About Source Weekly
Sorry, no listings were found.
What I Heard This Week 05-11-2023
So. Mr. Augie from Jets.com continues to send me enticing emails trying his best to convince me that I need a private aviation choice in my future, and he really wants to be the person that signs me up with my very own Jet Card, allowing me the freedom to fly where I want to… when I want to. What a deal! Most recently he offered me one FREE hour with the purchase of a 20-hour Jet Card. These guys are pretty flexible and just want to ensure that I purchase the best program for my needs. 😊 Oh, did I mention there is no added taxi-time, no expiration date, and no de-icing fees, along with guaranteed availability. Do you think I should let them know that I’m pretty satisfied for now, just jetting around town in my trusty 2012 Buick with 120,000 miles.
Sunday clears away the rust of the whole week. – Joseph Addison
If you are presently doing your part and trying to stick with sustainable seafood, don’t buy mackerel. Northeast Atlantic mackerel is now unsustainable (upsetting the ecological balance by depleting natural resources). According to the Marine Conservation Society’s (MCS) Good Fish Guide, “Populations of mackerel in the past have been large enough to withstand fishing, however, in recent years the population has been in steady decline,” so mackerel is no longer a sustainable choice. The problem is the ocean ecosystems, already pressured from the climate crisis, needs mackerel, because tuna, whales and dolphins all rely on it for their diets. Wild-caught Pacific salmon and North Sea herring are both good mackerel replacements. Then there is eel. Japan consumes more than 70% of the global eel catch, but the population has declined by as much at 95% in the past decade, so now is the time to stop eating eel. Period.
Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive on Saturday May 13th. Place a bag of nonperishable food next to your mailbox and your letter carrier will manage the rest. #StampOutHunger. This is your last reminder.
Although the Ticketmaster platform website crashed immediately after presale started on November 15, 2022, over 2.4 million tickets to the Taylor Swift Eras Tour were sold that day, breaking the record for the most concert tickets sold by an artist in a single day. Taylor Swift describes her new concert as a journey through the musical eras of her career past and present. It was also her first concert tour since 2018 because of covid. Needless to say, my college kids were more than excited that they were able to get tickets. So, following a four-hour storm delay in Nashville on Sunday, Taylor Swift delivered the full 45–song (yep – 45 songs) Eras Tour performance that ran until 1:30 in the morning. I know all this because my daughter was in Nashville with friends at the stadium, sheltering-in-place (the bathroom) through an unbelievable thunder and lightning storm, until they were finally given permission to find their seats. It was Taylor Swift’s third and final show in Nashville, and it sure looks and sounds like the group got their money’s worth. A concert to remember forever. Ahh, but to be young again, sitting in the rain and loving it. My son will attend one of three concerts outside Boston next week. Lucky kids.
This past weekend was the 149th Kentucky Derby. But did you know a total of seven horses died the week of the race at Churchill Downs. The first death occurred April 29. Three-year-old Code of Kings appeared to be fixated on lights at a nearby DJ booth, fell and flipped repeatedly, breaking his neck. Then Take Charge, Briana, and Wild on Ice were euthanized after being hurt. Two more horses; Parents Pride and Chasing Artie, also died this past week under mysterious circumstances. Their trainer has been suspended indefinitely for the “unexplained sudden deaths,” and was suspended indefinitely from all state tracks (can’t wait to hear more about that story). On Saturday, two more horses, Chloe’s Dream and Freezing Point, were euthanized after sustaining race injuries which appeared irrecoverable. The deaths of all the horses are currently under investigation. Track conditions were not to blame. Hmmm.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: TV personality Willie Geist of Today Show is 48. Actor Christina Hendricks of Mad Men is 48. Actor Dule’ Hill of Psych is 48. Country singer Stella Parton is 74. Younger sister of Dolly. Singer Jackie Jackson of The Jacksons is 72. Singer-actor Pia Zadora is 71. Actor Mary McDonough of The Waltons is 62. Newsman Brian Williams is 64. Singer Bob Seger is 78. His recording of Old Time Rock and Roll was named one of the Songs of the Century in 2001. Singer Jimmie Dale Gilmore of The Flatlanders is 78. Singer and comedian Lulu Roman of Hee Haw is 77. Actor Roma Downey of Touched by an Angel is 63. Actor George Clooney is 62. Country singer Tim McGraw is 56. Singer Lou Gramm of Foreigner is 73. Actor Christine Baranski of Momma Mia! is 71. Wrestler-actor Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock is 51. Singer Frankie Valli of The Four Seasons is 89. (I saw him about 5 months ago – he still puts on a great concert – thank you, Redford). Sports announcer Greg Gumbel is 77. Singer Mary Hopkin is 73. Her 1968 hit, Those Were the Days My Friend. Singer Christopher Cross is 72. Ride Like the Wind and Sailing.
Jim Harithas died at 90. Along with his late wife, he co-founded the Station Museum of Contemporary Art and the Art Car Museum, changing Houston forever. He was considered to be the most influential force on the Houston art scene over the past 50 years.
There is a pillow in my office that my sister gave me many, many years ago. It says, “God made us sisters. Heart made us friends.” The pillow is tattered and worn, but I still keep it close to me because it speaks the truth. My sister is three years younger, and much tougher than me. She works for the sheriff’s office in Georgetown, drives a big truck and raises chickens in the country. Our politics are different… but we agree to disagree, as everyone should, but doesn’t. Last night as I pulled into my driveway before dark, I sent her a message, “Are you going to sit on the porch tonight?” We sit on our porches several times a month. I even ordered a new porch chair because I wanted to be comfortable on these impromptu evenings. So, I walked Teller until she sent me a text asking if I was ready yet. As I walked back to my house, I sent her pictures of beautiful things I saw… a shrimp plant, a magnolia tree and a single fragrant flower from that tree, a gorgeous picture of the creek, white roses, a friend’s creatively planted backyard, my yard full of flowers and a single, very vibrant red poppy; then I poured myself a glass of wine. Teller and I hurried to the front porch to visit. Dani and I sent pictures of our kids, and her grandkids happenings this week, old pictures that completed or complimented parts of our conversations, along with a can of Big Red from my refrigerator. Our Grandma always said as we arrived at her house to visit, “well, go out to the garage and get you a Big Red.” And we did! For the most part, our conversations last night were entirely about our grandparents, where they lived when we were growing up and how much we would love to own that house… a very simple place, well arranged, on a lake, situated on an old golf course from the 1920’s. The best place to visit and enjoy. But mostly we talked about how much we miss the two best grandparents in the world and how much we wish they were here to see us and our families. Grandma died of breast cancer in her 80’s and grandaddy died of the flu at almost 96. They were absolutely the best – not ever replaceable by any current members of our family, if you know what I mean. My suggestion to you is to do the same. It doesn’t have to be family; it could be a friend or neighbor. Let the washing machine, dinner, and clean sheets on the bed wait. Find someone you adore and sit on your front porch talking and texting on your phone. It’s so close to actually having them right next to you, except the driving time is not as bad and you don’t have to brush your teeth. 😊
Lionsgate Television is currently developing a TV adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s best-selling Twilight series. Sinead Daly (The Walking Dead) has been hired to write script for the series. Yes, I read them all. The first Wicked film won’t appear in theaters until November 2024, but it will be exciting to see Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard, Arianna Grande as Glinda and Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, as they tell the story of the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West, with songs like Popular and Defying Gravity. It’s now officially the fourth-longest running Broadway show of all time, surpassing Andrew Lloyd Weber’s Cats. 79-year-old Robert DeNiro just revealed that he is now a dad of seven after recently welcoming his seventh baby. No baby-momma mentioned. After massive lay-offs (25%), parent company Paramount shut down 36-yr-old MTV News, blaming “pressure from broader economic headwinds.” Remember, I Want My MTV.
A US health panel now recommends that women get every-other-year screening mammograms at age 40 instead of age 50. Senator Dianne Feinstein’s office announced that she is returning to Washington following an absence of more than two months because of complications from shingles. Rep. George Santos has been arrested on federal criminal charges including fraud and lying to Congress. About time.
BuzzFeed: “A good friend of mine who had just moved to the US kept hearing about ice cream sandwiches, but never actually saw one in person. He decided to try one on his own by putting ice cream between two pieces of Wonder bread. He didn’t care for it.”
A 44-yr-old California man, falsely claimed to be a licensed doctor for years, treating thousands of people. An undercover investigator scheduled a consultation in 2022, noting that “the doctor” failed to address abnormal levels of hormone that would indicate a serious medical condition. He has been released pending an investigation but cannot practice medicine. Giggle. Really?
A jury has found Donald Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming E. Jean Carroll, journalist, author, and advice columnist, awarding her $5 million in damages. Trump’s fall was probably mistaking Carroll for one of his wives, Marla Maples, in a photograph, after saying E. Jean Carroll was not his type during a taped deposition, and after being caught on a hot mic talking about how he likes to kiss and grope beautiful women without waiting for them to consent… because he is a star. The judge gave Trump an opportunity to change his mind and file a motion to request to testify in his defense, but no motion was filed to do so.
This sounds like fun. The Spring Wedding Oak Wine Train (Austin Steam Train) leaves Cedar Park, then weaves (2 hours) through the South San Gabriel River area while you enjoy conversation and a tasting-sized flight of 5 wines from the Wedding Oak wine family. Upon your arrival in Burnet, there is a 2-hour layover at the Wedding Oak tasting room along with food and wine for purchase, then relax and get ready to enjoy the train ride back to the Cedar Park Depot. Ages 21 and up. Departs 11 – Returns 5pm. 512-915-2340.
Life doesn’t come with a manual; it comes with a mother. Unknown
Happy Mother’s Day to all the good moms out there. Thank you for reading and shopping with us this week, and every week. We appreciate you. Don’t forget that you have until May 15th to protest your property taxes. That’s Monday. We must ALL do this! Please.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 05-04-2023
The Walt Disney Company is suing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and other state officials, alleging that DeSantis is harming Disney’s business operations with a targeted campaign of government retaliation. A DeSantis hand-picked board voted to dissolve the 1967 state law that was established where Disney has control over design and construction decisions of the 27,000-acre theme park near Orlando. The irony is that Disney’s private inspections are far stricter than any state safety parameters, and Disney is one of Florida’s largest employers. On any given day, there are as many as 350,000 people on the property as visitors, overnight hotel guests, and employees, plus the 55-year-old district manages the traffic, disposal of waste and mosquito control of what is actually a midsize city. DeSantis has even discussed building a state prison near Disneyland, just to show them… Hmmm. Did you know that a male dog lifts his leg to urinate in order to mark his territory? Sometimes it is called a scent-mark. The higher they lift their leg; the stronger message they think they are leaving for the next dog. I have no idea why this came to mind.
What is it you plan to do with your ONE wild and precious life? Mary Oliver
Several people have questioned me over the past few weeks about recycling. I will remind you that the Lion’s Club at LJ City Hall has a container for all soft plastic and when they get 500 pounds, they’re going to receive benches made out of the common packaging material. Now soft plastic can be many things, so if it’s plastic and you can scrunch it in your hand, it’s likely to be soft plastic and can be recycled. Dry cleaner bags, bubble wrap inside envelopes, the little plastic pull-off lid on tomato packages, grocery bags, potato bags, Ziploc bags, newspaper bags – it is endless. Once you start collecting it, you can’t stand to throw away something because you know it is NOT compostable. It will be around for a long, long, time. Is it more work than throwing it in the trash? Of course, it is more work. Anything worth doing is probably more work. Throwing something in the trash is the lazy way to be and I feel confident that at this point in time and with the information you have about the damage we are doing to the Earth; you know it’s the right thing to do. Just saying. I feel like we have to do this for the children that we are leaving with this huge mess.
A woman’s perfume tells more about her than her handwriting. – Christian Dior
Singer Willie Nelson is 90 years-old. He had one heck of a two-day birthday party last week with … Snoop Dogg, The Chicks, Keith Richards, George Strait, Leon Bridges, Gary Clark Jr., Kris Kristofferson, Tom Jones, Ziggy Marley, Warren Haynes, Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Norah Jones, Rosanne Cash, Lyle Lovett, Edie Brickell, Miranda Lambert, Chris Stapleton, Sheryl Crow, and so many more. Micah Nelson, son of Willie and at age 32, one of the youngest artists on the bill, provided great insight for all ages on this milestone Willie birthday. “Honestly, I don’t think my dad would have made it to ninety without all of you,” he told the crowd. “The music is what keeps him alive, and y’all keep the music alive.” Nice.
The Little Mermaid, visionary filmmaker Rob Marshall’s live-action reimaging of the studio’s Oscar-winning animated musical classic, opens in theaters nationwide May 26, 2023. Aerosmith just announced their Farewell Tour.
Chappell Hill Lavender Farm has so many fun things to do… quilt your own tote bag, lavender growing class, painting class on the deck, and more depending on the time of year and the weather.
Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive on Saturday May 13th. Place a bag of nonperishable food next to your mailbox and your letter carrier will handle the rest. #StampOutHunger
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Country singer Randy Travis is 64. Actor Talia Shire of The Godfather and Rocky is 78. Guitarist-songwriter Duane Eddy is 85. Comedian Jerry Seinfeld is 69. Guitarist Ace Frehley of Kiss is 72. Singer Sheena Easton is 64. Actor-singer Ann-Margret is 82. Former Tonight Show host Jay Leno is 73. TV personalities Drew and Jonathan Scott of The Property Brothers are 45. Singer Tommy James of Tommy James and the Shondells is 76. Singer Kate Pierson of the B-52′s is 75. Singer Herbie Murrell of The Stylistics is 74. Singer Gary Wright is 80. Dream Weaver.
Actor Daniel Day-Lewis is 66. Actor Michelle Pfeiffer is 65. Singer Englebert Humperdinck is 87. Country singer Larry Gatlin is 75. Actor Burt Young is 83. Rocky Balboa’s brother-in-law and best friend Paulie Pennino. Singer Merrill Osmond of The Osmonds is 70. Actor Sam Heughan of Outlander is 43. Singer Judy Collins is 84. Someday Soon, Chelsea Morning, Turn! Turn! Turn! And her biggest success, Send in the Clowns. Singer Rita Coolidge is 78. Your Love Keeps Lifting Me Higher. Comedian Jerry Seinfeld is 69. Singer Maurice Williams of Maurice and the Zodiacs is 85.
Folk-rock legend Gordon Lightfoot, called a lyrical storyteller, died at 84. He was a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music and is credited with helping to define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s. Lightfoot’s biographer Nicholas Jennings said, “His name is synonymous with timeless songs about trains and shipwrecks, rivers and highways, lovers and loneliness.” Early Morning Rain, Beautiful, If You Could Read My Mind (my favorite), or the very beautiful Pussywillows, Cat Tails.
Beloved Betty White, first lady of television, and her husband Allen Ludden, bought their Brentwood home in the 60’s. It was a five-bedroom, six-bath, 3,029 sq-ft. home built in 1952, with a pool. Betty White lived there until her death December 31, 2021, at age 99. Pictures of the house showed a beautiful home, obviously not beautiful enough by today’s standards… I guess. Did I mention that it sold recently for $10.7 million dollars, then someone bulldozed it to the ground so a new house could be built. ☹ Aww.
Disgraced sex offender Harvey Weinstein (’s) former 5.7-ac. 9,000-sq-ft. Connecticut house with 550 feet of frontage on the Long Island Sound, has been demolished. He liquidated assets and the property sold for $16 million. It is now back on the market as two separate parcels of land with an asking price totaling $21-million. That’s a little more understandable.
A mom influencer is someone who gives parenting advice to other people online. It’s social media and it’s a business. They make money by how many people pay attention to them. A California “mom influencer” who claimed on Instagram in 2020 that a Latino couple tried to kidnap her two children has been convicted and could end up in jail for six months. The influencer posted a video on Instagram, adding details about the alleged “near” abduction that she had not reported to police. She said she was raising awareness. The post went viral. She even accused a couple of lingering by her car saying she was paralyzed by fear. Police released video images of the couple from surveillance, but the couple recognized themselves, came forward and denied the allegations. The mom influencer said she had misinterpreted the events. I wonder if she received enough attention.
A new bride was killed just hours after her wedding when an intoxicated 25-year-old woman driving 65-mph in a 25-mile per hour zone, crashed into a golf cart heading home after her wedding. Her husband had multiple broken bones and a brain injury requiring surgery. The driver of the car was arrested on three counts of felony DUI and one count of reckless homicide.
Former NFL player and Texas Democratic Rep. Colin Allred announced his 2024 Senate campaign against Ted Cruz. A dad caught a foul ball at a Dodgers game all while juggling a baby and his beer. It was amazing. San Francisco-based First Republic Bank became the third midsize bank to fail in two months, but FDIC approved a deal where the bank was purchased by JPMorgan Chase, and no one missed a beat. The Disneyland 45-ft. Fantasmic Dragon caught fire during mid-show just as Micky Mouse was so close to defeating the fire-breathing dragon named Maleficent. Six workers were treated for smoke inhalation. Question: How can an undocumented person even obtain an AR-15 rifle? Texas and the US need safer gun laws.
The 2023 Met Gala… annual fundraising event for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute. The event is organized by Anna Wintour, the first Monday of May (unless a pandemic hits), and celebrities and designers show off their best and sometimes craziest fashion on the red carpet. It is sometimes called the Super Bowl of Fashion. It started in 1948. Since the 70’s, the theme of the gala has centered around an accompanying exhibit or designer. This year it was a tribute to superstar designer Karl Lagerfeld who died in 2019. Lagerfeld, known for making controversial and hurtful remarks about various topics, such as calling Adele “too fat“, expressing annoyance with #MeToo movement, saying models who complained about sexual harassment should “go to a nunnery“, even blaming Kim Kardashian for being robbed at gunpoint. His controversial beliefs sparked anger among many people after it was announced the Gala would be dedicated to him. Instead of skipping the event, some that were offended just wore pink outfits, because he hated pink. However, the Met Gala raised a record $17.4 million this year. Obviously, many were NOT offended. Tickets to attend cost at least $30,000 to $50,000 – each. If you wanted to reserve a table, those were $275,000 to $500,000. It’s estimated the Gala costs about $3.5 million to throw. Supposedly, Yahoo paid $3 million for two tables.
James Comisar has been a collector of TV memorabilia since 1989. A massive temperature-controlled collection. Set to be auctioned is The Johnny Carson set from The Tonight Show. The bar where Sam Malone greeted customers on Cheers (he found it in studio storage with a dead skunk in it), the pink outfit that Barbara Eden wore in I Dream of Jeannie. The timeworn living room from Archie and Edith Bunker’s All in the Family. Barware from Mad Men. Tools used to cook meth on Breaking Bad. Costumes from Star Trek. Costumes and props from the 1960s TV series Batman. Gilligan’s Island. Eventually, there is big money in the entertainment memorabilia market. Heritage Auctions.
Andy Warhol worked on an Athletes Series of portraits of sports personalities in 1977. One of them was star running back of the Buffalo Bills: O.J. Simpson, age 30, who showed up without a football or a jersey. The series included Muhammad Ali, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Chris Evert, Rod Gilbert, O.J. Simpson, Pelé, Tom Seaver, Willie Shoemaker, Dorothy Hamill, and Jack Nicklaus. The Simpson work will be on display May 6-15 in NY before auction. It is estimated it will sell in the $300,000 to $500,000 range. Simpson will not have rights to any proceeds. An iconic image of Marilyn Monroe by Andy Warhol is coming to auction in May, with Christie’s auction house estimating the sell at $200 million. The silkscreen image known as “Shot Sage Blue Marilyn,” a close-up of Monroe with her hair in yellow, her eyeshadow blue and her lips red. If it meets estimates, the 1964 painting would be the most expensive 20th-century artwork to be auctioned.
