5.30.2015

We Got Us A Couple Of Middle Aged Wise County Outlaws!


Hang on guys, I'm coming to help! There has to be something in the Bill of Rights to protect you from being chased off government land by a government employee while you are simply watching water (which has fallen from Heaven, mind you!) being released because of a governmental decision.

But I'll give the deputy credit for just running you off.  This silly concept of "you break the law and you will be arrested and prosecuted" without any consideration of for the facts, circumstances, common sense, and common decency is lost on many people theses days.  Or maybe that's just my old Wise County roots talking.
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View From Highway: Two Miles West Of Bridgeport


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Tweet From Tea Party Darling Rep. Jonathan Stickland

But has much as I can't stand that guy (because he has no idea what he is doing), that was better comedy he just threw down than a certain Texas judge always tries to attempt.






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5.29.2015

Oklahoma Man Bitten By Snake Taking You Into The Weekend

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Lake Bridgeport Right Now




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One More Dallas Flood Photo


This is truly amazing. As drivers have been stuck for over six hours due to flooding, they are removing the barriers to allow traffic to do a u-turn.
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Dallas Flooding This Morning






And now it gets serious . . .


And if someone from Wise County doesn't have an opinion on this, I'll be disappointed:


Edit: And this from noon:

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Random Friday Morning Thoughts


  • I've got a fancy weather app which has arrows showing the direction a storm is traveling and at what speed. I knew there was a problem last night when that line of storms hit the metroplex and, when I checked back 30 minutes later, I noticed it was moving backwards at five miles per hour.
  • Watched the last two standing in the National Spelling Bee last night and was happy to see that one of them was Vanya Shivashankar - a girl who I followed for weeks on the show Child Genius. It made me unjustifiably feel smart. 
  • Few minutes ago: "Sachse Fire-Rescue is trying to get an officer out of his squad car. He is stuck in high water." Photo.  Hey, turn around, don't . . . . Dang it, I can never remember that phrase.  Edit: Of course they rescued him with a helicopter.
  • BagOfNothing referred to a Punky Brewster episode of a kid getting locked in a refrigerator. I don't think I ever saw a single episode of that show but being warned about playing arpimd an abandoned refrigerator was a huge public service campaign back in my childhood. Which now has me thinking: Was there an epidemic of abandoned refrigerators back in the day? 
  • Saw FBC Dallas pastor Robert Jeffress embarrassing his church again by going on a political rant on Hannity.  I almost expect the IRS to try and take away the church's tax exempt status because its leader is more of a political pundit that a religious leader.
  • Lake Bridgeport is 2.27 feet high this morning, and I believe the spillway is open.
  • There were pictures released yesterday allegedly showing Jerry Jones partying with a couple of women. I don't think that's Jerry. 
  • Official Liberally Lean Baseball Player Chris Davis has 11 home runs this year but I haven't mentioned a single one. 
  • The Open Carry bill is now back on track with the amendment of "police cannot detain to check for a CHL" language taken out of it.  It's absolutely amazing that Tea Party favorites Konni Burton and Jonathan Stickland have been going on rants saying the legislature has no respect for the 4th Amendment for striking that language. That shows a complete lack of understanding.  The bill's amendment provided greater protection than the 4th Amendment -- a state can do that. But with the bill's amendment gone, it is the 4th Amendment which will control what police can and cannot do when they see an openly carried handgun. 
  • Three of the Waco bikers have been released once their bonds were reduced to $25,000.  But innocent people who were arrested without probable cause sit in jail down there. Amazing. 



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5.28.2015

That Storm Last Night Parked Itself Over Saginaw and Blue Mound


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Lake Bridgeport Time Lapse



I'm not sure what's more impressive: The lake's rise or the filming of it.

