What I Heard This Week! 02-27-2020
A 42-year-old woman said that she and her live-in boyfriend, also 42, were drinking wine and playing hide-and-seek when she zipped him inside a suitcase and went to bed, assuming that he could free himself. She awoke the next morning and found him dead. I guess that could happen, if not for the fact that she used her phone to video him pleading that he could not breathe. Oops. She is heard saying, “That’s on you,” and “Oh, that’s what I feel like when you cheat on me.” Plus,a few things that I can’t repeat in a family newspaper. Later, an autopsy found injuries such as long fingernail scratches to his upper back and neck and bruises on his shoulder, skull and forehead consistent with blunt trauma. He also had a busted lip. The woman is being held without bail on a murder charge and if convicted, faces the possibility of life in prison.The moral of this story :1. If you’re over 40, don’t drink wine and play hide-and-seek at the same time. 2. At any age, always be aware of your surroundings and anyone that wants to zip you inside a suitcase. 3. If you have a problem concerning what is right or prudent, then keep your phone in your pocket and don’t video people that you won’t let out of the suitcase.
According to a survey of parents by Delta Dental Plans Association, the average amount of money that the Tooth Fairy now leaves kids per tooth, is $3.70. In My Day…
A disgruntled Houston Astros ticket holder has filed a $1 million lawsuit against the Astros over their pitch sign stealing scandal, alleging the team was “deceptively overcharging (fans) for season tickets while defendants and their employees and representatives knowingly and surreptitiously engaged in a sign stealing scheme … and secretly put a deficient product on the field that could result (and now has resulted) in severe penalties.”The suit also alleges that the scandal has tainted the team’s recent success, leading to “diminished value of their personal seat licenses.” Hmmm…continue below.
The Astros’ Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks, an affiliate of the Astros, has revoked the season tickets of a long-time ticket holder after he filed a claim against the Astros on behalf of season ticket holders that feel cheated and betrayed after “the Astros” scandal. This Texas attorney’s ticket plan with the Hooks included several seats behind home plate and a suite, with a reported cost of $45,000 annually. Looks like several suits have been filed over the past few weeks. Hmmm. That seems a little like cutting off your nose to spite your face sort of thing. Houston, I hope you play really, really well this year because it will take that to turn back the hearts of some…most.
There is an intimate new Broadway musical called Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, based on the 1969 Oscar-winning film. “It’s a bittersweet comic take on the sexual revolution in which the suavely conventional lives of two successful couples, all friends, are both stirred and shaken when they open their minds to the changing attitudes around them.” The movie starred Natalie Wood, Robert Culp, Elliott Gould and Dyan Cannon. All I remember was that it was Rrated and that was an absolute no-no at my house. When I grew older and way more sophisticated, I must have lost interest and never saw it. Maybe because I was watching Star Wars. I bet it’s nothing compared to what’s on the movie or TV screen in our world today.
Connie and I got to talking about an old cartoon that had two dogs in it. One with a long face that walked and talked reeeeaaal slow, so I googled ‘sad, cartoon, dog, vintage,’ and it brought up Droopy Dog the Bloodhound. Yes! That was it. We watched a few clips of the long-ago cartoons, when our world was a softer, prettier place.
The Citizen’s Police Academy in Lake Jackson starts new classes on March 26th. What a great opportunity to see how our Police Department works. If you have youngsters (7th thru 12th) then think about the Young Citizen Academy summer program.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Author Susan Brownmiller is 85. She is most recognized for raising public awareness of violent crimes against women and children. Actress model Marisa Berenson is 73. Matt Groening is 66. The creator of Simpsons. Model Janice Dickinson is 65. Oprah Winfrey is 66. Best-selling author John Sandford is 76. Musician Rusty Young is 74. Country rock Americana band Poco. Former NFL player Ed “Too Tall” Jones is 65. Actress Emily Blunt is 37. Mary Poppins. Actress Dakota Fanning is 26.
Film &theater composer Robert Lopez is 45.Best known for co-creating The Book of Mormon and Avenue Q, and for composing the songs featured in the 3D Disney computer animated films Frozen and Coco, with his wife Kristen Anderson-Lopez. Of only fifteen people who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony Award, he is the youngest and quickest to win all four, and, as of 2018, is the only person to have won all four awards more than once.
Actor, stuntman and singer Robert Conrad, who starred in the Wild Wild West, died at 84. Larry Tesler, a computer scientist who invented copy, cut, and paste, died at 74. He is my hero. Katherine Johnson, a NASA mathematician who was portrayed in Hidden Figures, died at 101.
A New Jersey man, 60, accused of moving into his daughter’s college dorm in 2010 and abusing at least five of her Sarah Lawrence College roommates both sexually and psychologically, is charged with conspiracy to commit extortion, sex trafficking, obtaining forced labor, forced labor trafficking, conspiracy to obtain forced labor, two counts of violating the Travel Act and money laundering. He presented himself as a father figure and therapist to the students before the relationship became abusive with him exploiting them for money, directing them to have sex in front of him and severing the students’ relationship with their families. One parent complained to the Dean of Student Life but was told that parents could visit their children on campus so there was nothing that could be done. He reportedly moved into the dorm room following his release from prison on charges related to a custody dispute. He remained there until the following summer when he moved off-campus and shared an apartment with the students. There’s more but it’s too weird to understand.
