My Wishes for Richardson's Budget and Goals

The May election for city council is history. Now, it's summer. It's hot. It's vacation time. Do we have to start paying attention to city government again already? I'm afraid so. The July after an election is the most critical month for Richardson's city council for the next two years. It's when the new council sets its goals for its two-year term. It's when the annual budget process begins. It's when the script for the rest of the year, the rest of the two-year council term, is written. The rest pretty much plays out as written in these dog days of summer.

After the jump, my wish list.

Quad Cities Quiz

From 2011 0630 Quad Cities

Fifty points if you can name the four cities on the upper Mississippi known as the Quad Cities without reading beyond the end of this sentence. Time's up. Davenport, Iowa, and Moline, Illinois, are the easy ones. Maybe so, too, is Rock Island, Illinois. It's the fourth one that's usually the stumper. How many people can come up with Bettendorf, Iowa? I would have also given credit for East Moline, Illinois, which Wikipedia lists as the "fifth" of the "quad" cities. Wikipedia also reveals that the area was known as the "Tri-Cities" until East Moline grew in the 1930s and became the first "fourth" city in the Quad Cities. Confusing, isn't it?

It all makes for some confusing street names, too. Going east-west, they are called avenues. Going north-south, they are called streets. And when you cross the border between Moline and Rock Island, the number system changes. So, 12th Avenue becomes 30th Avenue and one block east of 54th Street is 2nd Street. Luckily for the wayward tourist, the Mississippi River, already broad and impressive this far north, dominates all, so it's not too difficult to navigate your way around. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the discovery of the Village of East Davenport, Iowa, nestled between Davenport and Bettendorf. It just might have the most scenic block in all four five six towns.

For more photos, look here.

Iowa, Where TANSTAAFL Does Not Apply

From 2011 0629 Des Moines

The Iowa legislature adjourned June 30 after the third-longest session in state history. Legislators were at loggerheads for so long over, what else, spending and taxes. We happened to be in the Iowa Capitol in Des Moines on the last full day of the legislative session. I think I figured out a way to help Iowans balance their budget. Quit giving tourists free lunches.

The Capitol is a magnificent building with grand chambers, offices and a stunning law library. But its cafeteria? Not so great. As we were standing in line, or rather, as we were standing all by ourselves waiting to be served, as there were no other customers, I suggested that if our kids were here I would challenge them to come up with all the ways the cafeteria could be run more efficiently. Finally, we were served our hamburgers and fries and went to the checkout to pay. Or not. There was no one at the cash register. We stood there awkwardly, looking around for someone, anyone, to give our money to. No one ever came. Eventually, we decided to sit down and eat, keeping one eye open for someone to reopen the cash register. It never happened. So, Iowans, thanks much for the free lunch to cap off the free tour. Great meal, great building, great state.

Then, it was back on the road again to the Quad Cities, with a short stop along the way in West Branch. Quick, what does a small two-room house in West Branch, Iowa, have in common with a suite at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City? Answer, they were both homes to the 31st President of the United States, Herbert Hoover. The West Branch house is his birthplace, the Waldorf-Astoria suite was his home in retirement.

For more photos, look here.

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TANSTAAFL: There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch.

Kansas City, A Friendly City

From 2011 0628 Kansas City

"Gotta find a friendly city
And that's the reason why,
I'm going to Kansas City
Kansas City here I come"
-- Wilbert Harrison

Visiting Kansas City for just one night, what do you do? We had to try the barbecue at Fiorella's Jack Stack Barbecue in the Country Club Plaza. We ordered the Roundup Dinner for Two (sliced beef, pork, ham, and pork spare ribs). Sublime.

But the song says Kansas City is a friendly city, not a tasty city. Did it live up to the lyrics? In the morning, we did a walking tour of KC's art museums. We started at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, then walked past the Kansas City Art Institute and ended up at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. But it was Tuesday. Due to budget constraints, the museum is now closed Mondays *and* Tuesdays, except for groups. Oops. Not to worry. Kansas City is a friendly city, right? Telling the friendly man at the door that we were from Texas, in town only for that one day, he got out his walkie-talkie and confirmed that one of the guides inside had a little free time to give us a personal escort. We were in! A quick look at the ancient art collection, then the Impressionists and post-Impressionists, concluding by private access to the special exhibition of Monet's Water Lilies, an enormous triptych assembled and on display together for the first time in a generation. Sublime. Kansas City deserves its reputation as a friendly city, indeed.

For more photos, look here.

Joplin, Five Weeks After The Storm

From 2011 0627 Joplin

June 27, 2011: The thousands of drivers who pass by Joplin, Missouri, every day on Interstate Highway I-44 notice nothing different. The Cracker Barrel, the Steak 'n Shake, the Waffle House are all still there serving whatever it is they serve. But exit the freeway and drive north on Range Line Road and you begin to notice growing changes. Business signs not quite vertical. Blue tarps on roofs. Banners in front of boarded up store fronts advertising "Open for Business." By the time you get to 20th Street there is no missing it. Something bad, something very bad happened here. Whole city blocks, for several miles, where there should be houses and shade trees and kids playing, are now a disaster area empty of everything except for piles of rubble, uprooted or shredded trees, and isolated work crews looking like they don't know where to start to put things right again. For the 159 victims of the May 21 tornado, and the thousands of survivors, friends and relatives, things will never be right again. Even a brief visit to the city, five weeks after the storm, leaves one stunned by the enormity of the damage.

For more photos, look here.