UCLA Cheerleaders Taking You Into The Weekend

Looking Through Photos From The Past Year

Liberally Lean From The Land Of Drama Queen?

Sheriff Joe Will Stop School Violence!!!

Some Of Favorite Videos Of The Year

• Gay guy describing storm.
• A press conference by a lawyer (who has surely never stood in front of a jury) denying a type of chugging. 
• Mark Cuban getting slammed into a table at a WWE event (which he thinks is cleverly entertaining but shows he's really P.T. Barnum.)
• The Family Pup vs. Fake Pig.

UT In Alamo Bowl

Story.

Edit: Oh, my.

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• As much as I enjoy Baylor football, I went to bed last night at halftime of the Holiday Bowl. ESPN had earlier backed the kickoff to 9:00 PM. Good grief. (Side note: Baylor's quarterback Nick Florence may be the most underrated quarterback in the history of ever: Led the nation in total offense / Threw for more yards than RG3.)
• Then I woke up early this morning and finished watching the game before 7:00 a.m. 
• I've been to San Diego once. I could live in San Diego. 
• But I'm not ruling out my Costa Rica retirement. 
• Mrs. LL saw Les Miserables last night. Although I'm we all know that I am a  man of culture, I don't have a clue about that classic piece of work. (But she mentioned that it was two and a half hours long so I main remain clueless.)
• A deal will get done on the "fiscal cliff". Bank on it. Then we'll see both sides hold press conferences about how each was willing to compromise for the good of the country. You are watching a self-serving one act play.
• I came home yesterday and the Christmas tree was down as well as all of the decorations in the house. That gave me an odd feeling of rejuvenation. Weird.
• Rare tweet by me last night: "Waiting for momma."
• Pitbull is going to be at Winstar Casino on New Year's Eve? Does that cater to their demographic?
• I learned that with a rare radio fly by that landed on WBAP this morning. In the background they were playing a song by "Pitbull with T-Pain." Hal Jay said that sounded like something he would tell his doctor that he had. [Insert wheeze laugh.]
• David Dewhurst claims a campaign aide stole over a half million dollars in campaign funds. The campaign aide's best defense in my opinion? Blame the Chinese. 

WBAP Sent Out An Email Announcing The Death Of A President Who Isn't Dead

Later:

(Thanks Michelle!)

Edit: Hey, the Dallas Observer picked this story up and mentioned us!

Someone Doesn't Like The PoPo in Weatherford

Story.

Funny GIF I Missed During The Year

Peyton Manning Was On The NFL Network Yesterday

I think I remember that he endorses a particular kind of car. But I don't recall. If I could only remember. What was it? Hmmmm.

Wise County Possum Caught Last Night

Almost looks like a panda.

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• It sounds like George H.W. Bush's health is deteriorating rapidly.
• Downtown Decatur was like a ghost town yesterday morning. (And I think most businesses and offices that shut down used a pretty low threshold to make the call. But the day after Christmas should be an official holiday as well.)
• The Family Cat made a break for the backyard this morning so I was out there in a suit and hiking boots trying to run him down. The dang thing never jumps the fence and runs off to chase his dreams.
• Despite a good night's sleep, I was so sleepy driving into work this morning that I felt like I had been drugged.
• Baylor's final game of the season is tonight in the Bridgepoint Holiday Bowl, but what's the deal with an 8:45 p.m. start time? There's a great chance that game will be four hours or more. (It's amazing how many people refer to it as the Bridgeport Holiday Bowl.)
• I bought Mrs. LL a book on the West Memphis Three. She is locked in to it. 
• It was pretty big news earlier this year when new Dallas ISD Superintendent Mike Miles brought in a hot and young "communications director" from his prior school at a salary of $185,000. Last Friday, she quietly resigned. Weird.
• Mrs. LL got a mandolin for Christmas. Yep, a mandolin. I told her I expect her to sound like Allison Krauss as well. 
• Texas Monthly's Bum Steer Awards have been revealed and Wise County didn't make the cut. I would think that electing a County Surveyor and simultaneously voting to eliminate the position of County Surveyor would be worthy of one. 
• You are seeing a preview of the Dallas Mavericks for the next ten years. 
• I don't think there's a single football analyst who understands that when a receiver catches the ball near the sideline and then gets knocked backwards a couple of yards and out of bounds, that the clock still rolls. "He went out of bounds!" they will all yell. But the receiver can't have it both ways. He'll get the benefit of his forward progress but that means he was technically down while in bounds. (Pet peeve of mine.)
• The chances of a deal being worked out on the "fiscal cliff"? I'd make it as high as 95%.

