Articles for October, 2010
Dallas/Austin Car Trips To Get Even Worse
The Austin American Statesman helpfully produced this map to show TxDot construction about to take place on the state’s only central north-south corrider. For a larger version, go to Ben Wear’s column on the plans here.
What was all that about a tollroad?
Orange Idea Week Dots Pop Up Around Dallas, Ctd.
I can now tell you more about those orange dots, as one of them popped up in front or our building, making my journalism-style reporting most effortless indeed. I can also tell you the following:
As we were walking back into work, our building’s security guard stopped us to talk about the woman he’d caught on surveillance video besmirching the sidewalk with orange chalk earlier in the day. He had a theory about who it was. Given how brazenly she’d parked in the underground garage and sauntered through the lobby on the way to her vile act, he figured it was none other than Christine Allison, the president of our company. He got the first name right. But the last name was Rogers.
So now I’m in Dutch with the security guy, who went into great detail about how he thought the orange dot and the “noon” next to it meant that either a protest was about to happen or someone was announcing their intentions to blow up the building. As far-fetched as I thought the latter was, all I would say was “I’m so sorry. She also frequently leaves the garage door open at our house.”
Cattle Baron’s Ball Rings the Bell
Unlike the Rangers, Cowboys and Aggies this weekend, the Cattle Baron’s Ball for 3,000 guests went off without a hitch Saturday night and overcame its Mud Ball 2009 past. Well, there was that one fella who backed out of his bid for the 2011 Porsche Cayenne Turbo. But not to worry, someone was in the wings ready to scoop it up.
Big hit of the night was the Maker’s Mark with guests hoisting sledge hammers to ring the bell. When one wee gal rang the bell and was followed up by a beefy fellow who could barely lift the mallet, former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk hollered, “You’re not gonna let that girl beat you, are you?”
Fashion wise it wasn’t so much flashing flesh as it was just plain flashy. Example: Sunie Solomon’s (pictured) pink leather chaps, boots and blouse. Even the back of her jeans was eye catching. Just follow the jump for a look at “love”. (more…)
Orange Idea Week Dots Pop Up Around Dallas
My wife and I don’t talk a whole lot about our jobs at home. Mostly, that’s because my wife and I don’t talk a whole lot. Our normal conversations go something like this:
Me: “You close the garage door?”
Her: “No.”
Anyway, she’s in PR and marketing. I’m in “journalism.” So we generally keep it to ourselves. And when I heard her this morning talking on the phone to a cohort about sidewalk chalk, I gathered that it had something to do with her involvement with Idea Week, but I didn’t ask any questions. Then, just a bit ago, I saw several photos like the one you see here on her Twitter feed. Something, apparently, is happening at noon at several orange dots around town.
You now know as much as I do. The garage door is open.
Top Golf to Open Second North Texas Location
I took my son to the greatness of Top Golf yesterday, and, if you must know, I won a free game on my bonus ball by crushing a driver 250 yards dead center between the poles at the end of the range. Guess what else you must know? North Texas will become the first area in the country with two Top Golf ranges. They break ground on the second site, the Village at Allen, on Wednesday, and I’m told it will be even bigger, even golfy-er than the Park Lane location.
Things to Do in Dallas Tonight: Oct. 11
Happy Columbus Day unto you. If you work for a bank and have the day off, bully for you. If you don’t, take comfort knowing you’re already two hours closer to the point when you can kick off your heels and let down your hair, if you have any. Life is good, gentle readers.
First off, lunch: State & Allen Lounge is offering pizza at half the regular price today. The wild mushroom with gouda and goat cheese sounds phenomenal to me, but if you have omnivores in your party, make them order the Meaty Meat Pie, because it’s fun to say aloud (whisper it in your cubicle now if you don’t believe me).
As mentioned here recently, Idea Week starts today. Maybe you’re not sold on the notion. Maybe you’re wondering what exactly a week’s worth of thought-sharing can possibly accomplish. Tonight’s speed networking/meet-and-greet event could very well make you a believer. Optimism and enthusiasm are contagious, particularly when beer and tasty vittles from Smoke join the party. Only 10 tickets remain, so you’d best get a move on if you’re interested in attending.
We’ve found many other things to do in Dallas tonight (including a cheap Mavericks game and a Lissie concert). Browse to your heart’s content, and have a great night.
