Oklahoma Supreme Court Rules in Favor of STCC

I've been out of pocket for a few days on account of my move. So I'm a bit behind the times with regard to local news. I got an email from the South Tulsa Citizens Coalition (STCC) a few days ago with some great news.

...the Oklahoma Supreme Court reversed the trial court's opinion and found in favor of STCC. While we have not yet seen the opinion, it is our understanding that the opinion was unanimous (all nine justices concurring) that neither the City of Jenks nor IVI can build the proposed South Tulsa Bridge. This decision is final and cannot be appealed.

I have little doubt that the bridge will get built(hopfully not for another 10 years), but now it seems as if the terms when and how will be placed more squarely on the shoulders of Tulsa. This is a huge blow to Jenks and Infrastructure Ventures, Inc. (IVI). IVI will hopefully go away with their tails between their legs, while Jenks will be forced to work with Tulsa as partners and equals.

Congratulations to the STCC, I look froward to hear more about the case once you have digested the Court's opinion.


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We Did It

We finally moved! It took a while, 9 months since our decision to move, but we finally sold our house and bought a new one.

We are 75% moved in and settled, and the five-year-old starts school on Monday, so we are extremely happy.

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Tulsa

The Tulsa World Finally Does Some Good

With the big move just days away, we are in full packing mode. Of course packing means packing materials: boxes, tape, markers, and news print. I went to the box store and got five bucks worth of news unprinted news print…It was kind of a rip off actually. Searching for a more economical way to pack my dishes, I found myself in front of the news stand looking at Tulsa Worlds and Daily Oklahomans. I decided that if I was going to pack my dishes with news paper that I paid for that I’d put my fiver down to The Daily Oklahoman, because purchasing the Tulsa World would violate my principals.

Ultimately I decided that five bucks of news paper wasn’t really any better a deal than the stuff at the box store. My wife had the bright idea of taking newspaper from the recycling center. She was right, free is much more economical than paying five dollars. Of course that means that I’m using the Tulsa World, but I didn’t pay for it, so that's okay. Plus it might as well be used for good…for a change.


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Murray Electric

If you listen to KFAQ you have probably heard the Murray Electric commercials. “No Phone Shuffle! A real live courteous licensed electrician answers the phone when you call.”

Recently, I had a chance to test their claims. The buyer of our old house wanted us to fix some electrical problems that came out in the home inspection. Remembering the commercial I heard on KFAQ, I called Murray to get a quote. I talked to an electrician who was very nice, and gave me what turned out to be the lowest quote. They guy who came out was professional, courteous, and did a great job. The final cost was exactly what I was quoted, so I’m pretty happy. If you ever need an electrician I would highly recommend calling Murray.

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Amazon.com Customer Service Success

I have recently had a customer service problem with Amazon.com. I had ordered an SD memory card on Dec 29th but as of yesterday, it still had not shipped. I kept getting emails from Amazon telling me that the shipment had been delayed, yet the item continued to show “in stock.” One of estimates for the arrival of my item was on the day that I happen to be moving, almost a month after the initial order. I obviously wasn’t really happy about any of this, so I called Amazon customer service. Armed with lessons I learned from reading The Consumerist I was able to get my way.

I remained calm, courteous, and I started by telling the customer service rep what I wanted, I told her why next. I stated that I wanted to find a solution that did not involve me canceling the order, and that I would either accept different item that could be shipped sooner, or for Amazon.com to comp me next day shipping. After I got to the point, it was then that I stated that I was moving and that I wasn’t happy with the delay. She asked me to wait while she investigated the problem and looked for a solution. Ultimately she agreed to send it overnight, and I received an email from Amazon stating that my item had been shipped.

I think the best advice I gleaned from The Consumerist is to kindly and calmly get directly to the point. Because I gave her several possible solutions, was willing to be flexible, and was nice, the Amazon.com rep gave me what I really wanted.


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Comparing Schools

I thought it interesting to compare our current "District of Choice" TPS elementary school with the new school my kids will be going to in Union. I'll preface the discussion this is likely to create with the following statement:

I have been generally impressed with most of the teachers and educators I have encountered at our current TPS school. They seem to be genuine in their desire to provide a good education. However, when looking at test scores, they just aren't getting the job done. I understand that our current school may have a whole host of challenges with which they face, and that the looking only at the scores may not be fair, but I'm not particularly interested in fair when it comes to my kids. The measure has been provided, I'm going to take note, and the contrast is stark.

Comparing the new school in Union with the old school in the "District of Choice"

Oklahoma Core Curriculum Tests 2006

Third Grade
New school reading: 94% satisfactory
Old school reading: 67% satisfactory
The state average: 82% satisfactory

New school math: 87% satisfactory
Old school math: 54% satisfactory
The state average: 72% satisfactory

Fourth Grade
New school reading: 95% satisfactory
Old school reading: 82% satisfactory
The state average: 86% satisfactory

New school math: 93% satisfactory
Old school math: 63% satisfactory
The state average: 79% satisfactory

Fifth Grade
New school reading: 90% satisfactory
Old school reading: 60% satisfactory
The state average: 75% satisfactory

New school math: 86% satisfactory
Old school math: 59% satisfactory
The state average: 76% satisfactory

Students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch program (2005-2006)
New school: 9%
Old school: 100%
The state average: 55%

Spending Per Pupil
Union: $5,553
TPS: $7,057
The state average: $6,610


I got my data from greatschools.net who got their data from the NCES and the OK SDE

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moving

Moving Update

We have contracts on our old house, and we found a new house as well. If all goes well, we will close on Jan 24th. The new house is four miles south in Tulsa but in the Union School district.

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Finally We Really Are Moving

It has been a while since I've blogged about it, but we really are still going to move out of East Tulsa. After over 6 months on the market and three price drops, we finally have an offer on our house. Now all we have to do is find a new house further south, close on both houses on the same day and move. No big deal right? I can't wait until this is all over.

Oh, and by the way, Happy New Year!

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