CoastersNSich

Very awesome photo thread, and I couldn't agree more with the last poster. Fortunately the Dodgers realize that the best ballpark for them is simply a better Dodger Stadium while keeping what works, and the likeliness of the classic stadium still having baseball games in 2062. Same thing goes for Fenway: Sox owners originally pushed for a new park but found out they could do fine revenue wise just staying put and slowly improving the old park. Unless I find fistfuls of cash laying around or some other wacky windfall coming my way, I will never get the chance to see either Yankee Stadium nor Shea Stadium. At least the Yankees are maintaining history while building anew... Citi Field seems to be more like an Ebbets wannabe in a parking lot. Finishing my rant, I have a preference for the old Busch Stadium over the new. While it was a mult-purpose donut, it was undeniably St. Louis. The new one, which they artificially instilled character too, is still lacking. More of a fad follower, if you ask me.

Two days before Carlin died, Jim Borgman of the Cincinnati Enquirer published a cartoon "with apologies to George Carlin" titled '7 Words You Can Never Say To Americans": You. Are. Using. Too. Damn. Much. Oil. http://borgman.cincinnati.com/ (They just redid the website, and unfortunately I have problems seeing enlarged cartoons.) From Fri Jun 20. I admire that even after he first found fame, he realized he as a stiff performing for other stiffs, and instead did something that better defined him and made sense to common people. Our American heroes (firefighters, policemen, soldiers, other personnel) use those "seven words" as Carlin said in an interview with O'Reilly from 2001.

Six Flags is racist? Nothing new: http://sixflagskkk.ytmnd.com/

Monorail Cat.

I saw Josh Gracin (from American Idol season 2), now a country singer, last Thursday in Columbus, across from OSU. It was a great show, Josh has a new album out, and I got to meet him after the show! Best of all it was free, since the show was sponsored by OSU's student activity fees.

iMac G5, January 2006. Sadly I don't get to use it, because it's back at my room in Columbus during spring break. But that'll end on Sunday evening. When was the last time you rode some sort of public transport system (bus/rail)?

If I owned KI: - Bring back 11pm closes on Saturday - Add a Peanuts section, even if the Nickelodeon Universe remains - Lower parking prices - Lower soft drink prices - Remove the Crypt/Tomb Raider - Replace the trains on Racer and Beast with new PTCs... no headrests. - Repaint Racer to its classic paint scheme. - Since there is a B&M Hyper supposedly coming in '09, I'd maybe go with Intamin for a subsequent coaster, like Maverick - Large Ferris Wheel - More sit-down eating - Revamp Coney Mall: bring back gingko trees, replace asphalt w/concrete, and give the area retro 60s feel. Remove games stands in the median, relocate to other places along the outside of the midway. - Redevelop/retheme Action Zone. Paramount gave it the atmosphere of a carnival with permanent rides. Cedar Fair might be sprucing it up some, but it still has some tackiness. - Try to bring back the old German/Bavarian theme to Oktoberfest. Like KIMan said, add a Sky Ride, possibly between Oktoberfest and Coney Mall.

I got back from visiting the new West Chester IKEA store (near Cincinnati). I'm definitely happy to have a store just 15 minutes from home... but disappointed it's not close enough to my grad school home in Columbus. I'm on my spring break and back at home, which gives me the perfect opportunity to visit this week-old store. I wanted to take some pictrues, but realized I left it in my computer at home (near Cincinnati), so I can come back again this week. Being located in a fairly conservative hotbed, you might wonder why IKEA would build a store here... but there are defintely people who like different, modern stuff like I do. Being at the center of a region with Columbus, Louisville, Lexington, and Indianapolis also helped land this Cincinnati-area location. I went late afternoon, around when the after-work shoppers were coming in, but the place wasn't WAY too busy, and there was a decent line for the restaurant. Service may be cafeteria style, but you get silverware, china and glasses for your food, and the prices are very reasonable if not low. So, I plan to follow up with photos and more stuff. I'd like to get a new chair and possibly even a new bed.

I would support an ordinance making big box stores reduce their urban footprint. That means, building parking underneath, atop, or in a garage as part of the store. The store itself should be 2 or more floors, with special cart escalators between the passenger escalators, moving ramps, and/or oversized elevators. Allowing, rather than prohibiting, big-box stores, would better revitalize cities, because they give existing residents more choice, and can attract others to come back. IMO, the city councils are shooting themselves in the foot by making these ordinances, and some of them have special interests with union groups. Many of those who work for stores like Wal-Mart know what the wages are, and are most often students, spouses with better-paying jobs, and/or retired older people who are looking for supplementary income while making sense of their time.

It was possibly either the Looping Star or Dragon at Beech Bend Park in 2006. When was the last time you saw a celebrity in person?

Second grade. I must need help. When was the last time you saw a game show?

There's this furniture seller called American Freight that has stores in Cincinnati and Columbus. The announcer is always shouting in the ads. Unlike Gilbert Gottfried, it's REALLY annoying.

I must agree... I've seen much worse. This reminds me of Jim Bakker's defunct and abandoned theme park resort, which a hotel tower was completed structurally, but never finished nor opened. While on that topic, don't forget that Cincinnati has an abandoned subway... parts of it were completed, but it sadly never saw a train pass through. But this tower has to no doubt be the biggest example of abandonment before completion.

"CHA-CHING!" Snapps, later acquired by Rally's... Starring Seth Green.

LOL. There's some people (who I don't like right now) who I wish would do that. And I actually like Tony Romo.

That's how I feel. I want the Giants to win because I like the Mannings... and they're not the Patriots. But want to win does not necessarily equal will win.

Very cold. Dry. Why the hell did I stay in Ohio to go to grad school?

...so dumb... ...she took the Pepsi Challenge, and chose Jif. ...she saw that the movie was rated NC-17, and brought 17 friends. ...saw the sign that said "Disney World Left," and turned around and went back home.

One big reason why I'm glad the holiday season is over: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcPk6KKyfVE&feature=related

Probably never. When was the last time you attended an NFL game?

Probably earlier this week. When was the last time you sang solo in a public environment?

Found this on the Archinect forums: Yes, ladies and gentlemen, this is a building being demolished from the ground up... TAER IT UP!!!!

I actually did this (for the most part) back in July. Take the Metro Blue Line from DCA (Reagan Airport) all the way out to Largo Town Center in MD, then transfer to a Metrobus, which stops outside Six Flags America. Not the most glamourous way to get there, but it works, and you get to snicker as you walk past the auto toll booths wanting $15 per car. If you are coming through BWI (Baltimore), which Soutwest services, there is the B30 Metrobus that connects that airport to the Metro Green Line. Transfer to the Blue Line at L'Enfant* Plaza, and take Blue to Largo. *(pronounced Lohn-Fohn. Named after the guy who made the plans for Washington DC. Has nothing to do with babies or typefaces.) Don't forget SFKK, but good luck getting there on foot from the Louisville Airport. But I'm sure a couple of hotels across from SFKK and the KEC (Fair/Expo Center) have airport shuttles...

I have seen the implosion of old Riverfront Stadium in person, just 5 years ago! I don't doubt about Imperial Palace. It's right at the center of the Strip, yet it has some of the cheapest rooms around. As an architecture and planning student, I really like high-rises, so there's few high-rises (outside of public housing) that I want to see torn down.

...the participants had to watch a re-creation of the "out-farting Michael Moore" scene, in which the toilet stalls were removed for filming the scene. The people demand to switch to a different filming. They are taken to the scene of the filming of "Hitman 2," at the ruins of Geauga Lake Amusement Park. When they arrive, they find that lead actor Timothy Olyphant...