Freda Filipp retired from LJ post office last week. We will miss her happy, smiling face so much. Sweet Dawn retired last year, and all these years later, I still miss Joe Marshall. Thanks for reading us. Don’t forget the Kentucky Derby and the Coronation of King Charles.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 04-27-2023
It’s no secret that property taxes in Texas are among the highest in the nation. According to my Google research assistant, the highest property rate in Texas is Fort Bend @ 2.23%. The average property tax rate in Texas is 1.80%. (Hawaii is 0.28% – Colorado 0.51% – quite a difference.) Which leads me to Brazoria County at 2.03%. Did your personal property increase in evaluation this year to the point where you’re wondering if it even makes sense to own property? A public meeting is scheduled for May 1st at the Lake Jackson Civic Center 6-8 pm. Monday night. This Monday night! For more information call 979-415-4859. We must question some of our evaluations. For the past year, plus some, we have had massive amounts of construction in downtown Lake Jackson. So much construction… roads blocked, turnarounds asphalted over the medians, jackhammering all day long. It’s been a battle to keep our office clean, vacuum cleaners clogged up with dirt that we bring in from outside. There are days I can taste the grit in my mouth. Our customers couldn’t even figure out how to get to us most of the time. But now downtown is finished (well, kind of finished) with this phase of work, and soon we will have great new streets and sidewalks for everyone’s enjoyment… but not our Parking Way Street; we don’t even have streetlights that work over here. But if my 5th grade math is still good, I figured the evaluation on The Source Weekly building still went up 2.5% this year. More than Fort Bend, the highest property rate in Texas. Be sure to show up on Monday evening and let’s see if we can be educated in the proper way to lower our appraisal values. May 1st. This Monday! It’s just your money. 😊
For those of you that have been regular customers through the years, you may remember Kay. She has retired to Tennessee now (she said she lives in Mayberry), but if you ever met her, you’d remember her. When you walked through our front door, she remembered your name and your kids and a story about your grandma, or your brother. She was also very straightforward, frank and to the point. It was either black or white. Kay sent me the following joke today and said she thinks it was a conversation that she and I had one day. If it wasn’t the exact conversation, it was really close. I’m still laughing. We do miss Kay… most of the time.
Me: Did you call a customer dumb today?
Kay: No. I said, “are you dumb”? I was asking him.
Me: Do you think that was appropriate?
Kay: Very much so.
Do you ever wonder (you know, on days you have nothing better to do…) if there could possibly be any unclaimed money just waiting for you somewhere. You know, a forgotten safe deposit box, bank account, dividends, or uncashed paychecks. I remember years ago, someone notifying my mother there was unclaimed money for my sister because a neighbor couple had opened a savings account for her when she was born. Go to UnClaimed.org. It will direct you to the state you are interested in. MissingMoney.com or usa.gov/unclaimed-money. I’ll let you know about my fees later. 😊
We won’t have a society if we destroy the environment. Margaret Mead
Two African flamingo birds (banded as No. 492 and 347) escaped from the Zoo in Wichita on a stormy night in June 2005, almost 18 years ago. Employees had not yet clipped the birds’ wings to prevent them from flying, a painless procedure that is repeated yearly. Just like us getting a haircut. Zoo officials tried for a week to recapture them. Then in March 2022, No. 492, also known as Pink Floyd, was spotted around Cox Bay between Palacios and Port Lavaca. An environmental activist took a video knowing that flamingos don’t exist in the local wild, and Texas Parks and Wildlife were able to identify by reading the leg band. Wasn’t there a Pink Floyd song, Learning to Fly?
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Lee Majors of Six Million Dollar Man is 84. Actor Eve Plumb of The Brady Bunch is 65. Singer Carnie Wilson of Wilson Phillips is 55. Singer Bobby Vinton is 88. Blue Velvet. Actor Olivia Hussey is 72. Romeo and Juliet. Actor Hayley Mills is 77. Actor James Woods is 76. Actor Rick Moranis is 70. Actor Elinor Donahue of Father Knows Best is 86. Keyboardist Alan Price of The Animals is 81. Actor Tim Curry is 77. Singer Mark “Flo” Volman of The Turtles is 76. Actor Ashley Judd is 55. Singer Iggy Pop is 76. Actor Patti LuPone is 74. Actor Tony Danza is 72. Actor Andie MacDowell is 65. Actor-director John Cameron Mitchell of Hedwig and the Angry Inch is 60. Actor Jack Nicholson is 86. Singer Mel Carter is 84. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me. Director John Waters is 77. He wrote and directed the comedy film Hairspray, which was an international success and was later adapted into a hit Broadway musical. Singer Peter Frampton is 73. Humble Pie. Keyboardist Craig Frost of Grand Funk Railroad is 75.
Actor-comedian Carol Burnett is 90. Actor Kate Hudson is 44. Actor George Takei of Star Trek is 86. Actor Ryan O’Neal is 82. Actor Jessica Lange is 74. Actor Clint Howard is 64. Actor Joyce DeWitt of Three’s Company is 74. Actor Valerie Bertinelli is 63. Actor Shirley MacLaine is 89. Actor-singer-director Barbra Streisand is 81. Country singer Duane Allen of The Oak Ridge Boys is 80. Drummer Doug Clifford of Creedence Clearwater Revival is 78. Bassist Stu Cook of Creedence Clearwater Revisited is 78. Country singer Richard Sterban of the Oak Ridge Boys is 80. Actor Al Pacino is 83. He turned down playing Han Solo in Star Wars because he couldn’t understand the script. Singer Bjorn Ulvaeus of ABBA is 78.
Happy 80th birthday to Ralph O’Henley. Happy birthday Emma Jean! We love y’all!
Barry Humphries, best known for his creation of his gladioli-waving alter-ego drag character Dame Edna Everage, died at 89. He charmed and roasted celebrities, always wore outrageous eyewear, was a fashion icon, and greeted you with “Hello, Possums.” If you want to have a giant laugh, pull up Dame Edna and Tom Jones discuss plastic surgery. In fact, last night I sat on my front porch and watched several videos of his personal appearances on talk shows and laughed until I had tears in my eyes. What a treasure! Len Goodman, a professional ballroom dancer from England, and beloved judge on Dancing with the Stars, died at 78. Harry Belafonte died at 96. He was an activist, multi-platinum selling singer (Day-O, the Banana Boat Song and over 30 albums released), humanitarian, actor, producer and EGOT holder for his Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards. He also helped organize the Grammy-winning song, We Are the World. Judy Farrell, actress and writer best known for her role as Nurse Able on M*A*S*H, died at 84. She was in the series from 1976 to 1983 and shared screen-time with Mike Farrell, her then-husband, who played Capt. B.J. Hunnicutt on the show.
Day 12 without chocolate, lost hearing in my left eye.
A Russian supersonic fighter-bomber accidently dropped a bomb on its own city of Belgorod, Russia, near the Ukrainian border last week injuring three people and creating a massive crater 65 feet across. Just hate that… bombing innocent people, then having the bomb accidently dropped on your own country.
Residents of Brigantine, New Jersey thought that the rumors heard around town about Trump playing a round of golf at their local country club, were true. Nah. It was just a Trump impersonator having fun. During spring break, the Red Circle Ice Cream in Houston brought back their seasonal Crawfish Ice Cream, by popular demand, of course. There is no crawfish in the actual ice cream, just flecks of deliciousness like garlic, butter, cayenne, and paprika, then they place one crawfish on top of the scoop. Better get in line next year. Biden made it official. He’s running again in 2024.
Tucker Carlson is out at Fox News. One article said that it is not related to the $787 million settlement Fox has to pay Dominion Voting Systems over Carlson’s coverage of the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol and his conspiracy theory that it was provoked by government agents, but I sure bet it helped Murdoch make the decision. The Murdoch firm paid a secret phone-hacking settlement to Prince William In 2020. A Japanese company lost contact with their spacecraft during a moon landing this week.
To RJ, my pen pal that shares notes, jokes, and thoughts on quilting, but has never signed a name or given me an address, I thank you for your lovely final note. This sweet person said, “After reading your column for many a long time, I have come to conclusion that you are a very kind person. You care about our planet, the people in it and the creatures who share it with us (although I am not a great love of ants and poisonous snakes). You support your community and try to shop locally when possible. The world would be a wonderful place to live if everyone took after you, and the Amish way of life, so it is my prayer that the Lord bless you mightily, not only in 2023 but for the remainder of your days. I remain a faithful reader of The Source and especially your column.” Well, what’s a girl to say. That was just the sweetest thing ever. Thank you, RJ for all you shared with us over the past few years. If you are ever downtown, stop by so we can talk a little about how to save the Earth. 😊
Doctor’s Office: Be sure to show up 15 minutes early so the doctor can see you 45 minutes late.
Thank you to Sue for calling the office to let me know that she tried my recommended cat litter box and “It Works!” There’s not a week that goes by that I don’t think of my friend Sandra that recommended it to me when Oliver Cat had his surgery. I just love it. Tidy Cat Breeze. Thank you, Kim for the Armenian cucumbers. I would never have guessed that they were cucumbers, but I bet they pickle good!
For years Miller High Life, based in Milwaukee, has used the slogan of Champagne of Beers in their advertising. Well, in Belgium, they took offense at degrading the name of champagne in that manner, because goods cannot be imported into Europe with the name Champagne if they are not produced in the Champagne region of France. So, customs officers in Belgium seized a shipment of 2,352 cans of the beer on its way to Germany. They popped each can, drained them, crushed the cans, then sent them to be recycled.
Arbor Day is April 28. You know what you need to do!
8 million tons of plastic is dumped into our ocean each year. That’s like dumping one garbage truck full of plastic into the ocean into the ocean every minute. If we do nothing, this will increase to two garbage trucks a minute by 2030 and four garbage trucks per minute by 2050. Giving up plastic is a choice. You can do it!
Mattel has a new Barbie doll with Down Syndrome. How great is that! “As the most diverse doll line on the market, Barbie plays an important role in a child’s early experiences, and we are dedicated to doing our part to counter social stigma through play,” Lisa McKnight, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Barbie & Dolls, Mattel, said in a release. “Our goal is to enable all children to see themselves in Barbie, while also encouraging children to play with dolls who do not look like themselves. Doll play outside of a child’s own lived experience can teach understanding and build a greater sense of empathy, leading to a more accepting world. We are proud to introduce a Barbie doll with Down syndrome to better reflect the world around us and further our commitment to celebrating inclusion through play.”
Have a great weekend. Thank you for reading and shopping with us. We appreciate you!
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 04-20-2023
Earth Day 2023 April 22. We really need to take care of this Earth because we don’t have another one to move to after we mess this one up. Today’s lesson: The difference between Biodegradable and Compostable. As caring people, we want to make planet-conscious decisions, and do what is right for the environment, but sometimes we just don’t know what to do, or how to do it properly. Biodegradable products break down VERY SLOWLY decaying into smaller pieces of the material that they were made of. Compostable goes one step further in protecting the environment, because once they have broken down, the decay supplies the earth with nutrient-rich materials and the process takes much less time. Look for a leaf and arrow-shaped tree or the actual word “compostable” on the packaging itself. Yes, compostable is the way to go – I just ordered compostable trash and poop bags.
You have to hold yourself accountable for your actions, and that’s how we’re going to protect the Earth. – Julia Butterfly Hill
I thought of Chappaquiddick on this one. Last week, a woman was pulled from a partially submerged Jeep, only 40 feet from a boat ramp at Lake O’ the Pines, about 8 miles west of Jefferson, Texas. A local fisherman reported the vehicle and 18 minutes later deputies determined it was too dangerous to wade out, so they waited for a wrecker to arrive. The fisherman then took the wrecker employee out in his boat to attach a hook and cable to pull the vehicle out of the water… at which point they found a woman inside. An alive woman. The fisherman and the wrecker employee managed to get the woman out of the car and into the boat (while the deputies, hmmm, watched, I suppose because… it was dangerous, so close to the boat ramp). The woman said she had been in the submerged vehicle for several hours, was then treated for hypothermia, and transferred to the hospital. That was one lucky girl to have the fisherman and the wrecker employee. Wouldn’t you love to know the rest of the story? Was she drinking or on her phone? Was she mad at her husband, perhaps mad at the Jeep, or just following her GPS? Turn left in 200 ft. So many unanswered questions. But I did learn that if that ever happens to us – you or me – and you don’t have one of those seatbelt cutter window-breaking safety hammers in your glove box, then pull out your headrest and use the metal rods which are actually built to be window breakers. Hmmm. Never heard that before. I can only hope that all law enforcement in that county now require swimming lessons, or at least inflatable arm floaties in all vehicles. I did hear that law enforcement served cookies and coffee to all involved. Just saying. Evidently Myth Busters did a few episodes on how to save yourself from a submerged vehicle. Old crank windows might be handy.
The 45-year-old California dermatologist accused of poisoning her husband, after he secretly put home surveillance cameras in their kitchen, now says that she was mixing drain-clearing chemical lemonade cocktails (Drano) to kill ants, not her husband. The husband first noticed a chemical taste in his hot lemonade, then was diagnosed with ulcers, gastritis and esophagitis. He put the cameras in place. Once he covered his lemonade with plastic wrap – she removed the plastic wrap, spiked the drink and replaced the plastic covering. The wife will only face a maximum of eight years and eight months in prison if convicted on all counts. That’s not enough.
OK – this one was important enough for me to remove part of my column so I could get this information to you today. NBC is paying tribute to our beloved comedian and actor Carol Burnett, on the occasion of her 90th birthday, with 90 Years of Laughter + Love which will air on her birthday, April 26th and stream the next day on Peacock (which I don’t have but may have to get). It’s a two-hour special for our dearest Carol Burnett. Sounds like one heck of a big party and celebration, full of big stars paying tribute, interviews, the world’s funniest clips (YES!), music, and more. Just thought you might want to know.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Christine Lahti of Chicago Hope is 72. Writer-producer David E. Kelley of Ally McBeal, The Practice, Doogie Howser, M.D., Picket Fences, Chicago Hope, Boston Legal, is 66. Magician David Blaine is 49. Bassist Mel Schacher of Grand Funk Railroad is 71. Original Mouseketeer Darlene Gillespie is 81. Actor James Roday Rodriguez of Psych is 46. I loved the hyper-observant consultant detective, fake psychic, Shawn Spencer. Singer Allan Clarke of The Hollies is 80. Actor Brad Garrett of Everybody Loves Raymond is 63. Actor Steven Seagal is 71. Singer-guitarist Dave Edmunds is 80.
Actor Ron Perlman is 73. Beauty and the Beast. Actor Robin Wright is 56. Singer Pat Travers is 69. Musician Herbie Hancock is 83. Musician John Kay of Steppenwolf is 79. Singer J.D. Nicholas of The Commodores is 71. Actor Andy Garcia is 67. Actor Claudia Cardinale of Pink Panther films is 85. Actor Emma Thompson is 64. Composer Bill Conti (Rocky film theme song) is 81. Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple is 78. Carol Burnett is 90.
When we show our respect for other living things, they respond with respect for us. – Arapaho Proverb
National Oatmeal Cookie Day
April 30th. According to the Farmers’ Almanac this is the BEST EVER OATMEAL COOKIE.
3 sticks salted butter, not fully softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar (packed)
1 extra large egg
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon (a pinch) ground cloves
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups old fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
1 cup dried fruit, raisins, chopped dates, mission figs, (I might do dried cherries)
¾ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Preheat oven 350°F. Line cookie sheets with parchment.
Cream butter and sugar using a stand mixer or hand mixer. Add egg and vanilla, mix. Scrape sides of bowl.
In separate bowl mix dry ingredients except oats and whisk or sift together to distribute evenly. Add dry ingredients to the wet, a bit at a time. Then add oats, a bit at a time. Add dried fruit and nuts and mix briefly. Drop by heaping tablespoon onto prepared cookie sheets. Slightly dampen (not wet) fingers, flatten into disks. Edges can be somewhat irregular. Leave at least an inch or two between cookies, because they spread. No more than a dozen cookies on the sheet at a time. 4 rows of three. Bake 11-13 minutes, or until golden brown. Set a timer! Cookies will rise, then flatten out and brown. Watch carefully. Rotate pan during baking for even browning. Cool on wire rack. Makes about 36 cookies.
What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another. – Chris Maser
Elon Musk has a company called The Boring Company, listed as an American infrastructure and tunnel construction services company – working towards electric car-based underground public transportation systems. Musk wants to work quickly to dig underground tunnels for freight, utility and transportation, in order to help eliminate carrier congestion. I’m not sure how that would work but it sounds invasive to me. In the process of building these underground tunnels, he would be releasing around 140,000 gallons of treated wastewater into the Colorado River near Bastrop, every day. The Boring Company set up a construction site in Bastrop two years ago; the company now known for violating regulations, housing people in mobile homes without sewage facilities, installing silos without permits, building without approval, and ignoring state safety laws, just doing things his way. Residents of Bastrop are skeptical about him releasing wastewater because the community uses the river for recreation, and farmers and ranchers use the water on crops and livestock that feed you and me. They’re all worried that it would harm the water quality. Hmmm. You think? One resident has suggested they reject the permit unless Elon Musk and his kids agree to go swimming in the Colorado River every day, with another stating even billionaires need to follow the law. It might be important to mention that some of the water being dumped would come from a different SpaceX site. Hmmm. Would it be in MacGregor, 17 miles outside Waco? or Boca Chica Village near Brownsville (once a haven for retirees, snowbirds and outdoorsy people) where the maiden voyage of SpaceX Super Heavy rocket and Starship spaceship was postponed this week, to April 20th because of a problem with a frozen valve.
McDonalds’s plans to improve the Big Mac and double cheeseburger with softer, pillowy golden-brown buns, hotter gooier cheese and a juicier, caramelized taste since the onions will be placed on extra-seared patties while they’re still hot on the grill. There will also be more Big Mac sauce.
Several nutritionists were asked to share information about one drink that they never or rarely drink. Their list included diet soda, regular soda, energy drinks (one 8-ounce can of Red Bull has 27 grams of sugar, more than a woman should have all day), fruit drinks – not fruit juice (almost as much sugar as the Red Bull – just grab an orange – whole fruit has fiber), alcoholic drinks – (4 ounces of margarita mix can have 26 grams of sugar – just like the Red Bull). They stressed that there is room for all beverages in a healthy diet, but some drinks should not be consumed very often at all. See above.
Leaked documents say Egypt is now supplying up to 40,000 missiles to Ukraine after talks with senior U.S. officials, abandoning an original secret plan to send them to Russia. Whoa. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has been found to have quite a few errors in his financial disclosures. The “World” generated a record 10% of its electricity from wind and solar in 2021 and clean sources accounted for 38% of total power supply – even more than coal. Apple and Facebook provided customer data to hackers pretending to be law enforcement officials. Hmmm.
Land really is the best art.- Andy Warhol
If someone said to you, “mammoth meatball”, you would probably imagine a giant ball of savory meat, seasonings and breadcrumbs sitting on top a bed of steaming pasta. Nah. An Australian cultured meat company, Vow Food, which cultivates meat from animal cells without the slaughter of animals, has produced a meatball that incorporates DNA from the extinct woolly mammoth. I just report what I read. I could never make up stuff like this.
