Monday, May 18, 2015 – Graduation, Family & Bikers

Monday, May 18, 2015 – Graduation, Family & Bikers

“What a wild, wacky weekend in Waco,” she said with alliteration. I stole today’s title from Great Niece Courtney’s tweet.  She is one of my new followers on Twitter. She joins several new FFs. (Facebook Friends). Fortunately and thankfully my trip to Waco only involved the first two descriptors.  What a tragedy. I bet the Waconians (?) thought Stephen King’s The Stand was taking place.

But for my new social media friends – Welcome to Here’s What I’m Thinking.  Here are my rules. They are always subject to change.

I write a post everyday Monday through Friday and maybe Saturday and/or Sunday if something happens to interest me. I try to post around late morning unless I play golf. If the rains ever cease and I can play golf again, postings will appear in the afternoons. Note: “around late morning” is from the bureaucratic time zone – the one used by state and federal agencies.

I write mostly about college football (and a few other sports), the Texas educational institution, politics and anything else my great mind thinks about.  Just because it appears to be sports oriented does not always mean it is about sporting event, itself. I say this for the Sports Challenged who do not follow sports.  I may critique and rank the college football uniforms for that Saturday. For example from last fall “Is it just me or do the Texas Tech football helmets look like the Dairy Queen logo?”

Topics range from snarky to moving.  Remember my sister reads this daily.  So try to refrain from using the F word too often. My family only tends to use it around her when there is a bear chasing one of us in Alaska.

To get people to read what I write I created this mission statement – aka my business plan.

If I have known you in the past, know you now or will know you in the future, I WILL write about you.  There is a high statistical probability that what I write about you will be positive.  But are you willing to risk that you fall outside the standard deviation and are written in a negative light and not read Here’s What I’m Thinking?  Those who do not read, will be written about.

The intent is to make at least one person think and/or laugh daily.  I am not responsible if coffee, red wine or any other substance hits your computer screen while laughing or crying.

I try to be bipartisan snarky, but the political writings do lean left and tend to be more blue oriented than red.  And sorry, Greg, Courtney, Principal Judy, et al, they lean far to the Maroon and White rather than the burnt orange.  I anxiously await your snappy comebacks.

Jennifer, check out some previous posts with me and Reveille VIII or the implosion of the West Side.  Yes, me and 7000, at 6:30 AM on a Sunday morning to watch a wall full of memories fall.  Why? Because we are the Aggies. That and money and better ESPN angles for football games. It is amazing what a Heisman Trophy will bring, isn’t it Baylor? And we get to play on real TV. (Paraphrase to Chancellor John Sharp), but I understand The University is booked until 2027.

Remember, you do not have to like anything I am thinking.  The goal of a writer is to evoke emotions. (A big shout out to Mrs. Traugh and Mrs. Burnside for teaching me that in high school and I did not split my infinitive either.)

Comments are most welcome even if you have a different point of view or perspective.  It is a diverse world.  Remember the site is called Here’s What I’m Thinking, not Here’s What I Believe.  Often the postings are parodies or satires.  It is written on multiple levels with multiple items embedded.

You can access the site by going to Drdrd85.me and one does not have to go through social media (i.e. Facebook or Twitter).

Originally, the site was modeled after the vanity cards, at the end of Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady productions.  Many are aware my favorite TV show that is not on ESPN is The Big Bang Theory. The vanity cards are the paragraphical writings on the cards that flash at the end of the program.  Mine were supposed to be “bathroom” in length, meaning one should be able to read what I writing during an ordinary visit to the bathroom or about 500 words. But sometimes I become verbose. But hey, I have a PhD. That is how we talk – long and boring – just like I did now.

Anyway, hopefully there is a little something for everyone.   Thanks for reading.

 

 

 

Friday, May 15, 2015 – “Are We There Yet?” said the Snark

Friday, May 15, 2015 – “Are We There Yet?” said the Snark

To all my friends and colleagues’ who were and especially those who bravely continue to be in the institution commonly called – K-12 Public Education:

Remember when we used to say “The Legislature wants schools to do more with less. However, someday they will ask us to do it all with nothing.”

