Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts

• Well, we've got a verdict as to whether the Found Dog has a chip ..................That would be "no." Ugh. 
• Now what the heck am I going to do? I'll get a better picture of the doggie, but it truly kind of looks like a Portuguese Water Dog. It's probably just a mutt, but a guy can dream. 
• I forgot to mention that as Mrs. LL and I were watching it run around the back yard for the first time, I wondered out loud what its name was. She then yelled out, "Here, Skyler!!" (That was a Random Thought call back joke she threw down.)
• I'm not into music, but the new services Spotify sounds incredible. (In other music news which may or may not be significant, Gavin DeGraw was attacked in New York.)
• Somebody dropped off a "Bridgeport Tea Party Patriots" flyer at my office but it really didn't say anything crazy. Dang it. 
• My neighbor vacuumed her car out in a bikini on Sunday. She wasn't washing the car, just vacuuming it. 
• Whatever happened to "Google TV"? 
• Wise County Commissioners have started budget talks with department heads. Is the proposed/preliminary 2012 budget online? I haven't seen it if it is. And is there a graph somewhere showing budget increases over the last few years? Gimme.
• Funny tweet I saw about the downgrade of the United States: "Oh, great. America is going to bomb Standard and Poor's now."
• I don't think I ever seen so many people (who happen to be President Obama haters) so giddy about unemployment and a stock market crash. 
• I doubt if many of you watched the NFL Hall of Fame induction speeches, but I shook my head at Marshall Faulk who thanked his wife for "cooking for me." That's pretty much the best accolade he gave her. 
• As much as I want to learn about the "Collar Bomb" case that is back in the news, there's very little to help me out. The very detailed Esquire article leaves a ton of questions unasked, and a 30 minute special on CNN on Sunday night was shallow. (Note to those that actually read the Esquire article: Did the sentence that started "With the help of his pal Barnes" jump out at you? Is that the only reference to how the victim had any connection with any of the loonies in that case?)
• I've got a pimple. I haven't had a pimple in years.
• Tony Romo gave an interview where he said his new bride is making a lot of changes in the decor of his house even though, "I thought it looked OK."  Welcome to my world. 
• A Texas youth pastor, honey, teenaged girls, shower, video camera. Oh, my. (And it's a rare case where he was actually saved by the statute of limitations.)

And Another

This may be the strongest entry since Debra LaFave set the bar at a level never to be matched.

Story.

Black Monday and An Announcement From A Man Who Is All About Timing

This . . .

Begat that . . . ?

News And Facebook

Finding a news article and then the Facebook page associated with it.

Bigfoot At The Rangers Game Over the Weekend?

Makes perfect sense. (Source)

Wise County Girls Night Out?

Who Ya Got?: U.S. Going Broke vs. Feeding Starving Children

Story.

Something Just Jumped Out A Me . . .

. . . in this pic from the Star-Telegram's slideshow simply called "downtown Fort Worth club hop."

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• It always seems dangerous when a bull is dancing around a fallen bullrider. A death occurred because of it at a Hico rodeo this weekend. 
• Fox News isn't fair to President Obama, but Newsweek wasn't fair to Michelle Bachman based upon this week's bizarre cover pic.
• A traffic death can even get you if you're a Dallas billionaire driving a Porsche. 
• I pulled up in my driveway yesterday only to see some dog frighteningly dart into the garage. A brief minute and an untimely "here, puppy!" later, I'm comforting a lost dog (pic) by giving it water and food. 
• I now realize the utterance of "here, puppy" was a critical moment. But, sheesh,  I just couldn't let the the dog run off. Mrs. LL will head to the vet today to see if there's a chip in its dog body. Please. Please. Please. 
• It's a stout little thing and walks around the back yard like it's a pig. It's a really weird walk. Then Mrs. LL proclaimed it the ugliest dog in the world last night. So what if he's missing about three lower teeth? 
• Got a report that a "fancy" campaign bus was at a hotel in Decatur on Saturday afternoon. Anyone?
• The downgrade of the U.S. by SandP sounds more political than financial. And as much as the Right wants to yell, "See, Obama is destroying the country," the downgrade came with a press release that took  a shot at Republicans for not being willing to consider a tax increase. Edit: The editorial in the link, explaining what I was talking about, contains a link to the official press release.
• I guess I shouldn't be surprised that George Clooney's new girlfriend, Stacy Keibler, is a "Hey, now."
• I went to a wedding on Saturday afternoon at the Decatur Civic Center with Mrs. LL who heard, "So you are Mrs. LL" a lot. 
• Doesn't this sound like fun?: An outdoor metal rock festival beginning in the afternoon in Dallas on Wednesday which will be finished off with Godsmack, Megadeath and Disturbed. There needs to be an ozone alert issued because of that crowd.
• Below is from Decatur, Alabama.

Big Chico fire?

Thanks emailer.

Messenger Above The Fold

"Should We Talk About The Weather?" - R.E.M. (1988)

1980 seems unbelievable after going through what we've experienced this summer. That year had 69 days over 100 degrees and we've "only" had 43? Wow.

But the 1980 streak of 42 straight days over 100 ended on August 4th while it looks like we're just kicking it into high gear. We tie that streak on Friday and smash it on Saturday. That looks like a sure bet. That sounds like an excuse for a party.

Since I'm the most trusted name in news, lawyering, sports prognostication, and weather, I'll predict August 23rd as the day our streak ends. (Caveat: There's a cumulus cloud I'm watching which might cause be some issues with that.) You know, I'm surprised the local news channels haven't started a "countdown clock". Speaking of, Fiona now brings you the seven day forecast:

Gov. Perry At The Prayer Convention Thingy Today

Funny observation. (But I heard that the attendance was over 30,000 when they feared it would be under 10,000.)

Edit: And I can't believe I forgot about Ronald Reagan speaking in Reunion Arena as a presidential candidate at what, I think, was referred to a convention of the "Moral Majority." No one really batted an eye back then. (Credit, one again, Bud Kennedy.)

Get us out of there!!!

Is This What The 1960s Felt Like?

Race injected into everything? "Hip-Hop" in this context is only a non-too-subtle code word for "black". Charles Barkley's not a rapper. Chris Rock isn't either. Jay-Z, well, at least he's is a good rapper. And you wonder why Fox News receives so much criticism.

"Wobble, Wobble" Takes You Into The Weekend

Shout out to the white boy giving it the What For. Edit: Since even I'm whipped by the comments you just know are forthcoming, I'll probably screen them out. It's the weekend.

Road Carnage News

- Got a report of a "bad wreck" at 114 and 51 (in between Paradise and Boyd). Anyone?  There's actually two intersections that meet that description but I'm guessing it's the eastern one depicted above.
- Motorcycle death this morning in Ponder.

Texas Confederate Flag License Plates May Be Approved

Austin -A local division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans is just one vote away from gaining approval of a Texas specialty license plate bearing its logo, which prominently features the Confederate flag. The Texas Department of Motor Vehicle license board voted on the group's request in April, but it was a tie vote. One of the nine members was absent, so the board decided to reconsider the request at its next meeting June 9.

The meeting, however, didn't take place because a board member from Houston died June 3.

Now, the Sons of Confederate Veterans must wait until Gov. Rick Perry appoints a new board member, and that might not happen until fall, said DMV spokeswoman Kim Sue Lia Perkes. (More)

But Texas' MoveOn.org wants to stop it. 

(Thanks emailer Walt)