Productivity killer: Conan's St. Patty's in Chinatown

Do you miss the world's funniest Irishman, Conan O'Brien on late night? Well, you could see him this spring at SMU, but the tickets are pretty pricey. While you're thinking about it, spend a few moments with Conan on his 2009 St. Patrick's Day stroll through Chinatown.

• Posted by Christina Hughes Babb on Mar 12, 2010 at 02:35 PM in Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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Restaurant talk: off-the-beaten-path restaurants in Lake Highlands

This week, I didn't eat out in Lake Highlands (nowhere I haven't written about recently, that is), but if you want to read about my vegan Kalachandji's experience, check out our East Dallas blog.

As for our neighborhood, I recently re-read a 2008 Advocate story about off-the-beaten-path restaurants and was happy to realize that even with all the restaurant closings in the past two years, most of the mom 'n' pop LH eateries we visited for the story have remained in business. Sadly, Grill & Deli Stop on Plano Road closed last year, but Kereje, Michelle's, Mexicali, Kazy's and Taj Mahal (all of which you can read about here) are still open.

• Posted by Christina Hughes Babb on Mar 12, 2010 at 01:44 PM in Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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Your child can be an LH batboy at Rangers Ballpark

Want to see your child on the field at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington? Enter The Advocate's contest to be a Lake Highlands batboy (or batgirl) at the Wildcats' game next Wednesday at the home of the Texas Rangers.

The game is at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 17 against Rockwall-Heath at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. Admission is free.

To enter, send an e-mail to: lhsports@advocatemag.com with your child's name and age and all your contact information. For safety reasons, the contest is limited to children between 7 and 13 years of age. The winner will need to sign a waiver to be on the field.

Deadline for entering is 3 p.m. Tuesday, March 16. We will have a drawing to determine the winner, who will then be contacted with all the details. Good luck!

• Posted by Keith Whitmire on Mar 12, 2010 at 11:34 AM in Sports, Baseball, Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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LHHS' Melanie Trostel visits with President Bush

LHHS senior Melanie Trostel needn’t worry about having an unexcused absence on her school record – President George W. Bush wrote her a note. The two visited Tuesday in his Dallas office after she was quoted in the newspaper saying she’d like to meet him. She brought along her parents, Mike and Tami, and the four had a lovely chat.

“He was funny,” Melanie said. “He told me his daughters didn’t want him to be president – they didn’t want Secret Service agents following them around.”

“He’s a proud dad,” Melanie added. “He talked to us about his daughter, Jenna, and her work as a correspondent on the Today show.” Dad, Mike, says he looks forward to visiting the presidential library at SMU once construction is completed, after hearing President Bush describe it for them. “It’s gonna be great,” Mike said.

• Posted by Carol Toler on Mar 12, 2010 at 08:29 AM in Education, Politics, Toler, Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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January sales tax hits budget

That's pretty good news, all things considered. The city expected to take in $15.2 million in sales tax revenue in January, and it did. Still, it's only the second time in the past two years that the budget forecasts have been correct. And, for the year, we're off budget projections by 7.5 percent.

Does this mean that sales tax collections have turned the corner? Your guess is as good as mine. Next month's numbers should help answer that.

Here is our handy clip and save sales tax chart for the 2009-10 fiscal year. The basics: The sales tax accounts for abut 22 percent of the city general budget; another 43 percent comes from property tax receipts. The official figures are on the state comptroller Web site. The months listed on that site are, for accounting purposes, about two months ahead, so the March result listed is for January.

• Posted by Jeff Siegel on Mar 12, 2010 at 06:08 AM in City Hall, Siegel, Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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Video: Drum roll for respect

It certainly is a guilty pleasure watching grown up man in suits go bunkers and dance around like five year olds. This is exactly what Council members Dwaine Caraway, Jerry Allen and Tennell Atkins did while hosting a drum line face-off in front of City Hall. Bands from Lake Highlands, Skyline, Adamson and Townview put on quite a show to bring attention to the March for Respect, a walk through the West End on March 27 to show support for Texans with developmental disabilities.

Click here for the slide show

Continue reading “Video: Drum roll for respect”

• Posted by Can Turkyilmaz on Mar 11, 2010 at 06:01 PM in Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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2010-2011 Wildcat Varsity Cheerleaders announced

LHHS cheerleaders for next year were announced today after school. Members of the 2010-2011 varsity cheer squad are: Kelsey Kinney, Avery Voigt, Brianna Gerber, Katey Rush, Janie Tekell, Madison Wood, Rosie Center, Lauren Villanueva, Kali Kopf, Blair Dotson, Sydney Dawson, Haley Smith, Sarah Phillips, Dymond Crook and Alexandra Burgin. Next year’s mascot will be Caroline Adams. Congratulations, girls!

• Posted by Carol Toler on Mar 11, 2010 at 05:40 PM in Education, Sports, Toler, Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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Will wet-dry election actually turn all of Dallas wet?

What happens if the city schedules a wet-dry election, but state law makes the result moot for part of the city? That's what we may find out if the group gathering signatures for a November vote gets on the ballot.

That's because a section of Texas' Alcoholic Beverage Code doesn't allow a city-wide election to change the wet-dry status of an area if that area has already voted on the issue and if the area is "wholly contained" within the city. And Oak Cliff seems to fit that definition, even if the dry parts of Preston Hollow, Lake Highlands, and Far North Dallas don't.

Sound confusing? That's because it is; so confusing, in fact, that several attorneys told me that the city could be sued for even scheduling an election, let alone over what the results mean. More, after the jump:

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• Posted by Jeff Siegel on Mar 11, 2010 at 03:22 PM in Neighborhood, Siegel, Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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Moss Haven raises $5,000+ for Haiti

A group of Moss Haven students and staff set a goal of raising $1500 for the Haitian Relief fund following the earthquake and — thanks in part to these stylish little handmade bracelets — brought in a whopping $5462.04, which they delivered yesterday to Brandy Dail, the area director for World Vision.

After the jump, Jodi Stewart tells us how it all went down:

Continue reading “Moss Haven raises $5,000+ for Haiti ”

• Posted by Christina Hughes Babb on Mar 11, 2010 at 01:40 PM in Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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Season's first White Rock Local market is Saturday

White Rock Local's first market of the season is Saturday from 8 a.m.-1 p.m.

This year, White Rock Local is planning on two markets each month, on the second and fourth Saturdays. On the first Saturday of the month, the market will include all kinds of fresh produce, natural meat and cheeses, artisan bread, pasta, preserves, tamales, cookies, honey and spices. Plus non-food items like flowers, plants, gardening supplies, clothing, ceramics, candles, body products jewelry and pet supplies.

The market that's on the fourth Saturday of the month — March 27 this month — will feature only food.

A full list of this weekend's vendors is available here. And a map locating the market is here.

• Posted by Rachel Stone on Mar 11, 2010 at 01:18 PM in Advocate Mag, Lake Highlands
  
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