Are we there yet?  I believe so. Once again the boys and girls of Texas get one of the simple machines from the Texas Legislature.

For your daily assessment, select from the following which simple machine the public schools were given by the Texas Legislature.

(a) Lever

(b) Wedge

(c) Wheel and Axle

(d) Pulley

(e) Inclined plane

(f) Screw

Thursday, May 14, 2015 – Hidebound – The Word for the Day

Thursday, May 14, 2015 – Hidebound – The Word for the Day

Every day for some reason I reason I receive the word of the day from dictionary.com in my email.

The word for May 12 was hidebound.

Hidebound means:

  1. narrow and rigid in opinion; inflexible: a hidebound pedant.
  2. oriented toward or confined to the past; extremely conservative: a hidebound philosopher

With the word of the day comes the use in a quotation and the origin of the word.

Quotes

I never saw a man so distressed as you were by my will; unless it were that hidebound pedant, Lanyon, at what he called my scientific heresies.

— Robert Louis Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, 1886

Origin

Hidebound entered English in the mid-1500s as a descriptor for malnourished cattle. It joins the words hide meaning “the pelt or skin of one of the larger animals” and bound meaning “made fast as if by a band or bond.”

As this is Texas and we assess everything in education, here is your assessment question.

For the writing portion, write a paragraph answering the following question:

Doesn’t this sound like the Texas Legislature?

 

Wednesday, May 13, 2015 – “An Embarrassment to FSU?”

UPDATE: 11:36 am

Thank you, RL, for discovering the error in today’s posting.  I realized it just as you called it to my attention. For the rest of you, you must take the assessment to see if you caught the error.

Ready? Begin.

Select the response that does not belong in the following statement:

In today’s post on Here’s What I’m Thinking, I

(a) Can still graduate from high school  if a selected committee says “OK” even though I cannot pass the STAAR test.

(b) Did not get out of the Wayback Machine yesterday and should have said the former FSU coach talking about The Embarrassment.

(c) Should have said Fisher continued to allow it in order to win and  “Jimbo Fisher” grow a pair.

(d) Decided for some reason to have crab legs for lunch.

(e) I was really just seeing if anyone on Twitter, FB, or DRDRD85.me was reading and paying attention.

Wednesday, May 13, 2015 – “An Embarrassment to FSU?”

Did you see where Bobby Bowden said “I think it’s a consensus among FSU fans and boosters that he (Jameis Winston) was an embarrassment to Florida State University?” Note: for the NCAA Division I College Football Challenged, Bobby Bowden is the head football coach at Florida State University.

Here’s what I’m thinking. You now say the quarterback embarrassed the school. Yet, Coach Bowden, you allowed the embarrassment of a major academic university to continue as The Embarrassment helped you and FSU, win a national championship, win a Heisman Trophy and bring buckets full of money and exposure to the institution.

So let me see if I understand.  You will allow, ignore, look the other way, or do whatever, regardless of the allegations to win football games.  What kind of message does that send? Maybe Jameis Winston is not the only embarrassment to Florida State University.   You and Tom Brady both need to grow a pair and keep them inflated and do what is right and ethical.

Tuesday, May 12, 2015 – The Oldest Living World War II Veteran

Did you know the oldest living World War II veteran is 109 year old Richard Overton? And he lives in Austin, Texas. Mr. Overton served in the all-black 1887th Aviation Engineer Battalion from 1942 until 1945. Unfortunately, I only know Mr. Overton via the news.

Did you know that World War II veterans are passing away at a rate of almost 900 PER DAY?

With Memorial Day approaching, I think about all who serve and sacrifice.  Notice the present tense is intentional.

