A better neighborhood watch without the window peeping?

How would you like to be able to tell your kids to go out and play and get out from under foot and be able to still be able to keep an eye on them at will?  Want to send them to the community park without being a "helicopter parent?" Want to know when your kids ACTUALLY got home and who they are hanging out with? Who lurks around your home? What neighbor is letting their dog crap in your yard without picking it up?  A system like the above is within our current technological abilities.

What if you had a neighborhood with cameras facing only the streets and public places.  Specifically not to include private buildings but if the private property is viewable from the street it can be included in the sight range of the cameras.  All parks in the neighborhood would be thoroughly covered.  The cameras would be able to "see" well at night and would have option for thermal and IR. The cameras would record at least as far back as a month and would only overwrite the oldest entries of itself when it ran out of room.  Anyone with access could create a clip from the original.  No one would have access to delete the original but the admin who would maintain the system and only in case of system failure. Backups would be maintained and copies would be made available on request to the police.  Live feed would be available to those with a password.  Those with a password would include the admin and those who live in the neighborhood.  The day someone moves out the password is changed.

Ideas for Rule High School in Knoxville, TN

This is Rule High School.  If ya look it up on Google Maps you will see that its not in the best of neighborhoods. You will see it is in deplorable condition.  Windows are busted out.  There is likely a lot of asbestos inside.  There are probably holes in the roof.  This school likely used to be the center of this community.  I would love to see this school revitalized and to see the revitalization of this school aid in bringing the community back again.

I would love to see this school turned into a craft hall or guild hall for the arts and crafts.  Where the guilds have priority and are not kicked out of their normal meeting space because something else takes precedence. I would like to see each of the crafts guilds that make their homes here have space for their own equipment and their own libraries and their own offices.  All so these guilds don't have to lug everything around from the guild meeting place to the various homes of members who may or may not have space but keep stuff there anyway.

I would love to see this school become a place where the guilds reach out to the community and teach the people how to do things with their hands and get joy and purpose from it.  Let them teach the old and the young.   And/or organize events to where the old can teach the young things the young never had any idea they knew how to do.  Let the guillds teach more than the craft they know.

Let this school become a community center that can teach those in the community life skills that they may not know. Money management, Home management (some of us have no idea when/how often to clean the gutters) Car management, life management.

Let this school become a place where local artists and craftspeople can sell their handmade crafts on a regular basis.  (No flea markets they only attract those who would devalue what the Artisans have to offer)

Let this school become a free/reduced cost daycare for mothers/fathers who would not be able to find a job otherwise.

Let this school become a place where the community can come and be a community.  they could sit in what used to be the lobby or cafeteria or even the gym and just be.

Here is what this school looks like as of a year ago....  http://youtu.be/lYwb0fEWpGQ

Revive your ballcaps.

Something I have actually been doing for quite a while.  If ya want a ball cap to wear but don't like the ones you have available just put a crocheted hat over it to hide the logo you aren't so keen on...  kinda like so...

Yup that's me.  I originally started doing this because of my migraines and the extra cloth on the side actually blocked out more light than just the ball cap alone.  They are not hard to make and they don't have to be made of wool.  This one and one other that I have are made of cotton... easy to toss in the wash and dry in the dryer.

If ya don't want to make one and ya live here in Knoxville.  there is a "Hat Lady" here who has a booth at the Market Square Farmer's Market every Saturday Morning who will gladly sell ya one for starting at $15.