Jack Ingram “Still Willing” to Get Gritty
Littlefield’s Waylon Jennings once said he “couldn’t go pop with a mouthful of firecrackers.” But fans of hard-core Texas country/Americana music aren’t so sure about SMU grad Jack Ingram (pictured in photo by Jeanne Prejean). Known and admired hereabouts for years for original songs that were gritty, angry, and heart-breakingly honest–check out Barbie Doll, Mustang Burn, Biloxi–the talented singer/songwriter has broken out nationally of late with blander mainstream stuff that seems straight out of Nashville’s formulaic hit-making machine (Exhibits A-Z: Wherever You Are).
Asked about the notion that he’s “sold out” with pop-oriented, less heartfelt tunes, Ingram says it’s not true. “I wouldn’t agree that it’s any less heartfelt,” Ingram said of his recent work, just before taking the stage at the annual Cattle Baron’s Ball at Southfork Ranch Saturday night. As an artist grows things change, he said; and, if the music’s a little slicker these days, he’s still trying to be “honest” and true to his vision. “I was always trying to find a larger audience, and now I have,” he added. “And, I’m still willing to sling it around in the mud a little bit.” Ingram’s scheduled to play SMU’s homecoming, by the way, on Oct. 23.
New York As a Model for Dallas
I lived in New York in the late 80s and early 90s when everybody had given up on it. The city was as exciting and fun as ever, but it was also dirty, drug-plagued, crime-ridden, and insolvent. Nobody thought it could be fixed. It was just the way New York was. Then came two mayors, Giuliani and Bloomberg. Guiliani restored order. The crime rate collapsed, and small businesses began to prosper. Bloomberg built on that, concentrating on quality-of-life improvements that were unimaginable only a decade ago.
As a car-oriented city with spacious suburbs and leafy inner-city neighborhoods, any comparison to New York might seem silly. But Dallas can still learn two important lessons from New York’s experience. Lesson #1: Anything can be fixed. Lesson #2: City government can and must lead in improving quality of life, mostly in getting rid of old ideas, traffic patterns, and ordinances that impede its natural development. (H/t Urbanophile)
Vote for the Top Reality Star in Dallas—Round 2
We did it! We made it through a week of tears and cheers and jeers (really, less “jeers” than threats, but we like the rhymes). And now it’s time to say goodbye to some folks as we move on to Round 2. Tanner P., we hardly knew ye–but I guess you never really had a chance against Melissa. And it was a close race between Tiffany Derry and Lisa Garza, but Tiffany ultimately took the win with 51 percent of the votes between the two. Go here to see how your favorites fared, and then get to voting.
Somewhat related: We’ve heard Vienna was at Cattle Baron’s Ball this weekend. No word on Jake, however. If he was out trying to garner votes, it didn’t work. He lost to Misty Rake. Soundly.
Share Your Misty Water-Colored Rangers Memories
Regardless of what happens tomorrow night in St. Petersburg, this has been the greatest season in Rangers history. (Have they ever won two playoff games before? Case closed.) Watching a frenzied, filled-to-capacity Ballpark over the weekend got me thinking about a few of my favorite memories from a lifetime of following this mostly hapless franchise:
— As a teen, I often decided to take my brothers to a game 30 minutes before the first pitch. We knew we’d have no trouble finding tickets.
— We celebrated one brother’s birthday at a Rangers game every year from when he was in the sixth grade to when he was a college freshman. Our parents might have done the same for all three brothers, if the youngest and I had not both been born in December.
— I was once at a game so sparsely attended that a buddy of mine spotted me in the Arlington Stadium bleachers from three sections away and called out my name, and I had no trouble hearing him.
— Throughout the ’80s, every Rangers victory at Arlington Stadium was punctuated by Kool and the Gang’s “Celebration” playing over the P.A. system. I still can’t hear this song without being bombarded by visions of Pete Incaviglia and Steve Buechele.
— When I was undergoing chemo in ’96, I got a copy of Seasons in Hell, Mike Shropshire’s memoir about covering the Rangers in the early ’70s. The book is so funny that I had to put it down every few pages to laugh. At the time, those were laughs I sorely needed.
Do you have similar Rangers memories to share? I’d love to hear them. We need to build up as many positive vibes as we can before tomorrow night.
Leading Off (10/11/10)
1. Tim will be pleased with this one: public backlash against red-light cameras is prompting referendums on the automated ticket-givers across Texas, offering voters an avenue for voting them out of existence. College Station has already passed such a ban, and Houston and Baytown have propositions on the ballot this November.
“If the cameras fall here, it can be a domino effect,” [Paul] Kubosh [one of Houston’s anti-red light camera activists] said. “It wouldn’t surprise me if somebody up in Dallas just got fed up. That’s all it would take.”
