Dallas high crime areas that feed RISD

We have our own problems, but we import a significant amount from Dallas.  Car thefts that are nav-tracked south down US75, robbery and burglary suspects whose NCIS info comes back to Dallas, and public school disruption from kids bringing "rough neighborhood" culture to our school district.

This year's list of areas of Dallas where one is most likely to be a victim of crime, according to the DMN:

2. Forest/Audelia (north of LBJ - feeds into Richardson ISD)
10. Greenville/LBJ (both sides of LBJ - feeds into Richardson ISD)
13. Royal/Skillman (south of LBJ - feeds into Richardson ISD)
21. Walnut Hill/Jupiter (northeast Dallas, inside LBJ, part feeds into Richardson ISD)
23. Maham/Spring Valley (outside LBJ, feeds into Richardson ISD)

Sources:  DMN article, RISD info from this thread.

Still loving Aldi

My appreciation of Aldi remains undiminished.

I like the food, the prices, the employees, the other shoppers. I'd
like it if there was one within walking distance.

I can get in, get some stuff, and get out in less than 5mins if I stay
organized. Try that at walmart where mouth-breathing customers and
mouth-breathing checkers conspire to waste maximum time and block every
possible walkway.

Walmart reminds me very much of the end of Wall-e with all the
semi-conscious human globules were carted around in electric scooters.

written offline and synced later

Stage 2 Water Conservation Measures

No lawn watering between the hours of 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. (From May 1 – September 30), mandatory watering schedule, etc.

I wonder how this affects the golf course.

Radio geeks and the COR radio system

And I mean geeks in the most loving way.

Anyhow, they're expecting testing to start soon in the P25 (digital) system. See this thread.

I don't have any digital gear at the moment and my personal economic situation won't allow that anytime soon. Hopefully someone will put a stream up after it goes P25.

A forceful anti-HOA argument

One of the best arguments I have heard against HOAs. Not talking about Neighborhood Associations here, just HOAs:

...HOA assessments are "forward looking". The homeowner did not incur debt, the HOA corporation incurred it. The homeowner has little control over the debt that the HOA racks up. The HOA seeks to pay for its debt by assessing the homeowners. There is no "principal balance" or term. As long as the HOA exists, it will continue to run up expenses. The HOA assessments are perpetual. Homeowners are burdened by a lien securing payment of future HOA assessments which last into perpetuity. There is no sum certain that the homeowner can pay to terminate the lien even though the debt has yet to be incurred. HOA assessments are more akin to illicit taxes by a corporation that has not been delegated governmental taxation authority.

A note on a house (or anything else) can eventually be paid off. HOA assessments are ever-increasing and never ending. HOA assessments are never "done"...

It's from this post in this thread.

RISD: wrap-up

I have one more piece to write about the alternative certification
situation but will let that age until later this year.

For practical purposes this is the last post in the RISD series.

-= to RISD =-

Please ensure there are enough desks and books for the students. Pencil
sharpeners are mandatory, not optional.

RISD is (in both reality and reputation) a good district. If you do
not get a handle on thug behavior the reputation and reality will
suffer. It's chiefly a cultural issue: kids who have no exposure to
academic culture will wreck the academic environment critical to
top-notch learning. You cannot afford to tolerate serial misbehavior.
Publish high expectations for student behavior and ENFORCE it with vigor.

Principals: please walk your hallways. Schools with "wandering groups
of thugs" problems can be vastly improved by having principals walk the
hallways and deal with wandering/roving kids. Berkner: if you need
help with this talk to LHHS. The new P there is kicking butt and taking
names. Wandering and hallway disruption is greatly reduced.

-= to the teachers =-
Thank you for your kindness and professionalism toward me. I appreciate
the opportunity to work with your kids on days you were away. Thank you
for your words of encouragement.

-= to support staff =-
Custodial staffs: you rock. Keep up the good work. Especially you,
Carlton. If everyone was like you the world would be a friendlier,
gentler, and better-run place.

Inclusion assistants: please stay in the classroom when you see there
is a sub. I can count on ONE HAND the number of times an inclusion asst
stayed with the kids instead fading away with of "oh.... you're a sub.
I have... uhhh... a meeting. Yeah, a meeting" or similar. You are
needed most when sub is there. Please stay and help. To those that
stayed: thank you.

-= to the entire staff at Christa McAuliffe LC =-
I don't know how you do it day after day. If I were a praying man I
would include you in my prayers every day. It is a shame the rest of
the community is unaware of the work that goes on there, the constant
and compassionate effort to provide structure for at least one aspect of
troubled young lives.

-= to the students =-
Thank you for being creative, funny, and brave. Thank you for asking
insightful questions for disassembling the answers.

Worth singling out: The Pre-AP class English class (at Westwood?)
parsing A Christmas Carol was one of the most fearless and thoughtful
student discussions I have ever witnessed. You rock.
Runner-up: Law club students at RHS. I look forward to your running
the world.
Classes like this restore my faith in humanity.

To AP students: thank you for your work ethic and civility. Having an
AP class somewhere in the day's schedule was like being handed a
delicious blue raspberry Slurpee on a hot summer afternoon. How does it
feel to the best part of another person's day? :-)

-= to the parents and community =-
Remember to talk to your kiddo about how school is going: fears,
successes, failures, joys. Friends. Crushes. Talk to the teacher. If
your kid's educational success is being hindered in any way then do
whatever it takes to remove the obstacle. There's nothing more important.

written offline and synced later

quick and dirty

I am aware that my recent posts are rougher than usual: typos,
fragments, etc. This email-to-blog mechanism and the time of day I'm
doing it means I'm trading off quality for timeliness. Hopefully some
of it's worth reading.

Also the timestamp on the emailed blog entries is wrong, some
combination of the timeshifted nature of my offline email and timezone
on my laptop. Or something.

submitted by email