If you know someone who works for Continental Airlines — and if you live around here, we're pretty sure you do — they might need some consoling soon. The Houston-based carrier announced this morning that it will cut 3,000 jobs and slash domestic capacity by 11 percent, a response to the rising fuel prices that are wreaking havoc throughout the airline industry: "While there have been several successful fare increases, those increases haven't been sufficient......

By now, you've probably heard the news that Houston-based Continental Airlines has decided not to merge with another carrier right away — but, of course, that doesn't mean Continental won't look into a deal down the road. "We have significant cultural, operational and financial strengths compared to the rest of the industry, and we want to protect and enhance those strengths — which we believe would be placed at risk in a merger with another carrier......

We don't know about you, but Houstonist would do almost anything to get through airport security faster. It's not that we don't value the level of security we're getting — trust us, we'd much prefer taking our shoes off to being aboard an exploding aircraft — but we'll admit that we do get frustrated by other travelers who apparently haven't heard a word about the increased restrictions the rest of us have been dealing with......

Good morning, Houston. So you say you're a Dynamo fan, eh? Well, here's your chance to prove it: The back-to-back MLS champs are auctioning off a chance to get close to the team's two MLS cups — literally. If you win the auction, the cups will be dropped off at your house on Christmas Eve and picked up Dec. 26; in between, you can do whatever you want with 'em (within reason, of course).......

Houstonist told you about Continental's new mobile boarding pass service in last week's Tech Buzz. This week we tested the service. Step 1: Check-in via the Continental PDA web site (http://pda.continental.com/) Assuming you have web access on your PDA (duh), you should be able to complete this on the shuttle ride from the parking lot like we did. Navigating to the mobile site was painless. And, the email containing our boarding pass hyperlink hit our......

For everyone from the suckers who went to the sports bars because they thought the game was only on the NFL Network, to the lucky souls who knew that the game was on Channel 20, the confused folks who mistook the Texans red-on-red uniforms for a horrible laundry error, and to Channel 20 itself (which no doubt got their highest ratings since they ceased to be a UPN affiliate), the Texans thumping of the Broncos......

What would be the obvious career path for someone who went to Harvard for undergrad and Yale for law school? Well, write and publish restaurant guides, of course. Duh. Houstonist had the opportunity to sit with author/entrepreneur/foodie/publisher/world-traveller Robin Goldstein and his managing editor/foodie/marketer/public-relations-exec/S.O. Alexis Herschkowitsch. Robin has just released his Houston restaurant guide – Fearless Critic, Houston Restaurant Guide (one of the very first complete printed guides in Houston - and no, Zagat doesn't count).......

Before you get all "wait, I was told there wouldn't be any math", there is some significance to the number above. It's Vince Young's QB Rating, largely the result of a 5/13 touchdown/interception ratio. By way of comparison, Matt Schaub has a decent 87.3 rating, and former Steelers phenom Kordell Stewart finished his career with a 70.7 rating. Perhaps the Madden cover jinx doesn't mean that you blow out your knee or get arrested for......

Spent all your cash on girlie drinks and shattered dreams again this weekend, didn't you? No worries - Thriftster gives you the lowdown on cheap stuff to do until Paycheck Friday. We're making this 'multi-cultural' Thriftster week, given all the great global goodies in town for you to experience. Monday: Catch the last night of the Polish Film Festival at the Angelika (510 Texas Ave.) with 3 shows for $10 (or $8 if you've got......

Goat cheese is another one of those ingredients that people either love or hate. On the one hand, we think goat cheese is a delectable, multi-talented piece of dairy. On the other hand, one hater told us he thought it tasted like 'farm'. Hmmm. Hopefully this article will inspire a second taste, perhaps even transforming 'farm' to 'farmtastic? Goat cheese, also known as chevre cheese, has a slightly tart taste due to the higher content......

Look, we're gonna make this one real easy for you. No thinking involved. Music. Art. Community. And a scientist who raps about space travel to a power point presentation. See? Simple. Houston, Our Ears Depend on You, this Saturday at Diverseworks, materializes Rice Radio's KTRU's presentation of Ashmathitic Kitty's 4th Unusual Animals party. Huh? See, we told you we were gonna make it simple. Just trust us. Or, just keep reading. DiverseWorks is excited to......

Ode to the Highway overpass Ode to the sweeping overpass, the sculpted mass of concrete and steel, the hero of highway traffic. We ride on your brute shoulders. The Atlas of freeways. Ode to the on-ramp, to the off-ramp, to the embanked curve, cloverleaf and twisted spaghetti bowl. The indelible markings on the landscape. Urbanity’s tattoo. When the last traces of humanity have left your destinations and ceased to travel your paths will you......

The Texans travel to Jacksonville this weekend to face the resurgent Jaguars in a battle to see who will stand out as the more improved AFC team. The Texans got the season off to a hot start, but injuries and tough opponents bring them to this weekend with a 3-2 record. However, with the immenent return of Ahman Green and Jacoby Jones, the sporadically brilliant offense will get a much-needed upgradein the offensive options department.......

Native Houstonian Sam Jones IV may not have a traditional route as to how he got his start in art, but it's definitely a unique story. The mixed media artist sat down and talked with us about his experiences growing up in Houston, and how living in the South has impacted his artistic career. You have a pretty "uniquely-Houston" story as to how you got your start in your art education. Most people don't......

It's baaaaack. We can't believe it's been nearly six months since the last installment of the MFA's kick arse series, "Movies Houstonians Love." How the heck did we cope for this long with out it? Must be those doses of Mixed Media that held us over. Tonight marks the return of a new slew of presentations of some of Houston's own professing their love for their favorite flix. This series includes flick pix from the......

