Dasani water? It's from your Charlotte tap

One of the best tidbits out of the Merry Oaks Neighborhood Association meeting Thursday night:

That Dasani water you buy at the store? It's bottled right here, in Charlotte, near the Charlotte-Mecklenburg water treatment plant off Tyvola Road. That's the word from a CMUD presenter who spoke at the meeting.

And while it's no secret that bottled water often comes from the tap, it's still a bit startling to remember.

Curious: Does Dasani filter out the chemical making the chlorine smell that comes from tap water in Charlotte? Or does CMUD provide Dasani water that has fewer chemicals in it?

More on the meeting later.

Merry Oaks meeting and precinct update

The Merry Oaks Neighborhood Association will hold its regular, quarterly meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 28, at Merry Oaks Elementary School.

On the agenda: the ever popular police report and perhaps discussion of making future meetings more social, except when events require coordinated, organized action. Board members are seeking new ideas from residents and many ongoing issues remain: code enforcement, Section 8 housing, nearby development. See the Spring 2008 neighborhood newsletter, linked from Neighborhood Link for more.

Precinct 29 Democrats update: Seven people turned out. Marcus Williams is chair, and Jan Snead is vice chair.

Very local politics

Precinct 29 Democrats plan an organizational meeting Tuesday, Feb. 19, at 7 p.m. at Merry Oaks Elementary.

Recent news about the sheriff's post in Mecklenburg County has highlighted the importance of local party organization. Joining a Facebook group for a presidential candidate is not enough to make a difference in how politics affects people directly.
So show up.

Equal time notice: If any other party plans similar organizational meetings, I'll be glad to post the information.

More information from Jan Snead, posted on the neighborhood Google group:

"We need five officers to form an organization. The group must meet again by March 12th to be considered a valid organization for the county Democratic Party elections in April. Our chairman has resigned, so a new one must be elected, and if we don't organize, we don't get any votes.

"The Mecklenburg County Democratic Convention also chooses delegates to the state convention, who choose the delegates to the national Democratic Party Convention in August.

"So if you ever wanted to know how you can help Democrats to get elected, or how to become more involved on a local level, please come out. We need your support! And if you don't want to be directly involved, but would like to stuff envelopes or call neighbors, we can give you information on who to call and how to start."

Chinese New Year on Central Avenue (or why did the dragon cross the road?)

Traditional Chinese lions and a dragon danced at Dim Sum restaurant at 2920 Central Avenue on Sunday to celebrate Chinese New Year. Performers drew a crowd to the restaurant's parking lot and slowed -- and sometimes stopped -- traffic along Central Avenue. The sound of drums drew people from nearby neighborhoods.
For more information on Chinese New Year, try Wikipedia as a starting point.

The Vyne: Update II in photos

Feb. 3, from Central Avenue (above).


Jan. 19, from Central Avenue (above).

Photos shot Feb. 3 detail continuing work at The Vyne at Central Avenue and Briar Creek Road. I've tried (amateurishly) to match a couple of the February photos with those from the same angles from Jan. 19, with two bonus photos from Feb. 3 at the end. Grading and other site work has continued since that date; that's why the bonus photos at the end are interesting. The old Plummer house sat on a bit of a knoll, as is clear from the Terraserver image in an earlier post. The site is more level now, with some elevation for that skyline view perhaps lost. Still, you can catch a bit of downtown's buildings framed by the dirt mover in the last photo. Big water or sewer pipes are stacked at the site now as well.


Feb. 3, from Briar Creek Road (above).


Jan. 19, from Briar Creek Road (above).


Feb. 3, from Central Avenue (above).


Feb. 3, from Briar Creek Road, with a bit of skyline (above).

Wherever you go, there you are

Lots of stuff here is about local things:
Being here, in this community, at the upper end of Briar Creek, connected to the Catawba River.
As a treat, I'm sharing a link to a naturalist's quiz that can challenge you to be more aware of where you are, right now, and how the things you do affect your place.
Check out Kevin Kelly's quiz here.