Our Long Countywide Nightmare Is Finally Over

I was remiss a couple of days ago by not mentioning that McDonald's, the bastion of all fat grams, has reopened in Decatur. Let the binging begin. The drive through line was backed up to the street at lunch.

Anybody Getting Nervous Yet

I really haven't concerned myself with the recent stock market drop because we were due for a "correction" (a fancy word meaning "it needs to come down some because its been going up a lot.)

But today we've got some over-correcting going on, and I'm a little worried were going into the ditch. And that Countrywide news doesn't help.

Sheesh

I had a post last week about "Racehorse" Haynes being back in the courtroom. He was defending a 41 year old woman who had consensual (but illegal) sex with a 16 year old boy.

Well she was found guilty and yesterday the sentence was handed down.

Count I: 13 years in the pen
Count II: 10 years in the pen
Count III: Probation.

But, get this: The judge stacked the 13 year and 10 year sentence. She will now become eligible for parole after she serves half of that 23 year sentence. That's insane. (And each "count" normally means a different sexual act.)

Williamson County (Georgetown) would be a horrifying place to practice law.

I Distance From This

And I blame a Texas Tech blog for causing me to stare at this.

And I am so prepared for heavy comment moderation on this one.

Throwing A Football And Talking About Football Is A Good Gig

Troy Aikman has moved to Highland Park and is selling his old home for $4 million. (Source.)

Morning News Throwing Down Humor?

Source.

Elisha Cuthbert . . .

. . . contemplates Northwest ISD and the "No Child Left Behind Act." (Update reference.)

Tropical Storm Erin . . .

. . . was a big bag of nothing. It's the lead story on every newscast, but it was a big bag.

Elvis Still Dead Today

Thirty years ago, Elvis died. I remember I had spent the afternoon fishing with my mom out at Bilby's Marina on Lake Bridgeport. (I had figured out you could use a tiny hook, bait is with some big old bug, and just float it on the water and catch as many perch as you want - but I soooooo digress.)

But we got back in the car around 4:00 or so in the afternoon and we heard the news before we had driven a quarter of a mile. My mom was completely shocked. It really didn't mean that much to me because I was just a kid. I just thought he was pretty old to have been 42.

And Deliver It By UPS, Beeeyotch

An inmate sues NFL QB Michael Vick for stealing his dogs. And wants $63,000,000,000.00.

Story (with a pdf link to the lawsuit.)

Edit: An astute commenter points out that he technically asked for "63,000,000,000 billion dollars" which, if taken literally, would be $63,000,000,000,000,000,000.00 (I think).

Double Take?

Anyone else doing a double take today on the headline and the photo (which is unrelated to the headline)? And when the paper is folded in half - which is the way it appears to most the first time we see it - it will really stop you down.

Serious Flashback

When I was a kid, I'd stay up late every weekend to watch rasslin' from the Sportitorium in Dallas. There were names like Fritz Von Erich, Killer Kowalski, and Yahoo McDanial (the resident Indian.) But in the obituary section of the Morning News today is a name I haven't thought about 30 years: Bronko Lubich. He was always the referee.

Wise County Wakes Up With . . .

. . . Katherine Heigl.

Kay Bailey Must Be Scared

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) sure is working her political arse off. She showed up in Collin County this morning for the dedication of a new courthouse. Huh? And then, to shame herself, she appeared at Sean Hannity's "Freedom Concert" tonight at the Nokia Theater.

The recent Democrat uprising must have got he attention.

Sidenote: I got to meet her at once at K-Bobs in Decatur during a lunchtime speaking engagement on a Saturday. It was probably around 1994 when I was DA and realized I had better ruin my perfect summer afternoon by dressing up and going to the speech. But she was very cordial. Then again, she's a professional politician - she should be.

As A Tropical Storm Hits Hawaii . . .

. . .you know that on the islands are people that planned their vacations for months and couples who either planned their marriage on the beach or honeymoon for this very week.

What Is This Man Talking About?

From the President's press conference on 8.9.07

"I recognize there's a debate here in America as to whether or not failure in Iraq would cause there to be more danger here in America. I strongly believe that's the case. It matters if the United States does not believe in the universality of freedom. It matters to the security of people here at home if we don't work to change the conditions that cause 19 kids to be lured onto airplanes to come and murder our citizens." Would he please separate Iraq from 9/11.

Helen Keller Falls Off Stage

But she's a born showman because she went right back into character.

Back To School

The comprehensive list of Female Teacher . . . uh . . . misdeeds.