- I’ve noticed Letterman has changed things up lately. After the monologue and first commercial break, he use to do some kind of bit. Now, he does just a small bit and brings out the first guest.
- A cool way to hide a television above a fireplace for about $130, but I’m not one that would want to hide a television, I think it should be the center piece.
- The LiberallyLean.com guy mentioned the number of Tommy John surgeries in baseball recently. That made me think of two things. One was an interview with the actual Tommy John who thinks the reason is because kids are pitching too much in their youth and aren’t getting enough rest; back in the day, their wasn’t nearly year-round baseball. The other thing that came to mind was the incredible ‘HBO Real Sports’ piece over Steve Delabar that actually made me tear up when I first saw it. You can watch the entire segment here (YouTube) and I recommend it for any baseball fan or anyone that appreciates second chances and dreams coming true. Basically, he broke his elbow pitching in the minors, so severely (it took NINE screws to fix), he was told he would never pitch again. As a high school assistant baseball coach he adopted a training technique created by former Rangers pitching coach Tom House that includes the pitching motion with weighted balls that are never released from the hand. He was learning the technique to teach to his high school players, but it actually rehabilitated his arm he not only made to the majors, but became and all-star. Seriously, I can’t suggest watching that video enough.
- Random Tom House fact, he caught the Hank Aaron record breaking home run ball.
- Now that’s what you call a snapping turtle.
- A person can legally hold the office of President of the United States for up to ten years.
- During WWII, Japan launched around 9,000 hot-air balloon devices full of hydrogen, some of which landed in Texas.
- While looking up my nearest Costco the other day, I was surprised to find out their website will list the day the store actually opened.
- According to a British survey, men tend to keep their underwear for an average of seven years
- Boise State to seek waiver for homeless recruit
- I often confuse Bill Paxton and Bill Pullman, but recently learned that Pullman grew up in Fort Worth and you can see him in footage when JFK made his visit.
- The story to the image at the top of this post.
- From The Onion – Budget Woes Force Heaven To Reduce Eternal Life To 500 Billion Years
- Buzzfeed – The 11 Greatest Foods At Disneyland
- You can now type with Google Glass.
- A former ‘Biggest Loser’ contestant spills some beans – 5 Details They Cut from My Season of ‘The Biggest Loser’
Football’s Risks Sink In, Even in Heart of Texas
Here’s a piece from the NY Times about how Marshall ISD changed seventh-grade tackle football to flag-football.
Amid widespread and growing concerns about the physical dangers of the sport, the school board here approved plans in February to shut down the district’s entry-level, tackle-football program for seventh graders in favor of flag football. There was little objection.
“I’m surprised, in some ways, because you know how it is in a one high school town where football is everything,” said Marc Smith, the superintendent of the Marshall Independent School District. “I anticipated a little more resistance and concern. But the safety factor really resonated with our parents. They get it, and they see their little 11- or 12-year-olds getting slammed to the ground.”
No one here considers the decision the beginning of the end of scholastic football in Texas. The sport remains wildly popular, and recreational tackle leagues are open to 5-year-olds. But because it is happening in Texas, an otherwise small move to end a seventh-grade tackle program reflects how the issue of brain trauma has begun to affect the football landscape.
Blind Dog Plays Fetch
Still Paying for the Civil War
Each month, Irene Triplett collects $73.13 from the Department of Veterans Affairs, a pension payment for her father’s military service—in the Civil War.
More than 3 million men fought and 530,000 men died in the conflict between North and South. Pvt. Mose Triplett joined the rebels, deserted on the road to Gettysburg, defected to the Union and married so late in life to a woman so young that their daughter Irene is today 84 years old—and the last child of any Civil War veteran still on the VA benefits rolls.
Ms. Triplett’s pension, small as it is, stands as a reminder that war’s bills don’t stop coming when the guns fall silent. The VA is still paying benefits to 16 widows and children of veterans from the 1898 Spanish-American War.
The last U.S. World War I veteran died in 2011. But 4,038 widows, sons and daughters get monthly VA pension or other payments. The government’s annual tab for surviving family from those long-ago wars comes to $16.5 million.