Since there is only one of me, does that make me endangered or a limited edition? Have a great Earth Day. Hope you plant a tree, a garden, or build a spot to compost your vegetable scraps. If everyone will do their part…
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 04-13-2023
This past weekend I did something totally out of character, I watched Shrek (2001), and then the next day, I watched (2004) Shrek 2. Such decadence. This was not the first time I had seen these movies because I have kids of a certain age, but it was the first time in a very long time. I can’t explain to you how much adult fun it was to watch them. Today I found out that there was (2007) Shrek the Third (Shrek and Princess Fiona are designated as heirs to the land of Far, Far Away) and (2010) Shrek Forever After (Villain Rumpelstiltskin tricks a mid-life crisis-burdened Shrek into allowing himself to be erased from existence.) It was marketed as The Final Chapter, meaning it was supposed to be the last one. Even Puss in Boots had a 2011 spin-off that was ‘unappreciated’ but still made $555 million. Then Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, released last year, was among five animated movies nominated for Best Animated Feature at the Oscars. What a franchise! Well, as of this month, it looks like Shrek 5 may finally happen. Eddie Murphy is in for this new film, and it looks like Donkey may be worthy of a spinoff. Let’s hope that Mike Myers (Shrek), Antonio Banderas (Puss in Boots) and Cameron Diaz (Princess Fiona) are still along for the ride. If you haven’t watched these movies, just try one. You’ll be so glad you did. I will know because of the smile on your face. A great animated children’s film for adults.
You can buy boxed water now. It’s called Boxed Water. A friend had a box waiting for me when we went to the theatre recently. Then I stuck the empty box in my purse, took it home, refilled it, then stuck it in the frig for next time. So much better than a plastic bottle. I ordered a few to have on hand. We must start somewhere.
Rivers know this: There is no hurry. We shall get there someday. A.A. Milne
Did you know that you should never trust caller ID on your phones? You should always hang up on robocalls even when it shows a very familiar local area code. And you should always use call blocking. The Federal Trade Commission says the most common unwanted calls are pretend Social Security Adm., Medicare, and IRS calls, fake Amazon or Apple Computer support calls, fake auto warranty (every single day), tax season and credit card calls. So… please report unwanted calls to DoNotCall.gov. If you lost money to a scam call, then report it ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
This column serves selfishly as many instruments for me… shout-outs, recalls, recipes, complaints, birthdays, good ideas, bad ideas, something I found that was beautiful, or just a suggestion that might make your life a little better or a bit happier. In the past I have used this space to encourage you to address a card or note to a friend. It’s so especially important for people as they get older, because it could be the only interaction that they have with another human being during the week. According to the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, a study of 5,900 participants found that people underestimate how much others appreciate hearing from them, and the more surprised they are, the greater the impact. Relationships are also good for our own mental health. My request is that you send a text, phone call, or email some friends. It’s the right thing to do… plus it’s a healthy thing for ALL.
I was typing enthusiastically about an article from Farmers’ Almanac titled Best Days to Wash Your Cat. But I did not read ahead in the article because it was time to go home. It was dark. Hmmm. I was really very interested because I have three cats that always need a bath. I quickly transferred all the information about the days of the month that they suggested bathing the cats into this column, then left the office. But I kept wondering about the rest of the article. Was it like planting by the moon? I needed to finish the article because I had too many questions. The next day I sat down at my desk, started reading and scrolling down, suddenly realizing I had been had, as I saw the words… April Fool’s.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Dennis Quaid is 69. Actor Haley Joel Osment of The Sixth Sense is 35. Actor Cynthia Nixon of Sex and the City is 57. Actor Michael Learned of The Waltons is 84. Musician Lil Nas X is 24. Country singer Margo Smith is 81. Musician Brian Setzer of Stray Cats is 64. Country singer Maren Morris is 33. Actor Louise Lasser is 84. Actor Peter Riegart of Animal House is 76. ‘Boon’ Schoenstein. Country singer Vince Gill is 66. Musician Al Green is 77. Singer Peggy Lennon of the Lennon Sisters is 81. Country singer Chris Stapleton is 45. Musician Jack Casady of Jefferson Airplane is 79. Singer-actor John Schneider of The Dukes of Hazzard is 62. Actor Julie Christie is 83. Singer Steve Gatlin of the Gatlin Brothers is 71.
What did the janitor say when he jumped out of the closet? Supplies!
Here is a new type of scam. A woman answered her cellphone call showing it was from her sister. There was an unfamiliar male voice telling her that he had her sister and was going to kill her if the woman didn’t send money, and not to contact the police or he would shoot her sister in the head. Their mother happened to be visiting so the woman as she continued to talk to the man, signaled her mom to contact the sister, which she did and found out that the sister was fine. So, there is now an ability to use our own phones for evil. We cannot and must not, trust. And don’t ever charge your phone at a public location like malls, airports, and hotels. It’s called Juice Jacking, a cyber-theft tactic, and it comes with unfortunate consequences. Just use your own charger cord and plug into a wall outlet. Carry an external battery or even better, there is a such a thing as a charging-only cable, which prevents data from sending or receiving while charging, but be sure to buy it from a trusted supplier.
Shred Day with Texas Gulf Bank – LJ Rec Center Parking Lot. Sat. April 15th. 8 to 11:30am or until truck is full. Go early. This is very popular. Thanks to Scott at LJ City Hall. Scott is going to scout around and find out what they are building in the median across from our office. We heard it was a fountain. Thanks, Scott, and thanks for reading this column each week and laughing out loud with your dad.
The Barbie movie, in theaters July 21st, with Margo Robbie and Ryan Gosling. “To live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you’re a Ken,” the movie teases. A live-action remake of the 1989 movie, The Little Mermaid is set to release May 26, 2023. Melissa McCarthy will star as Ursula. Bet she’s good.
Green Salt is 100% dehydrated organic Salicornia. No preservatives and no additives. It looks like tiny little asparagus before it is dried and has a salty taste that top chefs around the world are using now to garnish plates. There is 50% less sodium than salt so it’s healthier, but also rich in nutrients such as Chlorophyll, Magnesium, Copper, and Vitamin B3. Maybe that’s why mermaids live forever. Salicornia belongs to the same family as Quinoa and Amaranth and is grown with salt water. I ordered it, then used it on sauteed portabella mushrooms last night. It was yummy. I saved my empty Star Anise spice bottles, filled them up and shared with three other people so we could all try something new this week.
If you are squinting while reading The Source Weekly today, it’s either because you need new glasses or because Tina had to reduce the size of the print just a tiny bit so we could get everything into 16 pages. You see, our printer charges us if we have to go up 4 pages (the least number of pages we can increase at a time). We decided that we like you a lot, but we also really like money… so we just did what we had to do. Sorry. As you know we have FREE garage sale ads, and it’s only $5 for a 15-word classified ad, so we don’t make a killing each week, we just publish a sweet little paper for our readers and shoppers. Oh, and because we were full, I got color. See? Woohoo! 😊 Have a great week.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 04-06-2023
It’s Easter time and eggs are in abundance. Do you know how to properly peel a boiled egg? Well, I just read how and I’m willing to share this information. Boil your eggs however you want; add a bit of vinegar, a little lemon juice, a teaspoon of baking soda, or a pinch of salt, because all these additions help make it easier to peel boiled eggs. Slightly older eggs are easier to peel, but it’s hard to plan having old eggs available in your refrigerator. Start with water that’s already boiling. Ahh. This was not what I was taught, but this new article said that slow-cooked egg whites tend to bond with the membrane on the inside of an eggshell, and we don’t want that to happen. Cook for 10-12 minutes, then cool them in an ice bath or a bowl of very cold water for at least five minutes. Set a timer and do not disturb. Once they’re cool enough to handle, fill a clean bowl with room temperature water, and submerge the eggs, then gently start cracking the shells on the edge of the bowl. Gently. Once cracked, the water will help to separate both the membrane and the shell from the egg white, making it easier to peel. Then I want you to finely crush or grind your shells (I leave mine in a box in the garage drying until I have a bunch to work with), then throw them into your compost, or crush into larger pieces and sprinkle them (along with your coffee grounds) around your garden plants to stop crawling bugs and insects like slugs, snails, caterpillars (they don’t like to crawl over the pieces.) A fun and environmentally-friendly way to start your seedlings is to use the larger half pieces of shell, fill them with dirt and garden seeds, then plant the whole thing in the garden when they’re big enough to put out. The shell will eventually decompose, and you have just upcycled something you already had on hand, which is great for the garden. What a deal.
What does Charles Dickens keep in his spice rack? The best of thymes, the worst of thymes.
This was just posted to Instagram: “Bodega was founded on creativity and curiosity; from exotic snacks to creative specials and an ever-changing variety of desserts. Opening a month prior to the Global Pandemic, we are no strangers to perseverance. It was your support that has allowed us to sustain this long. Unfortunately, during the delayed and extended road construction we have experienced a reduction of nearly half our business making it impossible for us to continue. We thank all of you for your continued love and support.” I have told you in this column (several times) that they have the absolute best chicken salad in town. This road construction has been horrible for so many businesses. It was difficult to just get from our cars to the office without eating a lot of dirt. The pandemic was horrible for so many businesses. People think it’s over, but the effects will be with us for a long time. I am very sad to hear this. Be sure to go by before Saturday and tell them thank you. They will be missed. BODEGA – Downtown Lake Jackson. ☹
When you cook, sprinkle your salt from about a foot above your food. Chefs call this technique raining because it distributes the salt more evenly. I say it’s a good way to make a mess in your kitchen. I spilled a container of corn meal last night and I don’t think I will ever be able to get it all out of my grout lines.
When tennis balls are no longer usable, ship them free to RecycleBalls.org. They partner with Wilson Sporting Goods to collect/recycle/reuse by turning them into tennis courts, stucco… Note: Tennis balls, like many things we use each day, do not EVER decompose.
Do you know why tennis balls are now yellow instead of white? When broadcasting in color came into our homes, it was hard to track the balls especially when they fell near the white court lines, so the International Tennis Federation did a study and found that yellow tennis balls were easier for home viewers to see on TV.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Many former child actors are included this week. Actor Patricia Arquette is 54. Actor Taran Noah Smith of Home Improvement is 38. Actor Jennie Garth of Beverly Hills 90210 is 50. Actor Nancy McKeon of The Facts of Life is 56. Actor Keshia Knight Pulliam of The Cosby Show is 44. Rudy Huxtable. Actor Kristen Stewart of Twilight is 33. Actor Elle Fanning of Because of Winn-Dixie is 25. Singer Jackie Evancho is 23. Singer-actor AJ Michalka of Aly and AJ is 32. Actor Daisy Ridley of Star Wars is 31. Actor Ricky Schroder is 53. Actor Abigail Breslin of Little Miss Sunshine is 27. Actor Emma Watson of Harry Potter is 33. Singer Agnetha Faltskog of ABBA is 72. (Now I’m going to be humming Dancing Queen all afternoon.) Country singer Pat Green is 50. Rapper-producer Pharrell Williams is 49.
Actor Robert Downey Jr. is 57. Guitarist Izzy Stradlin of Guns N’ Roses is 60. Singer Julian Lennon is 59. Actor Billy Dee Williams of Star Wars is 85. Actor Marilu Henner of Taxi is 70. Actor Paul Rudd is 53. Singer Charlie Thomas of The Drifters is 85. Movie director Francis Ford Coppola is 84. Actor Marsha Mason is 80. The Goodbye Girl. Singer-guitarist John Oates of Hall and Oates is 74. Singer Janis Ian is 71. Actor Jackie Chan is 68. Actor Russell Crowe is 58. Singer Wayne Newton is 80. Singer Tony Orlando is 78. Actor Alec Baldwin is 64. Actor David Hyde Pierce of Frasier is 63. Comedian-actor Eddie Murphy is 61. Singer Leona Lewis is 37. Actor Craig T. Nelson is 78. Talk show host David Letterman is 76. Have you seen My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman, on Netflix? It is really good.
Actor Joel Grey is 91. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1973 for his performance as the Master of Ceremonies in the 1972 film version of Cabaret which also had Liza Minnelli win Best Actress and Bob Fosse win Best Director, although Cabaret lost the Best Picture to The Godfather. For that same role, Grey also won a BAFTA award for The Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles and Best Supporting Actor awards from the Golden Globes, Kansas City Film Critics Circle, National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, National Society of Film Critics, and a Tony Award for his original stage performance six years prior, making him one of only ten people who have won both a Tony Award and an Academy Award for the same role.
NASA named four astronauts – three Americans and one Canadian – one woman, three men, all in their 40’s, who will fly around the moon late next year, then turn around and come right back home. This has never been done before… we have never seen the back side of the moon… the dark side of the moon. This exercise is in preparation of an actual lunar landing taking place one year later. They will be the first to fly NASA’s Orion capsule, with three of the astronauts having lived on the International Space Station. “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
When you are going to ice a cake, put it in the freezer for 30 minutes before. You won’t pick up as many crumbs when you spread the frosting.
If you lightly coat chocolate chips or blueberries with flour before you add them to your batter, they won’t sink to the bottom when cooked. I made muffins last night because I had a few bananas that were on the ripe side. I added shredded coconut, blueberries, a diced apple with the peeling, dried cherries, oatmeal, and then something new…dried powdered beets. Before you wrinkle your nose and think to yourself, “Ew, ugh, eww, clech, ick, yech or gross,” I want you to know that the taste is quite nice. but then again, I love beets. I will use this again… to make my Red Devil breakfast muffins! 😊 Actually, next time I’m going to add cacao powder to give it a little chocolate flavor … especially since chocolate strengthens the heart. At least that’s what I tell myself. Plus, I never seem to have a problem getting rid of my mistakes when I’m cooking.
The Easter egg symbolizes our ability to break out of the hardened, protective shell we’ve surrounded ourselves with that limits our thoughts and beliefs. Siobhan Shaw
Finland has become the 31st member of the NATO security alliance, doubling the length of member states’ borders with Russia. Finland’s white-and-blue flag joined the circle of 30 other flags. It means if Finland were invaded or attacked, all NATO members, including the US, would come to its aid. “One for all and all for one,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Finland brings a well-equipped and trained, active armed force of about 30,000, with 250,000 reserves on call.
If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring? Pilgrims.
You heard about the movie, Cocaine Bear, a horror comedy based on the true story of a 175-pound black bear found dead near a duffle bag, a few empty packages, and $2 million in cocaine that had been dropped from a plane by a drug smuggler in 1985. The drug smuggler was a former police officer and lawyer who eventually crashed the plane in Tennessee, with more cocaine and cash. They made a movie and it’s a great success. Well, have you heard of cocaine cat? In January, in Cincinnati, a big wild cat escaped from his owner’s car during a police stop. Responders were able to retrieve 30-pound Amiry from a tree and bring him to a shelter, where a medical team called in an expert (whose credentials include working on the Tiger King case), to identify his species. They suspected he was a serval, a long-legged, big-eared wild cat native to Africa… and illegal to own in Ohio. The medical team took a DNA sample, and he was indeed a serval, and just happened to test positive for cocaine. No, it’s not a movie. Yet. Amiry has been placed with the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden and is acclimating to his new environment. He is young, curious, and eating well, but we sure have a bunch of losers in our midst. I believe we are supposed to take care of the old, the children and the animals.
I have to work with young people today so that we try and raise new generations to look after this poor old planet better than we have, before it’s too late. – Jane Goodall
Times have changed, people. A proposed sexual health bill in Florida could see young girls banned from discussing periods and menstruation in school until 6th grade. The bill is likely to be signed into law by their governor. Times have changed. I did a little research. Obesity in children has tripled in the past 30 years, which could be part of the cause of earlier maturity. Fat cells make estrogen so the more estrogen your body makes, the more female sex hormone you have. Little girls are starting their periods and maturing earlier and earlier. Also mentioned was possible chemical exposure; chemicals found in everything from beauty products to furniture. Pesticides are on so many foods. Food preservatives, soy products, the plastic that lines food cans, plastic food storage containers and eating containers, and maybe even the nonstick coating on your frying pan, along with social and psychological stress. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Women’s Health says that “A girl may start her period anytime between 8 and 15,” which means a little girl could start her period in the third grade. I was still playing with dolls in 6th grade, so times have changed. I know you folks don’t want to talk about this, but the first day of a girl’s period is a pretty scary day, even if you have had the best mom (or dad) in the world that prepared you. Most don’t. Surely some readers remember that day. I know I do. I didn’t have a mom that talked to me. As human beings, we don’t need to talk less about periods and the way a body actually functions, we need to talk MORE. Why are we acting like it’s something we should be ashamed of? It is a life function allowing people to have babies – oh, wait, I forgot. It’s the responsibility of the woman once she gets pregnant. The rules are changing so fast, I’m having a hard time keeping up. ☹ I want you to know that I am feeling very blessed this Easter. I hope you are too.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 03-30-2023
April 1 is April Fools’ Day. It’s not an official holiday, just a day for fun, as has been custom since the 19th century; setting aside a day for playing harmless pranks and jokes upon our friends, neighbors, and family. I found the following story on Useless Daily – 25 Fun Facts about April Fools’ Day. It made me grin.
“Fun Fact #22. As well as people playing pranks on one another on April Fools’ Day, elaborate practical jokes have appeared on radio and TV stations, newspapers, web sites, and have been performed by large corporations. In one famous prank from 1957, the BBC broadcast a film in their Panorama current affairs series purporting to show Swiss farmers picking freshly-grown spaghetti, in what they called the Swiss Spaghetti Harvest. The BBC was later flooded with requests to purchase a spaghetti plant, forcing them to declare the film a hoax on the news the next day. With the advent of the Internet and readily available global news services, April Fools’ pranks can catch and embarrass a wider audience than ever before.” I’m still laughing as I type this. So today I could put a fictitious story in this column, and you could be the April fool, but instead I have decided to scatter a few funny, silly jokes throughout that you can share, because everyone needs more laughter in their lives…
A woman went into a seafood restaurant and requested a lobster tail. The waiter smiled and said, “Once upon a time there was this handsome lobster…”
If you feel you must fool someone on April Fools’ then unscrew your showerhead and pop in a bouillon cube so your family member takes a shower that smells like chicken as the water streams down, or tape down their mouse.
Last week I wrote about the new tortoise family at the Houston Zoo named The Pickles. You seemed to really like that story. Today, I have this. If you like pickles, and you like dirty martinis, then look what I found, a Pickletini recipe.
2.5 oz. premium vodka
1 oz. pickle juice
3 pickle slices to garnish
Fill cocktail shaker with ice; add vodka and pickle juice. Cover and shake until shaker has frosted on outside of shaker. Strain into a beautiful martini glass and garnish with pickle slices on a swizzle stick.
Here’s to curb appeal. Since it’s planting season, I found some landscaping mistakes that are said to date your home. The first one is using red mulch in your flower beds. Walt Disney World started this in the 60’s. Instead, they say to use pine-bark mulch – it’s just shredded pine trees, chemical-free, easily found at garden centers, and helps add nutrients to the soil. The next idea is not to plant too close to your foundation. Landscapers suggest planting no closer than 3 ft. away from your home. The plants and shrubs are going to grow and get larger if you take care of them.
