Friday Afternoon Pick Me Up

Heeeeeello, Mrs. Green #8.

Things I Learned While Reading The Dallas Morning News At Lunch

Sports

• A Dallas pro golfer named Chad Campbell flew all the way to Hawaii to play in the Sony Open only to realize he forgot to sign up for it.
• Baseball player Andruw Jones was released by the Dodgers halfway through a $36 million contract. I'm pretty sure they still have to pay him.
• Columnist Jean Jacques Taylor is lucky to even have a job.
• Yahooty: The White Rock Marathon is unveiling a Half Marathon race for March 15th!!
• No team has ever played a Super Bowl in their home stadium. This could happen if Arizona wins over Philadelphia. Edit: I screwed that up. The actual sentence concerned a very boring trivial fact: ". . . . they would become the second team to play in a Super Bowl the year after hosting the game."

Section A

• The Taliban claims to have shot down an Afghan helicopter killing 12 soldiers. Afghanistan says it was due to poor weather.
• There are huge ads to buy your gold and jewelry.
• Trammel Crow, who died yesterday, was the fifth of eight children and grew up in a one bedroom house in Dallas.
• The water in the Hudson River was estimated to be 36 degrees (and there's a great photo of the plane with passengers standing on the wings.)

Metro

• Nothing

Business

• Victory Plaza is getting two new restaurants and one new bar. They won't be as hotty totty as their predecessors.
• Everyone likes the Windows 7 beta (after I just bought a new laptop with Vista on it.)
• The Friday tech advisor column, which is normally pretty good, made my eyes glaze over with a column about something called "Xtreme Tech XLink Bluetooth Gateway." (I have no idea.)
• Intel's profit dropped 90%. It's shares went up. (I have no idea.)
• 30 year mortgage rates fall to 4.96% - the lowest since April 1971 (when Freddie Mac started tracking the data.)

Life/Arts

• Didn't get around to it but there's a picture of a big black man in a pinstrip suit looking pretty mean on the front page.

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• Never again will I ignore, "Your seat cushion can also be used as a flotation device."
• Of all the amazing things about the plane crash yesterday, I think the fact that no one panicked may be at the top of the list. Even after the plane came to a peaceful rest on the water, I would think everyone would be of the belief the plane would sink within one minute.
• They had another capital murder acquittal in Tarrant County yesterday. Fifteen years ago that would have been unheard of. No more. (And attorney Jim Shaw was involved in it -- the same guy involved in the Wise County "head for the hills" case last week.)
• President Bush just kind of limps off into the sunset.
• People can't handle four way stops. It's not that hard people.
• And I hate the four way dance of "You go. No, you go. Ok, I'll go. Move forward. But he moves forward. Both hit brakes."
• Random Colorado high school basketball score: 94-1.
• Heard a traffic reporter refer to the "outerskirts" of the metroplex this morning. Is that a word?
• I haven't been to a high school basketball game since the Decatur and Bridgeport girls met in the playoffs in Denton in the mid 1990s. Decatur won.
• Whenever I hear someone spin their tires, I'm 100% sure there is a dumb person behind the wheel.
• All the sports shows/writers have been referring to the Rangers' Michael Young as the "Face of The Franchise." Sheesh. He's a face you couldn't pick out of a lineup.
• While you were sleeping: Bank of America gets $20 billion more of your money. (I'm still waiting for the whole system to collapse.)
• I jammed a chip into the roof of my mouth a couple of days ago and it still hurts like a sonofagun.
• I always forget about Channel 11 news.
• Anyone remember when Channel 4 was CBS and Channel 11 was a place where you could find Slam Bang Theater (which, uh, was a kid's show.)
• There was a stranded 18 wheeler sitting on the 51 exit ramp off of 287 this morning before sunrise. Dangerous. But the Decatur cops were there with their lights on.
• Edit: The Ticket just announced that it is becoming the home station of the Dallas Stars. Kill me. Hockey? They'll be using valuable air time for hockey?

U.S. Airways Plane Down In Hudson

You'll see news of this everywhere, but amazingly every passenger survived -- around 150 of them. For the Internet geeks, someone in New York took a picture of the plane shortly after it went down and uploaded it to Twitpic.com. Unfortunately, everyone is trying to look at it and it has killed the servers. Supposed to be here. Edit: A faithful reader was able to download it and email it to me. (And I have never seen a photo go quite as "viral" as this one. It first appeared on Twitpic.com and was everywhere within 60 minutes.) Edit #2: Finally saw some of the news coverage of this when I got home tonight. Incredible. Simply incredible.

