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Community Services, For Us, By Us
2007-11-24 23:21:00
Recently, Madison Voices reprinted an article that I wrote for India Tribune about my take on Community Services as it affects us on Allied Drive, coming from a multi-cultural prospective of an Allied Drive resident. My main point in the article is how I wish more agencies would listen to residents, and I wish more residents would take a more proactive role in the area of social services. We may not always be able to help ourselves, however we should always have a stake in it. My biggest pet peeve involves agencies that hand-hold residents to the point of paralysis. For example, if I had a driver who took me everywhere I wanted to go, after years and years of being chauffeured around, driving is going to be a very big deal for me. I am very proud to be on the board of the Wellness Center, an organization that serves a great example of how an organization that serves a neighborhood should function. About a third of our board consists of neighborhood residents, and I think it makes


Payday Loan Calculator
2007-11-24 22:50:00
Payday loans are avidly talked about in our community and as with anything else, I always say that an educated consumer can make good decisions on how they spend their money. This payday loans site has a loan calculator that will allow you to calculate how much your payments will be based on the finance rate and the length of the loan. Around here, most of the finance rates are 20% over 14 days. Some of the online loan options offer better rates. If it is going to take you a few months to pay off the loan, you can do the math and see how many finance charges you will be paying and make an educated decision on whether a payday loan is the right option for you............ Live From Allied Drive http://allieddrive.blogspot.com
Read more: Payday , Calculator , Payday Loan

My Dog Ate My Rent, I Swear
2007-11-20 22:23:00
So we were getting ready to go pay some bills and as we were getting everything together to walk out of the house with our puppy Max, I told her to go lay down for a minute. Well she did go lay down ... with our check! After having a dog for just a short amount of time, you get to know their facial expressions, and this is the face that my dog makes when she KNOWS she did something she was not supposed to do. I could not believe it! Thankfully, Dane County Credit Union still let us deposit the check because getting a new check from our employer would have likely taken another pay period. For the record, as long as the pertinent information is still intact on the check, it could still be cashed. I wonder if Meyer Management would accept that as a valid excuse for not paying the rent on time? ........... Live From Allied Drive http://allieddrive.blogspot.com
Read more: Swear

Kids Playing Football In Courtyard
2007-11-14 22:13:00
This was a picture I took after allowing the kids playing football in our courtyard entertain me for a bit. As you can see, there was a variety of ages and both boys and girls playing together, and what I found amusing is how the girls would hug each other after scoring any points. How is that for totally feminizing a testosterone fueled sport? The two oldest looking boys looked like they were so desperate to play, they got anyone and everyone together who was willing to play in order to make a full team. They were calling all the plays and trying to explain to the younger kids exactly what to do in order to execute a play - it was fun watching, especially knowing snow is going to hit any day now ... better enjoy these nice days while they last!........... Live From Allied Drive http://allieddrive.blogspot.com
Read more: Football

The Power Of One
2007-09-01 15:51:00
This Saturday, September 15th, come out to our community to participate in a walk that will help support MAP with your donations of $1 or more. The registration for the walk will start at 8:00 am and conclude with a short ceremony around 10:00 am with a presentation from the Employer Group. If you have any questions, please call 608-239-4286.The campaign is centered around the POWER in ONE ... see you there!........... Live From Allied Drive http://allieddrive.blogspot.com


Allied Drive Community Meeting Unveils New Plans, What?
2007-12-17 23:28:00
The big meeting that took place this weekend to obtain resident feedback on the path of development for the Allied Drive city properties where I live was brought to my attention by my alder, Brian Solomon. I have to say, Brian made a very genuine effort to get the word out. I received a voice mail, a flier taped to my door, and I saw fliers plastered all over the apartment complex in which I live. When Sunday rolled around, I was thinking, damn, it's Sunday! I have to work tomorrow, I still have laundry to do, I need to make a grocery list, the apartment's a mess, my puppy feels neglected. But Brian said this was an important meeting. They all are. There was a decent turnout. All the familiar activists were there. And some new faces. There was also one other city property resident whom I recognized that showed up. It may not have been the town meeting that many were hoping for, but until it is realized that city people speak a different language than us residents, partic


New Johnny Depp Movie Hits Theaters
2007-12-17 20:27:00
Johnny Depp has some serious fans and in my opinion, his best movie moments were not in Pirates of the Carribean. One of my favorite Johnny Depp movies is Secret Window. Perhaps because I love to write, but also because it tells the story of the inner struggles of a man which many could relate to, whether you are a writer or not. There is a scene with the man who accuses Johnny Depp's character, Mort, of stealing his story that had a line that I liked. Johnny Shooter, who is really Mort's subconscious in character, questions him about his smoking and Mort says he just picked up on the habit for his health. Later on, he says "I don't care. I'm just gonna smoke. I'm just gonna totally smoke. I'll finish these, go to the store and get a brand new pack, and smoke the shit out of that one" That was the part of the movie where I was cued that Mort and Johnny Shooter were possibly the same character (because Johnny smoked). It was all very interesting and the movie was ver
Read more: Johnny , Theaters

