Articles for January 27th, 2009

Work Begins On Woodall Rodgers Park

So says a highly placed source, who told me yesterday, and I’ve been too busy to post it. Also, was hoping for a picture of the utility construction workers doing, you know, utility construction work. But, ice storm. And day job. These things make blogging tough.

As you may recall, Woodall Rodgers Park is a 5.2-acre, $80 million deck park that will create an urban green space over the existing Woodall Rodgers Freeway between Pearl and St. Paul streets. It will provide connectivity to the city’s flourishing Arts District. That may or may not be straight from the press release. Also, if this appeared somewhere already, forget I wrote it.

Jenny the Elephant, Part 3,047

(Alt. Head: Lily Tomlin to Tom Leppert: “I Think You and I Are Destined to Do This Forever“)

If you were wondering, yes, Lily Tomlin is still fired up over Jenny the elephant.

(HT: FoF)

Laura Kostelny’s Weekly Bachelor Update

Here. Bach fans, don’t miss it.

Chef John Tesar Speaks

It’s really not all that interesting.

James Chippendale Is Everywhere

NBC5 recently profiled insurance CEO James Chippendale and included a teaser for future segments wherein Chippendale interviews athletes and celebrities. Chippendale is more than just a successful businessman, as close readers of D products know. The cancer survivor co-founded the Love Hope Strength Foundation, dedicated to building cancer-treatment centers all over the world. D CEO profiled him in July, and our site covered Chippendale’s Everest Rocks premiere. But another news item I missed: Chippendale’s insurance company was responsible for the three-day spectacle that was President Obama’s inauguration.

Pastor Ed Young Was On Stephen Colbert Last Night

The show. He was on Stephen Colbert’s show. Fellowship Church Pastor Ed Young, aka the pastor who challenged members of his church to have sex with their spouse every day for a whole week, was the guest on last night’s Colbert Report. Highly entertaining. If you missed it, you can watch the whole episode here. (Skip to the final third of the show for the interview.)

DMN Folds Looks

Had to happen — and it will, effective May 1. The freebie beauty magazine never really hit its stride. An internal memo yesterday announced that it will “combine” into F!D Luxe, the newspaper’s very successful fashion insert. The same memo said F!D Luxe will be reconfigured into an oversized magazine. (Why they are tampering with a proven formula on that one I don’t know. But we don’t make the news, we just report rumors of it.)

My, And Now Your, Weekend Bar Report

Hit some new places (new for me, anyway) this weekend. (I talk about the food in a little more detail on SideDish, where I also ask for comments on your favorite bar food.) The rundown:

  • Blue Collar Bar — The Location: catty-corner to Louie’s, so it has stiff competition. The Vibe: upscale dive. The Folks: bikers, East Dallas hipsters, hot girls with dark nails. The Good: Hawaiian chicken sandwich. The Better: $2 cans of PBR, Miller High Life, and Pearl Light. The One Gripe: wish it had news or sports on the TVs.
  • NSL (National Sports Lounge) — The Location: Former Red Jacket Spot, next to Snuffer’s. The Vibe: Fox Sports Grill + Hooters. The Folks: dudes. The Good: tasty chicken salad, $3 domestic draft, free wifi, four million flat-screen TVs. The Better: the skimpy referee/stripper waitress unis. The One Gripe: A skosh too loud.
  • Central 214 — The Location: in the Hotel Palomar, next to Exhale. The Vibe: low-key sophisticated. The Folks: middle-age couples, middle-aged singles, and biz travelers. The Good: the “Central Manhattan” cocktail, made with Woodford Reserve, and the mac and cheese, made with rigatoni. The Better: the bartender (forgot name; spikey hair guy) was fantastic: attentive but not overbearing, great suggestions, funny, and fast. The One Gripe: realizing I’m middle-aged.
  • PM Lounge — The Location: at (really next to) the Joule Hotel. The Vibe: [insert thumping dance beat here]. The Folks: rhymes with cartouches. The Good: that red couch was kind of fun to look at. The Better: leaving. The One Gripe: arriving.

Jess and Tony Join the Four Seasons

Mike Fisher has the scoop, along with the Four Seasons’ internal memo instructing employees how to conduct themselves when Jessica Simpson is in their presence.

Steve Asmussen Eclipses All Others At Eclipse Awards

Kudos to our hometown horse trainer Steve Asmussen. He won Trainer of the Year at last night’s Eclipse Awards, which are sort of like the sport’s version of the Oscars (only not really). Asmussen’s stable raked in more than $24 million in 2008. Curlin, the most notable horse in that stable, won Horse of the year for the second year in a row.

Reason Touts Trey Garrison Touting A More Lively Dallas

Jacob Sullum at the libertarian magazine hearts Trey’s article in the print edition of FrontBurner on “The Wussifcation of Dallas.” Now that I’ve posted on his post about our article, I have created an official media feedback loop.

Leading Off (1/27/09)

1. I’m currently reading Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage. This approaching “ice storm” today doesn’t scare me. First, no matter how hard the commute gets this evening, no one in North Texas will be charged by a vicious 1,100-pound leopard seal. Second, we’ve got toilet paper.

2. Via a reader, J-Floyd floats this excellent suggestion as a way to wrap up this hubbub about the 100-to-0 girls’ basketball blowout (or, as I prefer to call it, the Greatest Game Ever Played): why not have the two squads meet for a friendly? Mix up the teams? Have a barbecue afterward? Great way to bury the hatchet. And it would generate a fresh round of good publicity for both schools.

3. Dave Levinthal is reporting that Dallas City Council member Carolyn Davis used $189.03 in campaign finance money to fix the brakes on her car. Yes, it’s a small matter. Yes, we still need an official ruling on whether that’s a violation of state ethics rules. But come on. It’s a JV move any way you look at it. Councilwoman Davis, step up your game.