1/7/06

in the interests of fairness...

since I am now an avowed canidate, although for a nonexistant office, in the interests of fairness and "equal time" I must invite all canidates for the existing offices to chime in, either by commenting on my blog or by getting their own blog.

In other words, should you choose to remain silent, it is not my problem if you are or are not elected to a post that may or may not exist when I begin my benevolent reign as Overlord.

Don't say I did not warn you...

Update to the site coming Monday, the 9th.

I'll let you know when to look...

1/6/06

The first podcast of Naught Six

My Odeo Channel Listen here...

Awww, aint it cute?

Or here

(you can click the little blue play button and listen right on this page.. woo hoo!)

Well.. the time has come

For those of you who did not listen to my last podcast (and there were only 2 who did, so Im talking to essentially all of you) I made an announcement.

A big announcement.

I would like to be your overlord.

In one fell swoop, we could rid ourselves of the city council, the Victory Stadium issue, redevelopment of downtown businesses, and all the small problems that nitpick at our fair city.

Yes Roanoke, I come humbly before you and ask that you raise me up to the level of Overlord, so that I might serve benevolently and charitibly, yet with great vengance and furious anger for those that might stand in the way of the business of Roanoke.

And above all else, I promise one thing, free cookies for all. Including your humble overlord.


Expect position papers as the weeks progress towards election day.

1/5/06

Maybe we need 2 Dr Pepper signs in that case

Dr Pepper sign not unique, expert says

If they dont really seem to care about their sign, maybe we should pop in and buy it from them. I mean, considering it is the original sign and all....


Vick vanquished? Hokies hornswaggled? Nah.. it's just Fark.com!

God I hate seeing local stuff pop up on Fark. They had a blast with the smoking pregnant woman on Jamison/Bullet that made national headlines.

But this time, I don't mind so much. Vick is typical of the majority of todays athletes, so I don't know why all the shock and outrage. The days of classy athletes are over. Of course, part of that is because the media would never allow another "Gentleman" Joe DiMaggio to exist, instead digging into his personal life to dredge up the time he kicked a snail as a kid. Much better reading.

I know how bad tensions on the field can get. But theres the classy way to handle it (get yer digs in when its legit, just hit them a bit harder than you intended) and the modern way, like we saw with Vick.

Goes back to a problem I've been seeing more and more across the country - if you don't ask more of your staff, you can't be suprised when they don't meet your expectations. If you don't ask your players to be more sportsman-like on the field, then do not be suprised when they act out.

But if you want a good chuckle, or are really looking to be annoyed today - read the Fark thread on Vick and the "Chokies" as one poster puts it. It's worth a look.

1/4/06

Roanoke

We have our own mining history, wether or not you realize it.

Theres more than trolley tracks buried under Jefferson. Before the days of the trolley running down Jefferson to Mountain Park, there were rail lines. I've found one reference to a Mt. Pork being in the same viscinity as the back end of Mill Mountain and Roanoke Mountain. However, there is one thing I am clear on - there are (or were) mines on Roanoke Mountain.

I have found numerous references to this in several places, most notably Clare White's own history of Roanoke. Apparently it was simple mining, ore of some sort or another. It was loaded onto open cars and rolled down Jefferson (and possibly Franklin, depending on where you get your info) and off to one of the local foundrys.

Personally, I have never heard anyone speak of mines anywhere in Roanoke. So wether they are capped off and vanished or simply lost to time, no one seems to know. But there used to be mines in Roanoke.

Something to think about in light of the ongoing tragedy in West Virginia.

And if anyone has any information about the mysterious Mt. Pork, I would appreciate hearing about it.

1/3/06

Breaking Industry News

*Sources say Google has been in negotiations with Wal-Mart Stores Inc., among other retailers, to sell a Google PC. The machine would run an operating system created by Google, not Microsoft's Windows, which is one reason it would be so cheap — perhaps as little as a couple of hundred dollars.*

All Hail GOOGLE, bringer of cheap and easy access!

Once again, I kick myself hard for not getting in on the Google IPO - what was it, 88 bucks a share? Currently trading at $420.66

anyone care to give a gift that keeps on giving? I'll take donations in cash, check, or google stock.

Preference for the latter.

Getting back down to the business at hand...



Remember, I did say that in the new year we were going to re-focus on Roanoke and its history. There will be at least one post a day dealing with it, and probably one post a day dealing with current events.

Today we take a look inside a building we have all seen, we know by heart, but we might not know what it is. Or was.

Does it look familiar? Not in the least Im guessing, but tens of thousands of people passed through here in it's heyday. This is the waiting room and some of the offices of the Roanoke Railway & Electric Co. The trolley, if you will. And as usual for the time, the waiting room was ornate. Exposed wood beams, cased in more and richer wood. Extensive use of glass and wood in combination to create a "stately" waiting room. It almost resembles the Old Hotel Roanoke. This photo is circa 1907.



And this photo is circa 2005. It's been a long time since the woodwork and the waiting room. The building retains its classic overhang, glass and wrought-iron. Similar to the overhang at Arzu around the corner. This is the Legg-Mason building. Now home to the Dr Pepper sign, and lots of unoccupied office space. Leasing for $14 a sq. ft. Contact Poe & Cronk for more info, and thanks to them for the recent internal pic (which was hard to find).

Another of the stunning buildings downtown which was even moreso in its heyday.