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts

• A decent snow falling on Christmas Day in Wise County was a sight to behold. Absolutely picture perfect.
• And as much as we dog on weatherman, it was about ten days ago they predicted the possibility of snow on Christmas. I find that amazing. 
• At my parents house yesterday, I found a few rolls of developed 8 mm home movies from 1957. Now I'm going to try and find a place that can convert fragile film to a DVD. This could be incredible.
• I also found this camera (close if not exact) that took those movies. It was basically in pristine condition. (Compare that to a movie shot on your phone and this mini projector connected to it as reviewed by the NY Times.)
• I've been tormented by the worst dreams lately. Incredibly intensive. A theme of losing everything. It's bad enough to consider going through some type of sleep study.
• I turned on the TV early this morning expecting to see traffic carnage but there wasn't much going on.
• Django Unchained, released on Christmas Day, doesn't seem to be the "feel good movie of the year" but it does look bizarrely good. 
• Character actor Charles Dunning died over the weekend. For those O Brother Where Art Thou? fans, he's the guy who uttered the line, "Is you is, or is you ain't, my constituency?" while playing Gov. Pappy O'Daniel.
• Alabama dad gets tickets for National Championship Game for Christmas. What's not to like about his reaction?
• Mrs. LL saw about five minutes of Caddyshack as I forced her to be introduced to Bill Murray's character Carl. She actually laughed when he explained his new grass he had developed to Chevy Chase but also added, "I can hardly understand a word he is saying."
• Sad news of the passing of Wise County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Bo Wright. I heard in the courtroom about three weeks ago that he had been diagnosed with cancer with only weeks to live. I couldn't believe it then. I believe it now. What a horrible disease. It's never a fair fight. 

Can't Believe I'm Having To Issue A Liberally Lean Winter Blast Alert

I'm in the laboratory monitoring this. Santa will be in bed before me.

From the National Weather Service:

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• What? I'm here on Christmas Eve? Yep, once again I prove I'm the hardest working man in show business.
• I sometimes try to wrap my head around basically everyone I've ever met celebrating Christmas today and tomorrow. It's hard to do. 
• The house is quiet right now with everyone asleep. This may be the best part. Then again, it's not. 
• Changing gears, Mrs. LL and I watched Bowling For Columbine (I had seen it before.) I had forgotten that Charlton Heston's "from my cold bare hands" speech before the NRA was 10 days after the Columbine massacre. That kind of explains their low profile these days. They've learned. 
• There was an out of control wedding reception at the Worthington Hotel in downtown Fort Worth on Saturday with what sounds like a massive police response. 
• I looked forward to this four day weekend and then I ended up sick as a dog on Saturday.
• Mrs. LL bought one of those blood sugar dohookies and she's been stabbing me all weekend. The readings aren't out of control but in the midst of my sickness I had a drop of 50 points in two hours. 
• I think she enjoys stabbing me with that thing. 
• From the Cowboy game: Tony Siragusa Vs. Moose Johnston Ugly Christmas Sweater-Off Competition. I vote Moose. 
• We've got some type of critter in our attic. The Others In The House have been trying to convince me but I finally heard. Definitely something running on top of our kitchen ceiling. Almost want to unleash the Family Cat on it. 
• You'll still hear people say That A Wonderful Life is shown countless times every Christmas season. That hasn't been true since the early 1990s before a copyright was successfully enforced. 
• I watched some of the high school championship football games on TV this weekend, and I couldn't help but take note of a Vince Young starter kit who was absolutely fantastic. Jerrod Heard of Denton Guyer, only a junior, ran for five TDs and threw for two others. I looked him up to see where he plans to go to college. I'll be dang: The Evil Empire. 
• And in the final minutes of the final game of the day a defender and a receiver hit head to head while going for a pass and both ended up laid out and motionless in the end zone. I can see how football could some day be discontinued in high school in the future. Those kids may not have been even 18.
• Just a brief flurry of snow on Christmas Day would be fantastic. 
• A list of local TV news personnel who have left over the year. I love you, Jane. 
• Whenever I see a wedding announcement I wonder if the couple will make it. 
• I'm near the end of the fourth season of Breaking Bad. I'd be hard pressed to think of a better television drama. A typical episode is better than most movies I've ever seen.
• Out of the blue, I watched the first half of the old  Helter Skelter television movie which scared the heck out of me as a boy. Sorry to report it doesn't hold up to the test of time. I also acknowledge that's not a very Christmasy movie. 
• Newsweek's final paper cover: