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What I Heard This Week 08-11-2022

What I Heard This Week August 10, 2022

This seems to me, to be a good way to start the column this week. I think we could use a little more cowboy code in our lives right now. What has happened to politeness, gentility, civility, manners, along with respect for ourselves and others? Only we can change this.

Gene Autry’s Cowboy Code

  1. The Cowboy must never shoot first, hit a smaller man, or take unfair advantage.
  2. He must never go back on his word, or a trust confided in him.
  3. He must always tell the truth.
  4. He must be gentle with children, the elderly, and animals.
  5. He must not advocate or possess racially or religiously intolerant ideas.
  6. He must help people in distress.
  7. He must be a good worker.
  8. He must keep himself clean in thought, speech, action, and personal habits.
  9. He must respect women, parents, and his nations laws.
  10. The Cowboy is a patriot.

There is a rooster in Germany that starts at 8am each morning and won’t stop until evening time – 100 to 200 times throughout the day until he is locked away for the evening. According to his owner, Magda the rooster is a necessary component to keep the hens behaving. But no one really understands why he goes on and on all day. The neighbors just want to be able to sit on their back patios in quiet, so they are taking Magda and his owner to court to end their nightmare and have him removed from the neighborhood. It’s not the first time someone brought home a few chicks with the intention of collecting fresh eggs for breakfast, only to find that the girls were actually guys.


Kentucky Fried Chicken has revealed their newest menu item, chicken-free, plant-based, Wicked Popcorn. Bite sized pieces of Beyond Fried Chicken covered in KFC’s Wicked Wings spice blend, accompanied with a brand-new lime ranch dipping sauce, and it’s all supposed to taste just like the same old chicken we know and love. It could be that the rooster above is just upset about this whole chicken-less chicken deal, and just doesn’t know how to let the girls know. Maybe the Colonel is slipping him a little extra to whine the only way he knows how to whine, by cock-a-doodle-doo-ing. Beyond Fried Chicken is only available while supplies last and where supplies are available.


Seen on a greeting card in Tennessee: Do OLD cowboys wear boxers or briefs? Depends.


This weekend, I was working at my desk while my daughter was sitting on the sofa at back of the office with Teller, while struggling with her calculus studies. Moments like this are the times I will miss the most when she goes off to school again. Not fancy dinners out, pedicures, shopping, movies, or anything like that, but just ordinary quiet moments spent together that we never gave much thought to. I took a picture. Yes, I will miss this and more.


RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Singer Dash Crofts of Seals and Crofts is 84. Singer David Crosby is 81. Actor-musician Steve Martin is 77. Actor Antonio Fargas of Starsky and Hutch is 76. Bassist Larry Graham of Sly and the Family Stone is 76. Actor Susan St. James is 76. Romance novelist Danielle Steel is 75. She has written 190 books, including over 141 novels. Her books have been translated into 43 languages and can be found in 69 countries across the globe. Cartoonist Gary Larson of The Far Side is 72. Singer Sarah Brightman is 62. Actor Susan Olsen of The Brady Bunch is 61. Actor Halle Berry is 56. Actor Pat Priest of The Munsters is 86. Drummer Pete York of The Spencer Davis Group is 80. Author-journalist Linda Ellerbee is 78. Singer-guitarist Tom Johnston of The Doobie Brothers is 74. Actor Larry Mathews of The Dick Van Dyke Show is 67. Little Richie Petrie. Actor Julie Newmar is 89. Actor Bob Balaban is 77.


Judith Durham, lead singer of the 1960’s Australian folk-pop band The Seekers, died at 79. She was a classically trained vocalist, with Elton John once saying she possessed the purest voice in popular music. Her own mother said that she sang nursery rhymes in perfect tune when she was two. Georgy Girl, the title song from the 1966 hit movie starring Lynn Redgrave was a huge hit, nominated for an Academy Award and #2 on the Billboard singles in the US. The Seekers became the first Australian pop group to achieve global success, paving the way for other acts based in Australia, like the Bee Gees and Olivia Newton-John.

Dame Olivia Newton-John, singer songwriter, four-time Grammy winner and star of the musical Grease, died of breast cancer at 73. Her initial mammogram in 1992 did not catch the disease, then a needle biopsy didn’t reveal anything either. She always said that sometimes you must trust your own instincts. She felt something was wrong and decided with her surgeon to do a surgical biopsy, which did show cancer in her right breast. She then created the Olivia Newton-John Wellness & Research Centre in Melbourne, so she could help other women with their breast cancer journeys.


Wordle, the very popular daily online game that a software engineer originally created for his sweetheart on Valentine’s Day, is now also a board game, Wordle: The Party Game, due out October 1. It promises to be “authentic to the Wordle experience.”


Facebook employees are bracing for job cuts as high as 10%. Now that we know Ivana Trump is buried next to the first hole of Trumps’ golf course, can we assume that Melania will be buried on the third hole? Did you know that pineapple is packed with the enzyme bromelain, which breaks down protein chains, making it an ideal marinade for meats? That’s why pineapple doesn’t work for making jellies or jams, it breaks down the gelatin as well.


A Maryland woman was stabbed by a 100-pound sailfish that leaped out of the water off the Florida coast while she was fishing for him. Hmmm. An accident? Or just a really smart fish? The Backstreet Boys’ fab five will put out their first Christmas album which includes a combo of cover and original songs. Wildfires are setting off hundreds of unexploded bombs on WWI battlefields, endangering firefighters. Greenland has been hit with unusually extensive melting of ice sheets, boosting sea levels. Some little girls are starting puberty as early as age 6 or 7. Researchers are now studying the role of obesity, chemicals, and stress in their lives.


On Sesame Street, Elmo’s dad Louis talked to their family’s pediatrician about the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine for kids, the forever 3-1/2-year-old Elmo received his shot in a Public Service Announcement clip. Elmo said, “There was a little pinch, but it was okay.”


Inspired by Blanche, Dorothy, Rose and Sophia’s iconic moments, The Golden Girls Kitchen opened in LA last month on National Golden Girl’s Day. They will serve dishes like Sophia’s Lasagna Al Forno and the Lanai Miami Style Cuban Sandwich. There are many photo ops including the iconic kitchen table. A 170-carat pink diamond called the Lulo Rose has been discovered in Angola. Only one in 10,000 diamonds is colored pink. The gemstone is expected to bring a very high value when auctioned. I bet J. Lo is thinking pink might now be her favorite color.


A woman sued a man for $10,000 because in 2020, he had stood her up for a date on her late mother’s birthday, and that caused her much emotional distress. Then she got into a screaming match and smarted off to the judge… several times, he had to tell her, “Be quiet while I am talking!”  The case was referred to another court.  According to information from Michigan District Court and Circuit Court, the woman has filed at least a dozen suits in both court jurisdictions over the past two decades – one dating as far back as 2000. Hmmm. I’m thinking the guy was spot-on in not showing up for the date. In fact, if I was him, I would move to an undisclosed location and check his woman-picker app because it may be broken.


My first car was a 1966 Mustang, so I still seem to have a soft spot for Mustangs. Even back then in the dark ages, I was quite proud of it. When the car sat for a while, condensation built up behind the glove box, so when you gassed it to drive forward, water would pour over my passenger’s feet, and it kept the carpet wet to the point of a nasty mildewy smell, but I still loved that car. I had a tendency to let my foot off the brake at stop signs, so I touched the bumpers of a couple of cars sitting in front of me. Here’s some good news. The seventh-generation Mustang will be unveiled at the 2022 Detroit Motor Show on September 14. It is quoted as being a “stunning car” that will retain a three-pedal option.  Ford has subtly hidden a six-speed manual H-pattern inside the ‘O’ in the word generation. I found a very fuzzy ‘leaked’ picture of the front end and it is quite sexy, but it will never be another 1966 Sahara Beige. A hybrid version is reportedly in the works.