Jeff Reitz holds the Guinness World Record for the most consecutive visits to Disneyland… eight years, three months and 13 days – in a row – five days short of 3,000 days. He was unemployed at the time, so he and a friend saw an opportunity to exercise and meet other people. Once he went to work fulltime, he still spent on average of three to five hours there each day, but always at least one hour. “It was never about spending the entire day there,” he said. “It’s about making a visit.” His friend stopped visiting after two years, but Reitz decided to keep going because he was still having fun with it. He watched new sections being built knowing they were making “new magic.” Then March 13th, 2020, the park shut down for the pandemic. He had already planned to take off the following Wednesday because it would have marked his 3000th consecutive day. But instead, he made 2,995 days and hasn’t been back.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Sarah Jessica Parker is 58. Film critic Gene Shalit is 97. (I pulled up pictures of him; the oversized handlebar moustache and crazy hair is the same, just grey now). Actor Paul Michael Glaser of Starsky and Hutch is 80. Singer, entertainer, activist, & Miss America runner-up Anita Bryant is 83. Actor Timothy Dalton is 77. The 4th actor to play James Bond. Actor Gary Oldman is 65. Actor Matthew Broderick is 61. Actor-comedian Rosie O’Donnell is 61. Actor Kelly LeBrock is 63. Actor Jim Parsons of The Big Bang Theory is 50. Actor Jessica Chastain is 46. Singer-keyboardist Rose Stone of Sly and the Family Stone is 78. Actor Alan Arkin is 89. Singer Diana Ross is 79. Singer Steven Tyler of Aerosmith is 75. Singer-actor Vicki Lawrence is 74. Actor Martin Short is 73. Actor Michael York is 81. Talk show host Leeza Gibbons is 66. Actor Jennifer Grey is 63. Country singer Kenny Chesney is 55. Keyboardist Tony Banks of Genesis is 73. Jazz musician Dave Koz is 60. Country singer Reba McEntire is 68. Movie director Quentin Tarantino is 60. Harmonica player Charlie McCoy of Hee Haw is 82.
Singer Lady Gaga is 37. Comedian Eric Idle is 80. Singer Rudolph Isley of Isley Brothers is 84. Singer Bobby Kimball of Toto is 76. Singer Celine Dion is 55. Actor Bud Cort of Harold and Maude is 75. Model Elle Macpherson is 60. Actor Warren Beatty is 86. TV personality Peter Marshall of Hollywood Squares is 97. Singer Tracy Chapman is 59. Comedian Gabe Kaplan of Welcome Back Kotter is 79. Actor John Astin of The Addams Family is 93. Musician Eric Clapton is 78. Actor Rhea Perlman of Cheers is 75. Actor Paul Reiser is 67. Actor Shirley Jones is 89. The Partridge Family. Rapper MC Hammer is 61. Rapper Salt of Salt-N-Pepa is 57. Actor Christopher Walken is 80. Actor Ali MacGraw is 84. Love Story. Musician Herb Alpert is 88. Actor Richard Chamberlain is 89. Dr. James Kildare, The Thorn Birds, and was the first Jason Bourne.
A bear walks into a bar and says, “Give me a whiskey and …… cola.”
“Why the big pause?” asks the bartender. The bear shrugged. “I’m not sure; I was born with them.”
A principal of a Florida school has been forced to resign after a parent complained that sixth-grade students were exposed to pornography after a Renaissance art lesson that showed images of Michelangelo’s Renaissance period sculpture of David… which just happens to be one of the most famous statues in Western history. In fact, growing up at our house, we had a small replica of the statue in our living room. Right there in front of God and everyone that visited our home. Because as a child, our family encouraged us to learn and be exposed to all aspects of our world, not just what happened in some insignificant 10-mile radius town we lived in. The director of the Galleria dell ‘Accademia where the statue of David is now shown, was astonished at the controversy and welcomed the principal, school board, parents, and student body to come view the “purity” of the statue in person. The mayor of Florence, Italy, personally invited the Florida educator who was let go, to visit the city to be recognized, adding, “that whoever teaches such art deserves respect.” Yes, I believe parents should have rights on their children’s education, but they have to be intelligently thought-out and researched rights. I read an article this morning about a parent that single-handedly had over 92 books removed from a high school library in Florida. In this county a single parent can challenge a book without having to identify supposed inappropriate material OR without having read the book. One author that had 20 of her books removed during this fiasco, was accused of writing adult romance. The author said she does not write adult romance, but one of the books removed was about the Holocaust. Does anyone remember studying about the book burnings that the Nazi’s held as a show of their intolerance and censorship? Hmmm.
A man tells his doctor, “Doc, help me. I’m addicted to Twitter!”
The doctor replies, “Sorry, I don’t follow you …”
Dolly Parton has a new fashion book, Behind the Seams, My Life in Rhinestones, 366 pages where she discusses some of her most memorable outfits, from the clothes her mother would sew out of feed sacks, bold dresses and hairdos that shook up Nashville, to evening wear at Studio 54, and costumes from her most famous film and TV roles. It is due out October 17, 2023, but can be preordered now. It will also be sold as an audiobook narrated by Dolly. That should be really good, but as good as a book of pictures of unforgettable outfits? Hmmm. I may have to do both. Her wig caps also have a little pocket in the back because her outfits are so tight there is no place for her mic pack. I like her.
My special friends Mary and Bruce Meyers celebrated their 50th anniversary this month with a party. It was perfect. I’ve never seen a crowd of people so happy to see each other and help celebrate our friends, and friendship. Because of the pandemic, our few social occasions have been limited to funerals and such. Their love is a perfect example of what many of us wish we could have accomplished.
Chappell Hill Lavender Farm Is now open. 2250 Dillard Road, Brenham. The official Bluebonnet Festival of Texas in Chappell Hill is April 15-16. 400 plus vendors, food, live music, in the heart of bluebonnet country. www.ChappellHillHistoricSociety.com
The Brazosport Art League is presenting the People’s Choice Gallery Show, where you, the public, get to vote on your favorite pieces. It’s fun. Preview the art on Facebook, “Brazosport Art League” – Reception and Awards presentation April 28, Friday 6:30 – 8 PM The Center for the Arts and Sciences.
This may be the best thing I tell you today. According to new research published in Nature Aging, the widely used Viagra aka sildenafil, may be associated with a significant reduction in developing Alzheimer’s disease. Now, here’s the really good part…. by nearly 70%. Of course, more research is needed. This could mean that the little blue pill that was first intended for the treatment of cardiovascular disease when it was introduced in 1989 – except for one very unique, common side-effect that made men very happy – could now help us keep more memory and mental functions intact.
What do you call a woman with one leg? Eileen. (I shouldn’t have put this in but it is great, and it is April Fools’ material… but I will just go ahead and apologize now.)
Here are a few great ideas, especially since we are all getting ready to plant gardens and flowerbeds. Reuse wine and champagne corks as plant markers. Write the name of the plant on the cork with permanent marker, push it onto a metal skewer or chopstick, and place it in the soil next to the appropriate plant. Wait. It gets better. This one is for my neighbor who was a professional golfer and is now a most fabulous gardener. Do you have an old or unused golf bag taking up space in your garage? Long-handled tools can be carried in the club compartment and smaller ones in the side pocket, then you can haul the bag around with you as your work. One more. Take a hole puncher to your little white plant ID tags that come stuck in the plants, then hang them through a key ring so you can remember the names, the height and care instructions throughout the season. Last one. Reuse toilet paper tubes this gardening season. Cut four slits at one end and fold them in to close up the bottom. Then fill with soil and plant your seeds. Place on a tray in a warm spot away from drafts. Because cardboard is biodegradable, you can put your pots directly into the ground when planting time has arrived. Great ideas for playing in the dirt. Don’t forget to check out the spaghetti plants at Home Depot. 😊 Have a great week and thank you for reading and shopping with us.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 03-23-2023
Last week, I was asked how do you decide what to write about? Well. Stuff in the news. It could be a magazine or book that I read, or something I cooked or ate. Perhaps it was something I found funny. You will find that I don’t often take a real position on an issue unless it involves stupidity, food, or our wonderful Earth (see stupidity “a man sues Buffalo Wild Wings – end of column). Some weeks it’s hard to find something that I think will hold your interest because it doesn’t even hold my interest. At times I can spend an hour writing a paragraph (you must fact-check most information you read with at least two other sources because some news sources are less than truthful), then I’ve been known to turn around and delete the whole thing. Hope you enjoy what I found this week. Especially about Mr. & Mrs. Pickles.
This is the best story. At the Houston Zoo, Mr. Pickles, 90-years-old and the most genetically valuable radiated tortoise in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan, just became a father to three baby tortoises. Mr. Pickles is the oldest animal at the Houston Zoo. He and his longtime partner, Mrs. Pickles, are new parents to Dill, Gherkin and Jalapeno, all doing well and quite beautiful little tortoises. Mr. Pickles has been at the zoo for 36 years and has been with Mrs. Pickles since she arrived in 1996. The Pickles had another little Pickle in 1997. Zoo officials say the hatchlings were definitely a surprise. Luckily, someone saw Mrs. Pickles as she was laying her eggs at closing time and since the soil in Houston isn’t like it is in Madagascar, it’s unlikely the eggs would have hatched on their own. That’s definitely being at the right place at the right time. They’re so cute, too. It is a species with recorded lifespans of up to 188 years, so Mr. Pickles may just now be hitting his prime. These tortoises are classified as critically endangered because of the destruction of their habitat and because of poaching.
There was a young belle of old Natchez
Whose garments were always in patchez.
When comments arose
On the state of her clothes,
She replied, ‘When Ah itchez, Ah scratchez. – Ogden Nash
Actor Ryan Reynolds group sold Mint Mobile to T-Mobile for $1.35 BILLION. That means his roughly 25% of Mint Mobile will have him rolling in more than $300 million in cash and stock from the transaction. The Houston Astros are without star second baseman Jose Altuve for a while after he fractured his right thumb in a game which will require surgery. Yosemite has reopened from sunrise to sunset with limited access after their historic snowfall, up to 15 feet in some areas, 40” in just one day.
My pet mouse “Elvis” died last night. He was caught in a trap. (Thanks to Emily for that laugh.)
Investigation into the 2015 hit-and-run accident of Buster Murdaugh’s classmate and friend, Stephen Smith, is being reopened based on new evidence. The Smith family began raising money for an independent exhumation and autopsy to get an unbiased look at his body and an accurate determination of his cause of death. As of Monday, the family had raised $67,265 (as of the day I wrote this) of a $15,000 goal. I would say people are supporting new evidence. What about the housekeeper?
Items belonging to the once prominent SC Murdaugh family, are set to be auctioned this week by Liberty Auction House. No online or absentee bids. The 1,700-acre hunting estate is under contract, listed in February for $3.9 million. It includes a 5,275-sq-ft home, guest cottage, equipment shed, fishpond, kennels and shooting range.
Murdaugh is now living in a single cell, separated from other prison inmates due to concerns that he might be a target for other inmates, given his legal presence in the state. Never thought about that…
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Musician Elton John is 76. Sex symbol Ursula Andress of Dr. No, & Casino Royale is 87. Remember Honey Ryder emerging from the sea in that white bikini? Composer, Blues pianist, and singer Clarence “Frogman” Henry is 86. I Don’t Know Why I Love You But I Do. Singer Ruth Pointer of The Pointer Sisters is 77. Actor Glenn Close is 76. Actor Bruce Willis is 68. Actor Hal Linden is 92. Country singer-guitarist Ranger Doug of Riders in the Sky is 77. Drummer Carl Palmer of Asia; Emerson, Lake and Palmer is 73. Guitarist Jimmie Vaughan of Fabulous Thunderbirds is 72. Director Spike Lee is 66. Actor Holly Hunter is 65. Drummer Slim Jim Phantom of Stray Cats is 62. Model Kathy Ireland is 60.
Actor William Shatner is 92. He says he realizes that he doesn’t have much time left so he is involved in the production of a documentary about his life titled You Can Call Me Bill. Singer Jeremy Clyde of Chad and Jeremy is 82. Singer-guitarist George Benson is 80. Actor Reese Witherspoon is 47. Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber is 75. His oldest son (with Sarah Brightman) has terminal stomach cancer. Sportscaster Bob Costas is 71. Singer-actor Stephanie Mills is 66. The Wiz. Actor Matthew Modine is 64. Singer Chaka Khan is 70. Actor Keri Russell is 47. Harmonica player Lee Oskar of War is 75.
Actor and stuntman Paul Grant, 56, died this past week. He was best known as an Ewok in Return of the Jedi, and a goblin in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Actor and musician Lance Solomon Reddick, died at 60. He was Charon in the John Wick franchise. Hall of Famer & New York Knicks legend, Willis Reed died at 80.
A police recruit was asked during the exam, “What would you do if you had to arrest your own mother?” He said, “Call for backup.” (This could be a big problem in our world right now, no one is afraid of their mother.)
Rupert Murdoch, 92-years old (Fox News and many more news companies) is getting married again, just seven months after divorcing supermodel Jerry Hall (after he broke up with her by email.) The 5th time may be a charm. The new bride is Ann Lesley Smith, a 66-year-old former model, singer-songwriter, radio talk-show host and police chaplain. The couple said, they are “looking forward to spending the second half of our lives together”. Hmmm. I wonder if they are aware that the average life expectancy dropped to 76.1 years for males. Living on love. Murdoch’s Fox Corp. is currently facing a 1.6 billion lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems, alleging Fox News hosts and guests defamed it by falsely tying it to efforts to cheat Trump out of an election victory in 2020. Murdoch acknowledged in a deposition that he had the power to stop the false narrative but declined to step in.
Taylor Swift’s new Era Tour has her belting out 44 songs from all of her albums, about a dozen costume changes, all in a span of three hours and 15 minutes. No intermission. Seriously impressive. Police arrested a 32-year-old man who pleaded guilty to an attempt to seize 200,000 Cadbury Crème Eggs loaded in a semi-truck in central England. A woman had never taken her 2007 iPhone out of the box, and it just recently auctioned/sold for $63,000.
Remember me telling you about the invasive snails in Florida that were first spotted in 2004? The Everglade Kite (it gets its name because it seems to float in the air) is similar to a hawk that eats just one thing…snails. Over the last century, as much of the Everglades was drained, the population of this bird declined and was one of the first birds put on the endangered species list in the 60’s but has bounced back recently because of this invasive species. Bonner General Health, the only hospital in Sandpoint, Idaho, announced on Friday that it would no longer provide labor, delivery, and a host of other obstetrical services due to the political climate in Idaho.
Based on new facts (actually, recently disclosed facts… swabs taken from market stalls in and around the pandemic’s ground zero in January 2020), show a cute, dog-like animal called a racoon-dog (looks like a cross between a fox and a racoon) has emerged as possibly the culprit for the first transmission of the COVID virus to humans, since they have long been known to naturally carry coronaviruses. Evidence emerged in 2020 revealing the animals were illegally kept at the marketplace.
Eric Kilburn Jr. is 14 years old, 6’10”, a high school freshman JV football player with a size 23 shoe, but for the past year he has been wearing his “too small” size 22 shoes because no one could find him a shoe in a 23. Now, Under Armour and PUMA both have representatives flying to Michigan to fit Eric for new custom shoes, preparing to scan the biggest pair of feet the company has ever made shoes for. Sounds like Cinderella to me.
Through MacKenzie Scott’s organization Yield Giving, she plans to select and make donations of $1 million each to 250 different nonprofits, which she calls a “new pathway to support for organizations making positive change in their communities.” To apply, the nonprofits must have annual operating budgets larger than $1 million, but less than $5 million for at least two of the past five years. “Teams on the front lines of challenges have insights no one else can offer,” Scott said, “So there are three big headlines here in my heart: Community changemakers can nominate themselves. Community changemakers get feedback from their peers. Community changemakers have a powerful role in funding decisions.” Lever for Change will manage the process to find community-focused organizations; registration by May 5, and applications completed by June 12. What are you waiting for?
There is a great big giant blob of sargassum seaweed measuring 5,000 miles long, with some headed for the Florida coast. It can be seen from space, from tropical Atlantic, from West Africa to the Caribbean, and they believe it could weigh more than 11 million tons. It can be good for the fish to hide while traveling in the ocean, but when it washes up on beaches the turtles can’t escape it, then it starts to rot and it is one bad stinky mess. Google 2023 Sargassum Seaweed Map if you want to see where it’s going.
The Supreme Court finally has something worthy of their abilities. Jack Daniel’s, the famous Tennessee whiskey company is not amused and is trying to stop the production of a chewy dog toy called Bad Spaniels, a toy that looks just like a Jack Daniel’s bottle with the alcohol content changed from 40% by volume to 43% poo by volume, 100% smelly. It’s called Silly Squeakers and is now the company’s best-selling product. Jack Daniel’s doesn’t want their customers associating a fine whiskey with dog poop.
Don’t forget that PetSupermarket provides a 10% discount on regular and sale priced merchandise the last Tuesday of the month, for military or seniors over the age of 55. Ten percent is huge. I set an alarm each week to remind me when to head that way for Teller’s food and salmon chewies. Last Tuesday!
A man is suing Buffalo Wild Wings claiming that their boneless wings are not wings at all, but more like a chicken nugget. Buffalo Wild Wings tweeted in response: “It’s true. Our boneless wings are all white meat chicken. Our hamburgers contain no ham. Our buffalo wings are 0% buffalo.” The same man has filed at least three other class-action lawsuits; claiming that the “natural” label on Tom’s Wicked Fresh Mouthwash and the “high in fiber” label on Kind granola are inaccurate and that Hefty (case dismissed) shouldn’t label its bags as “recycling bags” because they are not recyclable.
Why did the frog take the bus to work today? His car got toad away. Coming soon, so start collecting your box of shredding. April 15 – Shred Day with Texas Gulf Bank – L J Rec Center Parking Lot.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 03-16-2023
Since It’s the week of St. Patrick’s Day, I will start with a limerick. I found many cute ones, but not all are printable, if you know what I mean… 😊
A wonderful bird is the pelican,
His bill holds more than his belican.
He can take in his beak
Enough food for a week,
But I’m damned if I see how the helican.”
– Dixon Lanier Merritt
If you are having problems with slugs or snails, put out a shallow bowl or dish (a jar lid works perfectly) filled with beer. The brand doesn’t matter – they’re not picky. They are attracted to the smell of the yeast in the beer and crawl right into the dish and drink it up. Just like humans, when they drink alcohol, they can’t seem to crawl out of the bowl. Like drowning your sorrow. One article said to cut the top off of a plastic bottle, invert it, then stick it back into the bottle. (Can you picture that?) Fill the trap/bottle with beer then plant it down in the garden, empty every 2-3 days then fill with fresh beer. Drink the rest. I have some skunk beer in the frig that I don’t like, so I’m going to share it with them this evening so they will leave my petunias alone. One source said that they prefer lager and bitter. Hah. You get what you get. Note: this was written about two weeks ago, and I have since used up a whole bottle of beer on the slugs – my petunias are looking beautiful! I just put a little fresh beer in the dish every evening, then turn on the OPEN FOR BUSINESS sign and they come running, actually slugging along to the Baker Bar Garden.
This is a great hint. To make dyeing Easter eggs easier and mess-free, use a wire whisk to hold the hardboiled egg while you dip it in the dye. Just separate the wires to gently release the egg and let dry.
