Grey Monday Blatherskite
It's the first day of Spring, but it really doesn't feel like it. It's cloudy, windy, grey and cold, and the worst part is that the winter storm bringing us this dismal scene is dumping all of its snow to the south and west, so East Central Iowa gets left out of the fun. (again) It's supposed to get sunny again by Wednesday, and then slowly get warm by the weekend, but we'll see. Saturday is still a long way off.
In basketball news, of the 15 teams I've been following in the NCAA basketball tournament, only three are left: Texas, Bradley and Gonzaga. The Big Ten Conference, which was ranked Number One by the RPI computer (whatever in the heck that is) acted more like Number Two, getting completely flushed out of the tournament by the end of the second round. Texas is really beginning to pique my curiousity - has there ever been a year when a college was National Champion in both football and basketball? That may happen this year if Texas can hold out. They may have to play Number One Ranked Overall Duke, and I don't know if anyone can beat Duke this year. Oh, well. First Texas has to beat West Virginia and Kevin Pittsnogle. I said this last year, and I'll say it again: with a name like Pittsnogle, the guy should be doing deodorant commercials. His name sounds like an underarm ailment.
Meanwhile, in other news: our family went and looked at another farm house this weekend. It was a so-so house; the inside was nicely decorated and updated, but the basement showed serious signs of deterioration. So we're still looking. For grins and giggles, I went over to the Ralston addition (Ridgeview Estates) and checked into their lots. The Restrictive Covenant was enough to make you want to scream. No modular homes; all the windows had to be Anderson 400 series; the only fencing allowed is black chain link; there must be brick siding on the exterior half way up, starting at ground level; if you move in there you're a member of the Neighborhood Association whether you like it or not; and et cetera. A cookie-cutter neighborhood, just like in Cedar Rapids. No individuality, no neighborhood character, just vinyl-siding-developer-manufactured "charm". (insert gag and puke sound here) No, thanks. And people wonder why I want to move out into the country and away from town.
Speaking of "the town" our little city-in-the-making is having a Meeting to update their "Comprehensive Plan". Carl is planning on going: they're going to be discussing "housing, parks and recreation, infrastructure, economic development and future land use". If Atkins is going to go urban, we need to know so we can get out as soon as possible. The last thing I want is to be trapped in a Cedar Rapids-esque town with Cedar Rapids-esque taxes. Now, I know, as far as cities go Cedar Rapids isn't that bad. People from New York or Los Angeles would barely consider Cedar Rapids a city. But for a rural-raised girl like me, I really need the comfort and quiet that a rural setting has. I need to have space to breathe, to plant a garden, to scream at the TV when the Hawkeyes lose a basketball game that they darn well should have won and not have to worry about what the neighbors think. I know this all sounds rather petty, but hey, it's my blog, and when I need to vent this is where I go. I'm sorry I was so depressing. I promise to write a cheerful blog next time.
Maybe. ;)
In basketball news, of the 15 teams I've been following in the NCAA basketball tournament, only three are left: Texas, Bradley and Gonzaga. The Big Ten Conference, which was ranked Number One by the RPI computer (whatever in the heck that is) acted more like Number Two, getting completely flushed out of the tournament by the end of the second round. Texas is really beginning to pique my curiousity - has there ever been a year when a college was National Champion in both football and basketball? That may happen this year if Texas can hold out. They may have to play Number One Ranked Overall Duke, and I don't know if anyone can beat Duke this year. Oh, well. First Texas has to beat West Virginia and Kevin Pittsnogle. I said this last year, and I'll say it again: with a name like Pittsnogle, the guy should be doing deodorant commercials. His name sounds like an underarm ailment.
Meanwhile, in other news: our family went and looked at another farm house this weekend. It was a so-so house; the inside was nicely decorated and updated, but the basement showed serious signs of deterioration. So we're still looking. For grins and giggles, I went over to the Ralston addition (Ridgeview Estates) and checked into their lots. The Restrictive Covenant was enough to make you want to scream. No modular homes; all the windows had to be Anderson 400 series; the only fencing allowed is black chain link; there must be brick siding on the exterior half way up, starting at ground level; if you move in there you're a member of the Neighborhood Association whether you like it or not; and et cetera. A cookie-cutter neighborhood, just like in Cedar Rapids. No individuality, no neighborhood character, just vinyl-siding-developer-manufactured "charm". (insert gag and puke sound here) No, thanks. And people wonder why I want to move out into the country and away from town.
Speaking of "the town" our little city-in-the-making is having a Meeting to update their "Comprehensive Plan". Carl is planning on going: they're going to be discussing "housing, parks and recreation, infrastructure, economic development and future land use". If Atkins is going to go urban, we need to know so we can get out as soon as possible. The last thing I want is to be trapped in a Cedar Rapids-esque town with Cedar Rapids-esque taxes. Now, I know, as far as cities go Cedar Rapids isn't that bad. People from New York or Los Angeles would barely consider Cedar Rapids a city. But for a rural-raised girl like me, I really need the comfort and quiet that a rural setting has. I need to have space to breathe, to plant a garden, to scream at the TV when the Hawkeyes lose a basketball game that they darn well should have won and not have to worry about what the neighbors think. I know this all sounds rather petty, but hey, it's my blog, and when I need to vent this is where I go. I'm sorry I was so depressing. I promise to write a cheerful blog next time.
Maybe. ;)
1 Comments:
Amen.
A couple of years ago, I read the book "Crossing the Expendable Landscape" which dealt with modern urban planning models, and basically how much they suck. It's a fairly interesting read.
Still, you have to wonder whether it's better that Atkins is growing rather than dying out like many small midwestern towns.
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