If I were to die today, I would be proud to say that I knew Major Thomas W. Matthews. You will hear more about him and two others from World War II in the coming days.  Lieutenant Matthews was a pilot.  After the war ended, 70 years ago this month, he went to the Texas Agricultural and Mechanical College in College Station and became a veterinarian.  He practiced until he was in his late 80’s. He rose the rank of Lt. Colonel in the Air Force Reserves.

Here is a photo of Dr. Matthews and me at the World War II Memorial in Washington D.C.

Dr. Mathews and Duffey

It was taken on the maiden Honor Flight from Austin, June 2012 taking veterans to visit their World War II Memorial. This photo was in the Texas Aggie magazine of March/April 2013. It was said that Dr. Matthews showed the picture to any and all at every VFW meeting and anyone who would stop and listen. I heard he carried the magazine with him at all times. Dr. Matthews passed away at age 90 July 15, 2013, shortly after the magazine came out.

What can you say you have done for a World War II veteran, Purple Heart recipient and hero?

You can read about Dr. Tom and his life at http://www.purpleheartaustin.org/matthews.htm

Joseph Heller’s book, Catch 22, is based on the airmen stationed in Corsica with then, Lt. Matthews.

If nothing else, remember all who served and pray for all who continue to protect us and keep freedom for us. If you see a soldier today, pat them on the back and say “Thank you.” They are indeed, The Greatest Generation.

Monday, May 11, 2015 – Who’ll Stop The Rain?

Monday, May 11, 2015 – Who’ll Stop The Rain?

Raining (Storming) Trivia Monday – what group sang Who’ll Stop the Rain? Extra credit if you know you wrote the song.

Long as I remember the rain been comin’ down

Clouds of mystery pourin’ confusion on the ground.

Good men through the ages tryin’ to find the sun.

And I wonder still I wonder who’ll stop the rain.

I went down Virginia seekin’ shelter from the storm

Caught up in the fable I watched the tower grow

Five year plans and new deals wrapped in golden chains.

And I wonder still I wonder who’ll stop the rain.

Heard the singers playin’, how we cheered for more.

The crowd had rushed together tryin’ to keep warm.

Still the rain kept pourin’, fallin’ on my ears

And I wonder, still I wonder who’ll stop the rain.

Who’ll Stop The Rain is track #6 on the album More Creedence Gold by Creedence Clearwater Revival. It was written by John C. Fogerty.

Friday, May 8, 2015 – Snark Attack

Friday, May 8, 2015 – Snark Attack

What has the Texas Legislature and Governor done for the people of Texas this week?

Open carry of handguns is shooting forward through session.

The Governor said he would sign a bill saying “clergy do not have to service people whose belief structure is against theirs.” Note: this is fancy bullshit language for discrimination and bigotry. And this has nothing to do with where people go to the bathroom.

Then the Governor decided to send the Texas State Guard to protect the people of Bastrop County from The Attack of the Federal Government. Was the Texas State Guard the military branch W. Bush was in?

And then to add sprinkles to the cupcakes, Texas State Representative David Simpson, REPUBLICAN from Longview, filed a bill Monday that would repeal the state’s ban on growing, possessing and selling marijuana – something he believes God intended.

Here are some quotes attributed to Mr. Simpson: “I don’t believe that when God made marijuana he made a mistake that government is to fix.” Or how about, “Civil government should value everything God made and leave people alone unless they meddle with their neighbor.” And finally, albeit taken out of context somewhat “All that God created is good, including marijuana.”

Am I the only one finding this triad worrisome? Hand guns, bigots and pot, Oh My!  I hope there are enough sane people around when the zombie apocalypse takes place.

Thursday, May 7, 2015 – The National Day of Prayer

Thursday, May 7, 2015 – The National Day of Prayer

Today is the National day of Prayer.

The National Day of Prayer was established as an annual event in 1952 by a joint resolution of the United States Congress and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman. The observance of the National Day of Prayer is founded on the constitutional rights of freedom of speech and freedom of religion and can be celebrated by all Americans.

The National Day of Prayer 2015 Will Focus on 1 Kings 8:28: ‘Lord, Hear Our Cry.’