Last week I was whining about the fat toilet paper rolls that won’t fit in my wall holders. Upon further investigation (Google search), I found a toilet paper extender for extra-large toilet paper rolls on Amazon (of course… they own us) for just $10.26. It’s a roller with two little arms that extend the paper down just a touch. Hmmm. Some things were not meant to be… I’m not ordering it because I love a good challenge… when I have the time. 😊
It’s almost time to start weekly mowing again. Remember to leave grass clippings on your lawn if you can which adds plenty of nutrients. Actually, clover provides nitrogen to the soil. Mow your grass high because it causes less stress on the grass (that’s why they call it scalping the lawn) and helps establish a larger root system, which then makes the grass more drought tolerant. Short grass also makes it easier for weeds to move in and take over. Usually, the highest setting you have on the mower is the best… 3.5 or 4 inches. Plus, a stronger root system helps establish a grub-tolerant lawn because of the larger root mass.
HEADLINES: In national first, the Australian government rejected a proposed open pit coal mine that would have been located 6.2 miles from the Great Barrier Reef, because risk of pollution and irreversible damage to the reef is very real. The Great Barrier Reef is so vulnerable now. More than 90 percent of the Great Barrier Reef was impacted by coral bleaching during the Australian summer of ‘21-‘22, which was its sixth mass bleaching event since 1998. The U.S. is currently averaging one chemical accident every TWO DAYS. Environmental groups, including the Sierra Club and Earthjustice, sued the Biden administration this week to stop the sale of oil and gas drilling rights in the Gulf of Mexico.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Barbara Feldon of Get Smart is 90. Singer-keyboardist Sly Stone of Sly and the Family Stone is 80. Percussionist Harold Brown of War is 77. Model Fabio is 62. Singer Bret Michaels of Poison is 60. Game show host Chuck Woolery is 82. Actor Erik Estrada is 74. Guitarist Howard Scott of War is 77. Singer Ray Benson of Asleep at the Wheel is 72. Guitarist Nancy Wilson of Heart is 69. Singer-songwriter John Sebastian of the Lovin’ Spoonful is 79. Actor Patrick Duffy is 74. Actor Kurt Russell is 72.
Actor Lesley-Anne Down is 69. Actor Gary Sinise is 68. Actor Judd Hirsch is 88. Bassist Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead is 83. Singer Mike Love of the Beach Boys is 82. Singer Jennifer Warnes is 76. She won two Grammy Awards, in ‘83 for the Joe Cocker duet Up Where We Belong and ‘87 for the Bill Medley duet The Time of My Life. Actor Michael Caine is 90.
Actor and Emmy-winner Robert Blake (real name Michael James Vijencio Gubitosi), known for In Cold Blood and as the disguise-wearing, cockatoo-owning detective, Tony Baretta in Baretta, died at 89. He was Little Beaver in the Red Ryder TV series, Mickey in the Our Gang comedy shorts, later known as The Little Rascals. Blake’s success that he found in Hollywood, was overshadowed by his acquittal in the 2001 murder of his wife Bonny Lee Bakley, who was mysteriously gunned down outside a Los Angeles restaurant.
Israeli star of stage and screen, Chaim Topol, who was the most fantastic Tevye in Broadway and London stage productions, then in the 1971 movie of Fiddler on the Roof, died at 87. If I Were a Rich Man. He dedicated much of his later life to charity work and illustrated approximately 25 books in both Hebrew and English. He also produced drawings of Israeli national figures, with the sketches of Israeli presidents reproduced in a 2013 stamp series issued by the Israel Philatelic Federation, then his self-portrait as Tevye was issued in a 2014 commemorative stamp that marked the 50th anniversary of his Broadway debut of Fiddler on the Roof.
Gary Rossington, guitarist, and songwriter for Lynyrd Skynyrd, died at 71. Sweet Home Alabama. Bert I. Gordon, filmmaker of Sci-fi and horror films, died at 100.
You can’t wring your hands and roll up your sleeves at the same time. – Patricia Schroeder
Patricia Schroeder, a feminist legislator who helped redefine the role of women in American politics, who used wit to combat sexism in Congress (she was once asked, how, as the mother of two young children, she could function as both a wife, a mother, and a lawmaker. “I have a brain and a uterus, and I use both,” she responded), was a pilot, and Harvard-trained attorney, died at 82. She helped clear the path of legislation on family leave, pregnancy discrimination and fought for rights of all Americans, especially women. She taught briefly at Princeton before becoming president and COO of the Association of American Publishers. There, she opposed Google’s plan to digitize copyrighted books, declaring that Google was “seeking to make millions of dollars by freeloading on the talent and property of authors and publishers.” The dispute eventually ended in a settlement in 2008 in which writers and publishers would be compensated.
I was and am, like many women, both pro-life and pro-choice. – Patricia Schroeder
Those who declared librarians obsolete when the Internet rage first appeared are now red-faced. We need them more than ever. The Internet is full of ‘stuff’ but its value and readability is often questionable. ‘Stuff’ doesn’t give you a competitive edge, high-quality related information does. – Patricia Schroeder
Speaking of librarians… Had you heard that BISD WAS going to eliminate the position of librarian at Brazoswood HS next year? In fact, all the HS librarians were being asked to relocate within the school district at their same salary. I had a hard time wrapping my brain around that information, but this morning BISD sent out an email to parents and the community stating that the high school libraries will continue to be staffed with librarians. YEAH! I had no dog in this fight because both my kids have graduated and are currently in graduate school – probably because the school had a librarian when they attended. 😊 But I did some research and found that nearly 20% of full-time school librarian positions were eliminated between 2010 and 2019. Why? Definitely because of money… but perhaps because there is a huge lack of understanding of what a librarian can and should bring to a school campus. Could it be because we do not fully understand the current role of a library and/or a librarian. Some of us are old-school and still believe that the major role of a librarian is to sit at a desk, gold rimmed spectacles pushed to the end of his/her nose, pointer-finger tapping his/her lips while whispering shhh, as they stamp our books. Nope. While others believe that everything is now electronic, and a real person isn’t really necessary. The library is so much more for kids.
When kids don’t have someone to sit next to at lunch, they head to the library. I know because that’s where my son knew that he could spend his lunch period, and no one would pick on him, someone was there to help him if he decided to work on homework and didn’t understand something. Plus, he actually had a friend to be with in the library… the librarian. I have had two adults tell me the same story about themselves in the past two days. Not everyone fits in, in school, but the library is a safe, interesting place for all.
BISD says enrollment is down by approximately 1,000 kids since 2015. So, if we are at capacity with available land in our community and no new homes are being built, with people moving elsewhere to live, then doing everything we can to improve our school district is the way to drag those people back this direction, especially since we have a huge, new, state-of-the-art school. Let’s keep filling the inside of this building with all the necessary tools to educate our children and prepare them for their next steps furthering their education. I’m so glad that will include librarians. Thank you BISD for listening to the people and reconsidering. NOTE: Library Book Sale this weekend. See Page 4 for details.
Ohio is suing Norfolk Southern Railway over last month’s train derailment and crash that sent toxic chemicals in the air, soil and creeks. Fearing an explosion could take place, officials intentionally released and burned toxic vinyl chloride from five rail cars, sending a ball of fire and black smoke filled with contaminants high into the sky. The derailed train cars were not even labeled as hazardous.
“There once was a man from Nantucket
Who kept all his cash in a bucket.
But his daughter, named Nan
Ran away with a man,
And as for the bucket, Nantucket.”
– Princeton Tiger
Leprechaun: Speaking to a man holding a big pot; “How did you find the hidden pot of gold?”
Man: “I follow you on Twitter.”
Parent Trap and Mean Girls actor, Lindsay Lohan is pregnant. I realize you knowing this makes a huge difference in your life. 😊 (I say what goes around, comes around and we will know in about 15 years.) Saturday, head to East Beach in Galveston for FREE Sandcastle building lessons from a professional sandcastle builder. 409-797-5111. And don’t forget to drink a little green beer… for the leprechauns.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 03-09-2023
This paragraph started as a way to tell you about all the kangaroo happenings in Texas, because Texas is one of thirteen states where it’s legal for people to own a kangaroo as an exotic pet. This doesn’t make it a good idea; it just makes it legal with a permit. In Texas lots of things are legal that aren’t necessarily good ideas. Kangaroos do well with our environment and weather, which is much the same as Australia, grazing on grasses, vegetation, leaves, flowers, ferns, and moss. Like cows, they can chew their cud. Their rear legs are huge, heavily muscled, with elongated feet. Most of the hind foot is just a huge toe that ends in a single curved claw; that along with a long, broad tail all helps them to hop… as much as 25 feet in one stride and up to six feet in the air, with possible speeds of 35 miles per hour. They can’t walk backwards, but they do swim. Female kangaroos have three vaginas – two that are used to transport sperm and one that the joey is birthed through, then the three join together before coming out to a single opening. Fascinating. Kangaroos often have two embryos develop at once. One will go on to become a joey that is born, and one embryo can be paused when it consists of only 70-100 cells, and about a quarter of a millimeter in diameter. (How does she know to do that?) If something should happen to the first joey, and it should die, the mother can either continue the development of the other embryo or wait until there are more favorable environmental conditions (drought or if food Is scarce), or perhaps she is just waiting until the first joey has finally left the pouch. Average gestation is only 34 days, and when the joey is born it usually weighs less than a gram, is the size of a jellybean, blind, hairless and can barely crawl. The joey will then crawl up the mother’s body (after the mother licks the path for the baby to follow) to the pouch opening, where it will go in and attach itself to one of the teats, where it will stay for at least 6 months. Nature is enchanting. This was so interesting. OK. Now let’s get back to where I started.
Jax the kangaroo was raised as a pet but escaped from his owner’s backyard recently in the Prosper area of North Texas, being coaxed home with a bottle of milk from his owner. Just a few days later, Nigel escaped his backyard in Granbury and was gone for two days. In Mercedes, Texas (McAllen area), a kangaroo escaped from a ranch in January. In Wimberley, officers thought calls reporting an escaped kangaroo were all pranks. It happened again in San Marcus. One woman in Lumberton, Texas said that she was so glad she took pictures so people would believe her. She was driving her son’s truck and had to call him and tell him she had almost hit a kangaroo and that it would have been so hard to explain to the insurance company. And it’s not just Texas. I read about kangaroo escape artists all over the country.
“We have the choice to use the gift of our life to make the world a better place – or not bother.”– Jane Goodall
A hunter who killed and skinned a Connecticut family’s pet German shepherds, claims he thought they were coyotes and did it for the pelts. The hunter calls it an accident and says he is ashamed of what he did, but wants the charges erased. Others are saying there are inconsistencies in his story and question how he could not see that the animals were dogs before skinning them. A woman in San Manuel, Arizona came home and found a bobcat lounging in her dog’s bed, believed to have entered through the doggie door.
The Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, and her ex-husband Prince Andrew, gifted Queen Elizabeth with her corgis, Sandy and Muick, then adopted them when the Queen died in September. Ferguson now says that the ghost of the queen makes the corgis bark, because they can sense the spirit of their late owner. Ferguson has defended Andrew as a good man despite controversy over his friendship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The couple divorced in ’96, but still live together at the Royal Lodge in Windsor. Perhaps the dogs can sense the Queen is barking at Sarah…
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Singer-songwriter James Taylor is 75. Singer Jay Osmond of The Osmonds is 68. Singer John Cowsill of The Cowsills is 67. Singer Jon Bon Jovi is 61. Actor Daniel Craig of James Bond Casino Royale is 55. TV host Donovan Patton of Blue’s Clues is 45. Actor Paula Prentiss of The Stepford Wives is 85. Musician Emilio Estefan of the Miami Sound Machine is 70. Actor Catherine O’Hara of Home Alone is 69. Actor Patricia Heaton of Everybody Loves Raymond is 65. Actor Laraine Newman of Saturday Night Live is 71. Author John Irving is 81. The World According to Garp in 1978, The Hotel New Hampshire, The Cider House Rules, A Prayer for Owen Meany, and A Widow for One Year. Comedian Robert Klein is 81.
Actor Mamie Van Doren is 92. Actor Cybill Shepherd is 73. Actor Jon Provost of Lassie is 73. Little Timmy Martin. Actor-singer Liza Minnelli is 77. Singer Bill Payne of Little Feat is 74. Bassist Steve Harris of Iron Maiden is 67. Singer Marlon Jackson of The Jackson Five is 66. Jazz drummer Roy Haynes is 98. He is among the most recorded drummers in jazz. Songwriter Mike Stoller is 90. Composer-conductor Quincy Jones is 90. Singer-keyboardist Taylor Hanson of Hanson is 40. Actor William H. Macy is 73. Hound Dog, Kansas City, Love Me Tender, Jailhouse Rock, Loving You, King Creole, On Broadway, Stand by Me, Spanish Harlem and more. Singer-songwriter Neil Sedaka is 84. Actor Dana Delaney of China Beach is 67. Country singer Michael Martin Murphey is 78. Comedian Billy Crystal is 75.
Lloyd Morrisett, co-creator of Sesame Street died at 93. In 1968, Morrisett co-founded the nonprofit Children’s Television Workshop which was later renamed Sesame Workshop, with former publicist Joan Ganz Cooney. Morrisett and Cooney worked with Harvard University developmental psychologist Gerald Lesser to build the show’s unique approach to teaching children. Legendary puppeteer Jim Henson supplied Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, Ernie, Bert, Cookie Monster, Grover, Elmo and the rest. Sesame Street premiered in ’69, the year of both Woodstock and the moon landing. I was happy to know those landmarks in time because it seems like it has been around my whole life. Gary Rossington, guitarist of southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, died at 71. Ricou Browning, a skilled swimmer best known for his underwater role as the Gill Man in the 3D black-and-white 1954 movie Creature from the Black Lagoon, died at 93. Remember that?
If you remember The Corner and buying your first Clinique make-up (like I did), then you remember sweet June Hatfield. She helped many of us pick out a new outfit or improve our make-up skills. The Corner closed in 1996 and June purchased ScissorTail Quilts, then later went to work at Brazosport College before moving to Palestine in 2011. She was a mover and a shaker in our community, instrumental in the creation of our annual Christmas time event, LJ Festival of Lights. She died March 3, at 91 years of age. Her services are March 10, Bluebonnet Hills Memorial Park in Colleyville, Texas.
March 3 was Employee Appreciation Day. I wasn’t aware of this until March 3, which was Friday, and our office is closed on Fridays, because we have a 4-day work week. I want to take this space (and since it’s my column, I can do that if I want) to say thank-you to everyone that works here with me at The Source Weekly. We have had lots of struggles in the past five years or so…Harvey, Covid, illnesses, retirement, and well, did I mention Covid? Yes, it’s been a tough, few years, but everyone still shows up with a smile, ready for a good workday. Thank you so much. I appreciate you every single day!
Sunday, March 12 Daylight Saving Time. Set your clocks ahead one hour. Spring forward. Don’t forget to watch the Oscars on Sunday. If you’ve ever been to Disney World, you have probably lined up to experience a Dole Pineapple Whip. Good news. Soon, fans will be able to purchase Dole Whip in pineapple, mango or strawberry at their local grocery store.
We all know that you should hang the toilet paper to where the end is facing you, not to the inside of the holder where you must search for the end, touching the holder or the wall, which is super nasty. Look it up. By hanging it the proper way, you only touch the paper you will be using yourself. What I don’t understand are the mis-sized rolls I bought last week at Target. I threw away the packaging, so I don’t know the brand, but they pass the soft tushy-test… really skinny rolls from side-to-side, with additional tissue sheets on the roll. Like they cut it wrong. It barely fits when you put it on the roller, but it won’t turn loose of the toilet paper because it’s so tight in the holder, so it doesn’t spin. For the first few days after a new roll, you just pull one sheet at a time until it loosens up. Anyone else noticing this?
R. Kelly is serving 30 years for his 2021 racketeering and sex trafficking convictions in NY. He was just given 20 years in prison for another set of sex crimes, including child pornography and enticement of minors for sex (little boys & little girls – he doesn’t care), but 19 of those years will be served concurrently with his existing prison time, so it only adds a year to the previous 30-year sentence. Hmmm. That means he will be eligible for release around age 80. His attorneys say he has suffered “significant physical and psychological injuries” while in prison and want him released. Hmmm.
Last week I saw a photograph of a display of Prince Harry’s book, Spare, stacked in a bookstore window in Bath, England. The books were already covered with half-price stickers. Supposedly, the day of the photograph was January 22, and the book had just officially gone on sale January 10. Hmmm.
This is good. A recent study shows that people who think they are attractive are less likely to wear a mask. Hmmm. There must be some mighty attractive people in the world.
If you get a chance, watch the show on Netflix about the Murdaugh family. It explains the family in a way that makes us (sort of) understand quite a bit more. The sons, the grandfather, the housekeeper’s death, the boating accident. Things that couldn’t be shown during the trial. Our streetlights are out on our section of Parking Way again, all three of them, making it pretty dark each and every evening. If you happen to see someone from the city that could help us, please let them know. A new study suggests US freshwater fish are highly contaminated with forever chemicals. That’s a great feeling. The show Succession will end with Season 4. Over the weekend, I saw my first robin at the birdfeeders.
Florida seems to be throwing a bunch of stuff against walls to see what sticks. A new bill was proposed that would authorize a series of animal protections and guidelines, such as banning cat declawing, animal testing for cosmetics, selling rabbits before Easter, restricting when an animal can be tethered outside, and dogs hanging their heads out of car windows. The bill also creates a registry of known animal abusers, cracks down on the sale of animals to them, and allows the state to ban people convicted of sexual offenses with animals from owning a pet during their probation. WAIT!! Let’s go back to dogs hanging their heads out the car window. This happens every single morning on our way to work. I say, “Do you want me to roll down the window?” Pure bliss literally explodes in the back seat! Teller’s tail could take down buildings, he’s so happy; so down the window goes, just enough for a head but not a body. Sometimes when it’s raining, we even hit water puddles on the street, seeing how far we can shoot the water – that’s almost as much fun as hanging a head out the window, but we never do both at the same time. He might get wet. Do you think no water splashing might be on the bill also? I don’t know… things are getting a little restrictive. Can’t we get back to the old if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, mentality. Have a great week, thanks for reading us, and don’t forget to be kind to yourself and others.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 03-02-2023
Chip Gaines of Fixer Upper, has purchased author Larry McMurtry’s historic Archer City bookstore, Booked Up Inc. No.1, for fine rare & scholarly books. You hear about celebrities putting their names on tequila, hot sauce, clothing, movie theatres, salad dressings, stretchy things to make us look skinny, and lemonade, but a bookstore to me, is real news. Larry McMurtry was one of the greatest Texas authors of all time with Lonesome Dove, Terms of Endearment, The Last Picture Show, Streets of Laredo, and so many, many more great Texas books. McMurtry was born in Archer City, returned in the late 1980s, and lived in the 1,600-person town until his death in March 2021. Gaines grew up in New Mexico, but his parents and grandparents were from Archer City, where he spent summers riding horses, mending fences, and learning farm and ranch life. Chip Gaines is a reader, so if the Archer City townspeople were ever concerned about the future of this incredible book collection, I feel assured it couldn’t be in better hands and will be treated with great respect. A catalogue of about 400 of McMurtry’s more personal items are set to be sold in an auction on May 29, everything from typewriters, a bed, grand piano and even cowboy boots held together with duct tape. I bet Chip gets some of the good stuff, too.
Shop Local. Eat Local. Spend Local. Enjoy Local. It takes YOU to start the trend. Support local businesses who support the area where you live, work and play.
