Bag of Randomness for Thursday, September 10, 2015

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  • Savages scrunch their toilet paper, civilized people fold their toilet paper.
  • “From a major review site that you’ve heard of.”  – I hear that line in a commercial on The TICKET all the time and it sounds so odd it stops me down every time.  There’s probably a reason why they can’t state the name of the review site, but it just sounds funny.
  • I enjoyed listening to former President George W. Bush on The TICKET.  The Hardline guys seemed pretty at ease, but I bet it would have been a lot different if he was actually in studio as opposed to talking to him on the phone.  Heck, Corby actually called him “Buddy” at the end.  I don’t think he meant any disrespect, but he just felt really comfortable talking to the former president.  W did sound really at ease, and listening to him in this setting almost made it feel like a real like conversation and not an interview.  The way he told stories about 9/11 and other events in his presidency was in the same manner of talking to a friend about his fishing trip.
  • Ronda Rousey in ‘Road House’ Remake
  • I wasn’t aware county clerks made that kind of cash – Why Kim Davis makes $80,000 a year as Rowan County Clerk
  • First Baptist Church of Bedford has a “worship pastor” that’s in hot water – Investigators indicted Kyle Adcock on 20 counts of rape and 9 counts of sodomy back in January in Alabama. Investigators said the girl involved was 14 at the time.
  • Stephen Colbert Opens Up About His Devout Christian Faith, Islam, Pope Francis, and More – I almost put an asterisk next to “Christian” as some of my Evangelical friends don’t believe Catholics are Christians.  However, here’s one Colbert quote from the article regarding faith, “Faith ultimately can’t be argued, faith has to be felt. And hopefully you can still feel your faith fully, and let your mind have a logical life of its own, and they do not defy each other, but complement each other, because logic itself, I don’t think, for me, and you know—Aquinas might say differently—logic itself will not lead me to God. And, so, hopefully I can use my mind to make my jokes, and not deny my love for God at the same time.”
  • Thinking back to Colbert’s first show, by having Fallon included on two bits, and the manner in which he did them, it sure was a  “setting the tone” moment, and perhaps the final “passing of the torch” for as we forever leave Leno and Letterman behind.  It’s neat to see two friends get along, even though they are competing.
  • For some reason, part of Gov Jeb Bush’s interview was edited, and this part of him making mock Trump statements is actually funny.
  • Last night, Colbert had a segment that was a recycled version of Bill Maher’s “new rules” bit.  I was also surprised he hasn’t really introduced his band leader to us.  I mean, he’s said his name and pointed to him, but there really hasn’t been any back and forth or some kind of explanation on why he chose him and his background – or anyone else in the band for that matter.
  • Alice Walton is selling her Fort Worth ranch, but I didn’t know she sold the one in/near Mineral Wells a while back to a partnership that included a former SMU running back and Senate candidate – In 2006, she sold a ranch near Mineral Wells that she also called the Rocking W Ranch to a partnership that included ESPN sports broadcaster Craig James
  • State Fair of Texas hacks: 9 ways to snag discount tickets
  • HoustonChronicle.com – Disorder at the border – More state troopers are headed south, where they are already tripping over federal agents
  • ESPN’s tweet about Bill Belichick and his use of social media.
  • The one part that stood out to me the most about yesterday’s Apple event.
  • Another “I spent time in Heaven” movie comes out this weekend and is based on a Plano couple, one of which was a Baptist minister.  It stars Kate Bosworth and teen Darth Vadar.
  • iO9 – Everything We Know About Star Wars’ Post-Return of the Jedi Future
  • New owners for National Geographic –  The 127-year-old nonprofit National Geographic Society has struck a $725 million deal that gives 21st Century Fox a majority stake in National Geographic magazine and other media properties, expanding an existing TV partnership.
  • Billie Holiday is returning to the Apollo Theater as a hologram
Posted in Personal | 7 Comments

2016 Presidential Election – How do your beliefs align with the potential candidates?

iSideWith.com was started in March 2012 by two friends with two very different views of politics. We are constantly finding and building new ways to boost voter engagement and education using information, data, and breaking technologies.

That’s it! We are not affiliated with any investors, shareholders, political party or interest group.

If you share our passion for this project and would like to support it, share the site with your friends so we can educate more voters about your local and state representatives by Election Day (November 8th, 2016).

Try the quiz, here.

To increase the accuracy of answers, I’d suggest using both the “how important is this to you?” and “Other stances” options.

Below are my results and a sample of the data that you’ll see after completing the quiz.  There’s actually quite a bit of data you’ll get, but I didn’t want to bore you with all the details.

I was a bit surprised that Sanders appeared at the top of my list.  I couldn’t capture the entire list of candidates, but to no surprise, I least aligned with Ted Cruz.  But despite these results, I’m still undecided.  What it doesn’t take into consideration, is how I view a candidate’s ability to pass legislation and work across party lines.

