Articles for May, 2011
Best of Big D Readers’ Choice Poll in Final Days. Vote Once an Hour Through Sunday.
Fine, I’ll take the bait. Only because I needed to remind you that voting for the Services round of our Best of Big D: Readers’ Choice poll is almost finished. At the end of Sunday, it’s all over, and your favorite shops need support.
So only because I needed a convenient excuse to post this reminder, I’m embedding the below video that Dr. Peay’s Booty Camp made for its campaign to be named the Best Fitness Program in Dallas. The short film’s artistic vision reveals just how exciting Best of Big D voting can be. Especially if you play a dance mix of the theme to Rocky III on your iPod while filling out your ballot.
VOTE NOW. And once an hour.
Star-T‘s Mac Engel: Blame The Game of Baseball for Rhadigan’s Ouster From Texas Rangers Booth
I’m a big fan of our national pastime. It’s the only sport that I follow on a daily basis. I consider the game one of America’s greatest inventions. It’s a beautiful thing, to quote Bob Costas.
It’s not for everyone. Fine. You think it’s too slow. Fine. Not enough action. Fine. Whatever. I’m not going to point out just how little “action” takes place in the course of a typical football game. (Because the Wall Street Journal already did.) I’m not going to point out that in 95% of NBA games nothing but the last four minutes or so matters in determining the winner. (And that four minutes typically takes three times as long as that to actually play, with all the timeouts and fouls and whatnot.) Â Those games have their charms. I can enjoy them. I just don’t love them. And maybe you don’t love baseball. Fine.
But it’s ridiculous to say, as the Star-Telegram‘s Mac Engel wrote about John Rhadigan’s dismissal from the broadcast booth for the Texas Rangers:
The problem isn’t necessarily the announcer; the problem is the game of baseball is inherently slow moving and this generation of viewers requires constant stimulation. Baseball is not a product of constant stimulation. Hell, it’s a game that could go weeks without anything interesting happening. There is nothing any announcer can do to make the game what it isn’t.
Chris Bosh Is an Ostrich
Are you ready for the Miami Heat? It’s never too early to start making fun of their players. Like this.
Perfect Resolution Proposed for Dallas Mayor Race
Three things have become clear about the Dallas mayoral runoff between Mike Rawlings and David Kunkle. 1.) It’s turned into a virtual love-fest, so the basic dynamics are unlikely to change between now and June 18. 2.) Rawlings, the Dallas super-salesman with the big war chest, had a solid lead in the first go-round–and since has picked up Ron Natinsky’s endorsement. 3.) Kunkle, the former deputy city manager in Arlington, has emerged in the campaign as an uncharismatic but methodically accomplished sort–and a guy who wants a job again.
So, here’s the perfect resolution for Dallas. First, Kunkle withdraws from the race. Then, Rawlings announces that the ex-police chief will become Dallas’ next city manager succeeding Mary Suhm, who’s had a good run but is due for an exit from Marilla Street. (I know, it’s technically the city council that appoints the manager, but we all know Rawlings is a guy who “gets things done.”) The upshot of the plan: Rawlings-Kunkle makes a good team at City Hall. Everybody saves their campaign dough. We stop having to sit through or read about any more snooze-fest debate forums at the East Dallas Chicken-raisers Club. Everybody chills out and enjoys Memorial Day weekend.
Norma’s Cafe Patrons Represent Dallas Well on What Would You Do?
Norma’s is actually in Farmers Branch. Yes, I know. John Quiñones and his What Would You Do? crew showed up there recently to see how people would react to some good old-fashioned gay bashing. The class and compassion the people showed (for the most part) make me proud to live here. Nice work, people.
Leading Off (5/27/11)
The Heat Is On. And now that I’ve given you that Glenn Frey-related earworm, I can also say that, as most of you know, Dallas will now face the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. First game will be May 31, on ABC.
Take Dat Atchoo. Research done by a medical diagnostic company reveals that of all the cities in all the U.S., Dallas is the worst when sensitivity to five different allergens was considered, and fifth worst when it came to ragweed. So, to both recap and scoreboard, we’re No. 1! Take that, Miami.