Thursday Afternoon Pick Me Up

Yeah, this one is outside the "Hey, Now" age demographics for LLFDQ, but I've got to hand it to her. The boots. The knee socks. The tie. The attitude. And she's in a grocery store. That means there's hope that we can go down a random aisle at the Decatur Walmart and run into a gal like this.

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• There seems to be a slew of commercials suggesting that you can have your back taxes bill to the IRS reduced to pennies on the dollar. That hacks me off. I pay my share. You pay yours.
• Saw a little bit of Sean Hannity's new show (sans Colmes) on Fox last night. What a hack.
• While jogging on the treadmill, I watched a National Geographic special on the recent history of the Taliban. Good stuff.
• A stranger emailed me the above pic and just labeled it "UNT Girls."
• I understood the ramifications of having children when, I think, I was only a child. I think most people just picture a tiny baby or toddler and a dream life.
• I wish I could speak Spanish and play the piano.
• Citigroup got two government infusions of $45 billion and, as yesterday, is still in financial trouble.
• There's a fight brewing in Congress of releasing the remain $350 billion of the bailout money. I should think so. There's been absolutely no accountability as to how the first $350 billion was spent. This will turn out to be an absolute disaster.
• I get some "friend" requests on Facebook from complete strangers. I sometimes approve them. Sometimes not.
• Due to the death of someone famous yesterday, I heard the phrase "Corinthian leather" for the first time in years. And, I'll be, it's a made up term.
• "Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life" - Steve Jobs in 2005.
• After the technicalities are worked out, Dallas will have the largest all nude club in the nation. And it'll be BYOB.
• I've said it before: I love salsa bars. You know, bars with salsa.
• I'm still thinking about that Body Cleanse diet (or whatever it's called.)
• There's some civil case being tried in our district courtroom this week --- you can tell because there are always one or two paralegals running all over the place. In criminal cases, the lawyer is typically on his own.
• I hate it when people talk to me from across the room where strangers can hear the conversation. It's always a short conversation -- I'm not giving you anything but yes or no answers. If that.
• I saw a blurb in the (ever shrinking) sports section of The Dallas Morning News yesterday of two college coaches wrestling in a fourth floor hotel room ---- and ending up on the sidewalk below.

And Another

Story. It looks like 2009 is going to be a banner year. And, as for having your picture taken after being slapped up against a cinder block wall, this one looks pretty good.

A Jury Made Up Of President Bush Convicts Man

And, so, it begins. Today the U.S. Supreme Court took the first step towards an ever increasing police state mentality. Drives me crazy. Old rule #1: Police need probable cause to arrest you. Old rule #2: If you are arrested based upon probable cause, police may search you and the car you were in. Old rule #3: If police do not have probable cause to arrest you, the Exclusionary rule requires all evidence found after the arrested to be suppressed and cannot be used against you New rule#4: Not so fast In the case decided today, some Alabama cop, well versed in the Bill of Rights I'm sure, started checking with local court clerks to see if a guy he was following had outstanding warrants. One clerk said, "Why, yes, he does." So the cop stops the guy and arrests him. Then a search reveals he had meth and a pistol. The meth, of course, is illegal to possess. The gun, for that guy, was illegal to possess because he was a convicted felon. The problem is that the warrant had been withdrawn months before. The court clerk, to her credit, quickly discovered the mistake and contacted the cop. But the arrest and discovery of contraband had already occurred. So this one is easy, right? We had an arrest made without probable cause (there was, in fact, NO reason to arrest him.) So the Exclusionary Rule says that the dope and gun cannot be used against him, right? Not so fast my friend, Bush's new Supreme Court, in a 5-4* decision, said (and I'm paraphrasing here), "Screw the Exclusionary Rule." Or, more accurately, “When police mistakes leading to an unlawful search are the result of isolated negligence attenuated from the search, rather than systemic error or reckless disregard of constitutional requirements, the exclusionary rule does not apply.” Get ready, folks. There is more to come in the years ahead. Plus, your government now has every incentive to keep crappy records about arrest warrants. And what's to keep a cop from saying, "Oh, I misread the screen in my patrol car. I thought he had a valid warrant but I made an isolated and negligent mistake. My bad." And for all of those that say, "That's fine with me. Cops can search me without probable cause anytime because I've got nothing to hide", I think you're nuts. ___________ *Edit: I called it a "Jury of President Bush" because his two most recent appointments, Roberts and Alito, were in the majority of this 5-4 decision.

