Bag of Randomness for Wednesday, November 13, 2019

  • The third annual Flat Earth Conference will start tomorrow in Frisco at the Embassy Suites. So, if you are looking to start an interesting conversation, that’s the place to be.
  • The New York City Ballet has a shoe budget of about $780,000.
  • From the Ann Richards play, I learned there’s a tradition in which the outgoing governor dedicates a Bible verse to their successor. The tradition started in 1925 and you can view the complete list here, but here are few of the more recent ones:
    • Bill Clements for Ann Richards 1-15-91
      • Ecclesiastes 3:17 –  I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.
    • Ann Richards to George Bush 1/17/95”
      • Amos 5:15(a) – Hate the evil, and love the good,
        and establish judgment in the gate:
        it may be that the Lord God of hosts
        will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.
    • GW Bush for Rick Perry 12-21-00
      • Isaiah 40:28-31 – Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard,
        that the everlasting God, the Lord,
        the Creator of the ends of the earth,
        fainteth not, neither is weary?
        there is no searching of his understanding.
        29 He giveth power to the faint;
        and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
        30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
        and the young men shall utterly fall:
        31 but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength;
        they shall mount up with wings as eagles;
        they shall run, and not be weary;
        and they shall walk, and not faint.
    • Rick Perry for Greg Abbott 1-19-15
      • Matthew 20:25-28 – But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. 26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; 27 and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: 28 even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
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Bag of Randomness for Tuesday, November 12, 2019

  • Today the world welcomes Disney+ and there’s gonna be a whole lotta of binge-watching going on.
  • At work, I routinely have to dial into a conference line with the code 54008828. I memorized the code by imagining Randy White and Robert Parish playing two-on-two basketball against Michael Irvin and Darren Woodson. I admit that scenario makes absolutely no sense, but it’s how I remember it.
  • A student in WifeGeeding’s class spontaneously raised his hand and asked, “Can you call my mom and tell her I forgot to brush my teeth last night?”
  • I bought some easy to assemble storage shelves for the garage and recruited BoyGeeding to help assemble them. Without his help, I could have been finished in more than half the time, but it was worth spending every second with him and seeing the sense of pride swell up as we inched closer to completion. Sometimes, faster is not always better.
  • Social media made if very apparent most people don’t understand the difference between Veterans Day and Memorial Day. But I suppose the most important thing is just honoring those who served whether alive or deceased.
  • Roaming the floors of Hallmark’s first-ever ChristmasCon.
  • A general contractor recommended by USAA came by yesterday to provide a quote for the water damage on our floors and a “water mitigation” company is coming out today. “Water mitigation” as not a part of my vernacular until yesterday. The gentlemen with the general contractor company have been in the business for over three decades and we got into a fun conversation about how much technology has changed certain aspects of his job. When he first started, insurance companies would have him take Polaroids and mail them in, now he can simply use an app on his smartphone. He carries an old fashioned tape measurer but mostly uses a digital contraption no larger than a cigarette lighter which shoots out a red laser and instantly tells him the distance. Then there’s the application software that has streamlined the process and drones and apps which automatically takes measurements and measures pitch and elevation.
  • The Financial Times is a daily newspaper owned by Japanese company Nikkei, Inc., headquartered in London and I once had to subscribe to it because of a college course. The professor pointed out it’s printed on pink paper as a form of tradition, but at first, it was because unbleached paper was cheaper to print on. The newspaper recently published a correction that gave me a good chuckle. You can easily see how a Japanese owned paper based in London may confuse why Utah’s largest paper has a dedicated reporter covering a certain genre of music mostly associated with black people in one of America’s whitest cities.
  • Again, I want it on record, when I die and some type of service is held, call it either a funeral or memorial service, I do not want it called “A Celebration of Life” service. This world has enough sugar coating as it is.
  • Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now” is rambling through my head.
  • Stephen Colbert said he was once told if he ever needed to get a song unstuck his head to start singing something short and unrepeatable, like “Byyyyyy Mennen.”
  • Stephanie Grisham took over the White House press secretary role in July and has yet to hold a single briefing with reporters. Considering this administration is undergoing an impeachment hearing, that’s amazing. However, Grisham has appeared on Fox News or the Fox Business Network at least 13 times.
  • Trebek got choked up.

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Bag of Randomness for Monday, November 22, 2019

  • The first thing which comes to my mind about Veterans Day is as an elementary school student and being bussed to Miller Stadium and sitting in the freezing cold for a Veterans Day program. We always sat on the visitor’s side on the wooden bleachers which I was scared to walk up, there was something about the spacing of the boards which gave me a sense of vertigo and the paint always felt slippery. I think they could have fit us all on the home side on the cement bleachers if they really wanted.
  • WifeGeeding and I attended the one-woman play ANN written and originally starring Holland Taylor. The play is about former Texas Governor Ann Richards and this version was starred Libby Villari who definitely captured the late governor’s spirit and nailed her characteristics for the most part. Neither Bush was mentioned but Barbara Jordan was several times. I know I’m partial but offhand I’d say that Richards and Jordan are the two greatest female orators in our nation’s history. Many of you may not know Barbara Jodan, but she was exceptionally eloquent and measured as a speaker.
  • The set had one little detail I appreciated, the state capitol’s pink/red granite.
  • They play was held at the Kalita Humphreys Theater which was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. WifeGeeding mentioned that one of her friends recently moved into a Frank Lloyd Wright house and I told her she must be mistaken him for another architect, but sure enough, she was correct.
  • The theater actually had a working payphone! I was shocked to see it, and a bit surprised how much it cost to make one single call, fifty cents.
  • I overheard WifeGeeding talking to her mother about the play. She stated that Ann Richard’s brother was her wedding photography, but WifeGeeding boldly told her that couldn’t be true because in the play, Richards stated she was an only child. There was a little back and forth between the two, but I was able to find out it was Richards’ uncle Jimmie Willis of Waco she was referring to.
  • One thing I like to look for in a one-person play is how the actor is able to sneak in a drink during the performance. If you think about it, speaking for an hour and a half to two hours under stage lights can make a person pretty thirsty. I was spotted three moments. I never saw the Bryan Cranston one-man play about LBJ, but I’m curious how he snuck in a drink.
  • Ann Richards’ eldest grandchild is now the communications director for Kamala Harris.
  • I found an interview of Holland Taylor in full costume alongside Richards’ eldest daughter Cecile Richards (former president of Planned Parenthood). Richards was asked if it was weird watching the play and I thought she had a nice warm answer, she said it was like Taylor gave her two extra hours with her mother.
  • Nikki Haley was interviewed on CBS Sunday Morning and I took issue with one particular thing she said.
    • “The Ukrainians never did the investigation. And the president released the funds. I mean, when you look at those, there’s just nothing impeachable there. And more than that, I think the biggest thing that bothers me is the American people should decide this. Why do we have a bunch of people in Congress making that decision?“
      • I have no problem with her thoughts on whether the president should be impeached or not, but it’s that last sentence that bothers me, “Why do we have a bunch of people in Congress making that decision?” Geeze, Hailey, that’s an easy one, because the American people you referenced elect Representatives every two years to represent them in Congress. In essence, the American people are deciding because of the representatives they elected. You know, I think the American people should decide who is elected president, but that doesn’t happen, there’s something called the Electoral College, and Electors mostly are nominated by a state’s political party.
  • It’s hard for me to root for the Cowboys when they wear their dark uniforms at home.
  • Runner in ‘Jesus Saves’ bib collapses, is saved by group with man named Jesus

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