well i don’t know about any businesses going in on the ground level, but when i walked by this building last night i peeked in and saw 24, new mailboxes inside the front door. the building doesn’t look big from the front, but it goes back pretty far.

Btw- is that Tienda Izalco building being renovated too? It would be a shame if the one building gets fixed up and the other doesn’t.

Partner dancing is definitely a good fitness option. There are strong communities involved in quite a few partner dances around town, including several types of swing dancing, salsa, and Argentine tango.

Traditional dance studios tend to have teachers that are well-trained in the standard ballroom dances but can be sort of disconnected from the “street” dances or their communities. If you’re primarily interest is fitness, I suspect you’ll probably find the community aspect of the street dances more helpful. If you’re interested in a specific dance, the best thing to do is Google or ask around and figure out where in the city people go dancing.

(full disclosure: I’m an avid swing dancer and if you live in the city I highly recommend you check out The Jam Cellar on Tuesday nights in the Josephine Butler Parks Center on 15th)

find a pool to go swimming – it burns an incredible number of calories, even just treading water, especially if the temp of the water is less than body temperature, and it uses every muscle in your body. And it doesn’t matter how much you weigh – floating takes the weight off your joints.

Another great workout is just to ride a bicycle to get places rather than driving or waiting for the bus. This way you get some moderate exercise and get other things done at the same time – as opposed to exercising as a separate activity which many people don’t have time for. Also contrary to popular belief, weight has very little to do with how much work it takes to ride a bicycle – the main drag factors are axle lubrication, air drag, frame geometry, proper tire inflation and the smoothness of the tires and road surface. The weight of the rider or bike changes this equasion very little. cycling has a very low impact on joints since the work is circular in nature and takes the weight off your joints. Cycling a given distance takes 1/3 the energy of walking.

Or to look at it the other way around, walking uses 3 times more energy than cycling, so it’s an even better workout, if you actually have the time to walk everywhere. In fact, walking uses considerably more energy than running over the same distance. Running uses more energy over a given amount of time, but less energy over a given amount of distance – and running is also a lot harder on your joints.

In regard to the building in the picture above: Why did they do all that expensive copper and slate roof work, and then go and replace the windows in the turrets with flat windows? They should be curved. I know they’re typically custom items and ridiculously expensive, but I’d be willing to bet that the original windows were curved. I’m assuming this isn’t in a historic district, because the historic preservation types would be all over something like this.

Hey PoP,

Do you you think you could highlight/re-post this for Barry Farm (re)Mixed blog?

Last week she posted about SE condo owners being crushed by carrying the utility/maintenance fees of their delinquent neighbors, who the banks are dragging their feet foreclosing on (a growing problem.) While these residents live there rent free collecting utility debts, the other condo owners have to cover those folks bills, lest the city condemn the entire building b/c it doesn’t provide basic services (these are really nice condos too.) Basically, residents used to paying $500/mo on their mortgage, are paying up to $2,000 a month to cover the buildings utilities.

Anyway, the author has hatched a plan to get the community involved and take of the maintenance themselves — a DIY solution. They are however, apt dwellers so they lack light landscaping tools. Could you cross-post their lending or donation request for light landscaping tools (used gloves, rakes, a hedge trimmer, a lawnmower, etc.) They’re trying to see if this plan will really help the building get by (a solution that might help lower-income neighborhoods keep from snowballing, and spare the city a lot of social services spending.)

Here is the post requesting the donation:
http://barryfarmremixed.blogspot.com/2009/11/calling-all-lawnmowers-and-leaf-blowers.html
and the one explaining the predicament:
http://barryfarmremixed.blogspot.com/2009/11/ripple-effect.html

@ Truxton K – We must be thinking of different things. There are people at the park doing stuff where one person lays on his or her back, puts their feet in the air and then the other person rests their weight on that person’s feet and holds the bottom persons hands – like they are flying. They then move the flying person in and out of different positions. It’s pretty neat to watch and looks sort of acrobatic, like Cirque du Soleil-type stuff.

sex = exercise

Anybody know about the rental or condo units up top? I’d go for one.

jimmy d:

thats acro yoga.

portion control.

I live about a spit away from these buildings, so it’d be pretty cool to get a Korean place. I don’t mind Subway either. Actually, I’m just excited that these buildings are being restored. It had been pretty sketchy for quite some time.

Maybe the window frames are going to be painted brown or dark green. Too bad about a Subway. If people need low cost food options because they are not financially stable, they shouldn’t be eating out. I certainly didn’t when I was young. (Still won’t waste my $ at Subway!) A trip to the grocery store is healthier and cheaper.

Not sure if the reader was a man or woman, but I would definitely recommend bellydancing for the ladies! Sahara Dance has several studios in and around the district. saharadance.com
Next semester’s classes start in January. This studio celebrates diversity and feminity and is very welcoming to all women, regardless of dancing skill level.
Plus you get to wear sparkly and bright hip scarves while you get a great workout!