Screenshot 2015-08-19 at 12.08.15 AM

Screenshot 2015-08-19 at 12.12.43 AM Screenshot 2015-08-19 at 12.11.33 AM

 

Posted in Political | 7 Comments

Bag of Randomness for Wednesday, September 9, 2015

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  • One of my neighbors asked if I could watch his house for two weeks when he goes back to Mexico for two weeks to visit family.  Yesterday I noticed his sprinklers were running, but one of them was a geyser.  I examined the broken unit and realized I had a spare part that would fix it, and in five or so minutes with just a little digging, it was as good as new.  I don’t expect anything in return, except maybe a thanks, but it’s just my idea of “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
  • We playfully call that neighbor and his wife NAFTA, since she’s from Canada.
  • Former Texas Rangers owner, George W. Bush, will be on The TICKET at 5:10 PM.
  • If I were to advise or provide counsel to Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk who was held in contempt of court for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses, I’d tell her to resign her job, sign a book deal, and go on the speaking circuit.  Resigning would show respect for law but show she’s taking a stand against a conflict of her faith, and she would be financially set for life. She probably wouldn’t be a millionaire, but she’d be comfortable and considered a hero in her circles.
  • I got some comments yesterday about what I wrote regarding TCU girls using Uber, and those comments broadened my perspective and now see how they may be more beneficial from a cost and safety perspective.  Using Uber eliminates the cost of a car, high insurance because of their age, and no parking costs, which can be crazy at college.  It also prevents them from driving while intoxicated, and I think it leaves a transaction trail of where the student is traveling.  Thanks to those that helped widen my view.
  • I caught ’60 Minutes Sports’ last night on Showtime and they had a segment on the main characters of the Friday Night Lights book, 25 years after its release.  Boobie Miles is now a rather large man serving time in prison, but his son is a really good player for one of the Irving schools.
  • I’m four episodes in watching ‘Mr. Robot’ on the USA Network and I now understand the hype.  I remember the lead actor as a very creepy soldier in HBO’s ‘The Pacific’ and was surprised he hasn’t been in more roles since that fantastic performance.
  • Within the last year, Jon Hamm has checked into rehab and split with his girlfriend of 18-years.  Method actor?
  • I’m ashamed I can’t come up with a clever headline – Waco Police: Fully Loaded Handgun Found in Female’s Vagina
  • Vanessa Williams to return to Miss America after 3 decades as head judge – Three decades after she gave up the crown amid a nude photo scandal, Vanessa Williams is returning to the Miss America pageant.
  • Benjamin L. Corey – What Jesus Meant When He Said, “I Didn’t Come To Bring Peace, But A Sword”
  • The True Size Of – Interactively compare the size of a country or state to another country or state.
  • DallasNews.com – Pictures of proposed skyscrapers north of downtown Dallas cause a stir in cyberspace
  • @NFLonFOX – I will go to my grave saying Tom Brady knew that the balls were deflated’ – @TroyAikman on @TheHerd
  • Dallas couple says newborn was switched in El Salvador – Thankfully they have been reunited with their baby, but get this about the doctor that delivered the baby – Doctor arrested in El Salvador, accused of masterminding kidnapping of newborn baby
  • Voice of Big Tex confronts State Fair of Texas president to get his job back
  • FiveThirtyEight – The 100 Most-Edited Wikipedia Articles
  • Whisky returns from space with enhanced flavor
  • ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’
    • Stephen Colbert recently changed his Twitter avatar to a picture of him and his wife kissing.
    • I thought the opening skit could have been better, but I loved the Jon Stewart cameo.  He also serves as an executive producer.
    • The new set is bright, patriotic, and tall, as in it looks like it will get two story use.  Dave had the performance area stage left with his desk stage right, Stephen has it the other way around.
    • He does the voice over for his opening credits, which I’m uncomfortable with, and the opening music didn’t do much for me.
    • He seemed a bit uncomfortable with the monolog, but I’m sure he’ll get the hang of it.  His comfort zone is behind the desk, and that was noticeable. Dave was also not great with the monolog and excelled at the desk.  I think Carson, Leno, and Conan were the best when it came to the monolog. The Les Mooves/Mentalist bit was good.  I’m also glad Stephen still has a bit of a fake format to his after commercial bit, it a strength and kinda trademark.  But he probably should have use that time to interact with his band leader, Jon Batiste, and introduce him to us.
    • It was very cool to see he and Fallon do a bit.  If you watched until the closing credits, you got to see Fallon appear again in a cute lockerroom bit.
    • I’m not a fan of the lighted background behind his desk, it’s a bit distracting.  I also think the band area looks clumsy and unorganized.  The music had too much of a New Orleans jazz feel.  I can understand that to an extent, but it seemed to be present all the time.
    • I was surprised his first show ran long, and the show certainly is geared towards a younger audience.
    • I miss having a top ten list, even if they sometimes sucked.
Posted in Personal | 7 Comments