Education Getting Scoped

Hey, I have no idea what CSCOPE is (and after reading this story in the Star-Telegram yesterday I might need to use it to increase my own comprehension), but the story mentioned "Region XI Education Service Center" (which services Wise County) had "began supporting" the program.  This was actually called to my attention by a former Wise County teacher who called it "the worst thing to ever hit the classroom."

Hey, it's not field turf, but you guys seem to get bent out of shape over local school issues.

Breaking: A Man Just Agreed To Accept A 40 Year Sentence

I think this is a record for Wise County.

Morris Scott Burcham, who had been scheduled for trial tomorrow in the 271st District Court in Decatur, accepted a plea "bargain" this morning of 40 years in the pen to the offense of Aggravated Sexual Assault of Child. He doesn't become eligible for parole for 20 years.

Such a plea of guilty to a very high sentence is yet another result of a change in the law from a few years back which created the offense for which Burcham had originally been charged with: Continuous Sexual Abuse of A Child (two or more acts of abuse within 30 days.). If he had been convicted of that offense, the minimum sentence was 25 years (maximum of life) and, get this, there is no possibility of parole.  After looking at that, he decided that 40 years with at least a chance of getting out is a better deal. (So far the law has survived repeated attacks.)

He showed up for the plea in a jacket and tie, shed a few tears, and then took his seat with the inmates. He was indicted in March of 2009, and it sounded like he sat in jail for quite a while before making bond.

I remember a plea for 30 years back in 2000, but I'm not sure I've ever heard of one for more than that. Until today.

I'm Losing My Pop Culture Edge

This guy died over the weekend and today the Internet is full of "Oh, I loved him in" this and "I loved him in" that. I'm thinking: Who?  I noted he was in The Usual Suspects but with that cast of characters, I don't remember him at all.

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• Well, here comes another year. 
• Remember this when politicians talking about fighting the "spill over violence" at the border: There is none. El Paso had its lowest murder rate in 46 years in 2010 with only five murders. (General reports put the murder rate at over 3,000 across the border in Juarez.)
• I became a drill sergeant on the morning of January 2nd: All the Christmas stuff was going to be down by noon. It was a rousing success. 
• Here is the final top ten for the 2010 box office. Obviously, the day of the traditional movie is over.
• Mrs. LL finally has the wrist surgery on Thursday. Man, is she looking forward to it.
• I think the Family Cat has finally calmed down some. She's still a terror but only half the time.
• I'll admit I thought TCU was going to get rolled. And after that first play (a Wisconsin running back took off for about 35), I was even more sure of it.  The Frogs next game? 9/3/11 at Baylor. 
• That Steven Tyler scream on those American Idol commercials is like fingernails on a chalkboard.
• There was a commercial yesterday offering a coin "clad" in gold with the advertisement showing a chart demonstrating the value of gold. Then they disclosed the gold content was 15 milligrams which, by my calculations, make the gold content worth less than 75 cents.
• If you're a fan of ESPN's Ron Franklin, an incident cost him a radio gig. 
• It was kind of fun to walk outside at midnight on NYE and listen for nutcases. Yep, they were out there. 
• My office is cold. I just watched a youtube video on "how to relight a pilot light." I hope this isn't a terrible way to start off the new year. 
• That Cowboy game was worse than a pre-season game. And I'd take a higher draft pick over a meaningless win any day. (They dropped from 6th to 9th.)
• A parade for TCU? I'm not sure the turnout would be all that great. 
• Link to story of a former Bridgeport woman killed in an unusual accident in Denton.

Fantastic Photo Of Rose Bowl Yesterday

Credit.

TCU: I"ll Never Doubt You Again

 Brent Musburger Mentions Bridgeport, TX

And Bridgeport gets a little pub.

This Year's Stats

Cracking 120,000 a month for seven months is a record.

And just for grins, here's what last month looked like:

Sneak Peak At TCU's Rose Bowl Helmet

One thing about college football: It's an advertising gold mine. As I've said before, Nike will spend a fortune just to get the Nike swoosh in front of you.  Over the last couple of weeks, and especially today, the TCU brand has been plastered all across America. It's literally millions of dollars of advertising that has been handed to them because of football.