2. It seems Larry Hagman didn’t just play a cut-throat millionaire on TV, he’s pretty savvy in real life, having scored himself the largest punitive damages award given to an individual this year, reports Gretchen Morgenson in the NY Times. The Dallas star accused Citigroup and its brokerage unit, Smith Barney, of “fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and failure to supervise the broker overseeing the Hagman’s funds. The panel ordered Citigroup to pay $10 million to charities chosen by Mr. Hagman.”
3. Sorry to mention this. But if you need a pick me up, head to Frisco.
Cattle Baron’s Committee is Power Drilling for $3 Million
Just returned from a sneak preview of Saturday’s Cattle Baron’s Ball at Southfork. Committee members, like Laura Jorgeson with her power drill (pictured), are hard at work setting up “The Great State Fair” complete with ferris wheel, indoor midway, two mega stages for Alan Jackson and Jack Ingram and a carousel.
Oh, and just in case anyone cares about the sporting events of the day, they’ve created the Cotton Bowl, where all the day’s football and baseball will be televised on big screens thanks to AT&T.
Expected attendance: 3,000
Goal: To raise $3 million for the American Cancer Society.
Sharron Angle Decries Muslim Law in Bent Tree
Nevada Republican Senatorial candidate Angle suggests that two towns in America — Dearborn, Michigan and Frankford, Texas — are now under the control of Sharia law. You can hear the tape here:
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In responding to a question, she answers:
“We’re talking about a militant terrorist situation, which I believe isn’t a widespread thing. But it is enough that we need to address, and we have been addressing it. My thoughts are these. First of all, Dearborn, Michigan, and Frankford, Texas are on American soil, and under Constitutional law. Not Sharia law. And I don’t know how that happened in the United States. It seems to me there is something fundamentally wrong with allowing a foreign system of law to even take hold in any municipality or government situation in our United States.”
The problem is not just with Ms. Angle’s coherence. Frankford, Texas has not existed since it was annexed by Dallas in 1975. The area is now better known as Bent Tree, one of the most affluent neighborhoods in Texas.
Things to Do in Dallas This Weekend: Oct. 8-10
Greetings, worker bees. It’s finally Friday, and as the High Priestess of Events in the Greater Dallas Area, I refuse to let you feel sorry for yourself for not being in Austin this weekend.
Tonight
True, a margarita and plate of enchiladas in mole sauce from Guero’s sounds awfully good right now. But you know what? So do a cold bottle of beer and a plate of enchiladas Mexicanas from Avila’s, followed by a belly-dancing, tango, or DanceAfrica performance. So there.
Saturday
As someone who did a face plant her second week on the job here at D, I’m always looking for ways to improve my coordination. That’s one of the reasons this weekend’s hula hoop classes at South Side on Lamar intrigue me. Those who practice this form of exercise swear by its ability to sharpen one’s dexterity and concentration as well as keep the LQ (lard quotient) in check. Count me in.
Next up: the arts. If you call right now, you might still be able to score a ticket for this weekend’s art bus tour, courtesy of Contemporary Art Dealers of Dallas. This is a fun way for art lovers and novices alike to gain exposure to our city’s artists and the great work they’re producing. Love art but need to consume it in a kid-friendly environment? Take the brood to Art Thinkers’ Day at Dallas Contemporary.
For the altruists among you, we have the Cattle Baron’s Ball benefiting the American Cancer Society (looks like this year they won’t still be pulling limos from the mud a week afterward) and the Wish 100 race benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Can’t go wrong either way, if you ask me. If you can’t make it out to Southfork, rest assured Jeanne Prejean will share all the juicy details here afterward.
Sunday
Have you ever been walking or biking along Turtle Creek and wondered what those gorgeous high-rises look like on the inside? My guess is Ikea furniture doesn’t figure prominently in their décor. However, the only way I can verify that is by A) befriending one of the residents, B) posing as a delivery person, or C) attending the Turtle Creek Association Home Tour. A and B do sound sort of fun, but I figure I’m least likely to get arrested if I choose option C. The social aspirants among you will want to pony up an extra $100 for the after-party from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Tower Residences at the Ritz-Carlon, where you’ll dine on food by Fearing’s, view three more incredible homes, and mingle with the rich and powerful.
If you want to spend your day outside, however, then consider gathering your friends and their dogs for the AIDS LifeWalk and LifeBark. The walk itself is only 3.2 miles, so you’ll still have time to head over to the Fiesta Latinoamericana in the arts district.
The festival should provide ample entertainment and nourishment for the rest of the night. But in case you’re looking for more, browse these things to do in Dallas. Have a great weekend.
One more thing: The Rangers continue their playoff series with the Rays this weekend. Get ’em, boys!
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