Good morning, Houston. In case you didn't hear yesterday, we'll soon see the end of an era in air travel: Beginning Oct. 2, Southwest Airlines will assign passengers a place in line based on the order in which they check in. That means no more of the airline's (in)famous "cattle call" boarding process, which means there's no longer any point in arriving at the airport 16 hours early to get in the A group......

The Astros may have 99 problems, but the pitch ain't one. After stumbling out of the gate to start this week's series against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Astros saddled up thoroughbred Roy Oswalt and rode to victory last night, securing Cecil Cooper's first major league win as the 'stros new manager. Oswalt worked with trademark efficiency, blazing through seven innings while throwing only ninety-nine pitches. Offensively, the team rode homers by Luke Scott and......

Lucy, the hottest old lady in the whole entire world, is getting written up everywhere: Forbes, Time, The Washington Post and of course The Chron. The 3.2 million year old hominid from Ethiopia is about to go on display at the Houston Museum of Natural Science on Friday with much fanfare and attention. The fossil is so very old and rare that paleoanthropologists are concerned about the damage that international travel, display and a potential......

Lunchtime Lecture: Historic Houston Streets -The Stories Behind the Names Ever wonder what street is named after an Irish saloonkeeper and Civil War hero who was known for his a drink called “kiss me quick and go”? (This is jsut a guess, but is that the correct way to pronounce Kuykendahl?) Join the Heritage Society for a Hill/Finger Noontime lecture on Thursday, July 19, 2007 from 12 to 1 p.m. as Marks Hinton, a retired......

Bridal Extravaganza + Ticket Giveaway Getting married soon? (Yikes.) If you are ready to dive into the world of florists, photographers, DJ's, and bridal gowns, you are in luck! This weekend, the 23rd Bi-Annual Bridal Extravaganza walks down the aisle at the GRB, July 14 & 15. The nation’s largest bridal show will take place on Saturday, at the George R. Brown Convention Center this Saturday and Sunday. This year’s event features over 300,000......

If you are a fan of Dynamo soccer, July is going to be an exciting month. Coming off of an undefeated six game streak, the Dynamo are set to play 7 games this month (not including the MLS all star game). If that weren’t enough, the team’s lineup has changed slightly with 1) the recent return of Ching and De Rosario (among others) from international play, 2) the unknown fate of mid-fielder Brad Davis who......

Good morning, Houston. Were you one of the folks who lined up Friday to pick up an iPhone? And have you gotten it activated yet? If so, you're lucky: A lot of people are having trouble getting their shiny new toys activated, and until they do, none of the so-called Jesus phone's features — not even its alarm clock — will work. Though most customers have been able to activate their phones in a......

From the Rita Sure Was a Headache Department comes this news story: a plan that could reduce the number of stranded motorists - and traffic - during a hurricane evacuation. Pre-Rita, fuel supply was not covered in the state's evacuation plan, which weighed in at a hefty 200+ pages. But now, state leaders and oil execs have teamed up - this time for something good - to come up with a plan that will help......

So this is kinda cool: Bush Intercontinental and Hobby airports are the first airports in the world to have mobile threat containment units — basically, bomb-proof trash cans — that can be used to get suspicious carry-on baggage safely away from passengers without shutting down the airport terminal. The units, which in all fairness bear little resemblance to actual trash cans, are manufactured by the British company Aigis Blast Protection. The circular containers weigh around......

This week, we told you all about the upcoming opening of the much talked about Hotel ZaZa in the Museum District. Seems like the new hotel is on everyone's radar. Including New York Magazine. This week, the popular entertainment and culture magazine's website (www.nymag.com) featured Houston as their Weekend Escape Destination, describing a stay at the "highly theatrical" Hotel ZaZa as a way to earn some street cred in the Bayou City. The article......

So the next time you are flying your private jet into Houston after a “rockstar” weekend with Jay-Z you will have a new choice in landing spots. Houston Executive Airport, located off of Highway 90 just west of Katy, is set to break ground on the Henriksen Jet Center facility. The two-story facility will have a passenger lobby, pilot lounge, theater room and office / meeting rooms and is set to open in 2008. Houston......

All across the Ist-A-Verse (or at least the American parts thereof), writers and editors are in the midst of enjoying their three-day weekend. But after the week we've all had, we feel like the break is not only needed, but deserved. Just look at everything we've been doing! Gothamist headed into the Memorial Day weekend with a number of tasks accomplished. They worried about Long Islanders giving New Yorkers a bad name. They tried......

The University of Houston Cougars Softball team won its first Conference USA title Saturday afternoon, surviving a heated pitching duel. Tournament MVP Angel Shamblin tossed a 2-hit shutout give the Cougars the Conference title in a narrow 1-0 victory over East Carolina. The Cougars scored what would turn out to be the only run of the game in the 1st inning, capitalizing on a pair of fielding errors. We notice that for some reason......

Art Car Weekend kicks off tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. at the Art Car Museum with an assist from neighboring Aurora Picture Show. Shop Talk! - Dynamic Art Car Presentations is FREE and open to the public! Part of Heights Boulevard will be closed to through traffic and art cars will be parked on the street for your viewing pleasure. The cars will have illuminary-like very special effects and such - like, say a disco ball,......

|| Game Date: April 23, 2007 || Game Location: Toyota Center, Houston || Playoff Round: One || Series Record: Rockets 2 - Utah 0 || Final Score: 98 HOU - 90 UTAH || Box Score: Utah @ Rockets Info from NBA.com ______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ First Quarter: It was all Boozer. I never wanted someone to miss a shot so much in my life. Bozo, Boozer would not miss. Finally at about seven minutes into the......