Smithy's Saints free agency recap: (to date) in order of importance: Resignings/signings; 1. Left Tackle: Jermon Bushrod: 2 year deal, didn't have to break the bank, major coup, GM Loomis is a Jedi master!! Brees gets sacked and gets hurt, Saints revert tools bag head self,,
2. Strong Safety- Roman Harper- forget the playoff game, we all screw up sometimes, dude is solid, will take care of bidness, plus noone is waiting in the wings. 3, Wide Receiver-La
nce Moore- he is Drew Brees Linus' safety blanket, my girl Jules called it a gick, Drew is like my spouse or "franchise" so they gotta have their gick
4. Running Back- Free agent-Darren Sproles-na na na na, na na na na, hey hey GOODBYE Reggie bush!!! Like I told my good friend, and only sports talk legend Tim Fletcher 2 months ago, (who has bad ass radio show in morning 91.3FM) Sproles can out run, catch and return the rock than Bush but Bush can out jersey sell and pimp Sproles. LeBron and Reggie in Miami, have fun madonnas
5. Special Teams/locker room ace; Chris Reis: dude is an overachiever, playmaker and gunner who single handedly(literally) grabbed us the SB victory inMiami. Great move as the WAR is won behind the scenes!!!!
I got more, videos analysis to come asap, Im a rookie so bare with me but I aim to please, peace
JDEVS
If we don't get a budget extension, some analysts speculated that this could be the double dip we were all worried about last year, come home finally to roost. What might be the effects for Louisiana - especially the Shreveport and Bossier City area? The good news is that we didn't have the size of bubble that the rest of the country did, and our economy has multiple sectors of income that could sustain us. Frankly, I think it'll be tough, but Louisianans will ride it through.
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I like Keithville, because it is just to the South of Shreverport on Highway 171, and I can get there quickly and not have to fight traffic. Bossier City is also very close to Keithville, and it takes only minutes to get to either city. You don't have to spend a fortune to live in Keithville and homes average between $90,000 and $145,000.
At Hirsch Colesium in Shreveport, just a few minutes from Keithville, I can see barrel races, rodeos, roping and watch local and nationally known cowboys compete. Hoofbeat Express, a Keithville based news website and blog, keeps us updated on shows, rodeos and cowboy data. Keithville is close to Wallace Lake where I can spend the day boating, fishing and enjoying nature.
Blanchard is just north of Shreveport. I like it for several reasons. First, it is close to Shreveport/Bossier City area - only about 15 minutes when I get on Pine Hill Road and then take Highway 71 to I-222 or I-20. I can get from Shreveport Airport to Blanchard on I-222 and Highway 173 quickly and easily. Blanchard is so close to Shreveport and Bossier City, I can go to dinner there or head north to Dixie Jamboree in Ruston to hear country music.
Blanchard real estate is priced in the mid $145's and rentals start around $450 making Blanchard comparable with the other communities in the area. The schools in Blanchard are good and are rated highly. Doing real estate appraisals in Blanchard LA involves getting around, knowing the context of the area, and being familiar with property values.
I like Greenwood for its proximity to Shreveport and diversity of activities. I can get there from Shreveport or Bossier City in just a few minutes on I-20, close enough to be convenient but far enough away to maintain its own character as a town. Greenwood has a lot of racing and monster truck teams. I can go to the Dirt on Dirt stock car races at Boothill Speedway or watch the monster truck shows at Champion Park. In December, Greenwood has an enormously popular Christmas Festival with parades, Santa and plenty to eat; people come from all over the rest of Louisiana just for the Greenwood festival. In the summer I can go to Cross Lake or Caddo Lake, both just north of town, and go boating, fishing, etc. When I want a change of pace I visit the Gator and Friends Alligator Park and Exotic Animal Zoo (long name) right on I-80.
If it's your first time in Greenwood, a visit to the Greewood Cemetery is interesting as a quick historical walk through the past, to see the graves of several Confederate War veteran - including the Confederate General Young Marshall Moody.
Another thing I like about Greenwood is that the cost of living is low with houses starting in the $145's and rents starting around $550. Greenwood has quiet, safe neighborhoods with good schools, but you're close enough to Shreveport to be in the big city in just a few minutes. I can also go to the Crooked Hollow Golf Course on Elysian Field Road for a round of golf and then grab some Tex-Mex at El Guapo on Greenwood Road. Greenwood is a small town, but it has its own personality and is close enough to Shreveport to commute back and forth easily. Doing real estate appraisals in Greenwood LA involves getting around, knowing the context of the area, and being familiar with property values.
I like Benton for many reasons, one of them is its location on the intersection of Benton and Old Plain Dealing Road (SR3 & SR162). This makes it easy for me to get to the Shreveport/Bossier City area without dealing with the hassle of the Interstate. Affordable housing is also a reason I like Benton. Houses start in the low $97's, well below the state average. The town is safe and schools are good. Benton is not only the county seat, but home to Billy the Exterminator, the character off of A&E, giving us a a bit of notoriety with reality television fans.
Benton is also located within the proposed Digital Media Research Triangle. FiberCorps, a company based in Baton Rogue, is trying to convince Google to wire New Orleans, Lafayette and Baton Rogue with a fiber optic network. This would let Google do digital research in the resulting triangle.
