Bag of Randomness for Monday, February 15, 2016

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  • Happy Presidents’ Day, folks.
  • WifeGeeding did something sweet for Valentine’s Day, and the best part, it didn’t cost a thing. Since January 1, she’s written in a journal every day noting something I did that she appreciated and let me read all the entries yesterday. It was her way of showing me that she’s not overlooking the things I bring as a father and husband.
  • BoyGeeding turns four years old tomorrow, but he had his Paw Patrol themed birthday party on Saturday. He’s got a crush on one of the girls in the neighborhood, who’s a tad older than him.  I love this picture of him flirting with her. I’ve touted my love of Google Photos before and how they will surprise you with a video they’ll create out of pictures and videos taken during a particular time or location. It’s not always a home run, but they do a good job. At the bottom of the post is their video of his birthday party. In case you are wondering why he was crying, he blew out his candles before we sang “Happy Birthday” and was upset that he did something wrong when we told him he had to do it again.
  • I found out this weekend my father-in-law is in a political campaign television commercial.
  • Our neighbors from Mexico, as an entire family, rang our doorbell on Saturday and informed us they officially became United States citizens earlier in the day at a morning ceremony and invited us to a fiesta in their backyard that evening. It was one heck of a fiesta, complete with a mariachi band and a mechanical bull. I remember going to my mother’s ceremony and not quite understanding why she teared up, but I get it now, and I keep her certificate in a special place.
  • HGTV has a show called ‘Fixer Upper’ which is shot in Waco and showcases several Baylor grads. I’ve only had the show on twice, but each time, WifeGeeding mentions she knows one of the supporting crew. One was a classmate, and another took her to a formal. Yup, instead of living a mediocre life in Lewisville, she could have been a bit player on a reality show.
  • So, so many Scalia thoughts. But the best one I read this weekend stuck with me, and from all places, it came from Twitter, “He earned his legacy.” There are so many ways you can take that, and they are all true. In a ’60 Minutes’ interview, he said he could be both charming and combative, and that was certainly true.
  • David Axelrod was a senior advisor to President Obama. He wrote a piece yesterday honoring Justice Scalia and stated he was seated next to him at a White House Correspondents Association dinner seven years ago. Obama was in the process of selecting a replacement for retiring Justice Souter and Scalia surprisingly suggested Elana Kagan. Obama ended up nominating Sonia Sotomayer, but eventually nominated Kagan when Justice Stevens retired.
  • One of my old mentors called me yesterday to tell me that his father died a few hours ago. It meant a lot to me that he thought enough of me to let me know such a thing. He also stated that his father’s brother’s wife died eight hours prior.
  • I’m a paying member of the U2 fan club, and I mainly keep my membership so I can get early access to concert tickets before they go on sale to the general public. However, their last tour didn’t come remotely close to Texas. My membership dues are about to expire, and I might just not renew them.
  • Southwest employees score big on record profit share – Each eligible employee will receive 15.6 percent of his or her yearly salary — equivalent to eight weeks’ pay — as a bonus as part of the $620 million profit share. The money will be funded April 29. – There’s so much I love about that company, and even though I was only a contractor for them, it was a pleasure.
  • Google will shut down Picasa this spring – A not-at-all-surprising Google spring cleaning announcement – I’m curious as to when they’ll stop supporting Blogger, but since they make most of their announcements off the platform, they may stick with it.
  • The Foods Successful Dieters Eat More Of, According to MyFitnessPal
  • Russian Orthodox Church allowed to return debt in prayers
  • NY Times (Opinion) – Death, the Prosperity Gospel and Me
  • Today’s dose of ‘MURICA!
  • Imgur – Church gave out prepackaged communion
  • This Dallas Morning News article has a picture that caught my attention. Heart transplant patients are holding their old hearts. And with heart health in mind . . . .
  • We tried a new barbeque place yesterday, 3 Stacks Smoke and Tap House, which is close to Stonebriar Centre in Frisco. An acquaintance recommended it and stated they served beef ribs, so I was all in.
    • I was immediately concerned when we walked in because we were greeted by a hostess who took us to a table to be waited on and order off a menu. While I’m no expert on BBQ and just a fan, I never heard of a BBQ joint with tableside service. Tradition dictates no tableside service, you simply wait in line and look at a menu that’s displayed up high for all to see and pay the cashier before you go to your seat.
    • They start you off with rolls and cornbread with sugar sprinkled on top. They were OK, nothing spectacular.
    • The beef rib had a nice char but it wasn’t cooked long enough since some parts were too chewy, the same goes for the moist brisket. The rub tasted like they were trying to go for something sweet with just a bit of kick, but it just didn’t work.
    • The pork ribs were very meaty, but like the beef rib, it  wasn’t cooked long enough as the connective tissue and other stuff didn’t have time to melt. The sauce was the rib was a bit too tangy and took away from the smokey flavor, which makes me think they were trying to hide something with their smoking method.
    • I prefer eating BBQ without sauce, but I always give it a try. Their version was vinegar based, so I wasn’t a fan. WifeGeeding thought the potato salad was good and the fries were pretty solid, but their cheesy corn tasted like a combination of creamed corn and queso.
    • We should have driven a few more miles up the street to our preferred Hutchins.

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Pitchers will wear new protective headwear during Spring Training

ESPN is reporting MLB is set to roll out a new set of protective headwear for pitchers in Spring Training, as 20 pitchers will get a new hybrid helmet cap which was made collaboratively by MLB and the MLB Players Association. The product is designed to be lighter than the previous incarnations, which drew criticism […]

Source: Pitchers will wear new protective headwear during Spring Training

Only one pitcher wore one last year.

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