President Obama did not cancel the National Day of Prayer. So pray for me as I call those of you who believe he did, Dumbasses.

http://nationaldayofprayer.org/

Wednesday, May 6, 2015 – “We Have Met the Enemy and He is Us.”

Wednesday, May 6, 2015 – “We have met the enemy and he is us.”

“We have met the enemy and he is us” is probably the most famous Pogo quotation. (Google “Pogo”) The quote is a parody of a message sent in 1813 from U.S. Navy Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry to Army General, William Henry Harrison after his victory in the Battle of Lake Erie. Note to uniformed and misinformed – The Battle of Lake Erie was during the War of 1812. It was the United States against Great Britain and not the invasion of New York by the United States government.

The quote has appeared in several forms and is included in The Pogo Papers. The foreword of the book in which the cartoonist Walt Kelly defends his actions reads as follows:

“Traces of nobility, gentleness and courage persist in all people do what we will to stamp out the trend.  So, too, do those characteristics which are ugly.  It is just unfortunate that in the clumsy hands of a cartoonist all traits become ridiculous, leading to a certain amount of self-conscious expostulation and the desire to join battle.  There is no need to sally forth, for it remains true that those things which make us human are, curiously enough, always close at hand.  Resolve then, that on this very ground, with small flags waving and tinny blasts on tiny trumpets, we shall meet the enemy, and not only may he be ours, he may be us. Forward!”

Walt Kelly, June 1953, The Pogo Papers defending his attacks on McCarthyism.

Sounds like today, doesn’t it?

Tuesday, May 5, 2015 – Happy Cinco de Mayo and the Invasion of Texas or Grito de Idiots

Tuesday, May 5, 2015 – Happy Cinco de Mayo and the Invasion of Texas or Grito de Idiots

Cinco de Mayo is not a celebration of Mexican independence.

According to History.com, the Mexicans celebrate their independence from Spain on September 16th. This is the day priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla declared war against the Spanish government in 1810 with his call to arms that is known as the “Grito de Dolores” or “Cry of Dolores.”

Cinco de Mayo commemorates a relatively small battle.

The 5th of May is the anniversary of the Battle of Puebla, a battle which resulted in the unlikely victory of Mexico over France in 1862, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica.

In 1861, Mexico defaulted on a number of foreign debts that it owed to England, Spain, and France. All three countries invaded Mexico, but England and Spain retreated by the next year. France however, stayed in hopes of creating a monarchy in Mexico led by the Archduke of Austria, Maximilian.

Now Cinco de Mayo should not be confused with the invasion of Texas by the federal government or as it is known in Bastrop County – The Obama Attack of Texas and Bastrop County. Why the residents think their country would be the choice of an attack, as opposed to other counties, such as Harris or Dallas, or even Bexar, I do not know.

It seems a federal government training exercise called Jade Helm 15 is to take place throughout the western United States, including Texas.  The Gathering of the Conspiracy Theorists has produced thoughts such as:

  1. The Federal government and/or the United Nations (maybe both) are invading Bastrop County.
  2. They are coming to seize all of the guns.
  3. They are coming to imprison dissenters.
  4. They are connected to the closing of Walmart stores where dissenters will be housed.

However, the “interesting” fact is that the Governor of Texas has called up the Texas State Guard to protect the residents.  Think about that for a moment. The state government is sending troops to protect residents from the federal troops based on fear and paranoia.

This has caused former politicians such as Lt. Governor, David Dewhurst to say “IT’S a training exercise.” and former state representative, Todd Smith to say the governor is “pandering to the idiots.” Note: both of those quotes are from Conservative Republicans.

The military exercises are scheduled to take place between July 15 and September 15.  Oh yes, Mexico celebrates its Independence from Spain on September 16.

Here’s what I’m thinking – Let’s declare September 17 – Day of the Idiots. Goobernor Abbott has the power to declare state holidays too.

I do think the republicans have begun their own self-destruction. Don’t even get me started on the cartoon convention in Garland.