This is probably NOT important to just anyone out there, unless you love Disney, are getting married, or if you just know of someone that loves princesses with all their heart. Well, I guess that’s just about everyone. (Any man worth anything has had a princess tea party with a little girl…). Disney just unveiled a collection of 21 brand new princess-inspired wedding gowns. The collection also features nine bridesmaid dresses. You can also get married at a wedding venue on a Disney property, including Disney cruises and Aulani Disney Resort in Ko Olina, Hawaii, along with vow renewals, engagements, and honeymoons. Just imagine how Snow White, Aurora, Tiana, Rapunzel, Pocahontas, Jasmine, Cinderella, Ariel, and Belle must be feeling about this. All gowns are available in sizes zero to 30 and start at $1,799.
On the beach and in the seas, animals do not leave trash; humans do. Please behave like animals.
As climate change melts away the icy habitat of hungry polar bears, sometimes they are left stranded from their regular food sources, so instead of filling up on seals and ocean fish, polar bears are now supplementing their diets with garbage. The pictures are pitiful. The bears are starving, and it is so very sad and disturbing. No food means no strength to hunt when they have a true opportunity. Definitely another growing threat to a species.
The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it. – Robert Swan
After you boil eggs, potatoes, or other vegetables, don’t pour the water down the drain! Save the cooking water (be sure it’s salt free), let it cool, and use it to water your garden plants to give them an extra dose of nutrients. I’ve been doing this for the past several months since I’m still working hard to have no waste in my kitchen. This past week, I needed to reuse the pot after boiling potatoes, so I just poured the boiling water on weeds in the cracks of my sidewalk. No more weeds. Waste not, want not.
Brew on the Bayou Saturday, March 25. Beer and Wine tasting, pontoon boat rides, birds of prey show, live music, silent auction, food trucks. www.gcbo.org or 979-480-0999.
NestFest Beach Cleanup. Bolivar Peninsula on Galveston Island, Follet’s Island, March 14, 9am -12 pm. Coastal cleanup for beach-nesting birds and sea turtles.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Laura Dern is 56. Musician Sergio Mendes is 82. Singer Melissa Manchester is 72. Actor-model Marisa Berenson is 76. Actor Jane Seymour is 72. Actor LeVar Burton is 66. Kunta Kinte in Roots. Rapper-actor Ice-T is 65. Comedian Dame Edna aka Barry Humphries is 89. Football player-turned-actor Jim Brown of The Dirty Dozen is 87. Actor Rene Russo is 69. Actor Lou Diamond Phillips is 61. Comedian Larry the Cable Guy is 60. Vocalist Yoko Ono is 90. Actor John Travolta is 69. Game show host Vanna White of Wheel of Fortune is 66. Actor Marta Kristen is 78. Best known as Judy Robinson, oldest child of Professor John and Maureen Robinson on Lost in Space. Singer Mitch Ryder is 78. Devil with the Blue Dress. Keyboardist Jonathan Cain of Journey is 73. Singer Michael Bolton is 70. Actor Joanne Woodward is 93. Paul Newman died of lung cancer in September 2008 at 83.
Actor Bernadette Peters is 75. Guitarist Neal Schon of Journey is 69. Singer Johnny Van Zant of Van Zant & Lynryd Skynyrd is 63. Singer Josh Groban is 42. Singer Sam the Sham is 86. Known for his camp robe and turban, and hauling his equipment in a 1952 Packard hearse with maroon velvet curtains. Wooly Bully, Li’l Red Riding Hood, Yakety Yak. Singer Roger Daltrey of The Who is 79. Actor-director-dancer Tommy Tune is 84. Singer Cindy Wilson of The B-52′s is 66. Actor Rae Dawn Chong of The Color Purple is 62. Author Lemony Snicket aka Daniel Handler is 53. Country singer Jason Aldean is 46. Singer-actor Harry Belafonte is 96. The Banana Boat Song. Actor-director Ron Howard is 69. Actor Catherine Bach of The Dukes of Hazzard is 68.
Don’t forget to vacuum your mattress. We tend to forget about those creepy-crawly dust mites.
Get ready to Pawty! Remember how much fun it was to gather for a slumber party when you were younger? Stay up late, eat junk food, play silly games, and hang out with your buddies! Imagine doing all of this and more, all the while snuggling with your favorite shelter animals while they’re waiting for a human of their own to go home with. On Sat. March 25 the SPCA of Brazoria County is hosting a 24-Hour Shelter Slumber Pawty and you are invited. The National Shelter Slumber Pawty is a collaborative fundraising event that brings together shelters from across the nation (and beyond) to help raise funds and awareness for shelter pets. Amazing animal lovers (like yourself) can spend 24 hours at a shelter; eating, sleeping and pawtying with shelter pets while raising money for their favorite shelter. email: nicole@spcabc.org. If you can’t spend the night, then be sure to do what you can with donations of your time, money, or supplies. Teller says PLEASE.
A few weeks back, I was helping a friend who was in charge of doing the opening night party for Murder on the Orient Express at The Center. I taped down crime scene diagrams of murder victims on the floors, and then called around to see if I could buy an abundance of fortune cookies to put on her food tables – which China Star Restaurant was kind enough to sell to me – 350 cookies for less than $30 a box. Make sure you think of them the next time you have a hankering for Chinese food buffet. So, after the party, I brought the remainder of the box to the office for us to give to customers. I had finished cleaning the office on Saturday evening, and Teller and I happened to be sitting on the sofa resting and talking. Well, I talk. He listens. I decided to grab a fortune cookie off the conference table and share it with him. He likes anything that has a crinkly wrapper. That comes from living on the street for so long and having people feed you out of a crinkly brown sack. So, there I was, getting ready to read my fortune about gaining wealth or money, romance, good luck, or words of wisdom. Instead, my fortune said, An old broom knows where the dirt is… Hmmm. Old broom.
If you want to see something that (I promise) will make you smile from ear to ear, then YouTube Alaskan Puppy Bus. Your heart will want to watch it several times. So sweet. Mo Mountain Mutts – doggie day care at its finest.
The Jonas Brothers announced that they will have a five-show limited Broadway engagement at the Marquis Theatre March 14-18 and each concert will highlight a different album. I like those boys. The musical Moulin Rouge is playing in Houston right now and it is fabulous. If you love theatre, you will find that this show is one of the best ever. I think it may be my new favorite. The sets, actors (Conor Ryan – male lead and outstanding voice), funny storyline, and great songs. It will be at the Hobby Center in Houston until March 12.
March 8th is International Women’s Day, a day to honor social, political, economic, or cultural achievements of women, and a day to promote women’s rights. Until 1848, single women could own property (say inherited), but once they were married, control of any real estate or property was transferred to their husbands, then they could not acquire property once they were married. These laws slowly changed when New York passed the Married Women’s Property Act, which allowed married women to own property and most states had adopted this law by 1900, but it took about 50 years.
• In 1918, Loretta Walsh became the first female to enlist in the military. A 1948 law made women a permanent part of military services, but it wasn’t until 1976 that President Gerald Ford signed Public Law 94-106 which allowed women to attend service academies. The same year the Secretary of Defense eliminated the policy of involuntarily discharging female soldiers if they became pregnant (because after all, it is still the woman that must bear the full responsibility of a pregnancy. (How’s that male birth control coming?)
• The first female students were admitted to West Point in 1976.
• States slowly allowed women to sit on a jury with Mississippi finally becoming the last state to legalize it in 1968.
• Women had access to some banking products in the 1960s, yet many banking institutions wouldn’t let women open a checking account, get a credit card, or apply for a loan or mortgage without a male co-signer until the Equal Credit Opportunity Act of 1974.
• Sally Ride became the first female astronaut to go up into space in 1983.
Have you ever heard of the Pink Tax? Me neither. It’s not actually a government tax, it’s the practice of discriminatory pricing on goods and services marketed to women. For instance, why does it cost more to have a woman’s shirt ironed at the laundry than a man’s shirt? Hmmm. Just asking for a friend. Hygiene and health care products seem to be the most common… shaving cream, razer cartridges, hair care.
When it comes to sales taxes on purchases, states typically set the rules. There is a real tax nicknamed the Tampon Tax because many states (Texas) still charge tax on menstrual products (tampons, pads, menstrual cups, etc.) because feminine hygiene products (not medically necessary) are considered luxury items and therefore taxed. On a closing note, I might add that if you decide to grab a Snickers bar from a vending machine, then decide to run down the street to pick up your prescription for Viagra, both will be tax-free. Another small, yet meaningful change that we need to make. I feel confident that if a man ever had a period, many laws, along with attitudes would change. We’ve come a long way, but we can, and will go further. Do your part to raise your daughters, sons and grandchildren to all be equals. We will get there, it’s just a slow road. Have a great weekend. Enjoy the sunshine and the blooming flowers. Thanks for reading and shopping in The Source Weekly.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 02-23-2023
Tina just informed me that Sonic has a new BBQ Chip Seasoned Tots. Yes, warm, and crispy tots (just like the potato kind) tossed in sweet and savory BBQ Chip seasoning. Ore-Ida has the trademark ‘Tator Tots’ so we shouldn’t call them that. You can also add sliced cheese, chili, onions, jalapenos, or shredded cheddar, when you place your order. Get early access to this new dish when you order on the app. I’m so hungry. While I was looking this up, I came across a recipe for Dirty Tots. I won’t bore you with the whole recipe, but it sounded fantastic. Dry-rub a pork shoulder, sear it in olive oil, cook on high in crock pot for 8 hours, make a homemade (or your favorite) BBQ sauce, shred the meat. Then cook your tots flipping them halfway through, adding shredded Mexican cheese the last two minutes of cooking time. Spread the shredded pork on top of tots, drizzle with chipotle aioli and garnish with chopped green onions. Yikes. I’m starving. This would be great party food. Bet you could add sour cream, or unflavored Greek yogurt if you want to put a tiny bit of a healthy spin on it. hah. Now file this away for later and read the following paragraph.
Now we are going to talk about pooping, so if you are sensitive to this subject then you need to skip to the next paragraph. A doctor is saying if you’re not having a successful BM then there are three things to do that are non-negotiable. #1 is positioning. Decrease the angle between your torso and thighs by leaning forward or using a stool under your feet. This relaxes your puborectalis muscle and straightens the rectum. #2 Each day eat at least 30g of fiber (non-digestible carbohydrate found in foods) – a mix of soluble (helps to bulk and soften) and insoluble (acts like a rake to sweep your intestines). Some fiber is both soluble and insoluble. #3 Activate the gastrocolic reflex – eat something in the morning… which triggers the release of hormones, which then stimulates intestinal contractions, which gives you the urge to empty your bowels 20 to 30 minutes after eating. There you have it. Now, I didn’t know this, so that’s why I’m going a little further with the information for you.
• Soluble and insoluble fibers each have distinctive benefits. I didn’t know this so that’s why I’m going a little further with the information.
• When soluble fiber dissolves, it creates a gel that can improve digestion, reduce blood cholesterol and sugar. It helps your body improve blood glucose control, which can help reduce your risk for diabetes. Black beans, lima beans, Brussels sprouts, avocados, sweet potatoes (skins on), broccoli, turnips, pears, kidney beans, figs, nectarines, apricots, carrots, apples (skins on), guavas, flaxseed, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, oats, and barley are all good.
• Insoluble fiber attracts water into your stool, making it softer and easier to pass with less strain on your bowel, promotes regularity, supports insulin sensitivity, and may also help reduce your risk for diabetes. Wheat bran and wheat germ, oat bran, beans, lentils and legumes of all kinds (kidney, black, garbanzo, edamame, split peas, lima, navy, white, etc.), berries, (blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, etc.), whole grains, (especially barley, quinoa, sorghum, millet, amaranth, oatmeal and rye), turnips, green peas, okra, spinach, radishes, rutabaga, coconut (flakes or flour), cocoa, apples (skins on), pears (skins on), flaxseed, avocados (Florida avocados have more fiber than California avocados), sunflower seeds, potatoes and sweet potatoes (skins on), dried apricots, prunes, raisins, date, figs, and almonds are all good.
Remember that bacteria lives on our skin, in the nose, but mostly in our gut, in our digestive system. Your body provides food, shelter and a safe habitat for this good bacteria, and in return the bacteria takes care of some of the things that the human body cannot do on its own. Most carbs, proteins and fats are absorbed into the bloodstream before they make it to the large intestine, leaving nothing much for your gut. Human cells don’t have the enzymes to digest many fibers, so they feed the good bacteria. And as always, ask your doctor. Now go prepare for a good healthy poop, and a much healthier lifestyle.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Good Morning America co-host George Stephanopoulos is 62. Actor Mary Steenburgen is 70. Singer Jimmy Carter of The Blind Boys of Alabama is 91. Keyboardist David Bryan of Bon Jovi is 61. Actor Tina Louise of Gilligan’s Island is 89. Singer Sheryl Crow is 61. Actor Jennifer Aniston is 54. Actor-director-comedian Christopher Guest is 75. Actor Michael Tucker of L.A. Law is 78. Actor Jon Walmsley of The Waltons (Jason) is 67. Country singer Garth Brooks is 61. ABC News anchor Ted Koppel is 83. Actor Nick Nolte is 82. Actor-turned-politician Sheila James Kuehl, Zelda of The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, is 82. Actor Joe Don Baker is 87. Walking Tall. Country singer Moe Bandy is 79.
Bond Girl Maud Adams of Octopussy & The Man with the Golden Gun is 78. Actor Cliff DeYoung is 77. Guitarist Steve Hackett of Genesis is 73. Singer Michael McDonald of Doobie Brothers is 71. Actor Joanna Kerns is 70. Growing Pains. Actor-talk show host Arsenio Hall is 67. Singer Chynna Phillips of Wilson Phillips is 55. Actor Kim Novak is 90. Actor Bo Svenson of Walking Tall is 82. Actor Stockard Channing is 79. Talk show host Jerry Springer is 79. Singer Peter Gabriel is 73. Genesis. Magician Teller of Penn and Teller is 75. Opera singer Renee Fleming is 64. Actor Meg Tilly is 63. Actor Claire Bloom is 92. Drummer Mick Avory of The Kinks is 79.
Raquel Welch of One Million Years B.C. died at 82. Although Welch had only three lines of dialogue in the film, images of her in the doe-skin bikini became bestselling posters that turned her into an international sex symbol. Italian actor Gina Lollobrigida died at 95. Richard Belzer, stand-up comedian, detective John Munch in Homicide: Life on the Street and Law & Order: SVU, died at 78.
About a year ago, the family of actor Bruce Willis announced that he had been diagnosed with aphasia. His condition has progressed, and a more specific diagnosis is frontotemporal dementia aka FTD, and as we all know this is a very cruel disease which has no cure at the moment. Perhaps media attention will help bring attention to research needed to find out more about a disease that has affected at least one person we know.
President Jimmy Carter, the oldest at 98, longest living, and in my mind, probably the best past-President we have ever had, has decided rather than seek further medical treatments, he will receive hospice care at home so he can spend time with his family.
We should live our lives as though Christ were coming this afternoon. President Jimmy Carter
Happy News: Well… Mick Jagger (age 79) and Keith Richards (age 79) have teased in the past few months that they have new music coming… Now the word on the street is that Paul McCartney (age 80) and Ringo Starr (age 82), the last two surviving members of the Beatles, will be playing on the new (yet to be announced) album from the last surviving members of The Rolling Stones. What a story. When? How many songs? Tell us more. These guys are still so fabulous, they make age just a silly number. Inquiring minds want to know
Last Words: Murderer James W. Rodgers was put in front of a firing squad in Utah in 1960 and asked if he had a last request. He replied, “Bring me a bullet-proof vest.” Drummer Buddy Rich died after surgery in 1987. As he was being prepped for surgery, a nurse asked him, “Is there anything you can’t take?” Rich replied, “Yeah, country music.” Johnny Ace, a R&B singer, died in 1954 while playing with a pistol during a break in his concert set. His last words were, “I’ll show you that it won’t shoot.” Richard Feynman, a physicist, author, musician, professor, and traveler, died in Los Angeles in 1988. His last words? “This dying is boring.”
Against the wishes of secret service and the Pentagon, President Biden made a surprise, unannounced, and historic visit to Kyiv in show of U.S. support for Ukraine just days before the anniversary of the Russian invasion. “One year later, Kyiv stands. And Ukraine stands. Democracy stands,” Biden said. “For all the disagreement we have in our Congress on some issues, there is significant agreement on support for Ukraine.” This marks the first time an American president entered a warzone with no active U.S. military presence. Since news of Biden’s trip broke, Japan has offered new financial support to Ukraine worth $5.5 billion.
A woman takes a long drag off a cigarette, then points to your boyfriend and says, “Is he a rescue?” – Facebook
Have you seen the beautiful patriotic flags flying downtown, in front of Walmart and other places in celebration of President’s Day? It’s such a statement! The Brazosport Breakfast Lions Club places flags out (which is no easy job) 5 times a year (weather permitting), on Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, July 4th, and Veterans Day. If you or your business would like to sponsor one or more flags ($35/flag), or sponsor a flag in the name of a veteran, active military personnel or deceased veteran, call Ronnie Martin at 979-236-8817 or Grapevine Gifts 979-285-0842.
See Page #9 (upper right-hand corner). #ItWasNeverADress is an invitation to shift perceptions and assumptions about women and the audacious, sensitive, and powerful gestures they make every single day. In science, technology, arts, mathematics, politics, houses of worship, on the streets, and in our homes, insightful women are often uninvited, overlooked, or just plain dismissed. Through storytelling, community building, innovation and creative disruptions, #ItWasNeverADress will foster necessary conversations, vital voices, and images from around the world that honor ALL women. When we see women differently… we see the world differently!” (Note: It’s a super hero cape!)
Join the Brazosport Symphony Orchestra for SuperHeroes, Saturday April 1st. Anna in the Tropics auditions February 27-28 at Dow Arena Theater. Scholastic Bowl is BACK and scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 23rd at 7pm. It is so much fun to participate or just sit back, watch and learn. Adult and high school teams compete against each other to answer trivia questions about art, science, pop culture and local interests. Entry fee $100 per team of four. Team sponsorships and donations welcome. How to use your Telescope workshop at the BASF Planetarium February 25. The Brazosport Art League has a new exhibit in the gallery, My Perspective sculptured fiber art by artist Brenda J. Bunten-Schloesser, Feb. 14th through March 19th. To register for all these exciting events and info… thecenter@bcfas.org.
According to Dog Food Advisor, PetCare Company Nestlé Purina is voluntarily recalling select lots of Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets EL Elemental (PPVD EL) prescription dry dog food due to potentially elevated levels of vitamin D. Vitamin D, while essential to a healthy diet, can cause health problems if ingested in too high an amount for too long. Ryan Seacrest is out. Kelly Ripa will be joined by her actual real-life husband actor Mark Consuelos, as co-host of “Live With Kelly and Ryan.” She is so skinny. In filling out a dating profile, a woman decided to include her credit score and ended up going on 17 dates in 30 days. Needless to say, she is going to keep the credit score on the profile. A 27-year-old Indiana man died after falling from a 70-foot coastal cliff in Puerto Rico while filming a Tik-Tok video. Researchers announced a fifth person has been cured of HIV after a stem cell transplant. The murder of a 24-year-old schoolteacher in 1971 has been solved by evidence collected from a single cigarette butt left near the body 52 years ago. A long-lost letter from George Washington hinting at financial problems, is expected to bring $50,000 at auction. Have a great week and thanks for reading us.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 02-16-2023
Happy Thursday. This came from a website called FriarMusings.com. Just an innocent conversation between God, and St. Francis of Assisi (patron saint of animals and the environment) along with Catherine of Siena. Enjoy. I certainly did.