My daughter was trying to see everyone before she left for school again so she invited a friend (since they met in 4th grade) and the friend’s boyfriend over for dinner. She wanted to make curry, but I suggested something cooler, like a nice summer meal of chicken salad and fruit. She agreed, so I picked up a 2-pound container of chicken salad from Bodega in downtown Lake Jackson. It was the best chicken salad I’ve ever eaten. Big chunks of smoked chicken, (that’s the secret), halved sweet red grapes, cranberries, sliced almonds and maybe just a touch of celery. I tried to look up the ingredients but couldn’t find them, so you’ll just have to try it yourself. Our downtown is experiencing some real heartache with construction right now so please support some of the restaurants involved. I made chicken salad boats that evening, along with watermelon, strawberries, cherries, and the HEB copycat Kale salad, and a nice bottle of chilled white wine. The guests brought a key lime pie. Perfect! It’s so much fun to see your kids grow up and bring their friends back home. The couple adopted a kitten while they were in town, so I am now a God-Grandmother to Slushy the striped Tabby cat. Life is good.


Have you noticed the beautiful crepe myrtles in full bloom around town? They are absolutely beautiful! And obviously a little more drought tolerant than most other things we have in the ground.


Thank You for reading us this week!

😊 LISA


Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com

What I Heard This Week! 12-26-2019

What I Heard This Week December 25, 2019

It was a slow day (ha-ha-ha) at The Source Weekly, so after discovering where the new la Madeleine French Bakery (one of my personal favorite places) is supposed to be located in LJ, we were discussing what restaurants/clubs had been in that same shopping center in past years. With the help of several people, including ALL the girls at State Farm, the name of Chevy’s came to light. Our discussion then led to La Brisa, Uncle Al’s (Al Kuvet) which led us to American Savings and Loan, then back to Banjo’s (Robert Faickney and George Franklin), Café Laredo (Leonard Botello), Brockmans, Bodiddles (Lois Ann Murphy) and Shaddocks Grocery(which was originally across the street from us), then we got back to work.What a fun trip down memory lane. Hope you enjoyed it and can add your own thoughts to these memories at the dinner table tonight.


Youth is when you’re allowed to stay up late on New Year’s Eve. Middle age is when you’re forced to. Bill Vaughn


Amazon is trying to break Alexa away from the robotic monotone in order to make her sound excited or disappointed and more engaging. They are also trying to extend the listening ability so Alexa can detect when users are frustrated with a botched response to a music-related command.I’m not quite ready for Alexa to live at my house. They’re just gathering information.


I’m going to lose weight. I’m going to exercise everyday. I’m going on a diet and stick to it…is that cake?


Olivia Newton-John auctioned off the black leather jacket that she wore in the 1978 musical Grease. The winning bid was from an unnamed buyer for $405,700. This is nearly twice what they expected – $243,200 for the jacket and $162,500 for the pants which were made in the 50’s, had a broken zipper, so she had to be sewn into them for the film. The proceeds went to the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness & Research Centre in Australia.  The gentleman that bought the jacket turned around and gave it back to her saying that she was the rightful owner. Ahhh. There is so much nice in the world. HBO Max has a new series titled Grease: Rydell High, based on the musical and featuring characters, Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsson, plus they will introduce some new ones. It is set to launch March 2020.


Zoe Kravitz is cast to portray Catwoman opposite Robert Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne in the upcoming film, The Batman. She joins Halle Berry, Michelle Pfeiffer, Julie Newmar, Lee Meriwether, Eartha Kitt, Camren Bicondova and Anne Hathaway who have played Catwoman throughout the years.


