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• I’ve mentioned my best buddy, Jimi, whose father died from a fall at a construction site. The funeral was this past Saturday. Jimi made all the arrangements and delivered one of the eulogies to a crowd of about 400, and he was outstanding. I was very proud of him.
• I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve felt exceptionally respected or valued. It happened on Saturday when my best buddy quoted and referenced me in his father’s eulogy. It was totally unexpected and despite what Bob and Dan might say, humbling.
• I’ve mentioned that Jimi’s father was an alcoholic and was very involved in Alcoholics Anonymous, in which I’m all things ignorant. It’s interesting getting a peak in their world. His sobriety date was referenced several times and one of the men who spoke made sure to provide his date of sobriety.
• Jimi’s father had a dog who was at the service and roamed freely. Sometimes he’d wander in the crowd and sometimes you’d spot him on the stage/altar. I say more funerals and church services, in general, need a roaming animal.
• Oddly, an ample supply of food and refreshments were available before and after the service on both sides of the auditorium. I say more funerals, weddings, and church services, in general, need an ample supply of food and beverages before and after.
• The pastor went long, like too long, using five different examples to drive home his message. I think WifeGeeding counted six examples. One of my friends who is also a pastor attended, he also thought the pastor went long.
• The man sitting in front of me had a lot of small scabs, like on his hair follicles. I couldn’t tell if they were hair plugs or if his hair caught fire.
• It’s to mourn Barbara Bush. She lived such a long and great life. That’s not to say her death didn’t make me a bit sad, reflective, and appreciative of her contribution to our country, but it was hard to mourn.
• @betsy_klein – .@BillClinton on Barbara Bush: “I know what it’s like to be a spouse as well as a candidate, and I imagine it took her a lot longer to forgive me than it did him… but I’d walk across coals for her.”
• Melania Trump takes White House staffers who knew Barbara Bush to funeral
  • Trump was accompanied by former White House head maitre d’ George Hainey and current White House usher Buddy Carter, the first lady’s office said. “She knew they were very close to the Bush family and wanted them to be able to pay their respects,” spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said.
• There’s absolutely nothing wrong with President GHW Bush’s office sharing this picture, but it’s so intimate, I feel like I was intruding when I first saw it.
  
• No need to offer any condolences, but my grandmother died 32-years ago today. It was the first death in my life, but I never got to see her body so while it was sad, it didn’t seem real. She died in California and was shipped to Texas. There was a delay in shipping and a flight delay, so no one here really got to see her and I’m told she was literally late to her own funeral.
• I caught the live stream of Bono and George W. Bush accepting questions after the former president presented the Irish rocker with his inaugural leadership award. There’s so much I’d like to say but here’s a quicky:
  • Real bluebonnets were in the background, nice touch.
  • W was the most at ease I’ve ever seen him.
  • Laura was asked to come on stage, and Bono, ever the gentleman, helped her up.
  • W made a great point, neither of them appealed to the other’s bases. W didn’t say it, but he risked a lot more, political capital wise, with his base than Bono did his. Good for him for putting the needs of others over some sort of political capital. Man, there’s so much I disagree with W about but he really won me over.
  • Bono has made it a habit of turning down most awards but he thought in accepting this one he could highlight W’s accomplishments that many have overlooked.
• I posted a Dallas Morning News piece last week by Peggy Wehmeyer who wrote about losing her faith. Here are some letters to the editor about it.
• Google Photos is rolling out a friendlier and more powerful movie editor
• ‘The Simpson’s’ will break the ‘Gunsmoke’ longevity record this coming Sunday.
• This man is as sweet as syrup, I love the honesty – Hero customer rushes Waffle House killer and rips away his assault-style rifle
  • You know, it makes total sense, but I never considered how hot the barrel would be – Shaw was grazed by a bullet on his elbow while grappling with the gunman. He also burned his right hand grabbing the barrel of the weapon, which police called an “assault-type rifle.”
  • But Shaw, 29, insists he wasn’t heroic. He says he was actually being selfish.
    “I did that completely out of a selfish act,” Shaw told reporters on Sunday. “I was completely doing it just to save myself. I don’t want people to think that I was the Terminator or Superman or anybody like that. I figured if I was going to die, he was going to have to work for it.”
  • And he didn’t let this interrupt his Sunday routine – Still, that didn’t stop Shaw from going to church with his father Sunday morning, mere hours after he’d confronted the gunman.
  • In his interview with WSMV, Shaw broke down thinking about the people he couldn’t save and apologized to their families. “There’s four families that are grieving right now. So much life was lost for no reason. I feel like it could be very selfish of me if I didn’t point it out. And I apologize,” he said.
  • And her realizes how much bigger this event is than just him – “But I know it’s going to take time. I’m going to try to talk to some professional help, ’cause I know what I saw is probably not normal or average.”
• Wikipedia has added page previews for easier browsing
• That seal really wanted that fish.

