I received another nice e-mail from Adam Auxier - a St. Louis resident now living in NYC - today, one of the newest readers of this blog. He brought me up to speed on some stuff about St. Louis:
Aaron,
Appreciate the email, here is some info about St.
Louis that might help you understand the city a bit.
St. Louis was the third largest city in the US at one
time and it was dreaming big dreams so to speak.
Forest Park near Wash U was the host of the World’s
Fair in 1904, the park is twice the size of Central
Park in NYC for comparison. It is an Eastern city sort
of dropped in the midwest, with Eastern problems, a
bit of why its the most dangerous city in the US.
The city never really developed a very distinct
culture partly because it is composed of 4 primary
groups of people who generally don’t interact. The
blacks, nearly all of whom emigrated to St. Louis and
East St. Louis from 3 counties in Mississippi. The
Germans who settled in Belleville and in the city and
brought the city its beer, Belleville had the largest
German newspaper in the country up until WW II.
Southerners (rednecks) who came to the city for work
between the Civil War and the great depression. And
lastly Eastern Europeans who came to work in the steel
mills and factories in the city.
St. Louis was literally the gateway to the west,
though they describe it in different terms now. All
police and rangers in the western territories were
deputized by the St. Louis city police.
Here are some things you really should see while you
live there.
St. Louis City Museum< This is by far the best city
museum in the country and the benchmark for any new
museums.
Cahokia Mounds< Ancient civilization on the east bank
of the Mississippi river. This was the largest city in
the US until the founding of Philadelphia.
I assume you have walked around it, but you should see
Forest Park, particularly the Metal Tree, which I
think is very cool.
Enjoy
Adam
Thanks for the suggestions. But the question is - why did St. Louis just give up? Other cities haven’t given up and look at them now - cities like Phoenix and Atlanta. Now, mind you, unless I’m connecting flights there, I wouldn’t be caught dead anywhere near Georgia - but the city itself isn’t too bad. I think people in St. Louis now just dream about owning a home in St. Louis County while leaving the “poor people to fend for themselves”. I don’t know. To me, if you truly love something, no matter how bad it gets, you’ll contribute to make it better.
Thanks for the suggestions on places to visit. I’ve already been to a few. As for me, I’m going to go way off the course and check out the Ameristar Casino in St. Charles, MO tomorrow. Gambling is fun!
Speaking of vices, I found an interesting article over at Pasadena Now (by way of the Foothill Cities Blog). Here’s the article, if you want to check it out. Basically, it’s about Pasadena’s District 2 City Councilwoman Margaret McAustin and Pasadena’s District 4 City Councilsexyman Steve Haderlein and their priorities with regard to massage parlors in Pasadena.
Margaret McAustin (right)
Now..is it just me..or is this really a huge priority? I’ve only heard murmurs about the issue and what about the gang violence in the city? Oh, wait, that’s right - nobody’s getting killed in District 2 and District 4.
I’m not saying I’m pro-massage parlor or ruining anyone’s nice picket fence neighborhood - but I’m pretty sure this issue is a top priority on the clipboards of Margaret McAustin and Steve Haderlein because they’re both rumored to be Mayoral candidates in 2011. Remember, do “right” before those around you early in your term if you want to seek higher office!
Steve Haderlein doesn’t like massage parlors because he’s a slab of grade A man meat and never had to pay for a happy ending. Seriously, though, according to Pasadena Now, Steve said this about the parlors: “If you can’t see what’s going on inside, you assume the worst, or at least, my constituents do,” he said.
Wouldn’t you rather NOT see what’s going on inside if you have an idea already of what’s going on inside? Again, seriously, is this issue really that important or am I missing something completely? And don’t give me the whole “You’re still young, you don’t have kids, etc…”. I hate that double standard - just because I choose not to procreate means I can’t be for or against social issues.
I think Margaret has only brought up “the proliferation of massage parlors” once or twice in the Pasadena Weekly. I didn’t hear her speak at all about them at the District 2 debates before the primary election. I remember her top priorities being over-development, keeping our neighborhoods “great” (IE: keeping our neighborhoods white), and traffic. I’m more irritated at Margaret - not because I supported Jim Lomako (ok, Jane?) - but because she’s running the district I used to call home.
McAustin running for Mayor would be ugly. You already saw her dirty politics against Jim Lomako - telling blatant lies and stretching the truth against her and Stacy Lewis. Plus, she’s backed by Martin Truitt - you know, the guy behind the whole “Let’s not pass Measure A [the measure that would have allowed the NFL at the Rose Bowl] because we don’t want blacks getting rowdy and Mexicans parking on our lawns during the Rose Bowl”.
The funniest thing about the 2011 election is that there are already a lot of names in the rumor mill of Mayoral candidates (that is, if Bogaard doesn’t run again). The aforementioned Haderlein and McAustin as well as Steve Madison (who, from what I’ve heard about his personal life is modeling his campaign after the personal life of Giuliani). I’ve heard Chris Holden (oh god - could you see McAustin pulling out old news stories about his first wife banging that 16 year old boy?) and Victor “Touchdown” Gordo may also be candidates as well. Maybe Sidney Tyler will run and then I’ll move into District 7 and run for council unopposed 
With all this massage parlor get-out, though, I’m sick of being in the Midwest. Pasadena needs Aaron Proctor more than ever.
**
I got my first paycheck today and I found a strange tax taken out of my check. Apparently, the city of St. Louis - whether I like it or not - takes $4.00 from my paycheck. I don’t know if that’s a twice-a-month or yearly thing but..what the hell? I have to pay a tax just for working in St. Louis? They should be paying me to work there given the city’s blight and terrible economic shape. I mean, it’s no Pasadena or anything. I actually had a similar idea during the campaign - take out a tax from people who live outside of Pasadena but work in Pasadena, sort of an “opportunity tax”.
**
At any rate, that’s all from here for now. I’m going to go make Margaret McAustin mad by gambling tomorrow. 
Stand & Deliver.
- Aaron
Actually something cool in St. Louis: http://www.riverfronttimes.com
Mr. T a/k/a B.A. Baracus from TV’s “The A-Team”
