I Was In Trial When Michael Jackson Died, Too

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• You save a file by hitting the floppy disk icon - an icon that depicts an item that a whole generation is unfamiliar with. 
• A flight attendant has a few glasses of wine and goes home to bed after taking two Ambien. Later, she will leave her apartment barefoot and dressed in her "sleeping clothes" and drive several miles with a flat tire before crashing into another vehicle and severely injuring an 18 month old. The verdict in San Antonio here on the charge of Intoxication Assault.
• John Edwards is a bad man, but I'm not sure he's guilty of campaign financing laws. And I'm surprised his lawyers were able to convince him not to testify.
• For the first time ever this week, I ate some of those golden tomatoes. I'll be dang if they don't taste exactly like red tomatoes.
• I think Mrs. LL woke up and watched The Office at 3:00 in the morning last night.
• For the first time ever, a baby born in the U.S. is more likely to be non-white than white. 
• The would-be Paradise model was in New York to become a HowardTV girl.
• One of my favorite actors, Nick Stahl, is missing. He starred in Terminator 3, Sin City, Bully, and In The Bedroom to name a few.
• I think that "Did Texas Execute An Innocent Man" story does have legs. And people are also beginning to remember Justice Scalia's famous concurrence where he said there had not been “a single case—not one—in which it is clear that a person was executed for a crime he did not commit. If such an event had occurred in recent years, we would not have to hunt for it; the innocent’s name would be shouted from the rooftops.”
• I'm in a DWI trial today so it may be slow around here. And the preparation for the trial made me completely miss a "not guilty" verdict in a drug case in the district court yesterday.
• This lady hung herself?

Mugshot Of The Day

Smith appears to be something of a Latin enthusiast. His forehead includes the sayings “Cogito ergo sum” (“I think therefore I am”) and “Alis grave nil” (“Nothing is heavy to those who have wings”). And he also had the word “Articulate” inked below those phrases.

Latin? This man has style. At least when he's not stabbing his girlfriend for cheating on him at the Econo Lodge.

P.S. I wonder if he's a member of the Latin Kings but didn't quite get the Gang Member's Introduction Manual?

I Think Houston Just Had Its Own Rodney King Verdict

Some cop accused of beating a 15 year old black kid just got a acquitted by an all white jury.

Warning: That page has so much crap on it (photos, video, rolling twitter feed) that it caused my browser problems. But it's good stuff if you can load it consistently.

Wheel Of Fortune Misfortune

Go ahead and make fun of this kid, but I'm on his side. One you have the "and" stuck in your head (as in "hand"), you can't get it out of there. Why is is spelled "wand" anyway? Shouldn't it be "wond"? That "a" shouldn't even be there. Should be an "o" as in bond, song, donkey, and kong.

English is a tough language. I prove that every day.

I'm Still Confused

So this is like a party van?

Edit: Direct link for those that can't see it.

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts

• There was a wrong way driver on Central Expressway last night, but I'm not sure the car hit anything.  
• Even boxers are no match for an angry ex of a girlfriend swinging a (probable) golf club. (Graphic pics.)
• When I saw the picture (below) of the Trinity River alligator, I thought of those concerts last summer where folks would float in the Trinity on inner tubes as the band played.
• I don't know if the story has legs, but there's the possibility that an innocent man was executed in Texas. 
• Yesterday, GM pulled its $10 million a year ad campaign off of Facebook claiming those ads don't work. House of cards?
• I kept seeing reports yesterday that the Boyd ISD Superintendent "cleaned out his desk" but I have no idea if that is true. 
• I had to look up the status of that silly Roger Clemens perjury trial only to find out that there have been two jurors dismissed by the judge because of sleeping during the proceedings. The federal government must be putting on a heck of a case. 
• That Big Tex discussion yesterday was pretty thought provoking.
• Ted Cruz is the highest profile candidate who is a golden boy of the Tea Party, but it looks like he doesn't stand a chance. Is the Tea Part relevant anymore?
• Senior Prom is still overrated, isn't it? 
• Someone explain to me why the Bridgeport City Council voided almost a quarter of a million dollars of "underbilled" debt to Bridgeport Tank Trucks, Bridgeport Independent School District and LaQuinta Inn?
• When will the under 30 crowd give up that goofy "sideways peace sign" when they are photographed?
• There is more student debt in this country than credit card debt or auto loan debt. But here's the kicker: You can't get rid of that debt by bankruptcy, collection fees are astronomical, and the government can garnish a portion of your income and all of your IRS refund. That sounds like the Next Big Financial Crisis.

