Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• I'm so bummed that I didn't like the Batman movie. I think I've got a handle on pop culture - why things are popular and why things aren't - so I feel like I'm really missing something here.
• Soccer star David Beckham played in Frisco yesterday, but for some reason the game was scheduled for the middle of the afternoon. Temperature: 105. What a beating. But 21,000 people showed up.
  
• I went to the pool on Saturday afternoon and almost died of heat stroke. Well, not really. But it was hot.
• Jean Jacques Taylor of the Dallas Morning News seems to have a big bag of nothing. He writes a lot but never really says anything -- he just states the obvious amongst a bunch of throw away quotes. But that's what most sports columnist do.
  
• In case you missed it, a 55 foot, $2 million boat burned on Lake Lewisville yesterday. (But I think the world will survive the loss.) And, if Fox 4 Emily Lopez is correct in that report, the boat holds 800 gallons of diesel fuel (Is that possible????). If so, a fill up would cost $3,600 at $4.50 a gallon.
• This is Jerry Jones' 20th preseason with Cowboys. Man, time flies.
• Obama takes his largest lead so far per the Gallup Poll. But the electoral college break down doesn't look as favorable.
• And according to Dallas Morning News financial columnist Scott Burns, the income tax plans of Obama and McCain are essentially the same so long as you don't make over $200,000 a year.
• Funny line from The Ticket: If Mark Cuban buys the Cubs, he'll be the first owner to watch the game from the dugout and in full uniform.
• It has been announced that Hank Williams, Jr. will whip us again with "All My Rowdy Friends" on Monday Night Football.
  
• My debit card was "declined" this morning when making a purchase of $2.46. I presume I entered my PIN wrong but switched to a credit card to avoid Convenience Store Embarrassment.
• I almost wrote "PIN number" above but that wouldn't be right.
  
• I bet the guy with the 55 foot burned boat will vote for McCain.
• Recurring news over the weekend: Child dies after being left in car. Man dies while swimming in Lewisville lake.
• One of the worst experiences of my life, the Texas Bar Exam, will be given this week. And I remember I had to be thumbprinted before the test because, as the proctor explained in all seriousness, that was to insure that a "real lawyer" wouldn't sneak in and take the test for one of us. Trust me, the only time any lawyer can pass the bar exam is when he actually took the bar exam.
  
• The Drudge Report was hailing a new search engine this morning called Cuil that is said to "take on Google." I searched for "Wise County on the Web" and it came back with zero results.
• Hal Jay on WBAP this morning, "Pacman Jones doesn't want to be called 'Pacman' anymore. He wants to be called 'Jewel Quest' Jones." Followed by long pause. Followed by the sports guy saying, "You've had better Mondays." (Heck, I had to look up what he was talking about.)
  
• Speaking of movies, Swing Vote looks bad. "In a remarkable turn-of-events, the result of the presidential election comes down to one man's vote."
• I wouldn't wanted to have been the first person back in Burger's Lake
• So much for my knowledge of pop culture. I thought Soulja Boy was a group. Nope. It's just a guy. A guy who turns 18 today.
  

The Dark Knight

I think I'm the only person to say this: I think that movie is silly, boring, unbelievable and extremely long. And, maybe I'm just dumb, I think it is incredibly confusing.

I like back stories. I want to know who people are and why they are doing what they are doing. You won't get that here. (Extreme side note: I hate all Star Wars movies because I don't know how that civilization came to be. Case in point: Luke Skywalker says in the first movie to Obi-Wan Kenobi: "You fought in the clone wars?" without ever telling us what in the heck the "clone wars" were. I was out from that point forward. OK, extreme digression over.)

But this Batman movie is borderline awful. And I can't believe I'm saying that. I saw the last one and loved it and was really looking forward to this one. (Maybe that's why I try to live my life with extremely low expectations - that way I won't suffer disappointment. Try it - it works.)

Honestly, it started out with a bang and really had my attention. Well, there was a warning: Did you know you can back a bus through the wall of a bank, fill it with money, and then get away by joining a group of real school buses passing by just as the cops arrive. Yeah, rigggghhhhhttttt.