Thank You City of Madison for Plowing Allied Drive's Snow
2007-12-12 15:18:00
I have had to go to the downtown MATC campus about 10 times in the last couple weeks, and the snow banks there are next to impossible to navigate around if you are on foot. Many people in the Allied Drive community are on foot and many of us have no alternative than to walk in order to get to the businesses close by, including Walgreens, McDonalds or Cub Foods. If you are walking with a stroller with multiple small children, the uphill walk to get to the end of Allied Drive is very cumbersome when you factor in snow and ice. I know resources were challenged with all the snow we got, and I am very thankful that the city has contributed to such a great job with the plowing of streets and walkways in the recent days. Thank you!!........... Live From Allied Drive http://allieddrive.blogspot.com
Read more: Madison , Plowing

Why Mattresses Are Dumped on Allied Drive?
2007-12-07 14:43:00
This was a question I have been asking for about a year now and from all those who I have asked, there are several different answers:1 - When people are evicted, they often do not take their beds with them, so the landlords just dump them on the curb and I guess the sanitation department comes and picks them up.2 - When people are moving, mattresses are the most common thing that does not get transported, so the owner of the mattress dumps it on the side of the road, again, waiting for the sanitation department to come and pick it up.3 - This is one that I heard which I will share for all the conspiracy theorists out there, though let me preface, I have no idea if this is true or not. In order for WHEDA to put money into our neighborhood, there are a series of guidelines that must be met as it relates to crime and upkeep. The drug dealers dump furniture out onto our curbs in an effort to keep WHEDA out. Actually, I heard it is not the drug dealers, but rather the drug dealer's drug
Read more: Mattresses , Dumped

The Art of Listening
2007-11-30 14:24:00
One of the responsibilities that accompany being a city commissioner for the City of Madison involves reviewing requests for funding and contributing to a voting process which determines if an applying agency is granted all or part of the funding they request. With any grant application, there is a need to identify a problem and articulate a solution that is associated with a dollar amount. As a group, we determine if the agency's proposal is a viable and sound response to a valid issue, and if the majority is in agreement, the funding moves forward. One aspect of this process that strikes me is how many agencies develop solutions without incorporating the contributions of the communities affected by the issue. Individuals affected by social ailments are not incapable of contributing or producing a solution.I seem to have a slightly different prospective because in addition to being on two city commissions, I also work for an agency and serve on a board that responds to needs wit
Read more: Listening

Roast on Milios
2008-01-27 00:33:00
I had Milios for lunch today and I remembered they are another restaurant that delivers to our area, but not on Allied Drive. I remember about a month ago, there was a really bad snow storm and we didn't feel like going outside or cooking, and we were so indecisive on what to order, and finally decided that Milios would totally hit the spot. I love their sandwiches however would you believe that they made us walk over to the Boys and Girls Club to meet them? We said okay because we really wanted Milios, and the Boys and Girls Club is literally out our front door, through the neighboring building's parking lot, up a small three foot hill and we are at the back of the Boys and Girls Club. That small three foot hill was not such a small hill with all that snow. That driver could have dri
Read more: Roast

It is MAD COLD today!
2008-01-19 03:54:00
It is cold, cold, cold outside! Whenever we have inclement weather, I always think of all the people out here who do not have cars and walk in the cold to Cub Foods when they are in need of groceries. I always see people walking with strollers and small children with bags of groceries. Cold winters are a harsh reality of our community. Even though Cub Foods is right across the street, when I didn't have a car, I used to take the bus to the West Transfer Point and walk to Copps - for me, it was a much shorter walk to the bus stop and then to Copps, and plus, you don't have to cross Verona Road's busy traffic on foot. It's only a ten minute bus ride and it actually would take longer to walk all the way across Verona Road. I have high hopes for the Timebank outreach that will be taking


Winter Paintball Season?
2008-01-19 03:32:00
I was trying to think of some activities that the community may participate in over the winter (not when it is as cold as it is this weekend, but maybe sometime when it is above negative thirty degrees!) and paintball came to mind! I saw on television once a group of people playing paintball in the winter snow and it really looked like a lot of fun. I am not sure how to go about getting a tournament together, but I bet anything that a lot of people would want to play, even in the cold! If anyone is interested in organizing a paintball tournament out here, there are some great resources for paintball guns and various paintball supplies online. I don't know anything about paintball however some quick research revealed that the Tippmann A-5 is one of the top selling models. I think I wou
Read more: Season

Move Forward and Move Out, If You Really Want The American Dream?
2008-01-17 07:56:00
They say that a component of what is considered the American Dream is home ownership and those of us in the city properties who aspire to buy a home and want to own a stake in this community feel like we are being somewhat punished for wanting it. The way the development plans are unfolding, those who qualify for Section 8 or prefer rental housing are offered an opportunity to move into the new developments first. The rest of us who aligned with the city’s idea of facilitating property ownership among the community’s residents will have to wait for an undisclosed amount of time for our opportunity to move. If the new properties are ready this summer, they will be literally 25 feet from my front door. I wonder how I am going to feel, seeing a beautiful living space with gardens and
Read more: Forward , American Dream