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• Three months ago yesterday I had my spinal fusion surgery, and yesterday I visited my neurosurgeon for my three-month follow-up. I still feel moderate pain and discomfort, but the surgeon said as long as I’m comfortable, he doesn’t have any limitations for me, I’ll continue to heal little by little, and he sees no reason for a return visit. Personally, I feel I’m behind in recovery but my physical therapist said I should really evaluate myself at the six-month mark instead of the three-month.
• Netflix came close to buying Mark Cuban’s Landmark Theaters to screen their own movies.
• Inside Prison ‘Shark Tank,’ the Program Where Inmates Become Entrepreneurs
• Bono was in town yesterday, on the SMU campus, as a guest of President George W. Bush to receive an award from him, but the local news didn’t cover it to my surprise. If they did, it was hard to find, at least in the early evening hours. However, local news was on the SMU campus to cover a story about the university newspaper.
  
• YouTuber facing 2 years in prison after feeding homeless man toothpaste-filled Oreos
• Ben Bolt-Palito Blanco Elementary had Career Day and this little girl dressed up as a Whataburger employee.
  • Poll: White evangelical support for Trump at record high
• Dog’s ‘cancer’ turns out to be four teddy bears
• I never thought about how an airline’s insurance would get involved – Southwest passengers could collect millions after deadly ordeal
  • Johnson says lawyers for the passengers will most likely target Southwest Airlines as opposed to other parties involved such as Boeing or the engine’s builder, a joint-venture led by General Electric. By law, he said, Southwest has the “highest duty of care” toward the passengers they fly. Southwest’s insurance carriers likely will pay the bulk of any bill that comes due, he said.
• Trump’s Secret Service code name is “Mogal”. Melania’s is “Muse”. Bush 41’s was “Timberwolf” and his wife’s was “Tranquility” – Ex-Secret Service agent: Barbara Bush’s code name was absolutely perfect
• I felt this was worth noting for some reason. My apologies if you are offended by gluttony, pasta, dairy, carbs, or a woman wearing a bra. This is the first time I made a post that’s bookended by two blondes.
  

• We didn’t plan on dressing alike.
• BoyGeeding is going to be alright but he gave us a bit of a scare. He didn’t do anything to injure himself, but he started to experience severe pain in his left femur. It’s hard for a kindergartner to describe the type of pain he is in, but we thought it was a pulled muscle or one of those growing pains. However, it was worst the next morning and despite a great attitude, he really couldn’t walk so we took him to the doctor. The doctor ruled out sore muscles or any broken bones but sent us to an imaging facility to get x-rays and an ultrasound and then to a hospital to get a specialized blood test. The kid was a trooper, and I wish I could adequately express how proud I am of his manners as every nurse and technician complimented him on his respectfulness and politeness. In short, he’s got a case of toxic synovitis, which isn’t anything serious. It’s a temporary inflammation of the hip probably caused by a virus. But I’ll be honest, despite remaining calm or cautious or what have you, a lot of worse case scenario stuff was going through my head. I’m a prepare for the worst but hope for the best kinda guy.
• That kid sure enjoyed being pushed around a wheelchair.
• My kids may not be attractive, smart, or athletic, they have my genes to blame for that. But they will be respectful, polite, well mannered, work hard, and have a good attitude – that I can control.
• One “silly” goal I had as a parent was that none of my children would cry when getting a shot or having their drawn blood for the first time (other than being a baby and not cognizant of what’s going on). Mission accomplished. I work hard at explaining and preparing them for that moment, earning their trust and setting expectations.
• He got a little nervous, maybe even a little scared before his x-ray even though we were maybe ten feet away. He needed help with something and the nurse asked if he wanted his mom, but he said, “No, I want my dad.” I’ll cherish that moment for the rest of my life, kids always ask for their mamas.
• This Medieval Italian Man Replaced His Amputated Hand With a Weapon – Archaeologists have found a fascinating puzzle in the shape of a man’s remains dating back to medieval Italy. It looks like this guy went through life with a knife attached to his arm, in place of his amputated hand.
•  David Copperfield Lawsuit Leads to Revelations About Magician’s Act
• Chrome now mutes auto-playing videos by default
• Senator Hatch’s office staff gave me a good laugh:
  
