Sleepless in Midland

A fond farewell to Coy Willis

He's has been the Animal Services Director in Midland, Texas, for as long as most of us remember, but next week will be his last week.  Then it's good bye Midland as he and Ms. Willis leave our fair city for Graham, Texas, where they will enjoy retirement.  Paul O'Neill of College Station will be taking over here as Animal Services Director.

Mr. Willis began his career in animal control 31 years ago in Lubbock where he was a supervisor.  And before moving to Midland he worked for five years as the Animal Control director in Odessa.  And the past 23 years he's been the director in Midland where, among other things, he was instrumental in bringing the dog park to Midland.

Ah, the dog park.  What a terrific place that has turned out to be for dog owners.  It's a great place for dogs to run, and have a grand old time with other dogs, and check pee-mail.

So here's a giant "thank you" to Mr. Willis for all he did to get that thing built.  It took perseverance, and he stuck with it.  It has enriched canine lives all across the region.

Midland's loss is Graham's gain.  Good bye Coy.  May you have a wonderful retirement.

Where are Menchaca's supporters now?

Now that former Midland, Texas, city manager Rick Menchaca is about to clear nearly half a million dollars from the city, it brings to mind that infamous quote of his:  if any employees went over his head he would "cut them off at the knees."  He probably wouldn't have physically mutilated them, but given his cash demands of the city, if he said that one wonders exactly what he would have done.

But let's put that aside for the moment and revisit some other quotes.  It wasn't too long ago that Mr. Menchaca's friends were on the pages of the local paper singing his praises.  One in particular, local business man and former city council member, Jose Cuevas, was quoted as saying that Mr. Menchaca has "100 percent of my confidence and 100 percent of my support."

Did you say that, Mr. Cuevas?  If so, what say you now?

Dropped Jaw Syndrome Strikes City. Experts explain.

Jaws dropped all over the city this morning leaving local health officials scratching their heads.  "It's amazing.  It seems that the entire city's jaw dropped this morning," one observer said,  "some all the way to the floor!"

Dropped Jaw Syndrome (DJS) seemed to have struck city wide as people opened their morning papers and read the headline that the Midland City Council has awarded former city manager Rick Menchaca a golden handshake worth $481,158.

In a search of an explanation for the DJS attack, local health officials consulted with big city experts.  "Quite often the DJS is accompanied by bulging eyes, and on occasion, the screaming of epithets," one expert explained.  "Shock is the usual cause.  In a small community like Midland where everyone is under the impression that their government is prudent, ethical and above board then something like an outlandish gift to a former city manager comes as a complete surprise.  It takes time to process.  It's like discovering that Santa Clause was a wino in a costume working a temporary job.

"We don't see this in the big cities like Houston or San Antonio because the voters and taxpayers are no longer surprised at what their governments do.  So that first time is an eye opener and a jaw dropper," the expert explained.  "But don't worry, the next time they may not even notice," he said, chuckling.

Area residents were seen picking up their jaws and wandering off in a daze, some saying things like, "what the ....?" "You call this a compromise?"  "Menchaca asked for the sun and the moon, and they gave it to him!  What secrets does he have over those five Council members that they were so afraid would come out in a trial?"

Updated 6/28/07:  More evidence of DJS right here:

The collective jaw of Midland probably dropped an inch or two this week upon learning the City Council approved a $481,158 settlement agreement with City Manager Rick Menchaca. ...

A terrible accident on the highway

This past Friday (June 22, 2007) there was a vehicle crash that was a true nightmare. 20 year old Megan Bryant was driving a Nissan with a baby on board, and the Nissan was struck by a tanker truck full of diesel. Ms. Bryant and the baby died.  I cannot possibly imagine the terror she must have felt when she realized that the truck would strike her car.  It's horrifying.  I get watery eyes thinking about it.  And it leaves the rest of us asking:  How could this have happened?

Here's a news roundup:
Tragic accident claims mother, daughter;
Crash kills two; and
Fatal Crash, Midland.

The news reports said the woman was traveling South on Highway 1788 and turned left on the Highway 191 service road.  The truck was traveling North on 1788, and the driver of the truck couldn't stop in time to avoid the accident.  See inset:  Blue line = Nissan route, yellow line = truck route, red "X" =  accident site.

It's a dangerous intersection, and if you look at the overhead shot (courtesy of Google Maps), you can see why.  A car following that route would have had to make a very hard left, an acute angle that appears to be roughly 52°.

There's the problem, and that's what makes this intersection so dangerous.  In a pure left hand 90° turn she might have made it safely, but maybe she misjudged the angle and had to slow down too much in order to make the turn.

So the lesson for the rest of us is to be extremely cautious at those intersections that have a weird angle.  And for those people whose job it is to design highways, please give us a break and don't make us navigate those screwy angles when we turn across a busy lane.

Updated 1/10/08:  The mother of the poor lady who was killed blogs under the name of Scraptab at My thoughts for the day.  Our hearts go out to you, Scraptab .  Most of us will never know the loss you've felt, but we feel for you and hope the very best for you.

Our Courageous Firefighters

We take them for granted.  We might see them working around a fire station, or we might see them at an open house.  And we often see them speeding down the street, lights flashing, siren blaring, on their way to answer an alarm.  And there are thousands of those each year in this community of around a hundred thousand residents.

This past week the Midland Fire Department participated in the nationwide third annual Fire Fighter Safety Stand Down in which they suspended all non-emergency activity and instead focus totally on firefighter safety.  Good timing, given that early in the week nine firefighters lost their lives in a fiery disaster in Charleston, South Carolina.

How did that happen?  The final investigation will tell us details.  In the meantime, the coroner's office said they died from a combination of smoke inhalation and burns.  [Link .] But it was a 50 year old building for which city boards had granted a variance which would have required a firewall when an addition was added in 1996.  Also, sprinkler systems weren't required 50 years ago, and the building didn't have them.