American Idol Highlight

Ryan Seacrest tries to high five a blind guy.

Things Not To Say During Training

I walked passed this door in the courthouse a second ago where training was ongoing for the new court management software program called Odyssey. I have no idea of the context, but as I passed by I heard the trainer say, "Odyssey is smarter than you." Bet that went over well.

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts

• Avril Lavigne can sing. (I saw her on some random channel last night in concert.) And she's kinda hot.
• I've never been that big of an American Idol fan, but the initial tryouts are mildly entertaining.
• Ok, so maybe I tuned in last night to see the bikini chick they had been promoting.
• Speaking of concerts in general, I like it when the performer shuts up and lets the crowd sing the chorus of one of his/her songs.
• Sign I'm getting lazy: I'm now buying Campbell's soup that I can heat in the microwave because I don't want to mess up a pan on the stove.
• I think the decision by a college star like Tech's Michael Crabtree, who decided to turn pro yesterday, would be a hard one. Being the big man on campus is something that he'll wish he could do again later in life. On the other hand, if he stayed in school and had a career ending injury next year, there would be some serious regret.
• In law school, I only ate one meal a day so as to not waste study time. Frightening now that I think about it.
• I'm trying to figure out "Do Da Stanky Leg." (Search youtube and waste a couple of hours.) That pop cultural phenomenon kind of snuck up on me.
• Anyone see the Dallas cop killer give a jail house interview with Shaun Rabb last night? I'm telling you, that criminal case is not a slam dunk. He claims he didn't know it was a cop and the cops admit that they didn't initially identify themselves by giving a false name. And why did he shoot? "It's a high crime neighborhood."
• "She’s 6-foot-8, and doctors tell her she’s still growing. She wears size-17 shoes. She has an 86-inch wingspan." And she's a fantastic high school basketball player headed to Baylor. Amazing pic and article here. (Thanks to Derrick Boyd for telling me about her.)
• There's a lot of gray in my goatee. I'm not too proud to color it.
• I don't buy the "President Bush has kept us safe since 9/11" line. If some terrorist wanted to cross the Mexican border and set off a bomb in a Las Vegas casino, it could be done tomorrow.
• Laura Bush announced last week that she would write an autobiography. Boy, I bet that'll be a real page turner.
• What I learned from PBS this morning: Each new president has ended his oath of office with "so help me God" but that phrase is not found in the oath's text which is in the Constitution.
• I'm thinking about changing my style of dress socks. (But I always buy a bunch of identical ones at the same time so that I won't have to worry about mixing and matching.)
• I think I'm forgetting more and more things. Either I'm losing my mind, or I'm so bombarded with information all day that I can keep it all straight.
• It's headline news that Keller ISD won't show the Obama inauguration on TV during school hours? Are we going to show it in Wise County? Will Wise County even acknowledge the Obama presidency.
• Man, the federal government is spending money like a drunken sailor.

And Another

Well, kinda. She remains on the job after having allegedly sent some suggestive emails to 14 years old. But we've got some common sense here in that the parents of the boy want the whole thing dropped. I imagine so. I'd forgive her just for wearing those hot glasses. And in the immortal words of Jerry Seinfeld as he was talking to George in the diner, "And then she starts with the dirty talk."

Mind Bursts

Youtube video has surfaced of idiots destroying a Porsche in the parking lot of Giants Stadium after the Eagles/Giants game last Sunday. I'm with you right-wingers on this one: Let's hang 'em. That movie trailer for Taken scares me. Liam Neeson says over the phone to his daughter who is hiding under the bed: "The next part is very important. They are going to take you. You will have five seconds. I want you to describe everything you see."

