also, what exactly do the grocers do with the bags we bring back to recycle? Do they melt them down and recast the bags?

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What about those of us that do one shopping trip for several weeks or even a month at a time? Should we buy 10 reuseable bags? I'm all for reducing waste and everything and am just wondering what the opinion is. Also, what exactly do the grocers do with the bags we bring back to recycle? Do they melt them down and recast the bags?

I think you might be underestimating how big (good) reusable bags are. The Food Lion bag I have comfortably holds more than three regular grocery bags.

Most retailers will sell their collected recylables to a recycler. From there they'll be turned into any number of products, from composite woods to clothing.

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A Charlotte couple was featured in the cover story of Sunday NYT Styles Section yesterday. They had stopped having sex and decided to save their marriage by having sex every day for a whole year (leaving out biz trips and illness). Another couple in Boulder also did this and both couples wrote books. They say it worked wonders. The couple from here were described as "conservative bible reading steake eaters from Charlotte,NC" the other were "grain eaters from Boulder Co". So both places were stuck with the state appendage.

Also this past weekend's NYT magazine is entirely devoted to new cities. Great pictures. It's online if you don't get the paper every weekend like I do.

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Could somebody I.D. this plant for me please? Sorry, no pictures. This plant is flowering/blooming in Charlotte right now. It can be fairly large (small tree size) and has these long arching branches that seem to come out from a centerpoint. The flowers are mostly pale orange-ish, though some tend to more pink-ish and some to more white-ish. There is a ton of this along 485 on the south side, especially west of 77. Also some around the airport, and I think there's a ton on Hebron or Nation's Ford or in that area.

Is that enough description? Can somebody offer a guess? Thanks!

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Could somebody I.D. this plant for me please? Sorry, no pictures. This plant is flowering/blooming in Charlotte right now. It can be fairly large (small tree size) and has these long arching branches that seem to come out from a centerpoint. The flowers are mostly pale orange-ish, though some tend to more pink-ish and some to more white-ish. There is a ton of this along 485 on the south side, especially west of 77. Also some around the airport, and I think there's a ton on Hebron or Nation's Ford or in that area.

Is that enough description? Can somebody offer a guess? Thanks!

You can check out the Plant Identification Center at NC State here for held in figuring out what you saw.

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Could somebody I.D. this plant for me please? Sorry, no pictures. This plant is flowering/blooming in Charlotte right now. It can be fairly large (small tree size) and has these long arching branches that seem to come out from a centerpoint. The flowers are mostly pale orange-ish, though some tend to more pink-ish and some to more white-ish. There is a ton of this along 485 on the south side, especially west of 77. Also some around the airport, and I think there's a ton on Hebron or Nation's Ford or in that area.

Is that enough description? Can somebody offer a guess? Thanks!

Sounds like a Crepe Myrtle to me. Do these look familiar?

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Sounds like a Crepe Myrtle to me. Do these look familiar?

No, I don't *think* (I could be wrong) they're any kind of Crepe Myrtle. The leaves on these things are almost fern-likem, that is, long skinny leaves (or leaflets on compound leaves).

Here are some on 485, though I'm pretty sure the picture isn't good enough to help:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&....98443379099093

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That's them! Thanks all!

Invasive, but cool.

Using my childhood as evidence, they make great climbing trees, too. But I know our house and all the neighboring houses were constantly pulling up hundreds of sprouts from the one single tree. If you decided to plant one, don't underestimate how easily and quickly they grow.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I went to the freecycle store on Parkwood this past Saturday. Plenty of people I know won't drive down Parkwood day or night but I have never felt unsafe. I had some clothes I don't wear anymore so I dropped them off and found a cool old shirt. I love that place. Such a great communal grassroots vibe. Sometimes they take a day off but it's usually open every Saturday afternoon.

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^ The article said some, not all, of the members of the patrol have said they will arm themselves with the handguns that they already own, which is perfectly legal. You can walk down Tryon Street with a gun on your hip legally if you want to. The Observer is just sensationalizing the fact that a couple of people have said they are going to do it because they don't feel safe anymore.

Edited by Raintree21
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I believe people should be allowed to arm themselves. Clearly being shot at will change your perception and level of safety as is the case with the guy who started this group. My only concern about these steps is the lack of civilian experience. Make a mistake in a dark alley and you are in jail instead of the "criminal".

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That's them! Thanks all! Invasive, but cool.

This tree was used as an ornamental in Morganton to the point it earned the nickname "The Mimosa City". The bowling alley, cab company, local insurance company, and movie theater were all named Mimosa back in the day. A blight came through and killed many of them in the late 1960's, but there are still some around town. They seem to be making a comeback everywhere.

The Mimosa Grill in uptown Charlotte is named in reference to Morganton since the owner is from there.

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