Back Talk Lakewood/East Dallas

Girls, get in on a wild workout

2008-07-24T16:21:02-05:00

Hey girls - ever fantasized about being a stripper but minus the stripping part? I'm certain most of you said "no" or "huh" to that odd query, but for those of you who said "oh yes I have always wanted to learn the art of exotic pole dancing tell me more" ... here's more.

The Girls Room, a yoga and dance studio for women, famous (or infamous) for its pole dancing and burlesque dance classes, is hosting an open house tomorrow night with with "complimentary cocktails, snacks and a "Pole’lates" dance class.

Browsing the Girls Room site, as far as workouts go, this looks a heck of a lot more fun than running up and down Flag Pole Hill for an hour (Dallas Running Club members, can I get an "Amen"?). And I gotta give the web copy writer her props — especially the one who wrote that Advanced Pole Dancing teaches students "effective ways to be in touch with the connection between the audience, mind, body and pole."

To feed or not to feed the birds at White Rock Lake

2008-07-24T15:26:26-05:00

One of my earliest White Rock Lake memories is standing at the shore with my grandmother and a loaf of (slightly moldy) bread feeding the ducks. Of course back then we also threw paper into trash cans without a thought of recycling and we watered our yard right in middle of the day. My grandfather even smoked cigarettes. That is to say, people innocently did a lot of things back then that wouldn't exactly be considered socially or environmentally responsible these days. But feeding the ducks? Really? I've heard some rumblings and mumblings lately regarding the feeding of "water birds" and how our crumbs could be causing them harm.

I did come across this article from the University of Florida entitled Why Shouldn't We Feed Water Birds? Part of the report has to do with coastal bird feeding concerns, but some of the data could pertain to our lake — mainly the behavioral issues if anything. I know we have a lot of Back Talk readers associated with the Master Naturalists or Audubon Dallas — hopefully our local experts will chime in here.

My inclination is to say "Give me a break already ?!" But I am willing to learn if there is in fact something to be learned.

$3.81 gas on NW Highway & Garland Road: Am I dreaming?

2008-07-24T09:04:00-05:00

I realize that in the scheme of things, this is a small victory, but I paid $3.81 per gallon for gas this morning at the Quick Trip/QT at Garland Road and Northwest Highway. I've seen a few places in the $3.85 range, and a lot in the $3.91 range, but this is the lowest I've seen for awhile. I guess the $1 I saved on my 10-gallon purchase will buy me ... well, it will buy me something.

Wine review: Trimbach Riesling 2005

2008-07-24T06:27:00-05:00

I had to buy a bottle of wine that my mother would enjoy, but that I would have to drink at all. Which meant no fancy, hip and with it selections; rather, a tried and true wine that offered value and quality. Hence, the Trimbach (about $18), another solid effort from one of my favorite producers. Yes, it's a bit more than I'd like to spend (thank the weak dollar for that), but it's friendly enough for my mother and serious enough for me. What else can one ask for from a wine?

We drank it with a Salad Nicoise (which the Wine Curmudgeon whipped up, being a dutiful son). The wine has just enough sweetness to match the dark flavors in the salad from the olives and tuna, but it's not so sweet as to overpower the wine. It's also got enough lemony acid and minerally finish to pair well. The family (for it is still family owned) has learned a thing or two in the almost 400 years it has been making wine.

Whole Foods construction: Live 24/7 on the Advocate webcam

2008-07-23T20:27:00-05:00

I captured this at about 8 a.m. recently while watching live activity at the new Lakewood Whole Foods location. Two pickup trucks had just driven off — they had been parked on the Gaston side toward the middle of the picture.

You, too, can have this much fun every day at your own computer. We have the Whole Foods webcam up and running 24/7, and it will be there until the renovation is complete, whenever that blessed day may occur.

So if you want to check in every once in a while to see live video of the Whole Foods construction — or if you just want to see who is driving north and south on Abrams between Richmond and Gaston — check it out.

A few words to the wise, though...

1) Your corporate firewall may block transmission of this streaming video; the bigger the company you work for, the more likely this is to occur. So just remember to check out the webcam when you are at home. The same is true for many mobile video devices and phones; some software simply hasn't caught up to technology yet.

2) When you first click on the webcam, it might take 30 seconds or so to load the image the first time, and it's possible that your computer may ask you to allow it to download some software (Java, ActiveX or some other video-type application). Rest assured that the Advocate is not providing this software, nor is any special download from us required. If your computer is set up for streaming video, you'll be able to see this; if it isn't, your computer will attempt to configure itself so you can watch it.

3) Yes, it really is a 24/7 webcam, but to be honest, you aren't going to see much after dark except for a few flashes of light.

4) Like everything else, this is a work in progress. Tell us what you think and/or offer some suggestions here on the blog, and we'll see what we can do. We're hoping to pick up a couple of "sponsors" for the page, and if we do, we'll do what we can to make the webcam even better.

Technorati Tags: Whole Foods,Lakewood,renovation,webcam

Wanted: chicken cookers for the Kick’n Chick’n Drumstick Cook-Off

2008-07-23T14:57:59-05:00

Just based on some recent research for a story, I know we have several talented chefs living in the neighborhood. If you’re one of them, and if you take a special interest in the art of preparing a chicken drumstick for optimum eating enjoyment, this is for you:

Chefs will compete on Labor Day, Sept. 1, for $1000 in cash prizes. The winner will be he/she who delivers the best grilled-chicken drumstick and/or the best fried-chicken drumstick.