What's the story behind this? I can't tell if a plane, helicopter or a drone was used.
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Random Thursday Morning Thoughts



  • Amazon is hiring another 450 people in Haslet. And it looks like Facebook will probably occupy a 750,000-square-foot data center nearby. That's a lot of jobs close to Wise County.
  • Great clip yesterday of Ann Coulter, with contempt, refusing to hug an undocumented immigrant at an event. (Yeah, there are a ton of reasons not to do so in that environment -- safety being one of them.) But being mean is what she does -- and it sells books.
  • That slow speed chase yesterday ended with a ton of cops pulling the guy out of the car. One of them immediately takes the butt of his rifle/shotgun and slams it down on the guy. Another cop behind him immediately pulls him off realizing that  the force used was unnecessary and that any idiot should know there are cameras on them.  Edit: 54 second mark to 58 seconds here.
  • TV critic Ed Bark was on the radio this morning and said that one of the four local stations might get better ratings in the future if it had refused to cover the chase and then led its nightly news broadcast with a note that they didn't believe it was newsworthy.  (I don't think Bark will get a job as a consultant any time soon.) 
  • Republicans Rick Santorum and George Pataki entered the race for President yesterday. Man, that field is crowded. By the time all is said and done, even Wordkyle will be taking part in the first televised debate.
  • Back during the silly TCU football team "drug bust", the morning boys on The Ticket were talking about  it and two of them were adamant that marijuana users may not need to be locked up but those "dealers" sure did. Gordon Keith asked, "If your roommate just gave his buddy $20 for weed and you ask the roommate if he could have his buddy get you some next time and you give the roommate $20, is the roommate now a 'drug dealer'?" 
  • Trying to figure out the status of the Open Carry bill in the Texas Legislature has been next to impossible over the last 24 hours. If it is dead (and I'm not sure that it is is), it's because of the amendment prohibiting cops from detaining and checking an open carry participant for a concealed handgun license. 
  • "Our country! In her intercourse with foreign nations, may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong.'' - Stephen Decatur (the namesake of Decatur, Texas.) History of that quote is here.
  • There was a story yesterday of a 17 year old in Irving allegedly choking his ex-girlfriend to death. Fox 4 referred to the her as his "estranged" girlfriend. I guess that's technically correct but just seems weird. 


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5.27.2015

Texas Flooding



Wow.

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I Think The Slowest Police Chase Ever Is Going On Right Now



But we love bits . . .
Edit: SWAT Team tank? Rammed. And a police army jumped out!



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Dog vs. Fence: Who Ya Got?



I don't know why it's so funny to me, but I love how he looks briefly at the camera at the :17 mark.  Just a dumb expression of, "What? You've never seen a dog climb a fence before?"
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Extra Random Thoughts

  • Regarding the iTunes password that I keep forgetting. I keep a password manager on my computer (fantastic idea, by the way) but for some reason it works only for browsers and not for the stand alone iTunes program. So why don't I just write that one down (especially since I am a notorious notetaker and documentor)? Because I'm now in a loop where I have to reset about once every three months when I want an app/music/book right then!!! After I go through the beat down of resetting it, I'm so happy to get my app/music/book that I just do the ol' "I can remember it" trick.
  • I was almost killed yesterday at the four way stop at Hale and Trinity at Decatur.  I pulled up to the stop sign right before the car going from my left to right arrivesd. We exchanged the wave to confirm I had the right of way. (Thank you, sir.) I pulled into the intersection to execute my left turn and then out of the corner of my eye I saw a car coming from the right to left. It seemed to be going pretty fast. I quickly took my foot off the gas and gently hit the brake in the intersection. Yep, that car blew right through the intersection at a speed of at least 40 miles per hour. My cat like reflexes saved me again.
  • I took this picture last night with my phone pointed straight up.  Suitable for framing. (And I'm almost serious about that.)



