Review: The Flaw of Averages

Amazon

From The Flaw of Averages, by Sam Savage:

Just as a handle helps you grasp something with your hand, I define a Mindle (first syllable rhymes with 'mind') as the analogous concept for the mind. In this section I will present five fundamental Mindles for grasping various aspects of uncertainty. Although you may have been exposed to these concepts in the past, they were likely cloaked in Steam Era anachronisms such as VARIANCE or STANDARD DEVIATION."

After the jump, my review.

All Is Lost (2013)

IMDB

All Is Lost (2013): Lone sailor faces death. Gutsy minimalist script. Redford shows grit, not much else. More plodding than exciting. B-

The Myths of the Myths of Climate Change

According to his biography, Thomas Donelson is chairman of "Americas PAC," a PAC that specializes in expanding the free market conservative coalition. He has been involved in conservative Republican politics for the last three decades. There's nothing in his bio that indicates any scientific background or expertise, or for that matter, any connection to Texas, but that doesn't stop something called "Texas GOP Vote" from publishing Donelson's article on climate change titled "The Mythology of Climate Change."

After the jump, an examination of the so-called "myths." No ridicule. No snark. Just straight talk.

Beauty and the Beast at PHS

Beauty and the Beast at PHS: Lavish sets, beautiful voices, funny enchanted objects, enthusiastic chorus and wolves to give you nightmares.

HS Basketball: Neither Snow nor Rain...

From 2014 02 07 Richardson vs Berkner

Snow on the ground and sleet in the air caused cancellation of many events across north Texas Friday, but these basketballers had a game awaiting them, a game for the ages. In triple overtime, the Richardson Eagles defeated the Berkner Rams 100-97 Friday night at the Berkner gym.

With the win, the Eagles (10-3) preserve a chance at sharing the district championship with the Rams (11-2) depending on the outcome of the two teams' final district games next Tuesday night. The Rams' record assures them of at least a share of the championship. But that's next week. For now, this triple overtime thriller is one to savor a little longer.

More photos after the jump.

Midwinter at the Richardson Civic Center

Brrrr. But just try calling someone in Wisconsin and see what kind of sympathy you get for our cold weather.

S2L77: Venice

From 1977 05 02 Italy

Well out of Asia and deep into Europe, we're moving fast now. A different city every day. Today, it's Venice. Enjoy.

More photos after the jump.

Skyline Women at RHS: Basketball at its Finest

From 2014 02 04 Skyline vs Richardson women

It was the last game of the District 9-5A season. It was also the game of the year. The two teams had a combined district record of 21-1. The outcome would determine the district championship. The crowd was large and boisterous. The players talented and scrappy. It was basketball at its finest.

Three weeks ago, when these same two teams met, the Richardson women's basketball team handed Skyline their first defeat in district play in 134 games. But Tuesday night, in the rematch at the RHS gym, Skyline prevailed 58-52. Richardson lost the game, but still ended up winning a share of the district championship with Skyline, both with 11-1 records. Thanks for the great season, Eagles and Raiders.

More photos after the jump.

CAFR Rebounds

For city finance wonks, Christmas comes twice a year: once in August when the city budget is set and again in February when the city financial audit is published. The budget specifies the city's cash flow (its planned revenues and expenses). The financial audit details the city's assets (the value of city property, bank accounts, etc.) and its liabilities (outstanding debt, pension obligations, etc.).

After the jump, a quick look at this year's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR).

OTBR: Mile-wide Floodplain of the Mississippi

Latitude: N 39° 29.976
Longitude: W 091° 02.382

A child on a road trip with his family asks, "Where are we?" and the father answers, "Let's check the map. We're off the blue roads [the Interstate Highways marked in blue on the road atlas]. We're off the red roads [the US and state highways]. We're off the black roads [the county highways]. I think we're off the map altogether." It was always my dream to be off the map altogether.

After the jump, a few of the random places (and I mean random literally) that I visited vicariously last month that are "off the blue roads".

Repeat Tweets: High School Basketball

Repeat tweets from January, 2014:

• Jan 3 2014: High school men's basketball final: Richardson 75, Lake Highlands 64. #txhshoops
  
• Jan 6 2014: Star Trek Into Darkness (2013): Starships swim, garbage trucks fly, Kirk struts. Safe, formulaic, campy, non-stop bloodless violence. C+
  
• Jan 6 2014: Headline: "US marks 4 straight years of slowing health costs." @SenTedCruz repeats his cry for #FullRepeal #wacko
  
• Jan 6 2014: Headline: "Health care shrunk as a percent of GDP for the first time since 1997." @SenTedCruz repeats his cry for #FullRepeal #wacko
  
• Jan 6 2014: MT @SenTedCruz: "I cannot support Janet Yellen's nomination to serve as Chairman of the Federal Reserve." This is news? Why? #Obstruction
  
• Jan 6 2014: MT @SenTedCruz: "Federal judge, nominated by President Obama, finds Chicago's handgun sales ban unconstitutional." Judicial activism.
  

After the jump, more repeat tweets.

Hairspray at BHS

Hairspray at BHS: '60s music and student activism, what more could you ask? Hilarious & inspiring. All voices owned the house! Best ever!

After the jump, a surprise show stopper.

Berkner Sweeps Pearce

From 2014 01 31 Pearce vs Berkner

The Berkner Rams men's basketball team swept their season home-and-away series against the Pearce Mustangs with a 69-44 win Friday night at the Berkner gym. With the win, the Rams retain sole possession of first place in District 9-5A, with a record of 10-1. It's a great time to be a Ram!