Where Do You Get Your Online News? No, seriously, where? Because word comes from Editor & Publisher that although competition is fierce for Internet eyeballs among Dallas-Fort Worth news outlets, not one outlet (newspaper or broadcast) got even a fifth of the responses when pollsters asked people where they went for their online news. The leader? WFAA.com, with 18.4% of the responses.
Take Off Your Suit. The NFL and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones asked a judge Thursday to dismiss a suit stemming from that whole weather-related mess during the Super Bowl where seating was sold in temporary bleachers that were subsequently closed down by authorities for being unsafe, which meant some fans either didn’t get in, or got moved to other seats. The league and Jones argue that the reimbursement package offered was enough.
Three-day Weekend On Tap For Many. And then, even though you have to go back to work Tuesday, you get to look forward to the first game of the Finals. So there’s that. Also, how the heck did it get to be June next week?
DISD: No More Staff Cuts Needed
I’m at DISD headquarters, where the trustees have just heard the details of Budget Version 5.0. The two big headlines, as I understand them without my own copy of the budget: 1. No further staff cuts will be necessary beyond the 1,679 positions already eliminated through layoffs, buyouts, and attrition. 2. Full-day pre-K will be available at virtually all elementary campuses.
John Rhadigan Reportedly Out as Rangers Play-By-Play Man
The Twitterverse is suddenly blowing up with the news that Rangers play-by-play man John Rhadigan is out. Rhadigan replaced Josh Lewin this year, and had been the subject of either patience or hatred, depending on where you looked.
So far though, no official announcement.
Them’s Fightin’ Words? 5 Reasons Why Miami Is Better than Dallas
I like beaches. A lot. But I also feel I should somehow stand up for my city – Dallas – after the folks at the Miami New Times dissed us in their blog. Plus, we need some boiling blood if we’re going to avoid a repeat of the outcome in 2006.
But I also know that the best insult-artists and creative retorters are among our commenters. So Hein, Daniel, and the rest of you? Get to work. We need an answer to these people, since their sister publication hasn’t provided one.
Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson Blames the Roaring ’20s For Gas Contamination in Underground Water
In posting this, some may accuse me of having an ax to grind, just because at lunchtime yesterday at the Hall Arts Center Parking Garage I got stuck behind a long line of cars belonging to Exxon shareholders that were leaving the company’s meeting at the Meyerson Symphony Center.
But I hold no particular grudge against them, or against CEO Rex Tillerson, who has (refreshingly, for an oil company executive) been willing to acknowledge that human activity and greenhouse gases contribute to climate change. However, as a member of the media, I bristle at Tillerson’s claim, noted by the Dallas Morning News, that it’s the media’s fault that people have come to believe that modern natural gas drilling can lead to contamination of underground water tables.
Sure, there have been a number of documented instances in which people have been able to set their faucet water on fire shortly after natural gas drilling began nearby. But, Tillerson said:
Maybe an old gas well was disturbed and began leaking. Or maybe when the population grows in rural areas, people drill more water wells and draw more water from the underground table, stirring up naturally occurring gas, or gas that leaked many decades ago.
“You don’t have to be too much of a snoop-dog reporter to think there were probably wells drilled in the 1920s, and that people didn’t care about contaminating the water table,” he said.
“All of that water withdrawal has moved a lot of this contamination around and made it very difficult to know where it originated.”
I suggest all media outlets immediately hire a snoop-dog reporter.
Things To Do in Dallas Tonight: May 26
So, I’m not really BridalBuzz’s target audience. I’m about as likely to get married in the next couple of years as I am to turn into a frog. But I do like to look at all pretty pictures, and lo and behold, in today’s Real Wedding post, I found the cake I didn’t even know I wanted. Well, okay. I always knew I wanted to invite Boba Fett to my eventual nuptials. I just wasn’t sure how to do it.
After yesterday’s opening performance, the Dallas Black Dance Theater will continue their “Spring Celebration Series” at the Winspear tonight. We’re nearing the end of their official season, though the company is collaborating with the Dallas Theater Center on their production of The Wiz later in the summer. Aside from that, there aren’t too many chances left to catch these ridiculously talented folks doing their thing. It’s an extensive program, with solos from guest artist Bernard H. Gaddis (hailing from Las Vegas Contemporary Dance Theater) and DBDT II director Nycole Ray.You’ll also see the premiere of a new piece inspired by the life and songs of Nina Simone. Check out our FrontRow review before you go.
