Bag of Randomness
Friday, November 13, 2026

Microsoft had a major outage that affected the core communications systems for most companies, including mine. It also kept us from accessing most of our documentation and other cloud-stored files. For a lot of us, it was like an adult snow day.

Senator-elect Talarico met with outgoing Senator Cornyn, who gave the incoming senator a wonderful, thoughtful gift.

Mediaite reached out to Cornyn for comment on the meeting with Talarico, and brought up how he had repeatedly described Paxton as “not worthy of Sam Houston’s Senate seat.”

“Do you think Senator-elect Talarico is worthy of Houston’s seat?” I asked.

“I am bequeathing him the Sam Houston portrait over my desk,” Cornyn replied — the implications about the worthiness of his successor clear — and sent along a photo of said portrait.

That’s what you call good damage control: Hegseth awards medal to soldier who reprimanded him and aides at Arlington Cemetery 

Let’s hope he isn’t transferred to some US Army base in Middle-of-Nowhere Alaska next week.

Random fact about the Friday the 13th movie franchise: Jason’s infamous mask isn’t actually worn until the 3rd movie, Friday the 13th Part 3.

And I’m posting this because some of the doggy head turns made me smile.

As a bald man, I get cold easily, or at least more than when I had hair. To compensate, I often wear a hat to regulate my temperature. I mentioned this to a coworker who asked why I was wearing a hat, and she questioned that it’s an effective solution.

Would Congress be dumb enough to cancel funding for some disability benefits for veterans on Veterans Day? Well, they did for veterans suffering from tinnitus and sleep apnea. The VFW wasn’t happy, per Stars and Stripes:

“On a day dedicated to honoring America’s veterans, the House of Representatives took the reprehensible step to quickly pass the so-called Take Care of America’s Veterans Act advancing legislation that the Veterans of Foreign Wars considers the largest net benefit cut since the Great Depression, setting a dangerous precedent that would allow Congress to cut veterans’ earned benefits to finance unrelated federal spending,” the VFW said following House passage.

John C. Reilly tells the story of the time Jack Nicholson invited him to see U2 in concert while they were standing next to each other at urinals. 

Sometimes walking away from something you’ve invested years in is the smartest decision you’ll make.

Monstrosity.

While telling a great Jimmy Stewart story, President Reagan does an impression of great actor and American.

In deep-red Texas, conservatives are trying to make sense of what just happened to their longtime Republican stronghold. We visited a men’s bible study as they gathered for the first time since the state flipped in the midterm election.

[image or embed]

— The New York Times (@nytimes.com) November 7, 2026 at 12:18 PM

Torn, the last recorded song from Dolly Parton (with U2) will be released today.  However, yesterday, the “country” version of the song, a radio version, was released and is available for country stations to play. The country version is not a drastic departure from the album version; Bono and Dolly continue to trade vocals back and forth. The same musical elements, such as Larry’s drumming, can be heard on this new version. But there are additional instruments in the mix to make it a more country-sounding track, and the lyrics are rearranged a bit throughout the song. The album version ends on the line “Nothing hurts a mother more than a family at war,” which feels fitting given what is going on with Dolly’s relatives and her estate.

Dolly.U2.com

A rendering of the concert setup for U2’s upcoming tour. I love how since 2001 and the Elevation Tour they have created an experience in which the walk into the audience.

Dallas Talk Radio Talk: KERA 90.1’s ratings dominate News/Talk, equalling KRLD AM, WBAP, KLIF and KSKY’s *combined*.

An interesting nugget of Texas political history.

In case you are wondering why: The Republican Party endorsed the Democratic state ticket, including Shivers, in order to attract more votes for their presidential nominee, General Dwight D. Eisenhower.

If you’re interested in the history of the Alliance area in North Texas, you’ll appreciate this Ross Perot Jr. interview. In it, he also mentions how local legend Trammell Crow told him to buy nothing but warehouses, a nugget I know Barry over at LiberallyLean would appreciate. He also tells a story about picking up Elon Musk at the airport to show him a hanger that used to house seven 747s and how he it could be used to create the battery factory Musk was about to build in Nevada. To Perot’s surprise, Musk told him it was too small. In particular, I enjoyed hearing what it was like to be on the inside of his father’s political campaign. You might recall I was invited to a party at the Perot mansion and somehow found myself alone with Mr. Perot. To my knowledge, he’s the only billionaire I’ve shaken hands with.

