Texas, Guns, and Politics

Jerry Patterson

So soon after the Newtown gun massacre, which took the lives of 20 children and six adults, only in Texas could a candidate for statewide public office think the ad at the right helps his election campaign. (And only in Texas would he probably be correct.)

S2L77: Pokhara, Nepal

Pokhara, Nepal
March 1, 1977

I sat out on the deck listening to the distant dogs, looking at the stars, and brooding on the mountains.

Source: Personal travel notes.

From 1977 02 21 Nepal

The trip from Kathmandu to India is only a few hundred miles by road. The bounty of sights makes it seem much longer. Nepal is mostly a high mountain valley with spectacular scenery. Outside the cities, people are sparse, most engaged in small-scale farming. In spring, Nepal has warm days and cold nights. Spending the night in Pokhara, sitting outside under a clear sky with a waxing moon, contemplating the eternal mountains, well, that's just about the closest thing to communing with nature that I can imagine.

More photos after the jump.

A Weak Cup of CAFR

For city finance wonks, Christmas comes twice a year: once in August when the city budget is set and again in February when the city financial audit is published. The budget specifies the city's cash flow (its planned revenues and expenses). The financial audit details the city's assets (the value of city property, bank accounts, etc.) and its liabilities (outstanding debt, pension obligations, etc.).

After the jump, a quick look at this year's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR).

Berkner 54, Skyline 33

The Berkner Rams men's basketball team defeated the Skyline Raiders 54-33 Tuesday night to cap off a perfect 14-0 District 9-5A record, winning their fourth straight district championship. It's a great time to be a Ram!

Next up: UIL state playoffs starting Tuesday, February 19 at 7:30 pm at Naaman Forest High School against a team from District 10-5A.

More photos after the jump.

In Praise of Slow Reading

Sharon Grigsby, editorial writer for The Dallas Morning News, revealed a detail of the editorial process at that newspaper in a blog post about an op/ed that the newspaper didn't have room to print.

Each Friday about this time, I wrap up one of the most difficult -- and fun -- parts of my job for the week: Selecting five days worth of op/eds for our print Viewpoints page. Just as we have too many good editorial ideas to write each week, as I noted here yesterday, I always have a few columns that I really wanted to publish, but simply ran out of space before "finding them a home."

Source: The Dallas Morning News.

Apparently, the op/eds are selected up to a week in advance of printing. So, if you ever find yourself reading The Dallas Morning News and thinking that you're reading last week's news, it's because you are. It's that increasingly common reaction by readers of print newspapers that's partly responsible for the slowly dying industry.

But that's not what made me want to blog about Grigsby's own blog post. It was the op/ed that she didn't have room to put in the print paper. After the jump, Steve Chapman's ode to slow reading.

Richardson is Playing the Wrong Game

I have been frustrated lately by the direction that development/redevelopment in Richardson is headed. For example, see "Main Street/Central Expressway Study" for my criticism of redevelopment plans for old downtown Richardson; see "The Last, Best Hope for Richardson" for my criticism of development plans for the land around the PGBT DART station; and see "In Southwest Richardson, It's Always Friday" for my criticism of the planned restaurant row in the West Spring Valley corridor.

After the jump, I finger the common source of these frustrations.

West Side Story at PHS

West Side Story at Pearce High School: Everyone loves the songs, but it's the dancing that really sets this musical apart. Huge Pearce cast nails it.

More photos after the jump.

OTBR: The Charleston City Market

Latitude: N 32° 46.878
Longitude: W 079° 55.674
A child on a road trip with his family asks, "Where are we?" and the father answers, "Let's check the map. We're off the blue roads [the Interstate Highways marked in blue on the road atlas]. We're off the red roads [the US and state highways]. We're off the black roads [the county highways]. I think we're off the map altogether." It was always my dream to be off the map altogether.

After the jump, a few of the random places (and I mean random literally) that I visited vicariously last month that are "off the blue roads".

S2L77: Swayambhunath Monkey Temple

Kathmandu, Nepal
February 21-27, 1977

I lined up an overland bus tour to London. The easy way out but a relief to me.

I spent today trying to finalize overland plans. Visas have me worried a lot. I walked to the Indian Embassy only to discover I had forgotten to bring passport photos.

I picked up my Indian visa, went to the Pakistan Embassy (no visa needed). I went to the casino to pick up some greenbacks needed for an Afghan visa (US$7 cash, no travelers checks accepted, no pounds, no rupees, everyone must pay with US cash). At the casino, I changed a traveler's check into US cash and left with that plus gambling winnings of 43 Indian rupees besides. Free drinks, too!

I spent time in the American library reading current US magazines.

Source: Personal travel notes.

From 1977 02 21 Nepal

I said goodbye to Kathmandu with a visit to Swayambhunath, an ancient religious complex atop a hill a short walk from Kathmandu's Durbar Square. The site affords solitude and an expansive view of Kathmandu Valley. Yeah, I know, the string of flags make the stupa look a little like a grand opening of a gas station in Appleton, Wisconsin, but forget that. The monkeys remind you where you really are.

More photos after the jump.

Brain Farts

Texas Gov. Rick Perry aired a radio ad in California trying to lure California businesses to Texas. California Gov. Jerry Brown dismissed Perry's radio appeal as "barely a brain fart."

Coincidentally, Texas state Representative Stefani Carter filed a bill in the Texas legislature to make Texas a little more like, you guessed it, California.

After the jump, Carter's own brain fart.