But Heath Ledger was great as the Joker, and I don't think I'm saying that simply because he's dead. (That sounds weird, doesn't' it?)

Not a spoiler: I knew the movie was also off to an unstable start when a courtroom scene had the actual DA of Gotham City trying a case when the witness pulls a gun on him during cross-examination. Yep, a gun. In the courtroom. The DA then nonchalantly slugs him and bailiffs quietly usher the defendant out like it's something that happens everyday. And did you know that no one in the courtroom panicked? Seems believable. Then, out in the hallway, someone tells the DA, "You've got quite the right hook." Groan.

This Place . . .

. . . is new and across the street from 7-11 on Western Center Boulevard. Had lunch there.

Verdict: Good stuff. Pricey if you are expecting a casual grill. Heck of a lot nicer on the inside than you would think. Waiter was grumpy (but maybe he was having a bad day.)

Mugshots Of The Week

Here. Which includes a former Miss Kansas (before after the brawl.) Edit: Funny comment about the error. Hey, it's Saturday morning.

Sheesh

Like I said, I've been looking at some old posts to prepare for the first leg of my Dying On Stage Tour. And then I came across this one from March of last year.

Denton's Goatman's Bridge

And how to get there along with other info. Which makes me wonder. Do we have any Wise County ghost legends? (Found on Dallas Observer blog.)

"The Last Lecture" Is Over

On September 18, 2007, computer science professor Randy Pausch stepped in front of an audience of 400 people at Carnegie Mellon University to deliver a last lecture called “Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams.” With slides of his CT scans beaming out to the audience, Randy told his audience about the cancer that is devouring his pancreas and that will claim his life in a matter of months. On the stage that day, Randy was youthful, energetic, handsome, often cheerfully, darkly funny. He seemed invincible. But this was a brief moment, as he himself acknowledged.

He died last night.

I had heard of the book and his speeches over the last couple of months, but I haven't gotten around to reading/listening to them. But on vacation I read a blurb about him in Time's "100 Most Influential People" issue.This line made me tear up:

After showing the walls of his childhood bedroom covered with his drawings of rocket ships and math equations, he tells his audience, "If your kids want to paint their bedrooms, as a favor to me, let 'em do it."

I read that quote several times that day as I sat next to a pool, sunglasses on. I pretended to be wiping sweat from my face as I really was drying my eyes. And I think I'm going to tear up again.

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

1. I've always liked the hot-girl-in-a-tricked-up-cowboy hat look. You boys shouldn't be hatin' like you did yesterday.
   
2. On Fox 4 this morning, they had a clip of a chimp almost getting a rifle away from a guy who was trying to track down the escaped animal. But the chimp dropped the gun. Man, there would be nothing funnier than a chimp on the run with a rifle. (Edit: You can see an extended one minute clip of the incident here and, if you are a good American who likes monkey humor, you've got to see it.)
   
3. Obama in Germany yesterday was pretty impressive. He spoke to 200,000 which is more than Reagan ("tear down this wall") and Kennedy ("I am a Berliner") spoke to combined.
4. In the meantime, McCain was in a German restaurant in Ohio. Really.
   
5. Speaking of Germany, in elementary school we would have sauerkraut and wienies once a week for lunch. I hated those days.
   
6. Whoever is running the Obama campaign knows what he is doing
7. I'm seeing the new Batman movie tonight. I even bought tickets online beforehand - and I don't think I've ever done that before. And I'm seeing the film at a movie grille which is pretty much the only way I'll see a movie these days.
8. It supposed to be 104 degrees on Sunday, and it's not even August yet.
9. I saw a picture of Hugh Jackman on Yahoo Photo's and thought it was "Bud" from Married With Children. Bud was funny.
10. I went to a dance club in Cancun. The whole experience deserves its own post - I'll work on that.
    
11. Finding a login name and password to some sites (like the infuriating Dallas Morning News) here without having to register.
12. Booker T. Washington is a cool name.
13. It has been 4,227 daya since the last Cowboy playoff win.
14. Fat/Neighbor chicks fighting. (Language warning.) I'm pretty sure that happens in Wise County every day - especially the last part of "I'm calling the police right now!"
    
