What I Heard This Week! April 11, 2019
Don’t laugh. A woman is suing the Houston Astros after she said that a t-shirt fired into the crowd last summer by mascot Orbit, broke her finger. She is seeking more than $1 million in damages. The lawsuit claims, “the Astros were negligent for failing to use reasonable care when firing the T-shirt cannon; failing to provide warning to fans; failing to properly train employees about the T-shirt cannon; failing to supervise staff using the T-shirt cannon, and failing to follow T-shirt cannon safe use practices.” My mother always said, “Say nothing if you can’t say something nice,” so I’m not going to suggest that it was just a t-shirt, not a rock. I’m not going to suggest that no one held her head in a vice and told her that she HAD to catch a t-shirt or else. I’m not going to say that it sounds very much like a self-inflected wound. Nope, I’m nicer than all that. But I will say that after carefully examining the picture of this famous mascot, it appears that Orbit only has 4 fingers and he seems to be doing ok.
I’m sorry I slapped you…but you didn’t seem like you would ever stop talking and I panicked.
Many people think that you can pour fat or grease down the drain as long as you run hot water at the same time. Nope. It helps with some of the grease but what remains will harden as it cools. Keep doing this at your house and eventually your pipe will plug and it’s super expensive to repair. Instead, let your grease harden in the pan, then wipe it out with paper towels and throw away.
The 32nd Annual Houston Art Car Parade is Saturday April 13th. It’s wacky and it’s weird. Parade starts at 2pm along Allen Parkway, heads into Downtown, snakes around Houston City Hall, then heads back out the other side of Allen Parkway. It’s always fun.
Former Vice President Joe Biden is vowing to, “be more mindful and respectful of people’s personal space.” He says, “In my career, I’ve always tried to make a human connection – that’s my responsibility, I think… I shake hands; I hug people; I grab men and women by the shoulders and say, ‘You can do this.’ Social norms have begun to change; they’ve shifted and the boundaries of protecting personal space have been reset, and I get it. I get it. I hear what they’re saying.” I just want to add that I had the world’s greatest grandfather, the very finest. He was a hugger and a kisser and all the ‘best of the best’ rolled into one man. Granddaddy was a barber, knew everyone in town and everyone loved him. Would he fit in to today’s new norm…probably not, and it chills me to think about someone ever saying something so negative about him. Now, I also had the lecherous uncle that loved for us to sit on his lap – even as very young children, my sisters and I knew something was not right and kept our distance, but didn’t discuss it until we were grown. So, I know the difference. I’m not saying who to vote for, just slide him some slack.
Finally, my winter fat is gone. Now I have spring rolls. – Unknown.
June Shannon aka Momma June (Here Comes Honey Boo Boo) and her boyfriend were arrested in Alabama last month after they were found with crack cocaine and a pipe. If found guilty of felony possession charges, both could face up to five years in prison. The TV series was canceled abruptly in 2014 after it was reported that Momma June was dating a convicted child molester, then she later returned to TV with a series documenting her 300-pound surgical weight loss. Hmmm. I am pleased to say that I have never seen either of these shows.
Have you been thinking about taking a short trip to the Hill Country to see the bluebonnets? Chappell Hill Lavender Farm in Brenham is having a free seminar called Efficiency, Productivity & Economy: Growing the Mittleider Way, where you can learn more about growing vegetables from seeds. What a great day trip to see the bluebonnets and get smart at the same time. Reservations: 979-251-8114.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Recording executive Clive Davis is 87. Five Grammy Awards and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer.Actor Craig T. Nelson is 75. Coach. Actress Mary-Margaret Humes is 65. Dawson Creek. Director Francis Ford Coppola is 80. Apocalypse Now, The Godfather. Actress Roberta Shore is 76. The Virginian. Actress Kristen Stewart is 29. Twilight.Singer, TV personality Vicki Lawrence is 70. The Carol Burnett Show.
College and Pro Football Hall of Fame Tony Dorsett is 65. Nobel Prize winning scientist James D. Watson is 91. Actor Billy Dee Williams is 82. Director Barry Levinson is 77. Martial artist, actor, director, producer, screenwriter, action choreographer, singer, stunt director, stunt performer Jackie Chan is 65. Singer Bobby Bare is 84. 500 Miles Away from Home. Actor Alan Arkin is 85. Singer Diana Ross is 75.
Olympic bronze medal figure skater Janet Lynn is 66. Actor Paul Rudd is 50. Singer Pat Green is 47. Mouseketeer Darlene Gillespie is 78. Singer Peggy Lennon is 78. The Lennon Sisters. Former House Republican Leader Tom DeLay is 72. Rock musician Mel Schacher is 68. Grand Funk Railroad. Actor John Schneider is 59. The Dukes of Hazzard. Singer Julian Lennon is 56. Actress Robin Wright is 53.
Actress Patricia Arquette is 51. Singer Charlie Thomas is 82. The Drifters. Actor William Daniels is 92. Father of Benjamin Braddock in The Graduate. Actor Richard Chamberlain is 85. Actress Shirley Jones is 85. Comedian Gabe Kaplan is 75. Rock musician Mick Ralphs is 75. Bad Company, Mott the Hoople. Rock musician Angus Young is 64. AC/DC.Actress Michael Learned is 80. The Waltons.