The Kick’n Chick’n Drumstick Cook-Off is a fundraiser for the Deaf Action Center’s Teen Leadership Summits for Deaf & Hard of Hearing Girls and Boys. The registration fee is $50 per team and you must register no later than August 20. Download registration form on their web site. Chefs set up at 9 a.m. and the judging begins at 1 p.m.

Oh! And here's the best part for us non-professional wing lovers — the public is invited to sample the entries starting at 11 a.m. The tasting fee is a mere $5 donation. The contest will take place at Plano Legacy YMCA, 5101 Tennyson Pkwy, in Plano. Call the Deaf Action Center at (214) 521-0407 V/TTY for details on the event or email kicknchickn@deafactioncentertexas.org."

Restaurant review: An East Dallas overview

2008-07-23T08:00:00-05:00

This one comes from neighbor Chas Barnard, who ran across this restaurant review site on del.icio.us. He and his wife live in Wilshire Heights and say they've tried many of the restaurants on this list, but blog author Chas Kemp (yes, same first name) who appears to be quite a Far East traveler, includes "a couple of real gems that we had never heard of," Barnard says.

Based on the website's suggestions, which thoroughly examine most if not all of the mom-and-pop or hole-in-the-wall type places in our neighborhood, the next place I'll try will be La Victoria at Haskell and Ross.

Angela Hunt and Jenny the Elephant: Talk about your odd couple stirring things up!

2008-07-22T19:19:54-05:00

All right, let me start this off by saying that it has been years since I've been to the Dallas Zoo, it has been awhile since I've talked with Angela Hunt, I don't have any personal interest in Jenny the elephant or her future home, and I haven't had time to read every single post, story and comment that has been devoted to this issue. But after directing you to these links to what the DMN reported today concerning relocating the 32-year-old Jenny from the Dallas Zoo, what DMN columnist Steve Blow had to say about Hunt's meddling with Zoo decisions, and what the Dallas Observer's blog and readers had to say, I would like to say this: Wow. Leave it to a lonely, aging, soon-to-be-shipped-off elephant to spark more passionate concern among Dallas citizens than the typical city fiasco.

I encourage you to read the stories and formulate your own opinions, and I encourage you to do the reading even if you don't give a flip about elephants. Because the commentary says a lot about Hunt, about Blow, about a few of the other city council reps, and about what at least a segment of the population thinks about how the city is being run.

This time, the indictment against Hunt seems to be that she's meddling in the Zoo's affairs, and she needs to get back to her district and take care of problems there; never mind that the Zoo is owned by the City, loses money every year and probably needs to totally revamped, sold or closed if — as Mayor Leppert is always espousing — the city needs to be run like a business. So what's the big problem with a city council rep — any city council rep — questioning what's happening at a city-owned and -operated facility, even if it's not in his or her district?

I hope that's what happens every week at the convention center (and, of course, the new convention center hotel), the city golf courses, the water department, the police department, and on and on. These are city properties, and we elect city council reps to do more than blindly sign paperwork pushed under their noses by city employees. I'm sure those things check out fine most of the time, but we all make mistakes, and I feel confident that city employees occasionally don't see the big picture, don't have enough time to do the job right, or simply screw up from time to time — without Hunt checking into this elephant deal, who's to say that didn't happen here?

And as for whether this issue is big enough for city council attention and action, what's really needed at the city is someone with enough time to grab a gigantic magnifying glass and spend his or her term looking in every nook and cranny of the city budget for accidental waste, bozo spending and who knows what else — with hundreds of millions of our tax dollars being committed every year by the council, what's the harm of looking at it as if it was our own money? Because, of course, it is. And buried deep in the Observer's blog is the suggestion, by Hunt, that she's doing exactly that.

What happens with Jenny, I'm happy to leave in the hands of Hunt, the Zoo and whoever else is interested. But the fact that a city council rep is taking the time to become involved in a city issue of this type — as opposed to limiting his or her involvement to begging for free concert tickets or parking for free at D/FW airport — is refreshing to me.

White Rock Marathon still needs a title sponsor

2008-07-22T15:43:27-05:00

The Dallas Business Journal reported today that NexBank signed on as presenting sponsor for the White Rock Marathon. Back Talk reported this a month ago, by the way. When we did, I spoke with race chairman Chuck Dannis who reminded me they are still actively seeking a title sponsor. Securing a title sponsor makes a big difference when it comes to presenting that post-event check to Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children, he says.

Last year's sponsor was Wellstone Communities, backed out of sponsoring this year's event (which we also wrote about here.)

Free yoga series at W Dallas-Victory and Galleria

2008-07-22T10:00:00-05:00

I'm not sure about a gym with masquerade-costumed models on its homepage, but I can't help but be intrigued by a free 8-week yoga series.

The new fitness club Equinox (opening on Oak Lawn in August; another is opening in Preston Hollow at Hillcrest and Northwest Highway this October) promises to "wake your body gently with sun salutations and nourishing vinyasas" and will cater to you "whether this is your first time or you're a yoga pro."

Equinox is holding its classes on the 16th floor of the W Dallas-Victory on Saturday mornings from 7-8 a.m. (ouch) starting Aug, 2 and lasting through Sept. 27. (No class on Aug. 30, which is Labor Day weekend.) All you have to do is RSVP. The flier does request, however, that "due to limited availability, your advanced and firm commitment to the event at the time of the reservation is highly valued."

If you're a first-timer, no need to bring your yoga mat; they're being provided by lululemon, which offers its own free yoga classes at the Galleria store on Wednesday mornings. Lululemon has also signed a lease for a Mockingbird Station location, but "they've hit a snag and have pushed back their store opening," says Mockingbird Station spokesman Mark Brinkerhoff. At this time, he adds, it's "an indefinite postponement."