For a small town, Benton has a variety of restaurants. If I'm in the mood for seafood I can go down to The Kingfish on Highway 162 and have all you can eat catfish and homemade hush puppies or if I'm hungry for pizza I head to family owned and operated Perky's Pizza Pasta and Subs on Palmetto Road or I can have Mexican at Los Gallos on Highway 3.
Another thing about Benton I like is the fishing and boating at Cypress Bayou Reservoir and Cypress Black Bayou Park and Recreation Area. Both are just a short drive east on Highway 162. I can go west toward the Texas border and a paddle boat ride on Caddo Lake. The Red River is also just west of Benton if I'm in the mood for a day on the water. Benton is a small town near the Shreveport/Bossier area without being in their backyard and is close enough to the big city to be convenient. Doing real estate appraisals in Benton LA involves getting around, knowing the context of the area, and being familiar with property values.
I like the community of Haughton because houses and condos start in the mid $140's and rents start at about $470. With all of the new construction in Haughton you can find a new house in a quiet neighborhood without paying an arm and a leg. I like Haughton's somewhat rural feel, too. The town is safe, has great schools and is close enough to the Shreveport/Bossier City area to make commuting easy when you want to go there. I can get on I-20 and be in Bossier City or Shreveport in just a few minutes.
When I'm in the mood for Haughton home cooking I head over to Kelly's Place on Highway 80 for Southern fried catfish and the all-you-can eat buffet. They have boiled shrimp, stuffed crab, fried chicken and all of the sides you'd want. The staff is friendly and I enjoy stopping in there whenever I'm in the area. Another place to find seafood is right down the street at Crawfish Palace. I can watch them cook crawfish in huge vats stirred with wooden paddles even if I'm ordering fried shrimp and fish.
Haughton shares in the diversity of the area with weekly country music shows in Benton, just a few miles north. The Haughton cemetery is the resting place of country music great, Johnny Horton who wrote the famous ballad, The Battle of New Orleans. I can also head South and go fishing or boating at the Kisatchie National Forest.
I can also head North on I-20 to Champion Park Speedway to Frontage Road. Champion Park Speedway is a 1/4 mile banked dirt track where SUPR races and stock car races are regularly held in Summer and Fall. Haughton is small enough to be friendly and near enough to the Shreveport/Bossier City area to commute if you like. Doing real estate appraisals in Haughton LA involves getting around, knowing the context of the area, and being familiar with property values.
One of the things I really like about Bossier City is the mix of old and new. Historic houses can be found in the mid $160,00 and new apartments and condos start around $600. Bossier City is safe and our schools are among the best in the state. Quiet suburban neighborhoods like Swan Lake are only a few minutes from the casinos at Riverside. Tourists hang out at the casinos, so their investment helps keep Bossier City's taxes relatively low. The other tourist attractions and Barksdale Air Force Base help keep our unemployment rate below the state average, too.
It's easy to get from one end of the Shreveport/Bossier City area. I can take I-20 and I-22 right through the heart of Bossier, East to Texas and the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex or South to the rest of Louisiana - I'm in Shreveport in under 30 minutes. Traffic jams are unheard of in Bossier City, unlike other major metro areas in the state. You can't beat our highway system for where we are.
Bossier City has a history of horse breeding and horse racing. I can go to the The Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Association races at the fairgrounds or the regular auctions of prize winning horses (I just look, I don't buy). Music is also really diverse, here, and the musical history we have. Bossier City has blues, country and rockabilly musicians. I can go to Benton on the weekend to hear country music and Bossier City has some of the best delta blues clubs around. It's part of what makes this part of Louisiana great - I've mentioned it before - the diversity of styles and culture here. Doing real estate appraisals in Bossier City LA involves getting around, knowing the context of the area, and being familiar with property values.
I like the fact that you don't pay an arm and a leg to live in Shreveport - houses for $160,000 and rents for $700 aren't uncommon. It's safe, we have good schools and, when I want spicy food, I hit Bears (named after Bear himself) for Cajun/Creole. Bears is also a good place to watch an LSU game. I'll get lunch at Jacquelyn's Cafe for creole jambalaya, po-boys, and etouffe. Who has better food than Louisiana, folks - I want to know. Jacquelyn's is only open for lunch, and they're slammed - so you order at the counter and watch like a hawk for an open table. The best pasta in Shreveport is, in fact, across the street at Monjuni's too - lots of olives in their salad.
It's easy to get around Shreveport, too. The roads are never congested and the highway and roads are laid out so that I can get from one end of town to the other in 20 minutes or less. You'd think that a town like Shreveport would have traffic jams, but they just don't happen here. I-20 gives me access to the airport and it I want to skirt town all I need to do is hop on I-220 and avoid the traffic all together.
It's the diversity of Shreveport that I really like. No matter what you're in the mood for, it's here - music is an example. We have a long history of blues and rockabilly musicians spending time here, including Jerry Lee Lewis and Raymond Blakes. Weekly festivals at the Dixie Jamboree in Ruston are a tradition, and the Monday Night Blues Jam on Jerry Beach has a lot of local talent playing delta blues. Shreveport is cosmopolitan without feeling so vastly spread out or urban concentrated that you can't enjoy it. Doing real estate appraisals in Shreveport LA involves getting around, knowing the context of the area, and being familiar with property values.