The Astrodome opened on April 9th, 1965. That makes it now 54 years old. I remember living in Houston while my dad tested the concrete for the construction of the Dome. Such fun memories.
Actress Lori Loughlin and her husband Mossimo Giannulli were among 16 parents who have been indicted in the college admissions scandal known as Operation Varsity Blues. These parents have been charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering in addition to conspiracy to commit mail fraud which increases their possibility of prison time. Loughlin and Giannulli’s daughter, 19-year-old social media star Olivia Jade, is “very angry with her parents and would never have gone along with the scheme if she had known.” If she had known WHAT?!? That they would all be caught? See below.
Everyone tries to define this thing called CHARACTER. It’s not hard. Character is doing what’s right when nobody’s looking. – Unknown
Remember the story of Arsenic & Old Lace? Eccentric sisters Abby and Martha Brewster are charming, along with their nephew who thinks he is Teddy Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States. Abby and Martha welcome lonely older gentlemen into their home as boarders. Arsenic & Old Lace is one of the classic comedy thrillers of American theatre. Call today to reserve your tickets. Performance dates are soon, April 26 – May 5. 979-265-7661 or TheCenter@bcfas.org
I’ve always wanted to turn around in a big chair and say, “I’ve been expecting you.”
In Spain, a very beautiful flamingo somehow ended up on the airport runway and very calmly and elegantly walked the tarmac, leading the incoming plane to its unloading bay. The plane beeped its horn (I didn’t know that planes had horns) but the bird was unaffected and continued its slow journey. Cute video.
“Live life as if someone left the gate open.” At my house it’s more like, live life as if someone left the back door open. Cats are sneaky.
Pysanky is a Ukrainian Easter egg, decorated with traditional Ukrainian folk designs using a wax-resist method. The word pysanka comes from the verb pysaty, “to write”, as the designs are not painted on, but written with beeswax.They’re beautiful. I just read an article about master artist Nestor Topchy, who has received support from Texas Folklife to instruct and apprentice in this symbolic form of art. The Texas Folklife apprenticeship program financially supports master folk artists and apprentices in an effort to sustain Texas traditional arts, which includes custom western saddle making, luthiery (see below), and the art of custom-made cowboy hats. These are art forms that will die if we don’t work to keep them alive in this crazy world by finding and teaching younger people apprenticeship programs. (A luthier is someone who builds and repairs string instruments consisting of a neck and sound box.)
Several Texas Tech fans are blaming Republican US Texas senator Ted Cruz for their NCAA national basketball championship loss to Virginia after he ‘jinxed’ the Raiders with a final-seconds selfie of himself enjoying the game in a suite, with 35 seconds left in the game and Tech clinging to a one-point lead. Final score was Virginia 85 and Texas Tech 77, in overtime. Shame on you Ted Cruz. 😊
After going through bankruptcy, Sears is getting ready to open its first batch of smaller stores that won’t carry clothing but will focus on both major and small kitchen appliances, mattresses and home service. The first three stores called Sears Home & Life, will open on Memorial Day weekend in Kansas, Louisiana and Alaska.
I love eating good food and I love talking about and cooking good food. Chili was proclaimed by the Legislature as the state food of Texas in 1977. Our official cobbler is peach. Official nut, pie and tree is the pecan. The official drink should be Dr. Pepper. The official fruit is grapefruit – makes a great mojito. I’m not sure where that leaves chicken-fried steak, BBQ, fried okra, queso, margaritas, King Ranch casserole, jalapenos, chips, salsa, and cheese enchiladas,but one man has a big plan to get Texas to recognize tacos as the official dish of our state. If you want to sign the petition, go to TacoJournalism.blogspot.com. They are also asking that you contact your state representative.
There is a big, fat ugly ‘superbug’ germ/fungus called ‘Candida auris’ (C. auris) that is preying on people with weakened immune systems and slowly spreading across our planet. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has added it to a list of germs deemed “urgent threats.” In May, an elderly gentleman was admitted to Mount Sinai Hospital for abdominal surgery. His blood tests revealed the fungus. He died after 90 days in the hospital, but the fungus did not. Tests showed that it was all over his hospital room (even the ceiling) and was so invasive that special cleaning equipment and UV light was required to kill the germ even after the room had been cleaned with customary methods.
Magic Johnson abruptly stepped down as the Lakers’ president of basketball operations, saying “I want to go back to having fun…I was happier when I wasn’t the president.” “I’m a free bird and I’ve been handcuffed…And I don’t like that…This is the right time. The right move. The right decision. I’m so happy. I’m a guy who always knows when things are right, and this is right. It feels good.”
If you have lived in this area for a while, then on at least one occasion (and likely more) you found reasons to shop at Lollipops’ & Lace. For 35 years, Lois Ann Murphy dressed our children for their finest moments, instilling her belief that ‘your children will behave as well as they are dressed.’ I believed it when my children were little, and I BELIEVE IT now. On March 30th, Lois Ann lost her 2-year battle with Alzheimer’s. Lois Ann was cute, a great businesswoman, kind, loving, generous of her time& her gifts. She will be sorely missed by her friends and our community. See page 2 for memorial service date.
Have a lovely week-end and most of all, thanks for reading this. Lisa
😊 Lisa