At Least We Have High Hopes For Convenience
2008-01-14 23:22:00
The recent meeting at the Boys and Girls Club regarding the redevelopment plan appeared to have a slightly different focus than previous meetings we have attended. Wow, for the first time, it felt like someone thought about what it might be like to live here in these properties in the midst of all the uncertainty of what the future may hold for us. Finally, we were given a glimpse of what the future's options may be. For the first time, I heard what the proposed plans were of where we will go while all the development is taking place, and for the first time, I have heard some options being discussed where some thought went into how the maximum number of us will not have to move twice (at least about half of us residents). The Birch Hill buildings have the most tenants, so in those prop
Read more: Convenience

Community Blogging Could Lead to Some Economic Sustainability
2008-01-14 20:09:00
I have always wanted to help people in my community become a little more technologically literate. Nowadays, there are so many legitimate ways to earn money online simply by being engaged with a little ingenuity. The Internet is global so what could be a barrier in your local community, could be a strength in your global community. It does not matter where you are from or what language you speak, the Internet serves a purpose of bringing everyone together. I really want to make an effort in 2008 to identify some people in my community who could commit to learning some new skills and one of the things I thought I could do is teach a group of residents how to maintain a blog. What goes with that is learning how to get paid for blogging. I am working on reaching out to people in the commu
Read more: Blogging , Economic , Sustainability

What Constitutes Bad Return-On-Investment for Allied Drive?
2008-01-08 06:44:00
When evaluating investments, we most often turn to numbers. In the case of the city-owned properties on Allied Drive, it would seem fairly simple to look at the amount of money that Madison’s taxpayers invested into the property, and then work the numbers out to ensure a fair return. However the City of Madison invested into Allied Drive not necessarily to crunch out a profit, but rather to invest in the people and the community. If stability in our community could be achieved, it would ripple out to affect some of the social ailments that plague our city, such as crime, homelessness, unemployment and poverty. This is all great in principle, however within this process, it is often overlooked that lives are at stake. When our alder, Brian Solomon knocked on our door this weekend to
Read more: Return

Happy New Year!
2008-01-02 05:01:00
We had a great New Years this weekend and 2008 feels like it is going to be a very good year. Happy New Year to everyone out there and I hope that 2008 brings prosperity and happiness to all. Since we are city property residents, I think that 2008 will bring a temporary move, so I am trying to make plans for that, as difficult as that seems - I can't believe how quickly "things" pile up ... we are going on our third year here on Allied Drive and the thought of packing makes my head hurt - hopefully, it won't be too bad! Anyway, Happy New Year !!........... Live From Allied Drive


The Right Side of Town?
2007-12-28 07:52:00
So this morning I was browsing You Tube and I found this video taken on State Street and my fiance walked into the room and asked me if this was Philadelphia in the video. As you can see, it is all State Street in Madison ... I guess it caught him off guard because when you look at our city onscreen, there is this appearance that there are so many things to do and it's lively and fun ... I guess when you are all the way in the corner of the city, festivals are somewhat inaccessible and over time, it builds into this notion that there is nothing to do out here.We both decided that if we lived closer to downtown, we would likely enjoy Madison a little more. Right now, we eat at McDonalds more than any other restaurant in Madison (because it's right here), and when we want to go hang out so


Why Allied Drive IS about race
2008-03-18 06:01:00
It is often relayed in race relation circles that the best way to overcome racism is to oversee the differences of race and simply look at people for who they are. As Dr. Martin Luther King said, judge individuals by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin. That is all great in principle; however generally, people do not have such discipline. So often we assess people based on what they look like, and once you go there, you can’t backtrack and defend statements without re-connecting it to race.As much as I would like to talk about all the great people that live on Allied Drive and all the potential that residents here hold on their own, it is nearly impossible to talk about (and often defend) Allied Drive without addressing Madison’s divides relating to race.


Plans to Increase Income Must Include Financial Literacy Education
2008-05-22 20:38:00
The Allied Drive Task Force recently produced a report that serves as a reference toward responding to employment and employability issues on Allied Drive. I forwarded my thoughts on the report for the Task Force to consider as follows:To Whom It May Concern:Upon reading the Employment and Training Report that was prepared for the Allied Task Force, I wanted to extend my appreciation to those who
Read more: Income , Financial , Education

Who Leads the Generational Gap on Allied Drive?
2008-06-03 01:37:00
I must precede my words with the statement that I do not purport to represent anyone other than myself. My blog reflects my opinions, my observations and my life experiences, and I equally support anyone in our community who wishes to express their opinions, observations or life experiences regardless of what they are or what statements they make. I may not agree, but I wholly support everyone's
Read more: Leads

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