Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• Well I'll be, the new V.R. Eaton High School in Northwest is named after the father of the Messenger's owner and publisher Roy Eaton. Can't believe I missed that (or knew it and forgot it.)
• The Log Cabin Republicans (the gay ones) are being refused a booth at the Texas Republican Convention in Fort Worth. The Texas Supreme Court has previously unanimously agreed they can be excluded -- a court that had Greg Abbott and John Cornyn on it at the time.
• Wait a second, at the PBR Challenge in Decatur this weekend, local "celebrities" Fernando Escobar, J.D. Clark, Beau Bell, Joe Neil Henderson, Jeff Sicking and Wade Watson are going to ride a bull? Do I have this right?
• What are horrible scene in Arlington yesterday when a car wreck at an intersection carried over onto the sidewalk and killed a baby in a stroller. 
• One of the people killed in the motorcycle/car accident last weekend near Slidell was Cassie Marlana “Pocahontas” Turner of Ardmore. Here's a photo and obit of her from the Ardmore paper.
• So Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is willing to pay $2 billion for the Clippers? Two thoughts: (1) The players might want to remember that the next time the collective bargaining agreement expires. (2) That'll teach Donald Sterling!!! 
• The $2 billion calls into question all of those Forbes "most valuable" lists. Earlier this year they valued the Clippers at $575 million.
• And speaking of Sterling, he has been declared "mentally incapacitated" which allows for his wife to act on behalf of their jointly owned trust which technically owns the team? No way. He's getting robbed and will win if he wants to fight it. And if the NBA was behind this whole scheme, they've got big trouble on their hands. 
• I got sucked into the finals of the National Spelling Bee live last night on ESPN which included a girl from Abilene and a guy from Fort Worth (and formerly of Keller ISD) who eventually was the co-champion. It was really good TV. (And the kid yelling "What!" after missing a word became a video sensation.)
• The spelling bee also reminded me of the great documentary Spellbound. In it, a young competitor having immigrated from India said, as she reflected on the different ways of life, "America is different because in India you don't get second chances."
• I was excited to have Baylor in the Softball College World Series. That is, until the first game yesterday: They lost 11-0 with the game being stopped in the fifth inning because of the ten run rule which was reached dramatically on a grand slam. What a beating.