15. My multiple sources that extend to all parts of the county (including Boonesville) tell me that the lady that ran down the street light yesterday on the square was pretty old and pretty salty.
    
16. Do I use parenthesis too much? (That just dawned on me.) Dooh!
    
17. There was a minor controversy when President Bush was caught saying that the stock market had been "drunk" after he asked for the cameras to be turned off at a small gathering. That whole deal was silly and the guy that continued to roll video is a sorry individual.
    
18. I filled up my gas powered weedeater with, uh, gas yesterday, got distracted for a second, and then came back and grabbed it off the ground causing gasoline to go all over the garage since I had forgotten to put the gas cap back on. Even though it dried up, I could still smell it this morning. I fear my garage blowing up today.
    
19. The headline in the Dallas Morning News was that a teenager was sentenced pursuant to a plea bargain to 8 years in prison for causing a couple of 2 and 4 year old kids to smoke pot. The maximum was 10 years in prison so I was trying to figure out why he agreed to such a harsh plea bargain - then I saw it: "He also pleaded guilty to two charges of burglary of a habitation."
20. The prosecutor in the case had the last name of "Davila." (That's a Bridgeport reference for you out-of-county folks.) Around here we pronounce is DA-ville-ah as opposed to da-VEELA)
21. I wonder if anyone got drunk at the Reunion last night?
22. Christmas is on Thursday this year.
    
23. While looking through old blog posts yesterday, I found this one entitled "Luckiest Son In History Of Ever."
    
24. Baylor booted its president yesterday and it was only then I learned that earlier this year he tried to get rid of the interlocking "B" and "U" symbol. He need to be fired for that. (Local note: Decatur born Joe Armes used to be on the Baylor Regents but I don't know if he still is.)
25. I just heard the news of a noteworthy death. The story of the guy made me tear up a bit on vacation while reading a magazine. More on that in a minute.
26. Another blog flashback: I was shocked at gas prices in May of 2007. Can we have that back?
27. Edit: Shocking (at least to my civil libertarian bones) DWI courtroom story.

New edit: It's amazing how many lies are being told about Obama. In the comments, there have been a couple of references to him ignoring the troopers during his trip to the Middle East. To quote that great Oklahoma State coach rant from last year, "That ain't true!"

Flashback

I've agreed* to speak to about 90 Decatur teachers about blogging or technology overall silliness so I was going through some old posts to use in a power point presentation. I did this last year and I was sweating like Albert Brooks in Broadcast News.

Anyway, in looking back over the old stuff I discovered:

First, I think I used to be funnier.

Secondly, I noted the other day that I couldn't remember the last time some one drowned in Lake Bridgeport. Then a commenter reminded me I had written about one last year. I came across the above photo that accompanied that post.

_______________
* I would like to point out that there is one person in that school district who is very persistent on me being there.

That's The Denton Mall . . . But, Wait, There's More

That "A" is the location of Imagination Station daycare. Somewhere else on the map is the location of a Hooter's restaurant. (It's somewhere along I-35 on the mall side, but that's all I know.)

So what do the two have in common? A wandering five year old.

Courthouse Square Carnage

Man, I just missed this. Apparently some lady zigged when she should have zagged and took out one of those fancy lightposts. But I'm not sure what all those bricks came from.

Edit: We have a good idea on how long it will take to replace.

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• That charisma factor between McCain and Obama is a no brainer.
• Minimum wage has been boosted to $6.55 an hour beginning today. Incredible. That $262 a week before any deductions.
• This heat is getting to me. And I work indoors.
  
• I saw Wall-E last night. It was really pretty good. But has there been any reference at all to how the old school robot looks exactly like the one from the movie Short Circuit? Have I messed that? Edit: Someone has thought about it.
  
• That back road behind Denny's and Braum's off of Western Center Boulevard now has a pothole in it that is as deep as . . . . well . . . a huge hole.
• I really don't care for the manager of a restaurant coming around to see how my "dining experience" is going
  
• I hate waking up, looking at the clock, and realizing the alarm is going off in five minutes
• I'm not real sure who Sophie Monk is but I saw some beach pictures of her yesterday and they were-a-good
• I keep a pump shotgun in my house. The reason? I had a buddy tell me once that the sound of putting a shell in the chamber was "universal" and that sound alone might cause an intruder to flee.
• WBAP's Hal Jay was shocked today to learn that some of his co-workers had purchased things off of Ebay.
• Paul Harvey is back on the radio. He doesn't sound dead at all.
  
• Odd thing I did as a kid: I designated March 1st as "my holiday." No reason. I just wanted a day designated for me like any other holiday. I celebrated it for almost five years straight by drinking a coke or something. But I didn't tell anyone because I was afraid they would think it was weird.
  
• I think I'd like being a long distance truck driver.
• Forbes list of Top Five movie actor earnings last year: 1. Will Smith - $80 million, 2. Johnny Depp - $72 million, 3. Eddie Murphy - $55 million, 4. Mike Myers - $55 million, 5. Leonardo DiCaprio - $45 million. (How'd #3 get in there? Oh, yeah. He does that donkey voice in Shrek.)
• The murder of two young girls in Oklahoma who went out for a walk gets very little press. And I don't understand why.
• When I was a boy, I came across at least 10 head of cattle that had been slaughtered in a field near my house. (Near where Overland Drive is now.) They were all within 30 feet of one another and, stay with me here, their stomachs were ripped open. I told my dad who called the owner but I never really got an answer as to what had happened.
• Has anyone else seen that NFL/Reebok "migration" ad? It's kind of creepy but kind of cool. For about two seconds (at the :42 mark), you can see a group of Cowboy players but the only one I recognize is Greg Ellis.
• Kind of nerdy, but some commenter on a Texas Criminal Justice blog created a little skit taking civil libertarians like me to task. It was pretty funny.
• Stumbled across "Brooke Hogan Knows Best" - a new reality show on MTV of VH1. Awful. Completely staged and awful. But she's kind of hot. I watched the whole thing.
  
• I loved Mystery Science 3000 but, man, it was the show where you had to watch with undivided attention.
• Speaking of hot, Megen Henderson of Fox 4 mysteriously missed the 5 o'clock hour this morning but showed up beginning at 6 o'clock. I'm not sure I've ever seen her do this before.
• In a metroplex of a krillion people, is it really news when someone tries to steal an ATM machine?
• The DPS office in Decatur used to be in the basement of the courthouse
• I like Chipotle and Rosa's as far has quasi-fast Mexican food goes.
• Great "ATM out of service" video.
  

Random Boring Vacation Pics

The last one appears to be a croc. Yep, dang straight!!!! It was in the small "lake" outside the hotel. For the longest time I thought he was fake until his eyes opened and his mouth opened wide. And then I jumped on his back and wrestled him - laughing uncontrollably. Or not.

Report of big 380 wreck

Two careflight helicopters and more.

Barry (from mobile)

Rep. Phil King

Spent this much moola during the first six months of 2008 to be your State Representative according to his July "Semi Annual Report". Mercy.

The entire PDF report is here. (Quite frankly, I really don't understand the time period because he had to file several reports before the primary election that cover the same time span. )

But get this: It says he spent on $911.20 on the Wise County Messenger during that time frame. That can't be right. I think the number may be closer to a half billion dollars.

(All his filing are listed here. You guys feel free to root around in them.)

Ugh

Any you Wise County folks having trouble with Embarq "sputtering" over the last couple of days? Or is it just my connection?

Drives me nuts.

Wednesday Afternoon Pick Me Up

Reminds me of one week ago.

(Putting head on desk. Silently weeping.)

I'm Not Sure . . .

. . . why my law partner is in Seymour, TX (I thought that end of the hallway was kind of quiet) but he just sent in the pic of a fine dining establishment.

Based upon all that activity, it kind of looks like the Barnett Shale (insert "power down" sound) doesn't reach that far.