85/15

by | Jul 17, 2015 | Carlsbad, Local Flavor, Local Government | 6 comments

85-15-Plan

There has been vocal opposition to the Nordstrom development proposed for Carlsbad, and it’s only right that people have a chance to review the project.  Here is your chance:

A group supporting a proposal to create a 26-acre development near Agua Hedionda Lagoon is inviting Carlsbad residents to learn more.

Open space tours will be held July 18, Aug. 1 and Aug. 15 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. so that attendees can learn more about the “85/15 Plan.”

Onsite transportation, food and drinks will be provided.

Tours start at the Carlsbad Strawberry Company parking lot, located at 1050 Cannon Road.  Interested attendees can sign up at  www.openspacetherightway.com/tours/.

85-15 plan

Backyard Bungalow

by | Jul 16, 2015 | Interesting Houses, Jim's Take on the Market, The Future | 6 comments

recycle home

A team at UCLA had designed an accessory dwelling unit for the backyard:

“Today, we don’t have enough affordable housing, and, given the hotter, drier climate, we’re losing environment to support all kinds of species. So there’s an environmental crisis that corresponds to a housing crisis,” Cuff said. “These imperatives are something we can begin to solve — and where better to do that than at UCLA where we have an incredible trove of expertise, creativity and unbelievable students. What’s completely unique about this house is that it will add to the environment — the biome —rather than detract from it.”

The watertight house, built of plastic sheeting shrink-wrapped over a framework of electrical conduit pipes, is so lightweight that the structure can sit on jacks around which a rock foundation, known as a gabion, would wrap. All of the building materials can be hand-carried on site and assembled by two people. The floor and end walls at the front and back of the house are built of wood, with openings for light and ventilation. On the outside of the house, large cardboard tubes, equipped with LED lights, line the plastic-sheet walls and roof to give the structure an ultra-modern look. Another layer of plastic sheeting will then go over the tubes to protect them from rain.

The final design shows a small wooden deck in front with a bench that slides in and out of the structure. And while the basic model being built at the Broad center won’t have all the amenities, the house is intended to have a compact kitchen, with a system for collecting gray water for the plants; a compostable toilet; and, instead of plastic sheeting used in the prototype, fabric in which solar cells are embedded to run the house on solar power.

“It’s reversible — you don’t have to destroy your backyard to build it — recyclable and environmentally efficient,” Cuff said. The project also was reviewed by a structural engineer, who volunteered his services. “Environmentally, it’s between 10 and 100 times more efficient to construct than a conventional house, mainly because it’s so light.”

Read full article HERE.

Morrissey

by | Jul 15, 2015 | Wednesday Rock Blogging | 0 comments

Steven Patrick Morrissey (born 22 May 1959), commonly known by his last name, Morrissey, is an English singer and lyricist. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as the lyricist and vocalist of the band the Smiths. The band was highly successful in the United Kingdom but broke up in 1987, and Morrissey began a solo career, making the top ten of the UK Singles Chart on ten occasions. His first solo album, 1988’s Viva Hate, entered the UK albums chart at number one.

He is widely regarded as an important innovator in the indie music scene; music magazine NME considers Morrissey to be “one of the most influential artists ever”, while The Independent says, “Most pop stars have to be dead before they reach the iconic status he has reached in his lifetime.” In 2004, Pitchfork Media called him “one of the most singular figures in Western popular culture from the last 20 years.”

Morrissey’s lyrics have been described as “dramatic, bleak, funny vignettes about doomed relationships, lonely nightclubs, the burden of the past and the prison of the home”. He is also noted for his unusual baritone vocal style (though he sometimes uses falsetto), his quiff haircut and his dynamic live performances. Media controversies have been caused by his forthright and often contrarian opinions, and he has also attracted media attention for his advocacy of vegetarianism and animal rights. He describes himself in his autobiography as an animal protectionist.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morrissey

He’s playing at the SD Observatory on August 20th – click HERE.

Fed Move?

by | Jul 15, 2015 | Interest Rates/Loan Limits, Jim's Take on the Market | 2 comments

july 14 rates

The President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City thinks “it’s time” for the U.S. central bank to raise short-term interest rates to reflect solid improvements in the economy.

The current level of near zero short-term rates, set at emergency levels to deal with deep economic problems, “do not seem needed anymore,” Ms. George said. “We should now be beginning to think about a rise in interest rates,” the official told a gathering on agricultural matters held at her bank. “You have to have some dose of courage” in your forecast and be willing to act, even when the future is uncertain, Ms. George said.

Link to WSJ article here.

Austan isn’t so sure:

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