Look What They Just Pulled Out Of The Trinity River In Fort Worth

Source.

Coincidence?

More.

Yesterday I mentioned in Random Thoughts that I had watched a documentary over the weekend called Into The Abyss - a documentary that focused on two young guys accused of capital murder in Texas. One received the death penalty and the other received a life sentence. The guy who received life? He was named "Jason Burkett". (Obviously a different Jason Burkett, but still weird.)

Opening It Up To The Masses: Should "Big Tex" Be Banned?

So what do you think? I've never banned anyone, but this guy is just completely over the top. I normally let about half of the average "n" word comments in from Liberally Lean Nation because of my "reveal that racism is still alive" policy, but I he's proven his point.

Heck, if I'm beaten down by him, I suspect you guys are, too.

Edit:

Should "Big Tex" Be Banned?
Yes No
	Results

1%-er Driving His Car Like Danica Patrick

You know what makes a good video? Putting words like "crash" in the title and then waiting and waiting for it to happen.  As I heard on "The Simpsons" once, "Better than the deed, better than the memory: The moment of . . . anticipation."

Random Monday Tuesday Morning Thoughts

• Forgot to mention that I saw a Bentley Continental in the Rangers parking lot on Sunday with personalized license plates that read, "MEH".  Sheesh. 
• Every candidate for state office tries to "out conservative" his opponent.
• One of the Katy Trail robberies over the weekend was a jogger at 6:30 in the morning. I've feared the jogging attack at night but never in the morning. (Note to dumb kids robbing people: Joggers ain't carrying a lot of cash.)
• Would anyone vote for Tom Leppert for U.S. Senate just because Troy Aikman does a commercial for him?
• The brain trust on WBAP today discussed whether the Byron Nelson Golf Classic is referred to as "The Nelson" or "The Byron."  Really. 
• Rumors are swirling that Florida State could join the Big 12. Although probably not true, that would be awesome.
• Springtown always has some wheels off story in the news. And we should be reminded that there are people with a Springtown address that technically live in Wise County. 
• Mrs. LL's team beat the Fake Kim Mulkey's team last night. It was high entertainment and kind of tense -- especially tense for me when the umpire asked me (I was running the scoreboard) to verify the count.
• I had no idea American Airlines used to sell a "all you can fly" lifetime pass. The last time it was offered was in 2004 for $3 million with a companion pass for $2 million.  But you have to love a guy who, in 1984, bought a pass for $250,000 and a companion pass for $150,000 and then just used AA as his own private jet.
• Discussed at Mother's Day brunch: Is an orphan who has reached adulthood still called an orphan or is he a "former orphan." 
• I saw a picture Bono's restaurant posted of some of its waitresses and now I can't find it. Dang it.
• Restaurant clarification: Fuzzy Taco's will go in the old "Floors and More" space. The new Asian food place will take the old spot of South Beach Taco Factory.
• President Obama appears on "The View" today. That ought to fire ya up.
• Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan is known to have a huge belly. At least his brother, head coach of the NY Jets, has lost some weight. 
• A 34 year old man died in a wreck in Fort Worth last night although he was walking around when police first arrived. Here's his Facebook page where his mother has made a post.

Sitting On An Awning -- This Will Turn Out Well

Defying all physics, it was as if the transferring of liquid from the bottle to her mouth was just enough to cause her perch to collapse.  And if you listen carefully, there's basically a one second warning of the awning creaking  before she drops like Wylie E. Coyote off a cliff.