Old news but new to me: In 2014, two men were convicted of selling DuPont’s secret recipe for the white pigment titanium oxide, to a state-owned Chinese firm for more than $20 million. It is my understanding that the chemical is used in all sorts of things, from paper, pigment in paint, sunscreens and plastic, to the creamy middle of an Oreo cookie.DuPont’s method of making titanium oxide is a patented process that the company was unwilling to sell to competitors in China. What’s even more interesting is how they were found out. A couple living in California had been charged with trying to steal and sell secrets about the 50-year-old DuPont technology. During an FBI search of their home, they found a safe deposit box key – and an agent who spoke Mandarin overheard the man tell his wife in Chinese to say that she didn’t know about the bank… which is where she drove right after the agents left. Good story except for the part about the pigment being used for Oreo cookies. What else are we eating that we don’t know about.


Steve Braithwaite, 59, moved to the United States in 1986 from England, to follow a woman. He bought a Ford F-150 and set to work crafting the world’s only motorized banana. It took him about 2.5 years and $25,000. He has driven across America the past two years, offering pay-what-you-can rides and sleeping on stranger’s couches, calling his road trip “The World Needs More Whimsy Grand Tour.”  His license plate says SPLIT and he’s working on visiting all 50 states, hoping to eventually cross the globe.


Have you listened to Joni Mitchell lately? Her voice is still quite beautiful and so unique. I saw her about five years ago. She must have been sick because it wasn’t a good night, but she’s definitely worth a listen.


12 Legitimately Life-Improving New Year’s Resolutions you can steal from your dog. 1.Poop frequently.2.Worry less about things you can’t eat or play with. 3.Greet EVERYTHING. 4.Pick fights with shoes and pillows. 5.Smell things that look interesting. 6. Be less scared of telephones and strangers.7.Run outside and yell more. 8.Forget what you were doing and nap instead.9.Take care of your genitals. 10.Be nice to nice people. 11.Fart without shame. 12. Eat more stuff that makes you feel good.


Dear New Year’s Resolution, well, it was fun while it lasted… Sincerely, January 2nd.


We all know that eggs are healthier when hens ‘free range’ – continuous access to run free in a yard so they can eat bugs, grass, worms and stuff. That’s because plants and bugs have a higher nutritional value than commercial chicken feed. The yokes from free range have a darker color and the white isn’t so runny. According to Hobby Farms, free range eggs have less cholesterol, less saturated fat, increased vitamins A, E, & D, more omega-3 fatty acids, and more beta carotene. Now I’m reading that some commercial producers and farmers add marigolds to their feed because it makes the yokes darker, without having to ‘free range’ the chickens.


New Year resolution: Laugh a little louder, smile a little bigger, love a little deeper, and walk through life a little slower.


Fashion-plate, Celine Dion, was showing off her new footwear in front of her Christmas tree. The shoes are wearable works of art made to resemble flames and a fiery phoenix, made of strips of orange, red and yellow. They were intended to represent that both Celine Dion and a phoenix have courage, transformation and rebirth in common. Her fans and others have not been very kind. One fan said, “Work those chicken fire boots”, while another one commented,“I love the shoes! I thought it was a turkey escaping the fire (oven) but then realized it’s a phoenix rising from the flames,” he commented. “duh me :)” You would just have to see the boots!!


My New Year’s resolution is to stop hanging out with people who ask me about my New Year’s resolutions.


On a different beer note, at a recent music festival in Shiner, there were signs and billboards around the tiny town promoting “the new bock in town,” Crawford Bock, a beer launched by Karbach Brewing, a once-independent Houston brewer now owned by the big guys, Anheuser-Busch. Some bars and restaurants that feature local craft beers stopped carrying Karbach once it became part of a global empire. Evidently Anheuser-Busch has been trying to sway Shiner drinkers away for years. A battle has begun. There’s even a mention of the Battle of Gonzales in some of the news articles. You will always find Shiner Bock in my frig, my favorite beer along with some of the Saint Arnold’s Bishop’s Barrel.