If you leave work early enough, drop by Cedars Social before the show. Though they’ve been open for a few months, they’re making things official with two hours of free cocktails and appetizers. And should you decide that dance isn’t really your thing, stick around for dinner. Nancy reviews the restaurant/bar/place to eat food and drink alcohol (apparently there’s some confusion about what exactly to call this place) in our June issue, which you can pick up at a few select newsstands starting today. But this is the Internet. Go read her take right this very second. You’ll win my prestigious “most prepared for happy hour” award. Prize TBD.
Or you can find more things to do tonight. It’s all here.
Anatomy of a D Magazine Cover Shoot
On the right, you see our June cover, photographed by the great Scott Womack at Lake Cypress Springs. Two things that are fun to know: 1) The model in the bikini, Alex, had an ear infection (apologies to those folks who get our newsletter, in which I said she had a migraine; always a good idea to fact check). Her doctor told Alex to stay away from water. For our shoot, she jumped off that dock about 30 times. 2) The photo on the left was a test shot taken several days before the actual cover shoot. That’s Scott and his wife. With his camera on a timer, Scott needed 10 jumps to get the timing right. When I saw the image, I told our creative director, Todd Johnson, “Hell, let’s just use that image. Save the money on the models.” Todd wouldn’t hear of it.
So to the folks in our accounting office upstairs: I tried to save money, really. If we go over budget this month, it’s Todd’s fault.
And to Scott: I think you’re totally hot, dude. Todd, though, he likes models.
Sitting Will Kill You
Tim standing at his computer.
We all know that sitting will kill you. Some of us took the news a little more to heart than others. Here’s Tim with his new super desk that raises and lowers as he stands and sits. He’s not going to start out standing all day. He’s done research. He has to ease into it. Though it makes me a little nervous to sit next to someone who’s standing all day, it’s way worse for Laura, who sits across from him. Her reaction to seeing this? “OH, NO!” And his response? “I look at you less.”
Leading Off (5/26/11)
Mavs Win! Mavs Win! Mavs Win! And thus basketball season continues. Lots of great words from the Twitterverse, but I like this one by Evan Grant. “Here’s my thought: been an incredible nine months for sports in this town and has nothing to do with Cowboys. Congrats to Mavs.”
Storm Recap. I know. We’re all mad at WFAA because of the station showing DWTS instead of storm coverage. However, I did appreciate this wrap-up. In it, they mention that we officially had nine tornadoes in the North Texas area Tuesday night.
Doing Good Isn’t Always Good. I thought this story about city workers cleaning up their boss’ yard was going to be one of people rallying together to clean up after the storms. I was wrong. It’s about a group of guys who asked their boss if he wanted help clearing trees during their lunch hour. The boss said yes. They got to work. Then cameras showed up, work stopped, and now the boss is assuming he’ll get fired. I get the point that it sends the wrong message, but I really don’t think anyone was trying to be shifty here. Also, can we all agree that the office these volunteers work for (Dallas County Utility and Reclamation District or DCURD) has a funny acronym?
Kids of the Fallen. I hate to make you tear up this Thursday morning, but with Memorial Day coming up, I thought this would be an appropriate story. It’s about young Nate Mack and his story of losing his dad to war when he was 11 years old. But as you’ll see in the story, reporter Doug Dunbar also lost his dad in war at a young age. He brings up an interesting point about how having memories is both a blessing and a curse.
Don’t Worry, Jerry Jones Will Be at Tony Romo’s Wedding
He just told ESPNDallas as much. Despite the NFL lockout, he’s allowed by the league to be at the Dallas Cowboys quarterback’s nuptials, which are taking place Saturday at Arlington Hall in Dallas’ Lee Park. Drove by there on my way to work and a massive tent structure was already well on its way to completion.
Jerry also offers this note about his ticket to the affair: Â ”one of prettiest invitations I’ve ever seen.”
Congratulations, Candice. You made the boss happy.
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