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts

• We've got a one vehicle roll over this morning on 287 at CR 2264 just north of Decatur.
• Any proposal to ban all cell phone calls in cars is unenforceable. If you are using hands free, who could tell if you were talking to someone or singing?
• The story of the UTD student getting her throat slashed by the Alvord kid is getting lots of press. I saw one story where he said he had been thinking of hurting someone for quite some time.
• You don't hear the term "full blown AIDS" as much anymore.
• When I was a kid, a popular poster was of an Ethopian guy eating a Butterfinger from a CARE package full of nothing but Butterfingers. He had a sad look on his face.
• If The Bachelor were on HBO with less censorship, I'd watch it.
• The 7-11 sandwich section looks pretty good these days.
• Amanda Bynes is cute, but I have no idea why she looks so familiar.
• Oil falls below $37 a barrel and prices at the pump go up?
• I wonder what the average room rate will be at the new Omni Hotel in downtown Fort Worth?
• If you look at the nutritional guides for any fast food restaurant, there is nothing on there you can eat. Except at Subway. (Bonus for iPhone users: A fast food fat gram web site.)
• I think Mountain Ceder is my nemeses.
• Kate Winslet, who jazzes me, acted really goofy at the Golden Globe awards.
• I'd like to spend some time in the Florida Keys.
• There's an El Paseo on Jacksboro Highway and one in Keller/Southlake. They couldn't be more different -- the one on Jacksboro highway is a dive and the one in Keller is pretty nice.
• I ate at the Jacksboro Highway location on Friday night and left a ton of food in a "to go" box on the table. Ugh.
• I like my waiter in a Mexican food restaurant to be Hispanic.
• It's always a crazy moment when inmates are brought into the district court for docket -- there's the odd sound of the chains from ankle cuffs hitting the wood floor. I've seen it a hundred times but it's kind of fun to watch those in the gallery that have never seen it before. It's quite shocking.

The Devil Was On "The View" This Morning

If you're interested in Ann Coulter, it's worth sticking around for all of it. If you're not interested in what she has to say, I completely understand. And the cute Republican on The View didn't really feel like taking up for her.

From The Update

You know, I'm not really sure how I feel about cops making it a full scale raid of something like this. It happens all the time - doesn't make it right - but it's odd how some parties get the attention of law enforcement while others do not. And DPS doesn't need to be involved at all.

Manhood Questioned

I don't know why I think this is so funny, but I do. There was just a few seconds left in a lacrosse game and Guy A is chasing Guy B with one of those big old sticks. Then, Baby C, upends Guy A sending Guy A flying. But then it gets good. Guy A decides to track down Baby C and beat the living crap out of him but Baby C runs away like a little school girl.

Alvord Kid!

Story (Thanks emailer. I missed this one.)

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• I thought about The Judds the other day.
• The Travel Channel should be called Guys Eating Fatty Food All Over The World Channel.
• I slept too much this weekend. Post-Christmas depression? Oh, yeah.
• Why I don't bet on sports: Arizona beat Carolina.
• One of the most fascinating things I've read and which I'm planning on doing: The Master Cleanser program. It's 10 days of nothing but drinking a combination of lemon juice and maple syrup with, and get this, a nightly "cleansing drink" of sea salt water. The Dallas Observer's Richie Whitt (the best writer in the metroplex) is doing it and giving a daily update here. The program's web site is here.
• Finally finished In Bruges (after about a three month break). It's great.
• I've always thought the Golden Globes was a better program than the Academy Awards, but I totally forgot about it last night.
• The term "Information Super Highway" first appeared on the cover of Time Magazine in 1993?
• North Texas' football program is in shambles after its QB announces he is leaving. "When you spend the amount of time with someone like we did with Giovanni, it’s disheartening," coach Todd Dodge said. "We will be fine, but it’s confusing, to say the least." Should have stayed at Southlake.
• Clint Eastwood is overrated.
• The Rangers want to move Michael Young from shortstop to third baseman. He says, "no way" and asks to be traded. That's a fine team player.
• WBAP's Hal Jay asked whether the Texas/OU basketball game tonight is as big as the October football game. Really. He did.

The Accidental Artist

One of my decorative candles was apparently too close to the fireplace yesterday. Now I've got a keepsake that I call "Tongue and Teeth."

I Love Weird Commercials

If I had Liberally Lean T-shirts, I'd give one to any person who can identify all the folks in the video in order. I tried the Inkernets but it didn't provide quick and reliable answers. I wonder if the guys with their fists raised are the same guys from that famous deviant Olympic pic. And I get chills at seeing Ali. Edit #1: If you don't get chills over Ali, you are under (ugggh) 35. Edit #2: The greatest Half-Asian blogger in the history of ever (Keith over at bagofnothing.com) sent the answer in an email: Narrator: Lil Wayne 1: Serena Williams 2: Tommie Smith ('68 olympics) 3: John Carlos ('68 olympics) 4/5: Kerri Walsh/Misty May-Treanor 6: Candace Parker 7: Dwayne Wade 8: Jessica Mendoza; softball player 9: Derek Jeter 10: Bill Russell 11: Muhammad Ali 12: Chaz Ortiz (young skateboarding dude) 13: JabbaWockeeZ (dance contest competitor)