Where the Hell is Matt?

Seattle Matt's latest YouTube video has only been up 12 hours and it's already a hit. 14 months in the making, 42 countries with a cast of thousands. I wanna be Matt..... You can watch this extremely well done video here, or go here and watch it in high defintion. Just choose the "watch in high quality" option and click the full screen button.

Fort Worth Woman Dead from Traffic Ticket

A piece of local news bothered me yesterday. A 35 year old Dallas woman, Adrienne Lemons, mother of a 3 year old boy, was thrown into a Fort Worth jail because she had a couple traffic tickets she'd not taken care of.

From what I read it seems she was thrown in jail prior to having a hearing in court. The hearing in court was pending, when on the 10th day of her incarceration over traffic tickets, Ms. Lemons died, due to a staph infection, for which jailer would not give her her antibiotics.

At some point during her 10 day incarceration, due to traffic tickets, the pain from her staph infection became so intense she threatened to kill herself rather than endure the pain. Rather than getting her the treatment she needed, she was thrown into a solitary cell in the downtown Fort Worth Jail.

In solitary, Ms. Lemons condition became so grave she was rushed to the locally notorious John Peter Smith Hospital, where doctors decided her condition was so far gone there was nothing they could do. She died a few hours later.

Her family is in shock. Her brother has been the family's spokesperson. I'm hoping they find a very very very good lawyer.

I know someone here in Fort Worth who currently has two warrants for his arrest due to getting a ticket for not having car inspection sticker up to date. When he realized his mistake he fixed it that day, went to the courthouse to show that it was fixed and was met with confusing language from persons for whom English was not their first language. He walked away thinking the matter was taken care of.

Then 4 years later the notifications of his pending arrest arrived in the mail, not by registered mail, so there is no record of him actually getting these notifications.

Now, I'm thinking, elsewhere in the country, it is unlikely you could be arrested and thrown in jail over this. But, here in Texas, it seems common sense does not always rule. Or fairness. Because, apparently you can be thrown in jail prior to being convicted of anything. Now, I know that's the case for serious crimes, like murder, or bank robbing. Of course you put the perp behind bars prior to trial.

But for a traffic ticket? That is nuts. Totally nuts.

Blue & Max and the McDonald's Diet

My little sister, up in Tacoma, has a pair of poodles, named Blue and Max. Blue and Max have their own blog. Lately they have been blogging about how much they love McDonald's Cheeseburgers.

Today they blogged about a guy in Virginia who lost a lot of weight on what he calls "The McDonald's Diet."

Ironically, I just heard from my little sister, that, at this very moment, Blue is at the vet's, being X-Rayed, with an IV Drip dripping fluids into the little guy.

That is Blue on the left in the photo. That's Max & Blue waiting to get into their favorite McDonald's, that being the Chihuly Glass McDonald's in Tacoma.

Go here to go to the Blue and Max blog and read all about their McDonald's Diet.

Juneteenth

I'd never heard of Juneteenth til I moved to Texas. It's now an annual holiday in 29 states. Juneteenth originated in Galveston, Texas. In Texas it is called "Emancipation Day in Texas." At least that's what it says on my calendar. For more than a century Texas was the main location for Juneteenth celebrations.

I just got back here and saw what must be a big Juneteenth celebration setup, at least I assume that's what it is, in the open field next to my neighborhood Home Depot. I saw a Channel 5 TV crew set up in the Kroger parking lot across the street.

It looks like a big deal. Why was I not informed?

I've not actually ever attended a Juneteenth celebration. From 1870 til 1980 Texas pretty much celebrated Juneteenth alone. Since 1980 it became an official holiday in Texas. After that other states jumped on the Juneteenth bandwagon, including my own home state of Washington. So, now Washingtonians know what Juneteenth is. As do Oregon, California and Alaska.

So, Juneteenth is now a holiday on the entire west coast. Except for British Columbia. But that's in Canada. Canadians are always behind the curve.

This Juneteenth thing is a classic example of how Texas is always ahead of the rest of the nation. Well, sometimes.

How Americans Became the Fattest People in the World

This blogging is yet one more chapter in my ongoing campaign to get Americans to draw down on the National Strategic Fat Preserve by eating less, eating better and sitting less. And dressing better. Or at least in clothes that fit.

The photos you see here were all taken at the Fort Worth Stockyards, a prime hunting ground for plumped up Americans.

I read an interesting article from the UK, via the Daily Mail, titled "How Americans Became the Fattest People in the World." Here's a blurb----

"It is true that there is nothing quite as grossly fat as a fat American. Even clothes sizes have to be coyly renamed to accommodate them. Restaurant chairs and plane seats just aren't big enough.

Only recently, a woman succeeded in suing the hugely fat American who sat next to her on a long-haul flight and overflowed into her space, crushing and injuring her.

But the rest of the world is getting bigger, too. We should be sitting up — while we still can — and paying serious attention to the American situation."

Read the entire article by going here.

Fort Worth & Seattle's Water Projects

A day or two ago I blogged about what I thought might end up being Fort Worth's all time Biggest Boondoggle, that being the re-routing of the Trinity River through a diversion channel to build what they are calling a Town Lake and some canals, where the hope is people will live, play and eat at restaurants.

The Fort Worth project is called The Trinity River Vision.

Meanwhile, up in Seattle they already have plenty of Town Lakes, most courtesy of Mother Nature. There is no big river that runs through Seattle. But there are canals, with restaurants and residences by the canals.

