Lesson learned..

The NY Times today ran an article on the new vision at WalMart, and I think there are lessons the City needs to learn from it.



I know, what does retail have to do with Roanoke? Well, your one of a thousand cities.. maybe closer to 100,000. You need to sell yourself, and more importantly - remember the current "customer base."



WalMart has arrived at a conclusion which I find very important. (and yes, I am tired so this might just be the lowest quality-written post yet.)



"The company is now focusing more on consumers who already shop at WalMart, rather than on people who executives would like to shop at its stores."



Imagine, taking care of those who are already customers. Imagine if the city worked like that - creating a better life for those who lived here, not those they want to live here.



Just a concept anyway. Anyway, I'm off to troll the City Council's agenda - see if it's worth watching come Monday night.



Your weekend WOW is on the way.

Inbox mysteries

Received this in my inbox this morning, anonymously.



Text of the e-mail reads:
"In response to the emergence of certain groups here in Roanoke, we announce the foundation of the Roanoke Citizens Brigade. We stand for ALL Roanokers, of all classes and neighborhoods. We will fight for the future of the city we hold so dear, from those who believe it needs to become someplace else.

We will be in contact soon with more, but for now if you could just post this announcement on your blog we would be grateful."

So done. Normally I do not open anonymous e-mails, but this one was carefully sent - which indicated to me that it was not malicious. As for the Brigade, this is the first I have heard of them, and know nothing more than what they sent me. However, I do welcome a new group to the scene (such as it is, but that is for a later post) and will be looking forward to seeing what they have up their sleeve.

Just another mysterious day in Roanoke...

looks like theres a problem

Appears that comments might be down folks.. I'm not sure yet - but if you have something you absolutely need to say, e-mail me and I'll post it as a new entry.



that is all.

Parable of the Mouse

Stolen from QueensCrap



A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package.



"What food might this contain?" The mouse wondered - He was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.



Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning.



"There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"



The
chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I
can tell this is a grave concern to you but it is of no consequence to
me. I cannot be bothered by it."



The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"



The
pig sympathized, but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is
nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."



The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"



The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."



So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap -- alone.



That very night a sound was heard throughout the house -- like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey.



The
farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did
not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The
snake bit the farmer's wife.



The farmer rushed her to the hospital and she returned home with a fever.



Everyone
knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his
hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient. But his wife's
sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her
around the clock.



To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig. The farmer's wife did not get well; she died.



So many people came for her funeral, the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them.



The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.



So,
the next time you hear that someone else’s neighborhood is facing a
problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember -- when one
community is threatened, all are at risk.



____________________________________________



And a side note from me personally: Remember how the fish got caught? He opened his big mouth...

A sigh and a groan

"breaking news" from the Times:



SALEM– The findings from a study conducted for the Business Council have identified both highs and lows in the attractiveness of the Roanoke region.The area, for example, ranks at the top for quality education and environment, in the middle for health care and at the bottom for such amenities as “urban feel” and the percentage of people who have moved to the region from out-of-state.



The study, by Roanoke College, examined Roanoke’s competitiveness in five key quality of life categories: (1) social and cultural amenities, (2) education, (3) environment and recreation, (4) health and wellness and (5) technology and transportation. Roanoke’s strongest asset is its natural beauty and the recreational opportunities its environment offers. Yet to turn that into a real competitive advantage, Roanoke must make it more readily accessible to residents and visitors. The region’s second strongest asset is education with the exception of Roanoke’s city schools.



Well now, isn't that speeeeshal? Although it gives almost no information about the study itself. Although I would like to know what "urban feel" is, and how it relates to actual urban life. Although I am wondering about the crossover between Roanoke College and a newly-formed civic group composed of a few Roanoke College alumni. In the middle for health care? Bottom for transplants? I can't trip these days without running into a former "somewhere else"er.



Until the full report is published and out in the open - I'm going to hold my comments about the validity of it. But as of right now, it seems like just another skewed report taking cheap potshots at Roanoke City.



Maybe it's just me.

March is coming

And with March comes the (hopeful) return of spring, a return to the yardwork, more time spent outdoors..



and...







Naomh Padraig Day!



Oh sorry.. St. Patrick's Day!



When we go around with clubs and chase snakes.. no, wait.. we go around TO clubs and chase Snakebites.



Well, regardless.. I've been trolling through the Celtic collection over at CDBaby.com attempting to find some of the more obscure new Celtic Rock bands, when I should come across a listing for one TRASNA.



TRASNA bills themselves as "Blue Ridge Celtic Fusion - traditional music for the 22nd century." Personally, I had never heard of them, so I chose a song or two to give a spin.



My first thought.. wait a minute.. these folks are from 'round here?'



Why yes they are...



This is exactly what I needed.. Hope they play here soon.. And I, for one, would not mind learning Gaelic.. for the 2nd time. (failed attempt many years ago, long story.. not worth it.. don't ask.)



Give a listen to the samples, poke around on the actual website and enjoy. Think of the spring and the parade to come.

Shhh...

secrets abound.

The last thing you'd expect

I figure with the diverse readership this blog gets, I'd put this out there. Earth: Final Conflict was a sci-fi show created by Roddenberry himself. It aired from 1997 to 2002, over 5 seasons the storyline waxed and waned between poetic and convoluted. But it was still a good show.



Since it ended, Sci-Fi Channel had it for a short time in reruns, but at 5am it was the last thing I thought of watching. Only the final 3 seasons have been released on DVD, the first 2 (and arguably the best) are held in limbo by Universal.



least I think so. Searching for information is downright impossible as it seems the E:FC fan base vanished shortly afterwards. There is a chance that Universal might be releasing the first seasons in the US, but without anyone actively searching for them - we might never know about it.



If anyone out there might scrape up any information on this, I'd be very interested to know.



k thnx bye



(oh, and Forgotten-Roanoke.com now has hosting, which means over the next week or two you can expect updates and reformulated pages. I'll let you know when.)