What does tomorrow look like? For Fritz Haeg it is a place where rather than waste precious natural resources on vanity-scapes like the ubiquitous front lawn we learn to work with the earth and find both beauty and functionality in personal and social investments such as his  “Edible Estates”. It is a tomorrow that includes architecture as a way of relocating animals to their natural habitats. Haeg will discuss his work as an architect, designer, educator, curator, artist, in short---visionary, as well as his ideas about an alternate model to the artist as isolated creator.

fritzhaeg.com
NY Times
Metropolis
www.cia.edu/tomorrow

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I love cookbooks. 

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The Nation magazine chose Cleveland as the city to illustrate the cost of the War in Iraq to one troubled city. The two-page spread in the March 31 issue shows what could have been bought to meet public needs with $479.2 million, Cleveland’s share of the war cost.

A Retired Librarian Leaves $2M to West Hartford Public Library

March 19, 2008

Often, the story of an unexpected major bequest involves a patron who quietly but regularly used the library. In the case of the West Hartfort Public Library, CT, however, the story stars a longtime reference librarian, Thomas Kilfoil, who died in 2005 at 82 and left the library $2 million. (He worked until he was 79.)

The County has pulled another Gateway. Only better - for the operators.

It looks as if the medical mart and convention center will cost County taxpayers – and this is if there are no snafus - $1 billion.

On March 12, 2008, Cleveland Plain Dealer deputy editorial page director Kevin O'Brien published a snide, pointless editorial taking the position global warming is over-hyped. His conclusion is a Russian scientist predicts the world is entering a new Ice Age, which trumps Global Warming, so do nothing about Global Warming. I googled the Russian scientist O'Brien references - Oleg Sorokhtin - and came across a February 25th National Post column, by conservative Canadian columnist Lorne Gunter, to which O'Brien's March 12th column is so similar as to be plagiarism, in my book.

If you owned a $40,500.000.00 parking structure,  would these images concern you?  (by the way, if you live in Cuyahoga County, you DO OWN IT)

Just as a reminder to relate to the cost of the medical mart and  the new convention center construction, bonding and payments, don't forget that the County already spends heavily with tax fund for the convention business.

Headlines in current Cleveland media promote a Medical Mart and Convention Center to cure our ill economy. The Plain Dealer quotes Cuyahoga County Commissioner Jimmy Dimora saying "We're looking for a tremendous economic boon - something we haven't had for many years here".... and fellow Commissioner Tim Hagan saying "This is a turning point and a defining moment for this community". Such bold claims make me think of The Top 5 Things to Remember When Reading Stories about Alzheimer’s Disease “Cures” or “Research Breakthroughs”:

There is a need for the thoughtful people of Northeast Ohio to speak up loud and clear - sound an alarm - about environmental issues here, and our impact here on environmental issues worldwide.  We should do this in our everyday life, and we should participate in community efforts to speak in harmony about saving planet Earth. One way to shout-out that "This is a state of global emergency" is to become an "Alarmist". As posted on REALNEO here, for this April 11, at 11 AM local time, for one minute, and each 11th of the month thereafter, at 11 AM,  Alarmists declare, "We need to set off the world's alarms. Join in. It could be the alarm on your phone, in your home, in your car. You could gather some friends to make some noise. Organise a flash mob. Schedule a company fire drill. Borrow a vintage air raid siren... Be creative. Raise the alarm." So, people of REALNEO, how should we sound the first Alarmism minute?

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I attended the KennedyConCenter meeting this morning - held before the scheduled meeting of the Cuyahoga County Board of Commissioners.  

All the TV cameras and paper reporters were there.   Big news was afoot!

Thought For Today....

Found in the current issue of Metropolis magazine...

On April 3, 2007 there was a discussion about the proposal for a new Cuyahoga County Administration building here on Realneo.   Around that time I had read a letter written by Tim Ferris which suggested that the present County Administration building was originally built to be expanded upward.   Today I add the photo above to confirm that the building was intended to be continued upward – you can see the columns projecting right up through the roof on both the main Administration Building and the Annex building.  I’ll bet if you removed the copper flashing from the top of the columns, there would be a plate with bolt holes already in it, ready to accept the steel columns for floors 5, 6, 7, etc.  

When Evelyn and I learned we were expecting Claes, three years ago, we started exploring local natural childbirth and child support resources, and have most enjoyed the getting to know the people with the Cleveland BirthNetwork, which is part of a national organization has a mailing list and holds regular local meet-ups and casual events... I strongly recommend expecting families to attend one of their activities, like the following...  An afternoon of discussion and meeting advocates for change, with Judy Norsigian, executive director and co-founder of Our Bodies Ourselves, and Ourselves, co-contributing editor of Our Bodies, Ourselves: Pregnancy and Birth.

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The Intergenerational School is holding a Wine & Cheese Open House (with Student‐Led Tours!), this Thursday, March 13, 2008 - 5:30 pm until 7:00 pm - and I strongly encourage those interested in innovation in education and aging to attend. Read through the whole invitation to learn more about the school - it is astounding, as are the founders... Cathy and Peter Whitehouse. This is the school that I hope to expand in the former Hough Bakeries complex, as the anchor for redevelopment of the surrounding neighborhood, so if you are interested in that project then you are interested in TIS.... I hope to see you there Thursday... be sure to RSVP!

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Woe is me.  The sad state of communication leads to a state of confusion in Northeast Ohio at every level.  Street, block, neighborhood, county, state, ad infinitum...  Will anyone ever figure out the new media?  Please.  Today, as Councilman Cummins knows...I fielded questions about snow bans, plowing, school closings, and sidewalks.  Kids did not get picked up by school buses, because the streets were impassable. 

What can we do about this Mayor Jackson?  By now, most of us have Internet access and the rest certainly have a TV.  Let's all talk.  Please.

I will be emailing my own suggestions, but can we start with the ability for your office to post critical alerts on the City of Cleveland web site? 

March 08, 2008... the Blizzard of 2008! Nothing is more REALNEO... more Cleveland+... more believe in Cleveland than a blizzard. There's not a cop on the street, yet nobody gets robbed. People are pushing strangers around, but only to get their cars out of the snow.  For REALNEO kids, it can't get cold and deep enough. REALNEO adults smile to remember being REALNEO kids. Blizzards set REALNEO apart.