And a Twitter fight, no less, which is like when people had fights with graffiti in bathroom stalls in days of yore, in case you are not on the Twitters and have never seen a Twitter fight in action.
The Dallas Morning News (because Twitter fights are awesome and so why wouldn’t Dallas’ paper of record cover them) has the rundown here. But basically, here’s how it went:
Former Bengal/something else/Cowboy Terrell Owens (from his couch, since he’s kind of unemployed at the moment) makes fun of Terence Newman, sort of, for tackling Brandon Marshall and failing to bring him down during last week’s game, likening Newman to a “superman cape” hanging around Marshall’s neck as he ran in the TD. But he totally added “LOL” at the end of that, which should’ve made it cool in the Twitterverse.
Local NBC sports anchor Newy Scruggs then points out that Owens is unemployed, and says that his mocking of Newman was “petty.” Â Then it gets interesting, because OMG – Owens straight up called Scruggs fat. To be accurate, he called him “fat-so.” He then insisted that he wasn’t slamming Scruggs, but instead gave him some weight loss tips, like “u’re FAT & need 2 hit the treadmill ASAP!!”
Scruggs then reiterated that while he might be rubber, TO is glue, and whatever he says, bounces off of him, and sticks to Owens. Or maybe he just said something to the effect of, “I have a job and you do not, kind sir!” And then maybe it went back and forth for a little bit longer, with Scruggs telling Owens to pay his child support and quit claiming poverty.
But Owens got the last word, which was “fatmeat.”
Why isn’t there a market for Twitter war play-by-play?
… and one of the first people to file his paperwork? John Wiley Price. Â According to the Dallas Morning News, Price (despite being the subject of an FBI investigation) will likely face little to no opposition in the Democratic primary.
DISD trustees have to figure out this new STAAR testing deal and how much it will figure into grading. It’s important, it’s complicated, and we should ditch the whole thing. Read this New Republic story about Finland’s education system. If you’re too busy to read the entire thing, here’s the gist:
In comparison to the United States and many other industrialized nations, the Finns have implemented a radically different model of educational reform — based on a balanced curriculum and professionalization, not testing. Not only do Finnish educational authorities provide students with far more recess than their U.S. counterparts–75 minutes a day in Finnish elementary schools versus an average of 27 minutes in the U.S. — but they also mandate lots of arts and crafts, more learning by doing, rigorous standards for teacher certification, higher teacher pay, and attractive working conditions. This is a far cry from the U.S. concentration on testing in reading and math since the enactment of No Child Left Behind in 2002, which has led school districts across the country, according to a survey by the Center on Education Policy, to significantly narrow their curricula.
An alert FrontBurnervian points us to video of Mickey “Please Don’t Use My Last Name Because It’s” Guyton, who recently did a turn at the White House. Mickey is the daughter of Mike Guyton, a vice president at Oncor’s Fort Worth customer operations center. She just signed to Capitol Nashville and will move to Tennessee Thursday to record her debut album.
Watch Meet Mickey on PBS.
And we’re back. I’d like to say a special thank you to the lady who smuggled her own bottle of wine and stemware into the movie theater this weekend. That was just the cherry on top of a wonderful holiday. I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did.
You’d think that after a few solid days devoted to eating, we’d all be sick of the idea. How wrong you are. Stephan Pyles hosts a dinner tonight in honor of the launch of Notes from a Kitchen: A Journey Inside Culinary Obsession, a sort of DIY project/book from photographer Jeff Scott and chef Blake Beshore. Joel Harrington, executive chef at Stephan Pyles, is one of the featured chefs, and he’s created a special four course tasting menu to celebrate. I like the sound of this, especially since my one of my oldest friends is moving back to Dallas in four days to try his hand at cooking. As the author Jonathan Franzen wrote in this essay that I actually quite liked, “Although one-half of a passion is obsession, the other half is love.” I’m told that there are still a few spots left, so email or call Lisa Moore at the restaurant for reservations. Her contact information is in the event listing.
We’ll have a massive round up of Christmas happenings to share with you very soon. But since I’m sure many of you are already planning things like “holiday cards” (I’m not immune. I bought mine already), you should be aware that many Santas have alighted from the North Pole and opened their workshops for business. NorthPark Claus sticks around until 7 p.m. even on weeknights, which might help those who want to avoid the Saturday afternoon hoards. (This year, I will be asking Santa for a day without email.) In addition, the trains stay open until 9 p.m., and there’s a Salvation Army Angel Tree near Macy’s that could probably use your help. As I’ve said, I have fond memories of shopping with my parents for the kids and families my dad pulled off the tree in his office. Few things make me sadder than the thought of names left on Christmas Day.
For more to do this evening, go here.
We’re looking for a new online assistant dining editor. See the details over on SideDish.
Glenn said Rep. Joe Driver (R-Garland) should resign a year ago. That’s when an AP reporter caught him stealing money. Travis County prosecutors recently came to the same conclusion — yet they gave the guy deferred adjudication so that he can remain in office through 2013 and collect his pension when he retires. The man has admitted to a third-degree felony of abuse of official capacity. He’ll draw a pension of nearly $60,000. We live in a great country.
Got a note from reader Joe Adams about my story recounting my husband’s first Christmas at Nightengale Farms, which you can read here. He enjoyed the piece (though he’s worried I may get some negative response to it). Seems pen-raised quail don’t make the best prey for multiple reasons.
The piece brought back similar memories from one of my hunting episodes. We shot pen-raised birds on a bitterly cold day along the Red River. A temperature in the teens and strong north wind caused continual eye tearing, but the pheasants and chukars flushed reasonably well during the initial session. Later in the morning, our attention turned to the quail which had also been released in the pre-dawn hours. Walking one field, I could see a quail standing like a lone sentinel on a rock still quite a distance away. I was surprised when it failed to fly as I moved within shooting range, and then even as I walked alongside. Upon nudging it with my boot, the frozen quail fell over stiffly on the rock—apparently pen-raised birds do not possess the cold weather survival skills of their wild brethren.–Joe Adams
Dallas Morning News Columnist Arrested: James Ragland was arrested for misdemeanor assault Sunday after a domestic dispute with his wife on Saturday night spilled over into church the next day, prompting the congregation to call 911. There were reportedly cellphones thrown and heads shoved.
Cowboys Cheerleader’s Twitter Account Suspended After Witten Encounter: The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader who was plowed over by Cowboys tight end Jason Witten on Thanksgiving Day tweeted a couple of innocuous jokes about Jason Witten’s toughness afterwards, which apparently was enough for the Cowboys to kill her Twitter account. #lame
Welcome Back Basketball: The lockout is over, and the new salary caps won’t greatly affect the Dallas Mavericks. In fact, some believe the shortened season plays in the Mavs’ favor.