As you may remember, Anne-Elisabeth and I rescued five 3-week-old kittens during Harvey and have raised two of them, Winnie and Sully, previously named Winston and Sullivan until we found out they were girls. Then, we have another ‘baby’ that a woman dumped in front of my office last Christmas. Oliver is precious and so appreciative that we gave him a home, except for the fact that he scratches EVERYTHING.  My other problem child is Sully, the very curious kitty that can open cabinets. The cabinet where I store the cat food is always open when I get home. My reminder to feed them just in case I forget. 😊 Recently, Sully learned that if she jumps up, grabs a door handle lever and puts her weight against it, she can also open eight-foot doors. We knew to always lock the back door and the garage door BUT this last week she surprised me by opening the door into the attic while I was getting Christmas decorations. She also brought Oliver along as moral support. It took me an hour, a handful of treats, bribery…none of which worked because they came when they felt like it, along with an air of, “Oh, you’re still here?!?” Sigh. My kids were so much easier to raise.


In October, Anheuser-Busch alleged that a former employee, now working for longtime rival MillerCoors, somehow obtained their secret beer recipes. MillerCoors says they “respect confidential information.”


Harry Potter fans: The Suffolk, England home that appeared in the movies as Lily and James Potter’s residence is now on Airbnb so you can stay there if you want.


To me New Year’s is all about kissing someone at midnight and then spending the next two months writing the wrong date on checks and other things… if only my watch had the year on it.


The Met Gala has announced that the co-chairs for the 2020 event will be Anna Wintour, Meryl Streep, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Emma Stone and Nicolas Ghesquiere of Louis Vuitton. The theme will be “About Time: Fashion and Duration” and will trace more than a century and a half of fashion – 1870 to the present – along a disruptive timeline, as part of The Met’s 150th anniversary celebration.” In simple terms, they will look at how history repeats and modernizes itself in the world of fashion. Fun.


Life is like a book. Some chapters are sad, some happy and some exciting. But if you never turn the page, you will never know what the next chapter holds. Wishing you the best chapter yet in this coming New Year.


To those of you that knew Tom Aucoin, you may remember that he passed away earlier this year. Tom was with our Source Weekly family for around 20 years. We miss him. Every few weeks, I see or hear something that for just an instant, I think I need to remember so I can tell him, until I zone in on…he’s no longer with us. Tom always worked his fireworks stand at the Churchill bridge at 4th of July and the Christmas/New Year.  He was always here at the office when we did our “Santa at the Gazebo” evening for all the kids in town. He was our own Mr. Personality, greeting kids and grownups alike, as if it had been years since he had seen them all. At our birthday luncheons, he brought the tea. One sweet and one unsweet. We drink water now. 😊 Tom, we’ve been missing you, especially lately. All of us…Connie, Tina, Pam, Hailey, Dawn, Rachelle, Janice, Ashley, Lydia and Lisa. We’ve still got your name on your office mailbox, your briefcase on standby and your picture on the refrigerator.


So, I promised a list of New Year’s resolutions. Here’s the first: Stop procrastinating so much. I’ll post the rest tomorrow or maybe the day after. Thank you so much for supporting us this year. We love you.

Lisa

  • What I Heard This Week 10-26-2023

    by on October 25, 2023 - 0 Comments

    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. “

  • What I Heard This Week 11-30-2023

    by on November 29, 2023 - 0 Comments

    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. “

  • Much Ado About Nothing - Texan in Winter

    by on December 6, 2018 - 0 Comments

    The power went out at my house last night for four hours. While this may not seem like a major catastrophe as it was the middle of the night and […]

  • Much Ado About Nothing - “Human Bait”

    by on January 16, 2020 - 0 Comments

    My dad always told me to have a backup plan in case my current job doesn’t work out. I wasn’t sure what that’d be until I saw this ad: “HUMAN […]

  • What I Heard This Week! December 20, 2018

    by on December 20, 2018 - 0 Comments

    The AK-47 is a type of assault rifle originally manufactured in the Soviet Union in 1949. A 17-year-old Humble High School student accidently shot herself recently with an AK-47 that […]

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