Here are some notable timestamps:

(00:00) Intro
(00:42) Why Texas Is Winning the Data Center Boom
(06:20) The Facts Behind the Data Center Backlash
(11:49) Why California, Illinois, and New York Are Losing to Texas
(18:12) How Fort Worth Landed Elon Musk, MP Materials, and Taylor Sheridan
(23:39) Building Alliance for Flying Taxis and Drone Delivery
(27:47) Fighter Pilot Heroes and the First Helicopter Flight Around the World
(34:29) Why EDS Left Dallas and Hillwood Became a Developer
(38:31) Why the Rail Yard Matters More Than the Runway
(44:51) Tariffs and How to Deal with China
(50:35) Deterring a War over Taiwan by 2027
(55:32) The Iran War and the Coming Oil Glut
(59:10) The Case for a Post-Midterm Market Boom
(1:04:34) Smart AI Regulation and the Quantum Encryption Threat
(1:09:24) Buying Land After the S&L Crisis and Trammell Crow’s Advice
(1:12:31) Why Circle T Ranch Has Been Replanned 30 Times
(1:17:43) How George W. Bush Closed the Scotiabank Deal
(1:19:11) Inside the 1992 Perot Presidential Campaign
(1:24:34) How Hillwood Runs as a Company of Entrepreneurs
(1:32:04) Why Finding Talent Is the Hardest Part of the Business

Mainly posting this for the Leslie Nielson part that starts at the 24-second mark.

Posted in Personal | Comments Off on Bag of Randomness
Friday, November 13, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Monday, November 9, 2026

The drive back from San Marcos Saturday evening for BoyGeeding’s team’s state volleyball championship was a breeze. But driving there was a grind. We couldn’t leave until a little after 3 pm, and Friday traffic from Lewisville through Dallas, Waco, and Austin was a killer. On one hand, it’s kinda sweet that all I have to do is take one crossroad to get to I35 and then take that single road straight down, knowing I don’t have to take any exit until we reach our hotel. On the other hand, your driving app has no alternative route to suggest when there’s a traffic jam. And it would be my luck that the worst of it was in front of the most god-awful university in the world in Waco. It was surprising to see so many letters in the name on their somewhat new stadium not lit, as if they were burnt out. Aren’t all stadium and sign lights LED and don’t burn out anymore? It’s the middle of football season and probably the most marquee part of their campus. Absolutely perplexing, but then again, so are most things at that godawful institution.

I’m grateful my possession schedule worked out so I was the parent who had the honor of driving him there and back. It’s a bonding experience that’s immeasurable, and you can’t put a price on it. I’m beyond fortunate to have been able to attend the pep rally the school threw for the team and to watch the early dismissal sendoff, when the players walked the school halls with the drumline in tow as all their classmates stood outside to cheer them on. There’s nothing like being actively involved in your children’s lives and witnessing them happy.

It still boggles my mind how evil a mother must be to fabricate stories and take legal action twice to keep a safe and loving father from setting foot on their children’s school campus or attending any of their extracurricular events. People like them and the family that supports them are pure evil – no ifs, ands, or buts about it. After all that, they still have the nerve to be surprised when you turn down any greeting or engage in casual conversation with them, especially after the judge specifically tells you not to communicate verbally unless it directly involves the children’s well-being.

Few of you will ever know how aggravating and awkward it is to be unable to meet with your child immediately after a child’s activity or sporting event. That, for the child’s benefit, you first wait for the evil side of the family to do their thing and scurry about before you can warmly engage and embrace your child. While I don’t wish my time away and try to relish every part of their youth, there’s a huge part of me who can’t wait for this part of my life to be behind me.

Parents and the team met for lunch at Kerby Lane Cafe. I feared it was going to be some niche place a mom picked out that would be overly packed, with a full parking lot, and a long wait list. I was right. However, I had one of the best breakfasts of my life: the Eggs Francisco – scrambled eggs, bacon, queso, avocado, and sliced tomato on top of a toasted English muffin.

The restaurant overlooked a stream, which the whole team decided to wade in after their meal. It was the clearest water I’ve seen in Texas, which comes from a natural spring or aquifer in the area.

Texas State University had some folks conducting research on an endangered salamander. I was told the tall foliage behind them is Texas rice.

This was my first time in San Marcos, and I fell in love with it. I can imagine myself living there, or anywhere near Austin. I’ve only lived in Mineral Wells, Abilene, and DFW, but I feel my heart in the Hill Country.

There were two matches on Saturday. If they won the first one in the morning, they would play in the state championship game that afternoon. In the morning match, they beat the other team in three straight games. However, in the championship, they only won one of four games. Second place ain’t so bad.

