We’ve got a long weekend ahead of us. I wore shorts to work today. I’ve already opened a beer. No one wants to read anything too terribly taxing at this point, right? So I’ve got a question for you. Mark Cuban was at Katy Trail Ice House last night with the Larry O’Brien trophy. The question: if you, as an owner, win your franchise’s first NBA Championship, how long are you allowed to carry around the trophy when you go out drinking? In other words, at what point are people going to go, “We get it. Your team won. Yes. But now it’s time to leave the trophy at home. Or at least in the trunk of your car”? (For the record, I’m not suggesting that point has already been reached.)
If I was still living in my tiny apartment on Rowena Avenue, a place I moved into expressly so I could stumble home from the bars, this news would have rocked my world: Someone wants to open a bowling alley on Lower Greenville Avenue (*). That’s the most exciting of the four Greenville Avenue items that round out the agenda for the July 7 meeting of the City Plan Commission.
(* Heck, it still excites me now, even though I’m a completely sober suburbanite with a wife and two kids.)
Patriots, you may proceed here for all things Fourth of July.
Highlights include the Fair Park fireworks, a corn dog eating contest at Libertine Bar, barbecue and firework watching at BarBelmont, and Willie Nelson’s big country music jam. SideDish has your holiday weekend cocktails and ideas for restaurants that will be open for dinner on Monday.
People who hate America, I’ve got you covered below.
Friday
I was really late to the RoboCop parade. I hadn’t seen it until the end of last summer, when I “traded” the movie with a friend in exchange for his promise to view at least a couple episodes of my beloved Veronica Mars. Needless to say, I’m now a fan. And the folks at the Dallas Observer, in their wisdom and genius, are co-hosting a “see it where they shot it” screening tonight at City Hall Plaza. Detroit, 1986 has never looked so good. However, when I excitedly informed the same friend about the screening, he replied that he’s holding out for a RoboCop statue downtown. Baby steps. The food trucks roll up at 7:30, which is the only part of this that is not free. Bring blankets and chairs and your own justice-seeking robot to feed you frozen grapes and fan you while you watch.
One thing’s for sure: Right-wing lightning rod Glenn Beck is unlikely to be assaulted by a mob of liberals–as he was in New York a few days ago–when he settles into that $20,000-a-month rent house at Westlake’s Vaquero Estates. In the middle of a place that’s been called the most affluent neighborhood in the country, Vaquero is a gated expanse of castle-like mega-mansions peopled by pro athletes like Josh Hamilton and big-deal CEOs like BNSF’s Matthew Rose, said to be a potential successor to Warren Buffett.
The other day, for example, Westlake Mayor Laura Wheat and her husband Douglas (formerly of the Haas, Wheat & Partners investment firm) opened the doors of their rambling Vaquero digs for an intimate gathering featuring a mini-concert by American Idol finalist Tim Halperin. Think low-key. Tasteful. Friendly. You had to pass muster with a uniformed guard to get into the neighborhood, and certainly there were no street people, or roving mobs of angry progressives, in sight. Not a big fan of Beck–especially since he threw Debra Medina under the bus last year–but he’s obviously coming to the right place.
In this installment, Bill Holston tries to convince you that it’s never too hot to hike.
Shocking news. The 40-story tower isn’t complete yet, but they are moving it.
As we mentioned in March, a Detroit judge issued a bench warrant for the arrest of WFAA weekend morning anchor Shon Gables, who allegedly failed to appear in court to testify regarding her assets in connection to a $35,000 slander judgment against her.
Ed Bark, who has been on top of the story on his website unclebarky.com, caught everyone up before he headed out for his Independence Day weekend off. (more…)
Over at our excellent RealPoints blog, Mike Berry points to Urban Land Institute and legislative reports that show “years of neglect and inadequate funding are quickly putting the state in a position where it will be unable to afford any new roads or badly needed improvements…”
Hello there, presidential candidate Rick Perry.
State Sen. John Carona has led a lonely, one-man crusade on this issue, trying to get his fellow GOPers to understand the needs of a fast-growing state. But he has consistently run up against the governor’s adament refusal to provide money — i.e., to raise the gasoline tax. For an in-depth look at the problem, you can read our cover story on Carona’s struggles here.
I keep forgetting to mention this, and so far Dallas South News’ Shawn Williams is the only one to say anything, but former prolific city hall beat reporter Dave Levinthal, who moved to Washington D.C. and took a job at the Center for Responsive Politics as the editor of its OpenSecrets.org, is changing jobs again.
This time, he will write for Politico, where he will continue his vast and astute reporting and tracking of the money involved in politics that garnered him appearances on all manner of national Sunday talk shows. He starts in the middle of this month.
John Wiley Price Apalooza Continues. Yesterday, two Dallas businessmen – former Dallas Cowboy Pettis Norman and developer Jon Edmonds - were subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury in regards to the John Wiley Price case. Both insist they’ve done nothing wrong, and the FBI will only confirm that they continue to have agents fanning out around the area as the investigation continues.
NBA Lockout Is On. As of 12:01 this morning, the NBA imposed a lockout on all players, with commissioner David Stern citing a “huge philosophical divide.” However, this article in the Dallas Morning News theorizes that the lockout is possibly a good thing for the Mavericks, since a shortened season means the aging team has a better chance of staying injury-free and repeating its championship run.
Buy Me Some Peanuts and Cracker Jacks. Or um, maybe not.
DFW Businesses Are Becoming Office Spaces, Too. I mostly linked to this article because well, a pro-wrestling start up sounds kind of awesome.
Happy Independence Day Weekend. Wear sunscreen, don’t spark any massive brush fires, and use two, not three fingers when playing beer pong. Or anything, for that matter.