See a long news roundup at Charleston.net, beginning with West Ashley Sofa Super Store ablaze, roof collapses, smoke visible for miles and including articles titled: Fire began at store's loading dock and Super Sofa Store building had long history which contains this sentence:

Of the 22 firefighter deaths that occurred nationally in 2006, all perished in buildings without sprinkler systems, according to the National Fire Protection Association.

The major fire disasters from the history books have all led to new regulations addressing the problems that led to the loss of life and property in those particular cases.  And there will surely be some new regulations arising from the Charleston fire.

Within the last few years the two-in, two-out rule has been implemented locally, meaning that firefighters are trained to go into a burning structure in pairs and then only when there are two more firefighters outside available to come in and haul the first two out, if necessary.

But in spite of the rules, training exercises and practice, firefighter deaths still occur too frequently.  And hopefully, events like the Fire Fighter Safety Stand Down will help to eliminate future tragedies like the one that occurred in Charleston.  But they need our support.

Firefighters are a courageous and dedicated bunch.  We should all be grateful, and here's a short message from the heart to firefighters in Midland and everywhere.  Thanks for all you do.  And be safe out there, ok?

Clintons vs. Sopranos

One has to wonder if Karl Rove was the brainchild behind the Youtube Clinton/Sopranos parody.  Seriously, why would the Clinton campaign want to encourage anyone to make the Clinton/Soprano comparison?

But maybe they aren't comparable.  Let's take a quiz and find out:

1.  I've been known to break laws in my time, but the Feds could never touch me.  I am

A.   Bill Clinton
B.  Tony Soprano
C.  Both A and B
D.  Neither A nor B .

2.  My husband is a two timing scoundrel, but there's more to gain by staying with him.  I am

A.  Hillary Clinton
B.  Carmela Soprano
C.  Both A and B
D.  Neither A nor B.

3.  It's regrettable when it happens, but sometimes a long time friend ends up with a bullet in the head.  We are

A.   Bill and Hillary Clinton
B.   Tony and Carmela Soprano
C.   Both A and B
D.   Neither A nor B.

4.  Many wanted us to leave the stage with a definite and satisfactory conclusion, but they were disappointed.  We are

A.  The Clintons
B.   "The Sopranos" series
C.   Both A and B
D.   Neither A and B.

Answers:  1 -  C;  2 - C;  3 - C;  and 4 - C.  It's a Karl Rove plot.

Interesting side note:  Tony as the mob boss would have been the one facing the door while seated in the diner (it's in the unwritten Mafia code).  Yet in the Clinton parody, it's Hillary facing the door on the lookout for an intruder.  There's some meaning there, but I'm not smart enough to figure it out.

I love a parade

The annual Juneteenth Parade in Midland is the finest.  And on June 16, 1007, there were some good looking vehicles and lots of very nice people in the parade.  If you weren't there, you missed a good one.   Click Juneteenth 2007 to see thirty photos taken at today's parade.

Losing weight the lazy way

Got a link in an email from a dieter.  (Thanks, I won't mention any names.)  It's a calculator that lets you plug in a weight and the time that will be spent on a particular activity.  Then it tells you how many calories will be burned.  Link.

The beauty of this thing is that it lists so many activities.  Who knew that a 160 pound person could burn nearly 524 calories simply by sleeping eight hours?  Even more by watching tv!  And when our hypothetical weight watcher is shopping for food the number jumps way up there.  Heck, with so many ways to burn calories, why diet?

But if you really want to burn some calories try running up stairs.

Dan Rather and Morning Joe

Dan Rather is like an old pickup truck with a busted axle.  It pulls hard to the left and can drive you into the gully if you don't pay attention.

This morning Dan Rather was on Joe Scarborough's MSNBC early morning show.  And being the war critic that he is, Rather was parroting the complaint about President Bush and the war effort that "we were never asked to make a sacrifice," as if he really would have made a sacrifice to help and not hurt Bush.

His mentor, Walter Cronkite, is famous for swaying public opinion against the war in Vietnam, and Dan Rather no doubt wants to be remembered by something other than Rathergate.  So he continues his anti-administration drumbeat perhaps thinking that if Bush becomes unpopular enough then his own below the belt attacks on Bush might be looked upon more favorably.

He's not the first to complain about not being asked to sacrifice, but it seems so disingenuous no matter who says it.  And it sounds not only disingenuous but unoriginal when Rather says it.  But let's give him the benefit of the doubt and suggest a way he can sacrifice for the war effort.  Dan, fight your prejudices against George W. Bush and the war in Iraq.  Help the U. S. achieve a victory and a stable democracy in Iraq.  If you can't help then just stay out of the way and quit criticizing those who are trying to help.

Courage, Dan.  And sacrifice.

Updated 6/12/07:  Newsbusters point to Mr. Rather's complaint about his replacement at CBS, Katie Couric.  Excerpt:

He also found time to twice bash his "Evening News" successor Katie Couric for dumbing down and tarting up the news. After giving the standard caveat that Couric is a "nice person," he went in for kill. Speculating on the program’s declining ratings, Rather complained to MSNBC host Joe Scarborough that "the mistake was to try to bring the ‘Today’ show ethos to the evening news and to dumb it down, tart it up in hopes of attracting a younger audience."

Face it, Dan.  Your style of reporting alienates viewers of all ages.

Dirty Mouth?

Caught a glimpse of the MTV Movie Awards show last night, and one moment in particular stood out.  It was the Orbit dirty mouth award given by Vanessa Branch to Jay and Silent Bob for their dirty mouth dialog in Clerks II. Funny stuff.

Hey wait a sec.  Was that just a clever commercial?  Dang.