By the end of World War II, 20 million victory gardens were planted across the U.S. and were responsible for producing 40% of all the vegetables consumed in the country at that time. Now, across our nation, people are growing their own victory gardens, because every item grown at home also means one less thing purchased from the store, which cuts down on transportation and waste. The climate victory garden movement was launched to encourage people to start using whatever outdoor space they have, whether it’s an apartment balcony, backyard or community garden, to help lessen the climate change crisis. This allows everyone to be a part of the solution in a small way, as we try to do our part to save our planet. I was reading about these great ideas today, but one of the little pop-up videos that always appear on your screen selling you something, kept playing an ad for Roundup – you know the controversial herbicide found in some breakfast cereals (one study found 31 out of 45 products had unsafe levels for children.) Hmmm. Just doesn’t seem right.
College Admissions Scandal: Hot Pockets heiress, Michelle Janavs, 49, was sentenced to five months in prison and a $250,000 fine along with two years of supervised release after she is free from prison. She pleaded guilty to pledging $300,000 for help in fraudulently boosting college qualifications of her two daughters. Federal prosecutors were asking for 21 months. Former UT tennis coach, Michael Center, 55, was sentenced six months in prison after pleading guilty to taking a $100,000 bribe to help get someone admitted to the college as a student-athlete. “I believe you are a good man, but this is one of those things that just can’t be overlooked,” U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns said.
As some of you may remember, my son is involved in sound design at UH. They just closed their production of Spirits to Enforce, a 2003 play written by and then directed at UH by Mickle Maher. It featured twelve of the BEST student actors ever. These kids are going places with not a weak one in the bunch. Now, pay attention to this storyline because it’s got a lot of layers. There are 12 out-of-work actors stuck on a cramped and submerged submarine realizing that they are pretty irrelevant to the world above them. During this time, they are conducting a telethon drive to raise money for their production of Shakespeare’s,The Tempest which is an impossible sell for them. Oh, and did I mention that each of the actors eventually reveal their secret identities as superheroes, complete with bodysuits, capes, eye masks and knee-high lace-up boots. You know, superheroes like The Intoxicator, The Bad Map, The Pleaser, The Untangler and more, along with each of their special superpowers. It was one crazy, fun show, unlike anything you’ve seen.
COVID-19: The number of new cases being diagnosed outside China now exceeds the number diagnosed inside the country, another indication the virus is nearing pandemic status. It’s now on every continent except Antarctica. Remember to wash your hands with soap and water (ideally for long enough to sing Happy Birthday, twice) and avoid touching your face…eyes, nose and mouth.
Texans star J.J. Watt and Chicago Stars forward Kealia Ohai officially tied the knot in the Bahamas. He says, “The best day of my life. Without question.“At the recent 2020 BRIT Awards, Lizzo walked the red-carpet in a milk chocolate colored dress with the Hershey’s logo printed across the front. In fact, it also included a barcode and nutritional value on it. She added a small chocolate bar inspired bag. Fun!
The book is called Then She Was Gone, written by British author Lisa Jewell. It’s a classic missing person storyline but creative, clever and so well-written. The story felt real. I’m not going to tell you one more thing about the story because,‘SPOILER’ you just need to read it.It’s the book that you race through then hate that it’s the last page. I finished it on the way to a meeting at the college this morning and I wanted to just forget the meeting, go straight to the library and check out another book by Lisa Jewell, immediately, but instead, I went to the meeting. Note: I did go later and check out a new book.😊
March 1st is the last day for Restaurant Week. If you order the ‘Give Back Meal’ these restaurants give back $2-$3 directly to Brazosport Cares hunger relief programs. Participating restaurants are 1.Table 24 2. Diary Bar 3. Beef O Brady’s 4. Cork Wine Lounge 5.The Wayside 6. Applesway 7.Wine Revue 8.The Fill Station 9.Center Court Pizza 10.Swamp Shack 11.Grape Taste, 12.The Local 13 .WurstHaus 14. Growler’s Pour Haus, and 15.On the River. Support businesses as they support your community. Please.
If you want to smile this week, Google: Dog can’t walk, Pigeon can’t fly, become friends. Lundy is a two-month-old Chihuahua puppy that arrived at the Mia Foundation in NY with spinal cord damage and couldn’t walk. He doesn’t weigh enough to have an MRI to find out why. Herman the Pigeon was found about a year ago in a parking lot where he had been sitting for three days and was close to death. He was tube-fed but never regained his ability to fly. Sue Rogers put them together and you can read the rest. It’s an animal rescue for animals born with birth defects. There are such good people in the world.
A female Alabama lawmaker has introduced a bill that would require all men to get vasectomies at the age of 50 to reduce unwanted pregnancies. They would have surgery within a month after their 50th birthday or after their third child was born and they would have to pay for the procedure themselves. “It always takes two to tango,” said Rep. Rolanda Hollis, “we can’t put all the responsibility on women. Men need to be responsible also.”Hmmm.
Thanks for reading us this week. We appreciate you. Sell more stuff. We want to do this again next week. Lisa Baker