Random New Year's Thoughts

• I'll give the Daily News credit. That's a great cover. (I had been completely oblivious to that famous photo having been taken in Times Square.)
• No matter what, I always wake up at 5:00 a.m. Weird.
• 2010 was uh, eventful: Began the year with an absolute dream vacation in a remote part of Costa Rica, got engaged and married within less than three weeks in between, had that marriage in a Las Vegas, went to Jamaica, hiked Palo Duro Canyon, completely revamped my house for two kids,  completely changed my lifestyle, sat in a school drop off line for the first time in my life, sat on a curb waiting for a school bus for the first time in my life, ran two half marathons, lost 20 pounds (stress?),  and bought two cars.
• Found myself actually thinking, despite the boatload of new responsibilities and pressure, that I don't want my life to change. 
• One year ago today, we checked into a hotel late at night in San Jose, Costa Rica as I looked down at my wallet to realize I had only $50, no debit card, and the only credit card I owned had been left in a restaurant at DFW Airport. That created a minor, no major, internal panic. 
• I learned that someone could deposit cash into my bank account in Decatur and that the updated balance would immediately  be recognized at the only ATM in a jungle town in another country.
• OK, I drank one of those Five Hour Energy drinks last night. Oh, my. W.I.R.E.D.
• TCU has won so much that I'm inclined to root against them this afternoon.
• The 2nd Grader in the house had a friend over last night while the older kid spent the night elsewhere. I was working with "friendship bracelets" at 10:00 p.m.
• Did Channel 8's local coverage at Victory Park trump Dick Clark? Couldn't find him. (But, man, Gordon Keith is funny, although Pete Delkus and Dale Hansen together is pure TV Anthrax to me.)
• I must be getting old, because MTV's coverage bordered on obscene. 
• I think I'm going to sit Mrs. LL down today to plan our year. 
• I've gotten weird by buying crazy stuff at the grocery store on holidays. Yesterday I bought a shrimp platter and a huge (and elaborate) bean dip platter for no reason. Right before midnight, with hardly any of it gone, Mrs. LL (somehow) managed to cause the bean dip platter to land upside down on kitchen floor. I've never picked up food with a dust pan before.
• No matter how hard I try, I can't get her to laugh at the British The Office.
• 2011. Man, that doomsday 2012 guy must be getting giddy.

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• The Dallas Morning News is calling for a moratorium on the death penalty. Finally, these times they are a changin'.(Although they sure did bury it within a list of priorities.)
• The Big 12 sure isn't showing up in the Bowl Games this week: Baylor lost, Kansas State lost (on a salute in the end zone), and Nebraska shockingly lost to Washington. 
• The UConn women's team lost last night which means #2 Baylor could move to #1 (which really doesn't seem fair because UConn squeaked by Baylor earlier this year.) And I admit that it's sad I have to resort to women's basketball.
• I use Ctrl + z a lot. Edit: Holding down the Crtl key and clicking on the z key creates an "undo". Whether it be in a Word document or on a blog, if you delete something accidentally and then immediately hit Ctl+z, your mistake will be "undone". 
• Jarhead had a pretty touching "year in review" post yesterday. 
• Saw on Fox 4 this morning that Triple A will offer to pick you up and tow your car tonight for free if you are within a 10 mile radius of your home.  A little odd. 
• Dallas DA Craig Watkins fired seven prosecutors. Some wonder if it is because they lean Republican. With that guy, I wouldn't doubt it. 
• Mrs. LL discovered "The Real Housewives of [Whatever]" last night. Uh oh. 
• And the 7th Grader has discovered "Toddlers & Tiaras".
• The fact that the New Mexico governor is on TV even talking about potentially pardoning Billy the Kid is more proof of Idiocracy.
• The Star-Telegram has an article on Bridgeport graduate and TCU Safety Colin Jones today.
• I caught a couple of minutes of the Jay Leno monologue last night -- I hadn't watched him in over a year. Those jokes are absolutely awful. 
• I got a good report on the new Mexican restaurant off the square in Decatur.
• There was some type of photo-shoot going on in an abandoned lot near my office yesterday. There was a crew of about 10 and they kept carrying saddles in and out of there. It might have had something to do with a western wear catalog shoot. (Sorry, no hot models.)
• Just heard on Fox 4: "One prosecutor I talked to said he can't remember anyone being killed on a No Refusal Weekend." Huh? Even without the mandatory blood draw, all of those people would have still been arrested. No Refusal has nothing to do with it.

My Eyes!

I watched the end of the UConn women's 90 game winning streak come to an end tonight despite being inundated with camera shots of these two.

Condi? Who you hanging out with?