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Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts



  • I'm not familiar with Padera Lake alongside U.S. Highway 287 in Midlothian, but its dam is about to break this morning. (Photo.)
  • And let the word go forth, over the last 24 hours Lake Bridgeport has now become full -- the first time that has happened since August, 2010. (It's .10 feet over to be exact.)  The Tarrant Regional Water District said this morning that it will open the gates when it hits .20. That's surprising because Lake Worth is full, too.
  • Thanks for all the advice on my backstop project. Lots of options to look at. Bird nets. Mosquito nets. Professionally designed nets made to order. But, whatever I decide, I'm expecting the first test softball throw to make it all go tumbling down. I've got a lot of Clark Griswold in me. 
  • "AUSTIN - The director of the Texas Department of Public Safety [Steve McCraw]  today apologized for an embarrassing lapse by the Texas Rangers that ended with a confidential witness interview being released to the press."  McCraw is having a heck of a Spring.
  • The only time I hear the word "torrential" is when rain is mentioned. I don't think it is limited to just that subject.
  • All the northbound traffic on 287 was detoured to residential Decatur this morning due to a truck fire. Flashback: Remember when 380 actually sent all of its traffic, including tons of rock trucks, right by the courthouse before the bypass was built? 
  • The Supreme Court has decided to hear a "One man, One vote" Texas case.  This is really pretty interesting. A conservative group challenged the way districts have been drawn for Texas legislator elections based upon the fact that the districts were drawn using total population instead of eligible voters. Using a crazy hypothetical, if there is a district with a million people in it but only 100,000 eligible voters, those voters have more power than a district of a million people with 500,000 eligible voters. 
  • Hey, iTunes: When I want to buy something and I can't remember my password it's because you make me reset my password every time I forget. And  since you won't let me use any password I've used in the last year, guess what? I keep using passwords I can't remember!!!!!


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5.26.2015

What Could Go Wrong?



Spoiler alert: Actually nothing,

And I'm now depressed because the guy who came up with that plan could probably do a better job than me on a high school electricity project or a backstop project. (Although our design concepts are very similar.)
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Another Day. Another Reason For People To Get Mad.


Story.

Kind of reminds me of Tommy Lee Jones disgust in The Valley Of Elah.





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Is That The Same Guy?

Dallas Morning News tweet:


Fort Worth Star Telegram tweet:



The Morning News story now uses the picture that the Star-Telegram uses.

Edit: Dead of death.


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Fox News' Darling Ann Coulter Has A New Book


And you wonder why the Republicans will lose the Hispanic vote.
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Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts



  • Obligatory weather observation: Stop Raining!!!!
  • Shocking story in Wimberley: Eight people are missing after the cabin they were staying in was swept up by flood waters. (And the news coverage of this event has been horrible -- which is what you get when no one works on Memorial Day).
  • A crazy picture from the flooding on I-45 in Houston this morning taken by a former Wise County resident. (I don't say "must see" very often but this is "must see".)
  • Lake Bridgeport is 0.40 feet low this morning.  Low? I think the body of water is now just toying with us.
  • Mrs. LL accidentally washed her car keys which, mysteriously, caused her Gangsta Mobile to periodically begin honking its horn the other night. As we stared at the car going crazy in the garage, I told The Kids In The House that  "we have a real live Christine going on here." I received blank stares.
  • I saw some friends in the hardware store yesterday as I once again made a trip to conquer my softball backstop project.  The gal gave me a hug and it was about an hour later when I realized that I had jogged that morning, jacked around in the back yard in the humidity, had covered myself with bug spray, and hadn't showered.  
  • And the backstop project is now beyond ridiculous. I now have PVC pipe within PVC pipe raised telescopically with net being raised with cords (like you see at a college extra point.) But it's pretty impressive if I don't say so myself. But I need strong yet light netting. Help me!
  • President Obama's Memorial Day Address yesterday: “Today is the first Memorial Day in 14 years that the United States is not engaged in a major ground war.”  Thank you.
  • Josh Hamilton joined the Rangers this weekend. I still think he's dumb as a box of rocks but why does he no longer mention God when that was all he could talk about three years ago?
  • Harry Shearer made news the other day when it was announced that the multi-character voice man for The Simpsons would not be returning to the series. Because of that news I stumbled upon his project where he recreates the Nixon Tapes word for word and cadence for cadence. 
  • Back in the 1990s when I had my lake house, I took my boat out one evening even though the lake was closed because of flooding. But that was back in the day when a Game Warden wouldn't stop you you within 50' to do a "safety check". (Before you guys jump me, I was up in the remote north end and went very slowly so as to create very little wake). 
  • I watched most of 12 Angry Men late the other night. It's still great, but it finally dawned on me that "reasonable doubt" was hardly discussed at all. They kept using the word "innocent". 