At one point, a volleyball hit this light and knocked the screen loose. I was freaking out that it was going to break free and hit one of the players.

Aligning with President Trump proved disastrous in the midterms. And now that he’s officially a lame duck, you are going to see more and more Republicans turn away from him, and probably help the Democrats keep him accountable. His appointment of Stephen Miller as his new Chief of Staff only reinforces my point.

One thing about last week surprised me: there was no news about the federal government coming in to check what they thought were questionable results.

FAA to eliminate floppy disks from air traffic control by 2028 – The agency will upgrade more than 400 facilities with a modern information system as part of a sweeping technology overhaul.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced it will remove floppy disk usage for critical weather and operational data at over 400 air traffic control sites by the end of 2028.

The new Enterprise Information Display System will consolidate data from four separate 1980s-era systems, improving the speed and accessibility of vital flight information for controllers.

Driving the news: Floppy disks, which became obsolete in most industries over 25 years ago and are no longer produced in large quantities, are still in use in the US air traffic control system.

In 2023, Congress approved $12.5 billion to update aging FAA technologies, and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has requested an additional $30 billion for further improvements.
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford stated the upgrades will modernize communication by replacing slow, manual methods with real-time sharing of important alerts and reports for air traffic controllers.

Three Italian Friends Fly 1,000 Miles to Ireland Dressed as ‘Hobbits’ To Return Man’s Lost Wedding Ring

Posted in Personal | Comments Off on Bag of Randomness
Monday, November 9, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Friday, November 5, 2026

BoyGeeding’s school is having a special sendoff for all state-bound volleyball players tomorrow, and they will be released at noon so we can all get a head start on the drive to San Marcos. This may be my first trip to San Marcos. I attended their pep rally yesterday. It was my first since 1993.

When I picked him up from school on Tuesday, the first thing he said to me was, “Dad, I need you to shave my head as soon as we get home.” When we arrived home, I retrieved my clippers and told him this was his choice, bu the wanted to show solidarity with the team and get all that long hair off.

“I was in the room when Ken Paxton lost to James Talarico during the 2026 midterms”

I laugh every time I see a tweet that mentions how Elon Musk moved out of a blue state to a red state, only for that red state to turn blue.

Joe Montana wanted to play with Barry Sanders and the Lions when he left San Francisco? This is the first I’ve heard about this.

I heard your message loud and clear, and so proud I took part in this process.

Man, 97, Dies At His Own Birthday Party Dancing To ‘Stayin’ Alive’ 

Defeated Republican ‘claims not even Jesus could have won his midterms race’ – Rep. Mike Lawler loses New York’s 17th congressional district to Democrat Cait Conley and argues that not even the son of God could have held on to it

Posted in Personal | Comments Off on Bag of Randomness
Friday, November 5, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Monday, November 2, 2026

BoyGeeding’s a freshman on the varsity volleyball team. On Saturday, they won regionals, and they are now going to state. That will be this Saturday in San Antonio.

My friends think he’s pulling some Jack White vibes. I guess it’s time to cue some Seven Nation Army.

You just don’t see the hang time on punts tracked on television anymore. That came to mind while watching this clip of the 1992 NFC Championship Game.

Remember, it’s “daylight saving time”; “Saving” should never have an “s” or be plural. In short, that’s because we are “saving daylight.” That’s why it’s singular.

A Baker Hotel Halloween costume.

The craziest play in high school football this weekend.

The second time you watch the video, keep an eye on the safety. If he didn’t celebrate too early and run off the field, he would have been in position to stop the score. It’s another hard lesson to always play until you hear the whistle.

Here’s another angle of the play, but you won’t see the safety.

The Dark Knight scores.

In other college football news, a referee broke a player’s leg.

Lauren Spiezia lost both breasts to cancer. She ran in this year’s NYC Marathon braless and shirtless to show off her scars. She wrote about it with an eye-catching title:

I’m Running the New York City Marathon Topless. The Reason Is Not What You Think.

I consider this a Leslie Nielsen tribute.

Decades ago, the Starbucks CEO approached Shaq about investing in the company by opening locations in African American communities. The Big Aristotle declined, saying, “Black people don’t drink coffee, sir. I don’t think it’s gonna work.” He considers this his biggest investment mistake and still regrets his decision to this day.

For those familiar with Ant-Man.

Welcome to November.

The Chariots of Fire music makes this pretty funny.

 

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Monday, November 2, 2026