GOD: Frank, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there on the planet? What happened to the dandelions, violets, milkweeds, and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought, and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honeybees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But all I see are these green rectangles.
ST. FRANCIS: It’s the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers weeds and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.
GOD: Grass? But it’s so boring. It’s not colorful. It doesn’t attract butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. It’s sensitive to temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?
FRANCIS: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.
GOD: The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.
FRANCIS: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it; sometimes twice a week.
GOD: They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?
FRANCIS: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.
GOD: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?
FRANCIS: No, Sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.
GOD: Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And, when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?
FRANCIS: Yes, Sir.
GOD: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.
FRANCIS: You aren’t going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it, so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.
GOD: What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn, they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. It’s a natural cycle of life.
FRANCIS: You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.
GOD: No!? What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter to keep the soil moist and loose?
FRANCIS: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.
GOD: And where do they get this mulch?
FRANCIS: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.
GOD: Enough! I don’t want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you’re in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?
CATHERINE: ‘Dumb and Dumber’, Lord. It’s a story about….
GOD: Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor David Selby is 82. Quentin Collins on Dark Shadows. Actor Barbara Hershey is 75. Singer Al Kooper of Blood, Sweat and Tears is 79. Singer Fabian is 80. One of the first pop rock artists ever to be known by just one name. Actor Mike Farrell is 84. Captain B.J. Hunnicutt on M*A*S*H. NBC news anchor Tom Brokaw is 83. Actor James Spader is 63. Boston Legal, Blacklist. Actor Kathy Najimy of Hocus Pocus is 66. Drummer Simon Phillips of Toto is 66. Vocalist Axl Rose of Guns N’ Roses is 61. Singer Rick Astley is 57. Never Gonna Give You Up. Composer conductor John Williams is 91. He’s had 52 Oscar nominations. Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Star Wars, Schindler’s List, Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, Far and Away, Memoirs of a Geisha, Superman… just to name a few.
Author John Grisham is 68. He has written 28 consecutive number-one fiction bestsellers and has sold 300 million copies worldwide and is one of only three authors to have sold two million copies on a first printing. Singer Carole King is 81. Singer Barbara Lewis is 80. Actor Joe Pesci is 80. (I watched My Cousin Vinny about a month ago… it was so good.) Author Alice Walker of The Color Purple is 79. Actor Mia Farrow is 78. Singer songwriter Joe Ely is 76. Actor Judith Light of Who’s the Boss is 74. Actor Ashton Kutcher is 45. Country singer Travis Tritt is 60. Actor Robert Wagner is 93. Singer Roberta Flack is 86.
Legendary American composer, songwriter, record producer, and pianist, considered one of the most influential figures of 20th-century popular music, Burt Bacharach, died at 94. In his lifetime, he had received three Academy Awards, six Grammy Awards, and an Emmy. He wrote, What’s New Pussycat? Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head, The Look of Love, One Less Bell to Answer, This Guy’s in Love With You, Toledo (beautiful song with Elvis Costello), They Long to Be Close to You. Walk on By, There’s Always Something There to Remind Me, I say a Little Prayer for You, and so many more. Since I know the words to all of these beautiful songs, I now realize that my high school choir director must have been a big Burt Bacharach fan.
A synonym is a word you use when you can’t spell the word you first thought of. Burt Bacharach
John Arthur Spenkelink was executed in Florida in 1979. He spent his final days writing these last words on various pieces of mail: “Capital punishment means those without the capital get the punishment.” Convicted murderer Thomas J. Grasso used his last words to complain about his last meal. He said, “I did not get my Spaghetti-O’s, I got spaghetti. I want the press to know this.” Thomas B. Moran was a pickpocket, known by the nickname Butterfingers. He reportedly stole as many as 50,000 wallets in his career. He died in Miami in 1971, and his last words were, “I’ve never forgiven that smart-alecky reporter who named me Butterfingers. To Me, it’s not funny.”
Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in. Anonymous
The Flash (perhaps one of the greatest superhero movies ever made) is set to premiere on June 16, 2023, and Michael Keaton will return as Batman. I repeat that with excitement. Asteroid Sar2667 exploded over the English Channel as it entered the Earth’s atmosphere, just hours after it was spotted, a historic first. Queen Consort Camilla tested positive for Covid. In January 1957, the Wham-O company made their first batch of aerodynamic plastic discs, now known as the Frisbee. The GCBO will have bird banding February 18th from 8am to noon. There will be a plant nursery and picnic tables available for family picnics. www.gcbo.org. It’s a memory that your kids will have forever. Just saying.
It’s NOT just football. The Eagles and the Chiefs both agree that the Super Bowl turf that had been installed at a cost of $800,000 was the worst field many of them had ever played on. It was beautiful grass that had been babied by bringing it out (how?) into the sun every day for two weeks pre-game, but during the game it turned into a slick mess described as, like playing in a water park. Chris Stapleton brought the Super Bowl crowd to tears with his deeply soulful National Anthem. Then Rihanna (richest female musician in the world) belted out a medley of songs and had led everyone to believe she was bringing a special musical guest out during her hit-filled performance, but instead surprised the crowd by showing off her baby bump #2. Her horde of backup dancers were dressed in pillowy white outfits that looked like stacked mini-marshmallows or the Michelin Man, even described by some as UFO’s from China, recently shot down by the U.S. American Sign Language performer Justina Miles was the first deaf female to ‘sign’ Super Bowl Halftime and kind of stole the show. Her performance was crazy good. The 20-year-old performed alongside Sheryl Lee Ralph for Lift Every Voice and Sing, then alongside Rihanna for her entire performance. Troy Kotsur signed the National Anthem alongside Chris Stapleton, then Colin Denny performed America the Beautiful through a blend of ASL and North American Indian Sign Language to accompany R&B legend Babyface. Trump says, “halftime show was the single worst Halftime show in Super Bowl history”- “an epic fail” – such a lonely guy. If everything works like it should, they get a chance to do it all over again next year.
Clara Harris, former Friendswood, and LJ dentist who used her car to run over and kill her philandering husband, orthodontist David Harris in 2002, served 15 years in prison for manslaughter, then was paroled in 2018. She has now completed her parole requirements. Harris testified that she didn’t mean to kill her husband, she was simply trying to wreck the SUV belonging to the mistress, his former receptionist, Gail Bridges. I said it then, and I still say I can’t believe a jury of her peers found her guilty. Did I mention that the location of the killing (Nassau Bay Hilton) was also where Clara and David had married on Valentine’s Day in 1992.
God created war so that Americans would learn geography. Mark Twain
A German cryopreservation startup company called Tomorrow Biostasis has already preserved the bodies and/or brains of at least ten deceased bodies, hoping/attempting to learn to treat and reverse the person’s original cause of death and bring them back to life. There are hundreds of people on a waiting list, (the process is technically considered a scientific body donation), some wanting just their brains preserved (cooled to 196 degrees Celsius and placed inside an insulated tank with liquid nitrogen) and may prefer a new 3D printed body… if they can figure out how to make it all work. Just telling you what I read.
The U.S. issued a top-level 4 advisory (that’s the highest level) this week telling American citizens to leave Russia immediately. “U.S. citizens residing or travelling in Russia should depart immediately. Exercise increased caution due to the risk of wrongful detentions.” This comes as the Russia-Ukraine war nears its first anniversary on Feb. 24th, amid concerns that Moscow is gathering troops for an attack of some kind that could coincide with the one-year mark.
The 27-foot-long Oscar Mayer Wienermobile was in Las Vegas over the weekend for Super Bowl events. One morning crew members found that the engine wouldn’t start because during the night someone had stolen the catalytic converter from the hotdog on wheels. Talk about a prejudice-motivated crime! 😊 Have a great week and thank you for reading and shopping with us!
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 02-09-2023
Yesterday, I Googled How to Recycle Your Bank Deposit Stamp, because our office had to change account numbers after evil wormed its way into our bank account. It pulled up: “wikiHow To Do Anything”. There is so much information. How to Tell When an Egg is Boiled. How to Take Your Nose Stud in and out of your Nose (very helpful information). How to Become Taller Naturally. How to Iron. How to Find Things You Lost. (Bet that one gets a workout.) How to Remove Paint from Skin. How to Bleach a White Shirt. OK. You understand what I’m saying… I just know that we can all be a wealth of information from this point on. wikiHow To Do Anything. How did we manage before internet?
Order Free seeds at SaveOurMonarchs.org ($5 donation and a self-addressed envelope) or go to Facebook.com/SaveOurMonarchs. The pollinators will thank you. Many couples are handing out seeds as wedding day guest favors. Just a $55 donation for 100 seed packages. What a great idea. There is only one way to save the Monarchs and that is to plant milkweed. It’s the only thing they eat, and the freeze killed most of the milkweed in our area. Monarch butterflies have officially been listed as an ENDANGERED SPECIES by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and are now on the brink of extinction. Earth Day is April 22, just in case you need an excuse to do good. We need them for our food.
Every once in a while, I have a few moments to clean off my desk. If you could see my desk, you would quickly realize that there are VERY few moments, but this evening I ‘again’ came upon a piece of paper that I hadn’t seen in a while… a quote from someone you may remember. Mike Lowrey died in 2014, but said this in life, “We are what/who we are. We are all gifted for something… and we must identify and pursue this gift… so… start where you are… use what you can… do what you can… Now!!” Every time I see this on my desk, it makes me a little more thoughtful and a bit stronger. Hope it does something good for you today.
In 1996, Prince (the musician, not William) threw a party at Paisley Park to celebrate the release of his 19th studio album, Emancipation. He didn’t serve cocktails, instead he served little Captain Crunch cereal boxes. There is a song on his album called Joint 2 Joint where he sings about his favorite breakfast food. “Oh great, now you think you’re my soulmate,” the song goes. “You don’t even know what kind of cereal I like. Wrong! Cap’n Crunch with soy milk.”
Speaking of cereal, perhaps I should start out with this little bit of information. Cinnamon Toast Crunch has some of the highest sugar content of cereals in the grocery store. That’s what makes it so yummy. When my mom lived here, she never really wanted to leave her house and spend the night anywhere, so one Easter we left early in the morning to go to my sisters in Elgin, planning to go back to LJ late afternoon. We had all eaten a wonderful meal and were sitting outside by their big party barn talking, when my brother-in-law put a drink in front of me. I pushed it back and told him that I couldn’t because I was driving. No can do. He pushed the drink back to me and said to just try a sip, so I did. There are no words to describe how delicious it was, so right then I informed everyone that we would be staying for a while, while I finished that drink. The Cinnamon Toast Crunch cocktail is made with:
3 oz. RumChata (rum liqueur with cream, cinnamon, vanilla, and sugar)
1 oz. Vanilla vodka or just plain vodka
½ oz. Fireball Whiskey
Mix together in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake and strain into glass. If you want to be fancy, wet the rim of a glass then roll it in cinnamon sugar mixture before you pour in the drink, and stick in a cinnamon stick. Personally, I drink mine over ice with no cinnamon sugar.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Katharine Ross is 83. The Graduate, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Stepford Wives. Actor Tom Selleck is 78. Singer Actor Ann Jillian is 73. Talk show host Oprah Winfrey is 69. Country singer Irlene Mandrell is 67. Actor Judy Norton of The Waltons is 65. Actor Sara Gilbert is 48. Country singer Clint Black is 61. Actor Gene Hackman is 93. The French Connection and Unforgiven, both of which he won an Academy Award for. Actor Vanessa Redgrave is 86. Laurence Olivier announced her birth to the audience at a performance of Hamlet saying, “A great actress has been born this night.” Country singer Jeanne Pruett is 86. Satin Sheets. Horn player William King of The Commodores is 74. Musician Phil Collins is 72. Genesis. Soul blues singer Bettye LaVette is 77. You should hear her version of Blackbird. Singer John Lydon aka Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols is 67. Musician Alice Cooper is 75.
Model Christie Brinkley is 69. Actor-comedian Garrett Morris is 86. SNL. Comedian Tom Smothers is 86. Graham Nash is 81. The Hollies and Crosby, Stills & Nash. Howard Bellamy of the Bellamy Brothers is 77. TV chef Ina Garten is 75. Actor Blythe Danner is 80. Guitarist Dave Davies of The Kinks is 76. Singer Melanie is 76. Best known for the 1971 global hit Brand New Key, Ruby Tuesday, What Have They Done to My Song Ma, and the 1970 hit Lay Down. Actor Morgan Fairchild is 73. Actor Pamela Franklin of The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie is 73. Actor Nathan Lane is 67. Drummer John Steel of The Animals is 82. Singer Florence LaRue of the Fifth Dimension is 81.
Jeff Beck, English rock guitarist and member of the Yardbirds, the Jeff Beck Group, and Beck, Bogert, & Appice, died at 78 of bacterial meningitis. A very talented blind piano player once lent his name to a band that became very famous, but he never once played in that band. In fact, he wasn’t even a professional performer. Marshall Tucker Band’s namesake, Marshall Tucker, died at 99. Anita Pointer of The Pointer Sisters, died at 74. (If you listen to The Pointer Sisters while cleaning house, you can be finished in half the normal cleaning time, I promise.) Earth, Wind & Fire drummer Fred White died at 67. Robbie Bachman, Canadian drummer for Bachman-Turner Overdrive, died at 69. Actor Kevin O’Neal (No Time for Sergeants, Love Story, What’s Up Doc?) and brother of Ryan O’Neal, died at 77. Tim Considine, brother Mike on My Three Sons, The Hardy Boys, official photographer for Pelé, and producer of books on soccer, died at 81. Yoshio Yoda, Japanese-born American actor, and businessman who played Takeo Fujiwara in the American television series McHale’s Navy, died at 88.
While sitting at a red light on Monday morning leaving my subdivision, I realized there was a Jaguar E-Type sitting right next to me. I’m not much of a car person, so I can’t tell you what year it was… I’m not even sure I have the model right… but it was red… and so, so fine looking. Reminded me of the 1971 cult-classic movie, Harold and Maude (with Bud Cort & Ruth Gordon), where the death-obsessed rich kid gets a brand-new Jaguar E-type Series 2+2 coupe from his mother in exchange for the Cadillac hearse he was driving, which his mother then junks. The kid immediately takes a blowtorch and turns the new Jaguar into a compact hearse in just a couple of hours. In real life, it took the movie company 6 months. Then they drove it off a cliff at the end of the movie which made everyone cringe. What a waste. In the past few years, a car collector did some extensive research, then took four years and about a million dollars to build a new Harold and Maude Jaguar Hearse which now lives in California.
Yes, February 14th is Valentine’s Day, but it is also National Organ Donor Day, so don’t forget to select YES when you apply for your driver’s license, or sign a donor card, or go to organdonor.gov. More than 28,000 lives are saved each year by organ donors, but more than 105,000 Americans are just waiting.
Air Company was founded in 2019 and uses a patented and proprietary technology that mimics the process of photosynthesis by capturing carbon dioxide or CO2 (greenhouse gas) before it’s emitted into the atmosphere, and then transforming it into pure alcohol that only leaves oxygen and water behind. (As CO2 builds up in the atmosphere from burning fossil fuels, it has a warming effect that messes up the Earth’s climate, but that is for another column.) These alcohols are then used by the company to make eau de parfum (for perfumed liquids), hand sanitizer, and vodka. Yep. Air Vodka. The process is not cheap, therefore the Air Vodka retails for about $65 to $74.99 a bottle, depending on availability and the merchant. It is also considered a premium spirit. An average bottle of vodka emits about 13 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions during production (I wonder if that includes transportation), but a bottle of Air Vodka actually helps remove about a pound of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
We are living on this planet as if we have another one to go to. – Terri Swearingen
Kevin Costner may leave Yellowstone because his wife wants him home more. Matthew McConaughey is in talks for a spinoff because obviously his wife doesn’t care if he’s home or not. 😊 Hmmm. He would definitely make a good cowboy. My son says the movie, 80 For Brady, is silly and fun, and that I need to drop everything and go see it. Just repeating what Gage said. The truth is, Tom Brady and I have never had a really close relationship. No one should ever be allowed to age in the opposite direction.
An Alzheimer’s special care center in Des Moines has been fined $10,000 after a funeral home discovered that they received a woman from them in a body bag, which was still alive and breathing. The woman later died but had been on hospice. In 2022, the same facility was fined $500 for failing to perform the required background checks on employees, finding five workers had not received the required training to work in a memory-care facility. OOPS.
We all love Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. Their dairy farms are now feeding cows a special diet involving seaweed to reduce emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
Readers: Thank you for the nice messages about the story I wrote last week. My son and his girlfriend came to Texas from Boston, and I was happy. Just wanted you to know that I like it when you like it. Thank you, Debby for the cute coffee cup covered with dogs and the quote, “There is nothing as happy as a dog’s tail wagging! So true. Sometimes I think Teller will break his tail, he’s just so happy to see people. Thank you, Debra, for the homemade pralines. Delicious. Thank you, Michelle, for the fancy bottle opener for my misbehaving, getting-older hands. Well, it’s not just a multi-functional bottle/lid opener, it’s an adjustable 5-in-1 Strain-Free Gripper Opener for all sizes of jars and lids along with a fluted eye for much smaller bottles. A classic church key for my beer, and a beak to pop open the cat and dog food cans. It does everything but clean the toilets. She must really like me!
When the last tree has been cut down, the last fish caught, the last river poisoned, only then will we
realize that one cannot eat money. – Native American Saying
Remember a few weeks ago when I told you about the new Ecovado avocado made from a combination of low-impact ingredients local to an area, then covered in a wax that looks JUST LIKE a real avocado, but it’s not? Today we are going to talk about Pearlita Foods in NC. They are a cell-cultured seafood company making a vegan prototype for oysters from ingredients like mushrooms and seaweed. The plant-based oysters will come in a no-shucking-necessary shell that is biodegradable. I love avocados and I LOVE oysters, but I sure wish we could ALL figure out a way to protect our beloved Earth, so we could continue eating real food (and vodka and ice cream). Happy Valentine’s. Spread love, not cooties.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 02-02-2023
A good way to start this column might be to remind you that when my children were little, seven and four, I tackled breast cancer. I chose to have a double mastectomy, chemo, and years and years of doctor’s visits, because I wanted to be here to see my kids grow older. Back then when I prayed, I literally begged for just 12 more years to be with my children. In my little bitty, silly chemo-filled space where there was supposed to be a brain, I figured 12 years was a legitimate amount of time to get them raised to an age where they could take care of themselves, and also in that same time period, I would have taught them as much as I could. Well, I worked hard for 12 years, and that time passed like nothing, so I whined a little and after much thought, I simply told God that I was kidding, and as hard as it was to say… I simply wanted more years. God and I negotiated, He approved the deal, and here I am.