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5.25.2015

New Yorker and The Republican Hopefuls


Take note of one missing hopeful from Texas who is only represented by a pair of empty boots.
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Random Monday Morning Thoughts


  • Once again, I'm the hardest working man in show business.
  • Lake Bridgeport is at 1.20 feet low this morning, but I'm surprised it's not full. That rain forecast for the weekend seemed to hit more south than north.
  • I'm trying to make a homemade softball backstop for the back yard that will extend over the peremiter fence by about six feet. I'm using PVC pipe and (here's the mistake) orange safety fencing. It'll work, but my goal was to have it easily taken up and down. This has turned into my marathon electrical school project from a few weeks back. But my new revised plan is to make it work like a football net that you'll see on TV being raised and lowered for field goals and PATs. I love this stuff. And I have the best time thinking about what will work and proudly, yet reluctantly, scrapping everything I've done when I discover a new and better way. 
  • I visited Arlington National Cemetery once and it was overwhelming.
  • This story on the alleged Chico murder/arson gave me Tired Head while reading it. 
  • Sheriff Joe says he needs money to pay for lawyers. 
  • I'll echo BagOfNothing today: I never say, "I know what you are going through" or "I know how you feel." I don't know. Nor do you. 
  • Watched a little of the Fox News morning news show yesterday where Chris Wallace made presidential wannabe Mike Huckabee look silly on his assertion that Supreme Court decisions should not be enforced unless all three branches of government agree on the issue.
  • I think I write Random Thoughts every morning for the same reason "you should make your bed". It may be a small and insignificant accomplishment but, nevertheless, it is an accomplishment at the beginning of the day. 
  • The more I think about the Waco biker shootings the more I think the DA is in over his head. It may very well be there is only one murder that can legitimately prosecuted and won. Everything after that is an act in self defense or defense of a third person. (And I'm focusing only on the people involved in the actual shootings -- not the 95% of those being kept in cages for just being there.)
  • A video I wish someone create: A side by side of Eddie Vedder going crazy with the guitar on David Letterman the other night at the end of "Better Man" and Michael J. Fox at the prom in Back To The Future.
  • The Texas Senate passed the Open Carry bill on Friday night which included a provision that cops can't detain someone to ask if they have a license. I'm almost embarrassed to say I watched the process online. Just like an electrician would shake his head as he watched me work on the Junior In The House's school project, I had Slumped Shoulders as the Senate argued about "probable cause", "investigative detention", and "consensual encounters" with no idea what they were talking about. 
  • Just saw that a fan ran up to Roger Federer on the court at the French Open and tried to take a selfie.  Federer was friendly at first and then seconds later became nervous. If he wasn't thinking, "Hey! Monica Seles was stabbed by a fan on the court, right?", I'd be surprised.
  • Supreme Court Justice Jeff Boyd posted a Twitter pic this morning about Memorial Day. Note to judge: When you put your name in the graphic, it is obvious that you are pandering.
  • Fantastic photo collection of the damage caused by the storms in Texas and Oklahoma. (Thanks, W.C.)

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5.24.2015

Doesn't Quite Do Whatever A Spider Can

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Let's Check In On A Newly Formed Wild River of Boerne (TX)


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News Of The Death of "A Beautiful Mind"


John Forbes Nash Jr., the Princeton University mathematician whose life story was the subject of the film "A Beautiful Mind," and his wife of nearly 60 years died Saturday in a taxi crash on the New Jersey Turnpike, police said. More.
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