"Don't Take My Kodachrome Away" - Paul Simon (1973)

The above  headline made a Paul Simon song from 1973 get stuck in my head. After all these years, it has finally been taken away.

Guys, Listen Up!

Now I find this guy! I've struggled through relationships all my life and all along Mr. Answer Man was right here. If only I had known!!!

(No one tell Mrs. LL about this guy, or it'll be a lonely 2011 for me.)

Fox 4 Has Lost Its Mind (Edit: Or Maybe Its Readers Have)

Today their web site lists the Top 10 Local Stories of the year here.

10. Trooper Charged for Excessive Force [for slamming girl into tollway wall]

9. Shots Fired outside McKinney Police Department 

8. Southwest Kicks Thin Woman off Flight 

7. Texas Stadium Implosion 

6. State Fair Discounts 

5. Tollway Crash Video Released 

4. School Suspends Boy for Bloodshot Eyes 

3. Finger in Butt Crack Sparks Knife Fight 

2. UT Campus Shooting 

1. Towne East Mall Shoppers Maced at Chaotic Sneaker Sale 

------------------------------------------------------

All right, #6 borders on the bizarre and #3 has to be there for Jerry Springer shock value only, but are they serious?

Help me out here. What are they missing? Things that come to mind:

• The Dallas PD Chief's son who murdered the guy in Lancaster
• The Texas Rangers midnight auction
• The Rangers in World Series
• The convictions of Dallas City Council members for some kind of federal wrongdoing
• Coppell mayor suicide and her bizarre living-in-denial life
• Record snowstorm in February

Edit: The site now (?) says it was based on what stories generated the most traffic. Even with that standard, it doesn't make sense (although it would somewhat explain the State Fair coupon story.)  How does the Coppell mayor story not make the list? If the people want salaciousness, that was salacious.

From "15 Ridiculoulsy Hard Interview Questions"

I have no idea.

Source.

A Second Ago On The Radio

A guy from Decatur (Jake?) called WBAP to answer the question of "What would you say to President Obama if you were in an elevator with him?"

He formed a construction company three years ago with his brother and has grown from six employees to 100? And he's mad?

And you can't believe some of the other responses. Wow. Then again, maybe you would.

Audio link. (Only about a minute of it because the guest host took over.)

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• Brett Favre's silly $50,000 fine in the Jenn Sterger case for "not cooperating" amounts to 3 minutes of football based upon his pro-rated salary. And that was a convenient way for the NFL to punish him without finding him guilty of sexting. 
• Funny line from Dale Hansen in the Pony Excess documentary: "Some parents say they don't believe in corporeal punishment. Yeah, well, that's why you got a mouthy kid."
• News today of some hospitals considering the banning of video in the delivery room due to the potential documentation of malpractice. I've always wondered why they have allowed it. 
• Monkey Bread is pretty good. 
• I wonder if Dick Clark will struggle through New Year's Eve again?
• I like the NYE scene in When Harry Met Sally where Billy Crystal is running through New York to get to Meg Ryan. 
• That Baylor game didn't go to well -- but a slow start and three turnovers will do that to you. And that running back I was worried about? 181 yards and three TDs. Once again, I'm a sports genius. 
• [Only for people that watched the game: The official box score has Baylor with two turnovers. But there were three, right?: The backwards pass on the first drive, the screwed up hand-off between Griffin and Finley, and then Griffin dropping the ball when he tried to scramble.]
• My sinus problem continues but is almost gone. Then just when I think that, it fires back up again.
• I won't use a shopping cart with a jacked up wheel.
• There was an "expert" lawyer on WBAP talking about "the cost of DWI" and, after saying his firm doesn't handle DWI cases, said that the average legal fee for defense is "$10,000 on the low end and $25,000" on the high end. I promise you, everyone of my lawyer friends just spit out their coffee. 
• That double murder/single suicide that cost the life of the young Arlington officer got more horrific yesterday: There was an 11 year old girl in the apartment. 
• I saw that an Assistant DA was indicted yesterday in Collin County for Tampering With A Governmental Record. If you've been following the situation over there, it is easy to conclude that one of the most conservative counties in Texas is being run by a bunch of nuts. 
• Troy Aikman uttered the words "Tired Head" while doing his broadcast gig for the NFL on Sunday. 
• I've never Skyped, but that's not surprising since I never talk on the phone.

Wise County Girl Running For "Miss Facebook 2011"

Link (includes chance to vote and gallery.)

Edit: Please comment the nice and sweet Wise County way.

Edit: Ok, fail.