The State of the City: It's an Outlier

The City of Richardson held its annual State of the City Address on Wednesday, January 31, 2024, highlighting the City's achievements in 2023. I'm here to give my instant feedback.

Random Thoughts: Thinking about...Ann Landers?

2024-01-01: "At age 20, we worry about what others think of us.
At age 40, we don't care what they think of us.
At age 60, we discover they haven't been thinking of us at all."
-- Ann Landers (1918-2002).
At age 20, we thought Ann Landers was embarrassing.
At age 40, we conceded that she sometimes knew what she was talking about.
At age 60, we missed her dearly.

When the Creek Ran Red

Recently, a spill of detergent from a car wash into a tributary of Richardson's Cottonwood Creek turned the water red. The good news is that, according to the City of Richardson, "the spill has been successfully cleaned, and water quality tests show normal results."

My compliments to the City of Richardson for its reaction and its communications about this incident. My compliments also to Councilmember Dan Barrios for elaborating about the spill in his own Facebook posts.

Now, it's my own turn. I want to elaborate on something Barrios said.

Dumb Money (2023)

Rotten Tomatoes

Dumb Money (2023): Dramatization of the 2021 short squeeze by an army of Reddit users on the hedge funds who were shorting GameStop. Movie strives to make audience root for the little guys, but in the end, whose pockets all the money ends up in is a bit murky. Movie-wise, it's so-so. But it's a fun watch. B-

Anatomy of a Fall (2023)

Rotten Tomatoes

Anatomy of a Fall (2023): French. Could be titled Anatomy of a Marriage. It was troubled, but enough to murder? Was it an accident instead, or suicide? A courtroom drama where there's not enough evidence to know, so the audience has to read people, which puts a premium on fine acting. This movie has that. A-

I do have niggling questions regarding French court trials. Are people allowed to interrupt testimony and give soliloquys repeatedly? Are prosecutors allowed to use more time explaining their theory of the crime than asking witnesses to testify as to the facts of the case?

POTD: Go Lions

"Brisbane's pride shines bright.
A photo frozen in time:
Lions' hopeful start."
—h/t ChatGPT

From 2023 03 24 Brisbane

Today's photo-of-the-day was taken in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The "Lions" being cheered for by the skywriting (or "barracked" for, as this is Australia) are the Brisbane Lions of the Australian Football League (AFL). This photo was taken at the beginning of last season in March, 2023. It's old news now, but in September, 2023, the Brisbane Lions and Collingwood Magpies played before a capacity crowd of 100,024 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the AFL's Grand Final. It was a close match won by Collingwood 90-86. Here's hoping that America's Detroit Lions in the National Football League have a happier result in their own NFL Western Conference championship game this Sunday. Go Lions.

POTD: Brisbane Skyline

"Nature and steel meet.
City's heart in river's bend.
Brisbane's beauty shines."
—h/t ChatGPT

From 2023 03 24 Brisbane

Today's photo-of-the-day was taken in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. That's the big bend of the Brisbane River in the foreground, the Botanic Gardens on the left, and the skyline of Brisbane's city centre in the background. Brisbane is a walkable, beautiful, vibrant city.

The Zone of Interest (2023)

Rotten Tomatoes

The Zone of Interest (2023): German. Within earshot of the horrors of Auschwitz, the commandant's family go about a happy, normal German life. For Rudolph, running a death camp is just a logistical challenge. For Hedwig, life is good. Both are indifferent and insensitive to what's happening next door. Chilling and cautionary. B+

Echo (TV 2024)

Rotten Tomatoes

Echo (TV 2024): One of the better Marvel efforts. A deaf Choctaw woman whose super power is channeling the spirits of generations of female ancestors must deal with anger issues left by the sins of the man who raised her. There's still plenty of violence but this is more of a character study. B+

Oscar Snubs

The 2024 Oscar nominations, as always, snub some worthy movies. This year, however, only one movie that received an "A" grade from The Wheel didn't make the Oscar Best Picture list. More on that later.