Seattle is in the midst of a big water project, though. It's a bit different than Fort Worth's. The Seattle project is budgeted at $3.9 billion. The Fort Worth project is expected to cost a bit more than half a billion.

The Fort Worth project includes 3 new bridges. The Seattle project is all about 1 bridge. That being the replacement of the 45 year old Evergreen Point Bridge that crosses Lake Washington and connects with Interstate 5.

That is the current Evergreen Point Bridge in the photo. If you saw Sleepless in Seattle and remember Tom Hank's houseboat, that houseboat is moored just to the lower left of what you're looking at in the photo.

This is a floating bridge. Washington has had 2 of its floating bridges sink. The older the Evergreen Point Bridge gets, the greater the chance a storm will come along and sink it. There are no sinkable bridges in Fort Worth.

In Seattle and Washington there is a lot of public debate and input as to how the new bridge should be designed and routed. In Fort Worth the Trinity River Vision was announced as a done deal with little public debate and no public vote.

I'm guessing that the new Evergreen Point Bridge will be floating long before anything floats in Fort Worth's Town Lake. Or sinks.

Texas Thunder is Making My Head Hurt

We have been under assault here in the Dallas/Fort Worth zone of North Texas for hours now. It's coming up on 8am and it is still very dark out there.

And wet.

It appears I will not be doing any outdoor activity today.

I don't know when this loud bombing began. I had my earplugs in so as not to hear the air conditioner cycle off and on. Sometime after 5am I started seeing bright flashes. When I pulled out the earplugs I knew what was causing the flashes when I heard some big booming.

That big booming has gone on for hours now. It's making my head hurt. I want it to stop now. But it seems to be getting worse. WeatherBug says this could continue til noon.

Maybe I'll put my earplugs back in. Oh oh, I hear a siren. I don't think it's a tornado siren. But, I think maybe I should keep my hearing at full function.

If this is the last you hear from me today it means I've either lost power, been struck by lightning or been blown away by a tornado, or some combo of all three.

Fremont Solstice Parade

I talked to Lulu this afternoon, while I sweltered outside in the near 100 degree temperatures, while Lulu shivered inside her Tacoma abode. Lulu was working on stuff for next week's Fremont Sunday Market.

And she told me she was getting her outfit ready for the Fremont Solstice Parade. That is this coming Saturday, due to that being June 21, the Summer Solstice. I know Lulu has watched the Fremont Solstice Parade before and has been amused by all the naked bike riders.

But, I just can't picture Lulu doing this bike ride. Though I have seen her on some pretty scary bike rides. Like Gemini Bridges in Utah. I'm almost certain Lulu was not serious.

I mentioned the Fremont Solstice Naked Bike Parade a month or more ago. I recollect Gar the Texan asking if he could rent a bike near where the parade took place. I've not heard from Gar the Texan in awhile. I suspect he may be up in Seattle getting ready to ride.

Click on the link and you'll find a video of last year's Fremont Solstice Naked Bike Parade in all its glory.

Time For Me to Rob a Bank

Last week a 50 something guy decided to rob a Wells Fargo Bank in north Fort Worth. He successfully pulled off the bank job. And then he tried to carjack a ride from a woman. Two men, who had been in the bank, jumped the robber, pinning him down. Then 2 others joined in, holding the guy down til the cops arrived. The bank robber was, obviously, ill-prepared. He didn't even have a getaway car. Everyone knows you need a getaway car.

Now, I'm thinking, what drives someone to such a desperate act? You've lost your source of income, or income has not matched outgo, to the point that money is down to nothing. Bills are due. You can't pay the rent. Or maybe the mortgage. You're hungry.

So. You think to yourself, what if I rob a bank? If I succeed and get away, I've got money. If I fail and get caught, I've got free room and board. It's a win-win either way.

It's too bad there isn't some sort of Desperation Hotline that you can call and get some sort of one-time-only help, help that takes away the desperation and directs you to some sort of more sensible solution than robbing a bank and hoping to get a place to sleep and food to eat at the county jail.

Maybe there is a Desperation Hotline and I don't know about it. If there is, can someone send it to me, so I can call it before I need to rob a bank? Thank you in advance for your help.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Shrinks Some More

The Star-Telegram announced on Monday that it is shrinking again. This time by 130 employees. The Star-Telegram, or Startlegram, as the locals call it, was bought by McClatchy Co. two years ago. It's been downhill ever since.

McClatchy Co. also owns the Tacoma Tribune. Lulu told me the Tacoma Tribune shrunk on Monday too. From my reading experience, the Tacoma Tribune is a much better paper than the Startlegram. Takes way longer to read, because there is way more to read, in a paper in a city of 200,000, where the Star-Telegram is in a city of almost 700,000. But with a lot less readers. And a smaller paper.

On Monday, McClatchy Co. cut about 1,400 jobs from its 30 papers.

The Star-Telegram is going to increase its full subscription rates by $1.50 to $17.50 a month. The Star-Telegram says this monthly rate is less than other major Texas newspapers, like the newspapers of Houston, San Antonio, Dallas and Austin. Uh. Maybe those newspapers cost more and that cost is justifiable because you get way more of a newspaper.

With the Star-Telegram it's just like what I read today that Kellogg's is going to do with their cereal boxes, as in put less cereal in the box, but charge the same. The Star-Telegram has been putting less news in their box and charging the same. Now they are going to be putting less news in their box. And charging more.

But. I don't think they'll be charging me more. I'm thinking I'm about done with the Star-Telegram and it's time for it to go bye-bye from my morning doorstep. I won't pay more for less.