Bag of Randomness

  • I took a road trip yesterday to attend a funeral in a small town near Abilene.  The funeral was for a man that was about 22-years-old and just graduated college (cum laude) not even a year ago.   I can’t imagine the pain parents must go through burying a child, but this is the second child these parents had to bury.  If you are the praying kind, send up a prayer or two for these parents who I admire greatly.  And please don’t forget the only surviving brother.
  • As I’ve grown older, I’ve learned that when it comes to funerals, your relationship with the deceased isn’t so much what matters, but your presence showing that you care for the ones grieving is what matters.  It meant a lot to me seeing friends attend my parents’ funerals even though they didn’t know them that well . . . it let me know that they cared about me, and at that time, I needed the comfort.
  • On my way back home I decided to drive through Weatherford and see if the Big Pantry was still open and still serving some childhood favorites.  Lucky me, not a thing has changed, but Weatherford itself has changed a lot.
  • I remember as a kid Mom and Dad driving us to the Kmart in Weatherford, now that entire building has been torn down and replaced.
  • They still have a Gibson’s which amazes me.
  • I saw numerous billboards for First State Bank of Weatherford advertising a $19.95 overdraft charge.  That’s an interesting selling point.
  • I caught a little bit of the new CBS morning show called CBS This Morning.  They have a pretty cool feature that will be shown the first part of the show each morning, it’s a 90-second video montage of most important news.  It’s called Eye Opener and you can check it out here.   I think it’s actually pretty cool.
  • I thought Brent Musburger actually had a pretty funny Internet pop-culture reference yesterday, “Honey Badger better care about that one.”
  • It’s weird that the BCS National Championship game wasn’t on one of the four major networks.
  • I would have rather seen Oklahoma State’s high-powered offense go against that Bama or Tiger defense.
  • As much as I complained about the old system, I think I miss it.  I miss seeing circumstances where #3 beats #1 and all the chaos that happens trying to figure out who should be ranked #1.  The BCS National Championship game now makes all the major bowl games not really matter.
  • I’m impressed with how fancy the Super Dome looks with all those colored lights.
  • The only thing I don’t like about watching a game at the Super Dome is seeing the halo on all the helmets.
  • Kirk Herbstreit’s hair looked really out of place last night, it kinda looked like a merkin.
  • I think it’s silly that the President has to take time out of his schedule to greet champions of various sports, like he did with the Mavs yesterday.  Normally they would have visited the White House when they were scheduled to play the Washington Wizards, but because of the strike and short season, the Mavs won’t be playing the Wizards in DC.  It looks like Mark Cuban had to talk to former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk who is on the Obama Administration to get that visit scheduled.
  • One commercial that needs to be retired is the at&t “You guys know how to post videos to Facebook?”
  • Is this the ultimate woman? Technology merges best parts of some of the world’s most beautiful celebrities
Posted in Personal | 3 Comments

Bungee Cord Breaks Over Croc-Infested River

An Australian woman has miraculously survived plunging into crocodile-infested waters after the cord snapped during her bungee jump over the Zambezi River.

Erin Laung Worth fell from the Victoria Falls bridge, 111m above the river on the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia. She was forced to swim through the rapids with her feet still tied from the jump on New Year’s Eve.

Full Article

Posted in Interesting | 3 Comments

Bag of Randomness

  • Austin just has a really cool, awesome, and unique vibe to it.  I think I’m too old to live there now, that is, to really enjoy it, but I really do have regrets of following my friends to college rather than challenge my insecurity of trying to step out on my own.
  • Those Ken Star Baylor Bears are getting really cocky after beating UT two years in a row. . . I saw a RGIII Heisman billboard just outside of the UT campus.
  • The first night in Austin I ate a Stubbs BBQ.  It rated pretty low on my BBQ scale.  On my way to the restaurant I traveled down the wrong way down a one-way street only to be greeted by four police cars, all of which flashed their lights on at me.  Turns out, that one-way street was right next to the police station.  They were nice enough not to ticket me.  As I walked by them later, they were practicing using their stun guns.
  • Parking in downtown Austin is rather expensive and unique, at least to me.  In this one parking lot underneath the I35 bridge, you have to remember your parking spot number and approach a not so noticeable metal box sticking from the ground (looks nothing like a parking meter).  You enter your parking spot number, swipe your credit card, and get a stick to place on the inside of your windshield.
  • One night I attempted to eat at Vince Young Steakhouse since I had a great steak there the last time I was in Austin.  I pulled up and the valet asked if I was part of the special event.  Turns out Vince closed the entire place down for the evening for a special event.  So instead of a steak I tried that Man Bites Dog place and really enjoyed it.
  • On my last night in Austin I visited a place called Moonshine.  I’d certainly recommend it.
  • While traveling out of Austin I noticed a funeral procession with two limos and one Hummer stretched limo that looked a bit out of place.  Yup, Austin likes to  keep it weird.
  • My hotel was going through a renovation and they were nice enough to place me in a newly renovated room.  The only problem was the new paint and new carpet smell that gave me a headache for three days.
  • I was in Austin to give a presentation and serve as a subject matter expert to the IRS for an application we are building for them.  Fun times I tell ya.
  • One morning I listened to a local radio show and they were talking about the Kardashians and Dallas, saying that Dallas people are eating it up having them there and if they were in Austin, people would just throw stuff at them.  I think the only Dallas people that like the Kardashians are under 17 years of age.
  • The next time you are dining with friends and want to have some fun with phone etiquette,  try the phone stack.
  • Do you need a hug this Monday?  Try the Nicest Place on the Internet.
  • 60 Minutes had a segment in which a battalion in Afghanistan had five sets of brothers.  One set of brothers wanted to serve together but had to find a battalion that had open spots for them, or something like that, and all they could find was a Marine Reserve unit in Texas.  To get in that battalion they had show residency and so they made up a lawn care company with a Plano address.  Funny part was, they still don’t have any idea where Plano, TX is.  You can check out the segment here.
  • For those of you that have always wondered what’s the difference between a battalion, brigade, company, platoon and everything else, here you go.
  • I think I like Drew Brees as my MVP.
  • Man, that Broncos/Steelers game was something else.  I don’t want Tim Tebow as my quarterback, but I sure enjoy watching him.  I don’t root for him because of his faith, but for his work ethic and passion for the game . . . and I love watching old school football.
  • A Catholic priest first came up with the Big Bang theory
  • Slavery questions appearing on a math test?  “Each tree had 56 oranges. If eight slaves pick them equally, then how much would each slave pick?”
  • What’s So Special About the Cat’s Pajamas?
  • Senior photo is too sexy for yearbook
  • Enacted Abortion Restrictions By Year
  • John McCain Endorses Mitt Romney (Mistakenly President Obama) For 2012
  • Giant rat killed in the Bronx
  • Genetic scientists create freakish man-made monster ants with huge heads and jaws
  • Here’s a quote from one of today’s most popular satirists speaking about his mother.

    “She taught me to be grateful for my life regardless of what that entailed, and that’s directly related to the image of Christ on the cross and the example of sacrifice that he gave us. What she taught me is that the deliverance God offers you from pain is not no pain — it’s that the pain is actually a gift. What’s the option? God doesn’t really give you another choice.”  Link 

Posted in Personal | 3 Comments