Chopper
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We just returned from Barcelona. Incredible city. Awesome place to visit in January - nothing was too crowded and the weather in mid January ranged from pleasant and sunny to manageable. I'm a bit ashamed that it was my first trip there and that I had no idea it was so awesome. With all the dedicated pedestrian pathways it may be the best city in the world to walk 25000 steps a day. We stayed in the Gothic Quarter for 5 nights. I'd branch out to a less touristy district next time but it certainly was convenient. Sagrada Familia and Palau de Musica Catalana were the highlights. We snagged tickets to a pianist concert and had an amazing time. The acoustics are incredible in the beautiful art deco building, which dates from the early 1900s. Restaurant recommendations - A friend strongly recommended Teoric Taverna and we had an awesome experience. The concept is apparently to keep the prices reasonable while serving a "Michelin style" menu. The only choices you'll need to make are between the 10 course tasting menu or the 13 course. I disdain long, drawn out meals but they kept things moving and we were out of there after about 2 hours. The 13 course menu was only 62 euro pp, definitely a great value. Shrimp tartar served on a fried chicken skin cracker was off-the-hook great, as was the venison. Reservations needed. El Nacional - Four distinct restaurants under the same roof, each with a different style of Spanish cuisine. Plus there's a couple of tapas bars. We had an amazing lunch at the beef-centric eaterie. We didn't need a reservation for lunch in January but ymmv. Bar La Plata - the concierge rec'd this place for tapas and it's great. From reading internet comments afterwards, some complain it's too pricey. It's not cheap but the quality is definitely there. It's a local's type of hangout and a very authentic, fun place to hang out and eat and drink. Their patatas bravas, the pig trotters with foie gras, grilled artichoke stuffe d with romesco sauce, and the flan were among the outstanding dishes. Even their tomato toast was the best we were served during our stay in BCN. Also worth a mention is the new Time Out restaurant location. Apparently the concept was so successful in Lisbon they branched out a few months ago to a handful of different cities. The location in Barcelona is by the marina so not that easy to drop into but a pleasant walk from the Gothic Quarter.
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Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
Honestly I've wondered why he brught them up. I assume it's part of some conspiracy theory about how the gov't is going to prevent people from rebuilding but why it came up, I have zero idea. -
Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
False. They work temporarily but they only increase erosion, increase the ferocity of the tide, and only result in greater destruction long-term. There are several studies about it and if you think you can just build a wall to stop the rising tide of the ocean, think again. -
Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
I don't know jack about Galveston jetties but I do know that seawalls don't prevent erosion, they magnify the force of the ocean and create further erosion, and will eventually cause the elimination of the beach itself. You can see that from this picture. It's Malibu but not Topanga Beach. Seawalls -- and yes that's what they call those sandbags -- won't stop mother nature. Unlike in TX, access to the beaches are a public right in CA. -
Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
All of California. -
Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
I don't think I disagreed with you and I don't think I did anyting but respond to your comment to me. I didn't intend to do otherwise. edit - Oh I think you mistook my comment about the City of Malibu as some negative comment about your post. Nah. I was just distinguishing homes in Malibu as opposed to in LA. -
Definitely happy to try to help. Portugal's system is straight forward but they stopped processing biometric appointments (basically obtaining your fingerprints and giving the final okay for residency) about a year ago. In the meantime some people have successfully sued and obtained residency through the court. There was formerly a 5 year waiting period between residency and qualification for citizenship but they shortened it to start from the initial time of investment, at least for those of us who had already invested. In retrospect Spain's program was more streamlined. Same. We had a whole house steam humidifier installed that we turn on around October. It's been fantastic.
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Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
There's already ongoing litigation in CA over seawalls. They're regulated by the CA Coastal Commission. As far as rebuilding houses in Malibu goes, that'll be handed by the City of Malibu which has responsibility for reviewing plans and issuing permits. -
Last I heard the Loveland amazon facility is supposed to open during the first half of this year. It looks finished from the outside but I guess work is ongoing inside. (it wasn't one targeted for delay or closure afaik). Metro Districts are like MUDs in Texas, as you pointed out, although MUDs have greater state government regulation. For example a developer has control over a Metro District even once a subdivision is largely built out. Personally I'd consider buying in a Metro District only if it had a 20 year track record. The FNL airport - afaik whether it will be used in the near-term for commercial flights is up in the air. Will an airline want to use an automated tower? Will the FAA allow it? I don't believe those answers are known. Nevertheless local government officials are building the facilities. We bought in Fort Collins about 4 years ago. I can't imagine a better place in the US to live but I felt the same way about Austin 30 years ago. As it happens, we're also "invested" in the Portugal golden visa program. We were kicking it around and then felt like it was time to shit or get off the pot when the gov't of Portugal said they were ending the program. All that ended up happening was they made it more expensive for others, and then they made it easier to qualify for citizenship and get our initial investment back. In about 3.5 years we'll be eligible to apply for citizenship. We're waiting but in no hurry to be offered the opportunity for residency...that could come within a year but I doubt we'll exercise that right. Interest rates here (visiting PT now) are like 3% for mortgages so it'd be pretty tempting if I knew where I wanted to buy.
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Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
It's weird how every major news story these days becomes weaponized, aimless, stupid rage about absolutely nothing factual. -
Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
What would you like to happen? The Governor to magically pronounce that all building regulations that have become law since 1970 will not apply to anyone who's home was impacted by fire? What's leading you to scream in your own head and then commit to typing here argument after argument about completely hypothtetical problems anyway? -
Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
How dim does a person have to be to not understand that seawalls provide a false sense of security and place people other than those who built it at risk? afaf -
Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
Once you include small things like new firetruck costs and salary rises for firefighters, LAFD's budget increased by more than 7% YOY per the LA Times. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-10/how-much-did-the-l-a-fire-department-really-cut-its-budget -
I just had a coloscopy and it was probably 3 hours from the time of check-in to the time of departure. So don't promise your buddy it'll be 2 hours because you'll want to err on the high side. Also instead of just telling me I was good to go after I recovered from the procedure, they brought my wife back to the prep area, gave her instructions, etc and verified she was my driver. There are services you can hire to drive and wait for you if you need 'em. "driving services for medical appointments"
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Southern CA Fires- Extreme Santa Ana Winds
Chopper replied to Wilcox Cummingtonite's topic in Daily Texan
Before giant shitstains like Carolla ever get to the permitting process, where MAYBE/PERHAPS they'll eventually have something worth complaining about, let's see him get a check from the insurance company and then hire an architect and contractor to begin the rebuilding process. So many people like him will learn that they're underinsured or they'll get screwed over by the maggots at State Farm and they'll never rebuild, and city permits won't be a factor AT ALL. Just a WAG but building standards have probably changed just a little since the day he purchased his 1960s removated ranch house -- that'snationwide and CA, in particular. These things are to be expected but he'll predictably blame it all on the government.
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