• Solo: A Star Wars Story reminds us that no one knows how to say Han’s name
• That bridge looks as flimsy as the one in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom – Video: This Truck Crossing A Tiny Bridge With No Guardrails Is Making Our Palms Sweat
• This answered a lot of questions for me – How Southwest Flight 1380’s Pilots Landed With A Blown Engine
  • First, the pilots put on their own oxygen masks and make sure the air is flowing. Stored in consoles, these typically look more like what fighter pilots wear than the flimsy yellow cups that drop onto passengers. Then they start heading for the ground. People can breathe at around 15,000 feet, but pilots aim to get below 10,000 to be safe. They don’t want to push an already damaged airframe into a steep dive, but drop as quickly as possible.
  • The pilots don’t reach out to air traffic control until that descent is underway. “Something we teach students from day one is aviate, navigate, communicate—in that order,” 
  • The Southwest pilots landed at 190 miles per hour, about 30 mph faster than a typical touchdown. That’s because the pilots engaged the flaps at a lower angle than normal, to better control the damaged aircraft.
  •  A meteorologist was able to analyze weather radar data, and see the reflection of falling metal. Combined with estimated wind speeds, they correctly estimated where those bits would have landed, then went and got them.
• We are having fun with the chicks WifeGeeding brought home.
  

• WifeGeeding brought home some chicks last night, just not the kind of chicks I was imagining. Apparently, we are chicken-sitting until Thursday. Apparently, she doesn’t understand they tweet all the live long day and I work from home.
• DaughterGeeding wanted a photo of me with DogGeedingII, BunnyGeeding, and several of the chicks. I caved. DogGeedingII seems scared of them but BunnyGeeding has warmed up to them.
• One of the chicks is named Nugget.
• I think it would be somewhat cruel to cook any chicken until they leave. I don’t know if a chicken can smell, but off hand, I don’t think any species would like to smell the cooked flesh of its own kind.
• I’ve rediscovered Elvis and now I realize how much I miss singing the old gospel songs in church. All this contemporary church singing has worn thin on me. I’m not saying the church should only sing the gospels, just that we shouldn’t forget our past.
• How Liberty University Built a Billion-Dollar Empire Online – With a hard sell to prospective students and huge amounts in taxpayer funding, Jerry Falwell Jr. transformed the evangelical institution into a behemoth.
• What We Think Is Going To Kill Us Vs. What’s Actually Going To Kill Us, Visualized
• The TICKET interviewed one of the passengers from that Southwest Airlines flight yesterday. He said he quickly grabbed his wallet to find a credit card so he could log into WiFi so he could send a message to his loved ones. I think he also said he lived streamed it on Facebook or something like that.
• Unlike other airlines, Southwest doesn’t assign seats. Only one person died on that flight. I think it’s somewhat interesting how she chose that one seat out of all the seats she could have chosen.
• No one pays attention to the flight attendants announcement:
  
• Many would be surprised to know that was the passenger Southwest every lost due to a plane accident.
• A fantastic obituary of Harry Anderson.
• Amazon made an efficient Android browser called Internet, and it’s now available in India
• Late-Night Ratings: Stephen Colbert’s Lead Over Jimmy Fallon Is Bigger Than Ever
• GIF – Mommy muscle memory
• A particular rough patch in Barbara Bush‘s remarkable life, who was a distant relative of President Franklin Pierce:
  • In September 1949, Barbara’s parents were involved in a car accident in which her mother was instantly killed. Since she was pregnant, Barbara was advised not to travel from California to the funeral, and the event left a lasting scar. Three months later, the couple welcomed a second child, a daughter named Pauline Robinson Bush in honor of Barbara’s late mother. In October 1953, the child, nicknamed “Robin,” died of leukemia, leaving Barbara and her husband devastated. It was during this traumatic time that Barbara’s reddish-brown hair turned prematurely white.