(I have no idea what that guy is saying in the beginning.)

Stylin' Black Man Throws Hot Coffee On Cambodian

No one stopped this man? I know why.  He's Stringer Bell from The Wire.  You cross him and your body is going to be at the bottom of the harbor in Baltimore before sundown.  

P.S. But how do you like ol' Sok Caea showing up for work the next day? Yep, doing jobs that Americans won't do. Like serving coffee with your arm almost melted off.

Random Softball Observations

I've watched more girl's softball in the last year than I have in all my life. Overall, pretty entertaining.

But I do feel sorry for the real young girls who strike out with a dramatic call from the umpire. It doesn't happen very often, but when it does they drag their bat back to the dugout with a look of, "He didn't have to rub it in!"

On a different point, there was a funny observation Mrs. LL and I had on Saturday. In the 10 and Under league, they'll let the opposing pitcher face a batter until there is a hit, an out or until there are four balls. But in the case of four balls, they don't get a walk but instead the batter's own coach will come in to pitch to her. Here it gets stranger: The batter will get a maximum number of pitches from the coach equal to the number of strikes she has remaining. And it doesn't matter if those pitches from the coach are balls or strikes. That's all she gets so she better swing and make contact or she is out.

But here was the odd part. This was a playoff game so the parents were a little more into it. When one of the girls got to receive pitches from a coach and struck out, the opposing team's crowd would, out of habit, do a little cheer. Why not? That's an out! But how weird is that? The opposing coach inadvertently struck out his own player when the cheering crowd's team had absolutely nothing to do with it. So what exactly were they applauding?

Editor's note: The entertainment to word ratio of this post is completely out of whack, but there's no way I'm junking it now.

I've Got Two Questions

(1) Why were you in the tree? (2) Even though this guy died, can a person be "electrocuted" without dying?

Now It's Gettin' All Asiany Up On The Square

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• I moved my pitchback backstop further away to make it a little tougher. I've lost three balls over the neighbor's fence already.
• I went to the Ranger's game last night. That new video board has changed the feel of the place -- it is much more alive. But much more Idiocracy.
• And all the road construction because of Cowboys Stadium has made getting in and out of there a lot easier.
• That being said, I remain stunned by the number of people who put up with the hassle and high prices of going to a game when watching the game at home on today's TVs is a better experience. Maybe once or twice a year I can understand, but more than that makes no sense. 
• The stadium has, thankfully, taken affirmative actions to kill "the wave." The video board even had a "no wave" message when the crowd made a half hearted effort to start it.
• They played a clip from The Blues Brothers on the board and, I swear, I noticed Donald "Duck" Dunn in the background. Little did I know he had died earlier that day.
• Some of the Texas Rangers had their mothers introduced at the game. Dereck Holland's mom is smokin'.  (1:50 mark if interested.)
• Mother's Day brunch followed by a late Ranger game on a school night makes for a long day.
• "I was up here at 8:00 a.m. dragging fields, so don't tell me that I don't care." - Softball commissioner's retort to an angry parent who didn't like the rules that allowed his daughter not to play at all during a playoff game.
• Newsweek cover today: "The First Gay President"
• Mitt Romney speaking at Jerry Falwell's Liberty University over the weekend is a weird mix.
• A convenience store off of Western Center Boulevard has sold a $28 million lottery ticket. 
• There was a remote place in my guest bathroom that needed some cosmetic repair that I didn't know if I could fix. After 30 minutes, I fixed an eight year old issue. 
• I know of a Decatur lady who got a ticket for an expired inspection sticker from a trooper after she was leaving the cemetery on Mother's Day.
• If you were an incumbent with an opponent in one of the Wise County races on Saturday, you stood a good chance of being beaten. That's unusual.
• I watched a documentary this weekend about a kid on death row in Texas. Into The Abyss is directed by the guy who made Grizzly Man. Verdict: It's worth it just for the interviews of Texas country folks by a high tone director. 
• After this weekend, The Avenger's is up to $373 million in box office receipts.