So, as you know from reading this column, I believe memories are the very best gifts. For Christmas, part of my gift to my sweet son was airfare for him and his girlfriend to fly from Boston to Texas. She had never been to Texas. I have known about the girlfriend since before she became the girlfriend. Actually, before I knew she had a name, I knew that he had met someone that was very special. Emily and I had spoken every now and then when Gage and I face-timed, we had a few text conversations, but I had never met her in person for a hug. Emily is lovely; kind, caring, unspoiled and family-oriented. I had to share the two of them during their visit to Texas, so quality mom-time was short. One evening, we invited family friends over for tacos around the kitchen table, laughing, sharing, and delighting in frozen sangria margaritas from La Casona. (Honestly, I have to say that is the best thing that came from Covid; the ability to pick up frozen sangria margaritas from La Casona and bring them home for back porch enjoyment).
Tuesday was MY DAY, so I selfishly skipped work (I never, ever skip work on a deadline-filled Tuesday, so thank you to my office) and the three of us left for Galveston on what just happened to be the foggiest day of the century. As we drove to the top of the bridge at Surfside, I should have been more suspicious of the day to come. I couldn’t even see the ocean ahead of us. We bravely charged down the Blue Water Highway to Galveston but were never able to view the waves hitting the shoreline from the right side of the car. Despite the fog, we finally made it. Our first stop was Rainforest Café to revisit childhood memories and ride the River Adventure, one of my son’s favorite experiences when he was much younger. Well, the place had changed quite a bit, and was even more wonderful than I remember. (If you have a day-off, take your kids, even your big kids. It’s $6.99 for the ride, well worth it.) Since we had to wait a bit for them to prepare us for the ride, they put us on for free. Well, free is good. We were the only ones in the whole facility since the weather was so bad. We drove around Galveston for a while, piddled a smidgen, ending up at La King’s Confectionery on The Strand for ice cream before we headed back to LJ.
Back to praying. Years ago, I enjoyed a class on How to Pray. There are two things that stuck with me all these years. #1. You can’t always pray for physical things; you must learn to pray for acceptance and the ability to embrace what happens to you in life, and #2. You not only need to pray for your children, but you also pray for the future people that will be in your children’s lives – friends, enemies, co-workers, partners, and significant others. That one single day in Galveston with Gage and Emily may not seem like anything other than just an ordinary, silly day to you, nothing really special. But to me, this was one of those days that I just knew I didn’t want to miss, when I had prayed for more days with my children. At that time, I wasn’t praying for trips to Europe with them, fancy hotels, fast cars, or whatever. I just wanted to be here to meet the people and the situations that would be important in their future lives. Well, guess what? It’s already the future… and I spent the day with Emily. I would have put this in earlier, but my eyes kept filling up with water as I wrote it.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Singer Steve Perry of Journey is 74. Bassist Teddy Gentry of Alabama is 71. Actor Linda Blair is 64. The Exorcist. Actor Diane Lane is 58. Actor Chita Rivera is 90. West Side Story, Chicago, Kiss of the Spider Woman. Actor Richard Dean Anderson of MacGyver is 73. Singer-guitarist Robin Zander of Cheap Trick is 70. Singer Anita Baker is 65. Sweet Love. Actor Tiffani Thiessen of Beverly Hills, 90210 is 49. Singer Ray Stevens is 84. Everything Is Beautiful, Misty, Gitarzan and The Streak.
Singer Aaron Neville is 82. Remember his duet with Linda Ronstadt, Don’t Know Much. Singer Neil Diamond is 82. Actor Leigh Taylor-Young of Peyton Place & Soylent Green (see below) is 78. Actor Scott Glenn is 84. Singer Jean Knight is 80. Mr. Big Stuff. Comedian Ellen DeGeneres is 65. Drummer Nick Mason of Pink Floyd is 79. Dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov is 75. Actor Mimi Rogers is 67. Actor Alan Alda is 87. Actor Barbi Benton is 73. Playboy, Hee Haw. Hefner. Singer Nick Carter of Backstreet Boys is 43.
Cindy Williams, the cute, funny star of Laverne & Shirley, died at 75. In 1975, Williams and Penny Marshall were writing partners working for $30 a week when Garry Marshall hired them for an episode of Happy Days. Then came Laverne & Shirley. She was so adorable. Lisa Loring, the original Wednesday Addams of The Addams Family show died at 64 of complications of a stroke caused by high blood pressure. You may remember on the show she collected creepy pets including a black widow spider named Homer and a lizard named Lucifer… and she played with a headless doll. (The new Wednesday show on Netflix is great.)
Soylent Green (see Leigh Taylor-Young above) was my first scary movie. It came out in 1973 and was described as an ecological dystopian thriller based on the 1966 science-fiction novel Make Room! Make Room! The story follows a murder investigation in a future world (the future being 1999) of dying oceans, year-round humidity caused by the greenhouse effect with the resulting pollution, depleted resources, poverty, overpopulation, followed by worldwide shortages of food, water and housing. Only the elite can afford REAL food and clean water, while the poor live in a wasteland, hauling their own water and eating processed wafers: Soylent Red, Soylent Yellow, and the most nutritious, Soylent Green. But remember the oceans are dying and can no longer produce the plankton from which Soylent Green is made. This is sounding more and more true-to-life now. I may have to see if I can watch it again. After all, it’s only been 50 years. Nah, I don’t really like scary. Especially scary that plays out like current real life.
Kummerspeck (German) – Excess weight or fat gained from emotional overeating – you know stress, concern, anxiety, sadness and sorrow. (Literally, German grief-bacon.) Thanks to my friend Connie for this little bit of information that we can all use… and understand.
The fastest Corvette ever made, the new E-Ray, is a gas-electric hybrid and all-wheel drive. It goes from zero to 60mph in 2.5 seconds, and the 2024 model will be unveiled sometime during the second half of this year 2023, exactly 70 years after the first Corvette was introduced in 1953. This version of the Corvette, code named C9, may be the last one to have a gasoline engine, considering GM plans to sell only electric passenger vehicles by the year 2035.
When an animal protection team picked up a dog one day, there was a note attached to the dog’s collar. “My name is Lilo,” the note read. “Please love me. My mom can’t keep me and is homeless with 2 kids. She tried her best but can’t get help. I cost too much for her. She really loves me and I’m a great dog and love to be loved on. Please don’t abuse me. Please keep my name.” The picture of Lilo is precious, and super heart-breaking. The shelter was able to reunite Lilo with her family; they are working to find them a safe haven, shelter and resources to keep the family together with Lilo. There is good in the world.
My daughter played water polo and was on the swim team in high school, so we were on the road fairly often for swim meets and games in other cities. During this time, we listened to a podcast called Serial that examined the murder conviction of Adnan Syed, convicted of the 1999 killing of his former girlfriend, a murder he says he did not commit. This podcast captured the attention of millions in 2014, raising doubts about the evidence presented against Syed, including cellphone tower data. Late last year, a judge ordered his release after he served 23 years in prison. Prosecutors said they weren’t asserting that Syed is innocent, but that they have uncovered new evidence that potentially links two previously known suspects to the murder. Evidence about those individuals, who were not identified, had been withheld from Syed’s defense attorney during his trial. In a hearing Oct. 11, 2022, prosecutors elected to drop the murder and kidnapping charges. It’s a great podcast in case you’re looking for something to listen to.
The headline read: The FDA proposes new targets to limit lead in baby food. What? Why should we have ANY lead in baby food? At the Dallas Zoo, there have been two missing monkeys (found later in an abandoned house in Dallas), one dead vulture and an escaped leopard, all with mysterious circumstances. What’s happening? In New York City, there are over 100,000 for-hire or rideshare vehicles including Uber and Lyft. As of last week, NYC Mayor Eric Adams announced that those drivers will need to reach zero emissions by 2030. Pollution, heat waves, flooding, freezing weather – it’s happening fast. Our world needs to fight back and learn to be very creative, reinventing ourselves if we are going to make it work. Now, an increasing number of landfill sites across the US are being repurposed as solar farms. Great idea.
Wynonna Judd wrote a new song called Broken and Blessed after her mom died. “‘I’m somewhere between hell and hallelujah’ is one of the lines in it,” Judd said about her new song. Priscilla Presley is now challenging Lisa Marie’s trust changes, claiming fraud and invalid signature, which would replace Priscilla as trustee. Lisa Marie reportedly took out two life insurance policies for a total of $35 million recently. Dr. Phil is leaving after 21 seasons. Tom Brady says he is retiring again for sure. Sure.
Listen up. February 7th is a Tuesday, and it also happens to be National Send a Card to a Friend Day. So, if you can pick up a card, any card, then stop by the post office and pick up a few really cute stamps. I just purchased the Charles M. Schulz Centennial stamps that have Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy, and the rest of the gang. Super cute. I also picked up a sheet of the Year of the Rabbit Lunar New Year, that are quite pretty. Little works of art! If you don’t have a card, then WRITE A real NOTE, then address the envelope, put the stamp in the right hand corner, and send it to a friend. The mailperson comes to your house 5-6 days per week, and they love it when they see mail going out. Beats the heck out of delivering all those postcards from companies trying to buy your house for cash. Can you remember how happy you are when you open up the mailbox and see an envelope addressed to you, that’s not a bill? I bet you smile. This week, do your part to make someone feel good. Even if they just live across the street. If this doesn’t work into your schedule, then you have one more week to get those valentines out. Oh, the post office has new stamps with little puppies and kittens holding red hearts. I’m such a sucker for kittens. (Speaking of which, there is a sweetheart of a calico cat at PetSupermarket just waiting for adoption.)
This month, The Source Weekly celebrates our 24th birthday. Can you believe it!?! We love you for sticking with us as we continue to work hard to be relevant and stay alive in an electronic paperless world. Please sell something! Thank you for everything you do.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
What I Heard This Week 01-26-2023
Former US astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, recently remarried for the fourth time, which also happened to be on the occasion of his 93rd birthday. This time it was to Dr. Anca Faur, his 63-year-old, long-time companion (who looks like she wants to be 27), has a PhD in chemical engineering, and is now the executive vice president of Aldrin’s company, Buzz Aldrin Ventures. He was first married to Joan Ann Archer in 1954 until divorcing in 1974. The next year he married Beverly Van Zile; they divorced after three years. His third marriage was to Lois Driggs Cannon in 1988 on Valentine’s Day, divorcing 23 years later. Looks like he hasn’t given up on ‘love’ quite yet. He has sued two of his children and his former business manager claiming they stole money from him and are slandering his legacy, and that they also undermined his “personal romantic relationships” by forbidding him from getting married. His children say he is also spending money at an alarming rate. Sounds like those children are out of luck. There is a new sheriff in town and her name is MRS. Aldrin. ☹ Notes: Aldrin is also a strong advocate for human exploration of Mars. In 2002, he escaped assault charges after punching a man who demanded he swear on a Bible that the Moon landing was not staged. Good for him. He also said, “Tang sucks. “
Let’s talk about weddings. Did you know: the average cost of a wedding in 2021 was $28,000 according to The Knot. A separate study from The Wedding Report says that after surveying 1,699 individuals, it was determined that the average cost of a wedding last year was $27,000. There is now a financial services platform called Maroo that gives couples the option of a buy-now – pay-later program, like putting your wedding on lay-a-way or an installment plan. Then the vendors pay a fee of a percentage of the total wedding cost. Personally, I don’t really believe people should go into debt for a wedding, but many do. Aren’t we supposed to be aware of the dangers of spending before earning?
I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they’re right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together. Marilyn Monroe
As you may remember, I live with Teller the Wonder Dog who sheds red hair by the bucket-full. Then there’s Sully, Winnie, and Oliver Twist, the cats. Sometimes I have to sticky-roller my sheets before I climb into bed at night (because I’m allergic to cats). The sweet babies wait until I lock the door behind me in the mornings, then they run straight for my bed. There was also a time when I wore black clothing almost every single day. Needless to say, I now shop for performance fabric and easy to clean clothing. Hailey and I were talking at the office, and she suggested I try the Bounce Pet Hair & Lint Guard Mega Dryer Sheets. They’re pet hair fighters. Now, it’s not perfect but it is certainly better than it was, making life a whole lot easier. The sheets really help. I just don’t know what my life would be without them, and my Roomba. If you have pets, try them. Target and Walmart have them.
After just three hours of deliberation, the January 6th rioter from Arkansas, Richard “Bigo” Barnett, was convicted of all eight charges he faced, including interfering with a police officer, obstructing an official proceeding, and remaining in a restricted building with a dangerous weapon. If you remember, he is the one that posed for photos with his feet on the desk of Nancy Pelosi, leaving her a note that stated, “Nancy, Bigo was here bitch.” Hmmm. “That’s how I sit at my desk at home,” Mr. Barnett said of his famous photo of him in Mrs. Pelosi’s office. “It’s such a habit for me to do that…it’s not nearly as bad as it looked.” He also brought a Hike n’ Strike, a hiking stick containing a 950,000 Volt stun device with spike electrodes, which he said wasn’t working on the day of the riot. He will be sentenced in May.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Country singer Dolly Parton is 77. Actor Margaret O’Brien is 85. She was honored with a Juvenile Academy Award as the Outstanding Child Actress of 1944. Her Juvenile Oscar statue was stolen by her maid in 1954 and not recovered until 1995 at a flea market. Actor Chad Lowe is 55. Actor-director Regina King is 52. Opera singer Marilyn Horne is 89. Country singer Ronnie Milsap is 80. Country singer Jim Stafford is 79. Spiders & Snakes, Swamp Witch, Under the Scotsman’s Kilt, My Girl Bill, and Wildwood Weed. Radio host Dr. Laura Schlessinger is 76. Actor-dancer Debbie Allen is 73. TV host Bill Maher is 67Singer Sade is 64. Actor-playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda of Mary Poppins Returns & Hamilton is 43. Actor Robby Benson is 67. He is just as beautiful now as he was in the 70’s. Maybe more.
Actor Tippi Hedren is 93. The Birds. Actor-singer Michael Crawford is 81. The Phantom of the Opera. Actor Shelley Fabares is 79. TV chef Paula Deen is 76. Singer Dewey Bunnell of America is 71. Actor Desi Arnaz Jr. is 70. Actor Katey Sagal of Married…With Children is 69. Comedian Paul Rodriguez is 68. Actor Geena Davis is 67. Singer Emma Bunton (Baby Spice) of the Spice Girls is 47. Guitarist Paul Stanley of Kiss is 71. Bassist Ian Hill of Judas Priest is 71. Actor Lorenzo Lamas is 65. Opera singer Placido Domingo is 82. Actor Jill Eikenberry is 76. Guitarist Jim Ibbotson of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is 76. Singer-songwriter Billy Ocean is 73.
Texas Children’s Hospital recently published a full-page advertisement in The Houston Chronicle to congratulate J.J. Watt on his retirement. It said: Texas Children’s Hospital is happy to congratulate J.J. Watt on retirement after a life-changing career on and off the field. Throughout the years, the former Houston Texan has provided more than just entertainment for our patients, he’s provided lifelong memories. From surprise visits dressed as Batman, to toys and tickets to games – J.J. Watt’s influence reaches far beyond the stadium. Congratulations, we can’t wait to see what you do next. The difference is life changing. Did you know that J.J. Watt and his wife, soccer star Kealia Ohai Watt, welcomed their first child, a son, Koa James Watt.
According to Rover.com, the most common Dog Names for 2022: Girl Dogs: Luna, Bella, Daisy, Lucy, Lily, Zoe, Lola, Sadie, Bailey, and Stella. Boy Dogs: Max, Charlie, Cooper, Milo, Buddy, Rocky, Bear, Teddy, Duke, and Leo.
Pepsi is replacing Sierra Mist with Starry, a new lemon-lime soda with a balanced, cleaner, crisp finish, designed to rival Sprite and win over the Gen Z market. It’s caffeine-free and available in regular and zero-sugar varieties, and with higher citrus flavors. I can honestly say that I have never had a Sierra Mist so I have no idea what we will be missing.
OOOh, I just read this. If you need a bigger Ziploc bag, then turn one inside out and connect it with the locking strips to another bag of the same size. Bingo, you just doubled the size of your bag.
About 21 years ago, Nick Day proposed to his girlfriend with a beautiful engagement ring, then she accidentally flushed it down the toilet the day before their wedding. The couple searched, even climbing into the septic tank, then pumping everything through a strainer, but still no ring. About two months ago, his mother hired a plumber to put in a new toilet and the plumber found the ring. That’s a nice ending to a fairytale.
Don’t forget the 50th anniversary of Brazoria County Day 2023 in Austin. Sponsors are still needed. debbiep@eda-bc.com or 979-848-0560. Since all events are underwritten, attendees do not have a fee. What a wonderful way to showcase your business or your community support.
The advertisement says: Like Chips & Queso, Beer & Barbecue and Burgers & Fries, we just belong together. Houston Boat Show & Houston Auto Show. 1 ticket gets you 2 shows. January 25th – 29th. NRG Center. autoboativeShow.com
As I said, I have three cats, two rescued from Harvey when they were almost 3 weeks, and the 6-month-old that was dumped in front of my office, after the driver knowingly carried him all the way over from Wild Peach in the engine of her SUV one evening. Anyway, I had experimented with every litter and litterbox I could find… I even mixed different litter, trying to find just the right combination that didn’t stink and wasn’t messy, and clumped properly. We even built our own litter box that used pressed wood pellets. When Oliver went through his recent UTI problems and then surgery, a friend let me borrow a Breeze Litter System by Tidy Cats. Pellets that don’t clump but absorb the odor and dry the poop out for easy scooping. There is a pad at the bottom where the tinkle goes. I can’t say enough about this system, especially since I have three cats. As one cat parent to another… it’s terrific. No, I’m not being paid to tell you this.
The winner of the $1.35B Mega Millions ticket that sold in Maine has not come forward yet. Can you imagine? A friend and I were out to dinner the Friday 13th evening of the drawing, so when we left the restaurant, I drove us straight to Busy Bee and we threw away a $twenty, just in case the stars were lined up that evening. Note: My stars WERE NOT lined up properly that evening. 😊 But a Maryland woman won $25,000 from a Pick 5 Lottery drawing having won $25,000 with another Pick 5 game just last year. She said she had played Pick 3 and Pick 4 for several years, then decided to add Pick 5 into her routine. Her stars were lined up.
A mattress reviewing company, Sleep Junkie, is looking for five “Dairy Dreamers” for a $1000 paid study about consuming cheese products before going to sleep. They will be asked to track their sleep and provide written evaluations of their sleep quality, energy level throughout the day and reports on dreams and nightmares after consuming various cheese products before going to sleep. Applications are being accepted through Feb. 10th. $1000 and I know you like cheese.
A snake escaped from its terrarium home in a 6th grade classroom at a Kentucky school. The science teacher said he just didn’t put the lid on securely. Three months went by, and despite the discovery of a snakeskin in the classroom, there were no sightings of Gummy Worm until early January (three months) when they found the corn snake wrapped around a heater under a sink after students returned from the holiday break, just a few feet away from her former terrarium home. Gummy Worm now has a heavier lid.
Jeremy Renner says his snowplow injury resulted in 30 broken bones. Britney Spears announced she has changed her name to River Red. Hmmm. Rojo Rio. The Wiggles (Fruit Salad) have a hot new member named John Pearce that moms are swooning over. He’s the purple Wiggle, and now women across America are thinking about having more children or even buying concert tickets this Christmas for their adult children. He’s pretty cute. Exactly three years ago, the first known case of Covid-19 was reported in the US. In China there is a place widely known as China’s North Pole. Temperatures there on the first day of the Lunar New Year dropped to MINUS -53C – their coldest ever recorded. That temperature can cause frostbite in as little as five minutes. Have a great weekend and thanks for reading us. We appreciate you.
Lisa
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
