So I like Trader Joe’s. I’d like to have one here. And because of that, and because I was interested in seeing if this group ever got any actual information on possibilities, I joined this group.
And then today, someone posted this message:
The inside dope I got from a reliable source is that there will be a Trader Joe’s opening in the old Kroger location in Plano at Park and Preston, Northeast corner. I have no idea when the store will open.
An email is in route to HQ to find out if this is true, but I don’t really expect them to confirm the location. Because that’s not how it works, right?
A memo just circulated to staff:
In order to reduce power consumption during the current heat wave, we will be raising the room temperature in The Dallas Morning News and TXCN Buildings by two degrees beginning tomorrow, Friday, August 5.
To help employees cope with the higher temperatures, the dress code for employees in those buildings has been revised, effective today through Labor Day, to be summertime business casual seven days a week. In addition, employees may wear shorts and sandals during this time (no sports shorts, cut offs, spandex or flip flops, please).
If the heat wave continues past Labor Day, we will consider extending the modified dress code past that date.
To further reduce energy consumption, please turn off lights in meeting rooms and offices when not in use, and remember to turn off all computers and personal electronic devices when you leave for the day.
We at D Mag headquarters won’t be outdone in this effort to conserve energy. We’ve raised the temperature in our office by three degrees, and from now till Labor Day staff is required to wear crop tops.
Thanks to commenter Ashley, my man crush on Troy Aikman is growing more intense. Check out this shirtless pic of him on TMZ. Besides Hershel Walker, name another ex NFL player who has kept himself together as well as Troy.
Since there has been a fair amount of controversy on the lines you can and cannot cross with a source, here is a partial list of things I have probably done with sources.
I had no idea. From an email update on construction of The Park:
With its cross-beams nearly 80 percent complete, construction of The Park is on schedule for its fall 2012 opening.
Crews have installed 252 of the 316 concrete crossbeams that span the 5.2-acre deck park and the final beams are expected to be placed in October. Meanwhile, construction crews have completed 40 percent of the waterproofing the deck needs to ensure water does not seep through the concrete and into the tunnel once complete.
“As the deck nears completion, North Texans are in for an extraordinary sight,” said Linda Owen, president of the Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation. “Soon we’ll see the arrival of trees and plants, lawns and trellis, and it will be unmistakably clear what a transformational space our community has created.”
Improvements are also being made to the newly-created tunnel for drivers travelling underneath the deck park. In October, workers will complete the installation of 32 jet fans that will be monitored and controlled by computers at all times to protect air quality. In addition to the jet engines, drivers travelling on Woodall Rodgers Freeway will also notice the eastbound Pearl Street exit has been reopened. The exit closed last December as a safety precaution at the beginning of construction.
Dallas residents aren’t the only ones getting a new view of The Park. The Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation, which oversees the development and programming for The Park, relocated to a space overlooking The Park last week. Its new home will also serve as a meeting space for volunteers and programming partners.
This morning on my incredibly sweaty stroll into the office, I happened to meet a nice guy working as a safety inspector on the Museum Tower. He told me that he loves his job because he gets to travel and feel like he’s part of history by constructing these insane skyline-changing buildings, but for the love of Pete (I’m paraphrasing), is it always this crazy hot? He’s only been here two weeks and he would please like to leave. I told him no, that sometimes it resembles the Ice Age, and that I liked the rainbow umbrella.
On to tonight, when maybe it will be about a degree cooler after the sun goes down. There’s a couple things out at the WaterTower Theatre in Addison that I want to see this weekend, but I think I’d start with Satyricon (in the Stone Cottage) because it’s the riskiest. The basic plot concerns an aging gladiator traveling home with his former lover, Ascyltos, and his slave boy, Gilton. Mark-Brian Sonna not only translated and adapted Petronius’ ancient novel for the stage but acts, designs, and directs this particular production. Theater isn’t done without love and work and usually the two are interchangeable. Lance Lusk has the review on FrontRow, but mentions that it’s not for prudes. So if you are such a person and you are reading this, you’ve been warned.
Over on a whole ‘nother geek level, there’s QuakeCon. The big gaming convention kicks off today, and while I have once attended a LAN party, I did not participate. In fact, let’s just say I once crashed a LAN party. That’s more accurate. However, my in-the-know computer programmer buddy says this is a good time, so if you’re really into virtually maiming your enemies, you could sneak out of work a little early to get in there.
For more to do this evening, go here.
Drought Reveals Cemetery. This great drought we have going on has caused the Richland-Chambers Reservoir to decrease by five feet. This has revealed two graves from the 19th century. I like people who are self-aware. So I appreciate the outlook of Bruce McManus, chairman of the Navarro County Historical Society Commission. “It’s not one of the great finds of history, but it’s important to us on a local level,” he says.
Emotional Sisters Kicked Off Flight. Ricci Wheatley started crying as soon as she and her sister boarded a flight to come home to Dallas to say goodbye to their dying father. She grabbed the arm of a flight attendant and said she was a nervous flier and needed a drink. The flight attendant didn’t oblige. And the sisters later heard the flight attendants talking about the situation. The sisters were then kicked off the flight and rescheduled for the next day. They made it just in time to say goodbye to their father. And I believe the moral of the story here is you can’t judge a book by its cover. Or you shouldn’t judge others. Or when you assume, well, you get it.
Try Out To Be a Clown. You have one day to prepare for possibly the most important auditions of your life. That’s right, you can become part of the Greatest Show on Earth with the Ringling Bros. So. Good luck. And leave the makeup behind.