More photos after the jump.

Shrek the Musical at RHS

Shrek at RHS: The ogre, the princess, smart-ass donkey, and big cast. Kids let their freak flags fly with clever songs and dancing.

Suburban Freeways

Eisenhower himself didn't realize the Interstate Highway System would cut through American cities until a few years after construction began. Ike had wanted a national road network like the one he'd seen in Germany during World War II. But he'd also wanted these roads to stop at the doorsteps of cities, not push right past.

Source: The Atlantic.

This story about the history of freeways in America is an old one. The notion that "the Interstate Highway System should have been two distinct systems: one running between cities, and another running within them" is almost conventional wisdom now. There's even a grassroots movement, "A New Dallas," that seeks to tear up one of that city's downtown freeways, IH345.

I'm sold on the vision. After the jump, does this apply to Richardson?

Captain Phillips (2013)

IMDB

Captain Phillips (2013): Suspense relentlessly builds towards climax. Liberties? So what? Tom Hanks deserves Oscar nom with Barkhad Abdi. B+

District 102 and 112 Candidates: Your Pick

The six candidates for the GOP nomination for Texas House Districts 102 and 112 debated January 22 at a forum at the Canyon Creek Country Club. Vying to represent HD 102 were Stefani Carter (incumbent), Linda Koop, Adryana Boyne and Sam Brown. Vying to represent HD 112 were Angie Chen Button (incumbent) and Jared Patterson.

If you are a conservative Republican (is there any other kind?) you can safely take the rest of this primary season off. All six candidates were eager to make their case as the most conservative man or woman out there. All professed to be anti-tax, pro-life, anti-gay, and pro-gun. There are far more similarities than differences between these candidates.

But let's try to draw distinctions, anyway, shall we? After the jump, some highlights.

Fort Worth Stock Show

From 2014 01 22 Ft Worth Stock Show

If I had a bucket list, somewhere on it would be the Fort Worth Stock Show. Oldest continual running livestock show and rodeo (1896). First indoor rodeo (1918). First Brahma bull riding (1933). First live television broadcast (1958). Attendance over a million people each year.

Finally, this year, I can check it off that mythical bucket list. Sure, it was a midweek visit. No rodeo. No animals (to speak of). No crowds. Still, you could get some of the flavor of what makes this a big draw. Everyone was friendly and, because of the lack of crowds, had the time and was willing to talk.

More photos after the jump.

Grease at LHHS

Grease at Lake Highlands HS: Big and talented cast bring slicked hair, poodle skirts and sock hop to life with great singing, dancing, and tech.

The Spectacular Now (2013)

IMDB

Spectacular Now (2013): Party boy teaches nice girl confidence. In the end, he learns more himself. Simple, sweet story. Very well acted. B+

S2L77: Dubrovnik

Somewhere in Yugoslavia
April 28, 1977
We drove for four hours beyond Skopje as far as the bridge with a hole in it.

Somewhere else in Yugoslavia on the Adriatic Sea
April 30, 1977
Evening barbecue on the beach.

Source: Personal travel notes.

From 1977 04 29 Yugoslavia

In 1977, Yugoslavia was still united and stable. Driving up from Greece, it was impossible to know when you crossed from, say, Kosovo to Serbia to Bosnia to Herzegovina to Croatia. It was all just beautiful, peaceful, rural scenery. It's sad to think of all the violence and tragedy that small corner of the world has experienced.

Dubrovnik is a walled, medieval city on the Dalmatian coast of the Adriatic Sea. Everything about it, from its narrow cobblestone streets to its imposing fortress walls to its views of the sea, makes it a visual feast. Despite being a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it was not safe from the troubles that came with the breakup of Yugoslavia. It was shelled by Serbian forces during the Croatian War in 1991. Restoration was apparently successful as today Dubrovnik is used as the city of King's Landing in the HBO series "Game of Thrones." But all of this was in the future when I visited in 1977 and took these photos.

More photos after the jump.

Recycling Styrofoam

City of Richardson

Recently, I offered my own suggestions to the City of Richardson for how to make recycling easier. That prompted Bill McCalpin to inform me (hat tip) that the city recently held a focus group, which generated its own suggestions:

• Make recycling even easier by not having people try to read the tiny print on plastics to see which one it is, but just have people throw all of the plastic in, and have someone else sort it later.
  
• Make the paper bags for yard waste freely available to landscapers.
  

The second suggestion matches my own, except I want the paper bags (or "green" plastic bags) freely available to homeowners, too. (I do my own yard work.)

The first suggestion was new to me. Frankly, it puzzled me. According to the City of Richardson website, "The items below can all be placed in the blue bags: Plastics #1-7 (excluding styrofoam), ..."

All plastics, #1-7, are accepted. That's all there is. So, if it's stamped with a recycling triangle, no matter what number is inside, it's one of those #1-7 recyclable plastics. There's no need to try to read the tiny print inside the triangle to see which one it is. Anyway, that's what I thought. Then I considered that magic asterisk, "excluding styrofoam."

After the jump, what's that all about?

Big Star (2012)

IMDB

Big Star (2012): Documentary of obscure '70s cult band that lacked distribution, not talent. Movie needs more music and less talking. C+

Berkner Sweeps Lake Highlands

From 2014 01 21 Berkner vs Lake Highlands

The Berkner Rams men's basketball team swept their season home-and-away series against the Lake Highlands Wildcats with a 81-64 win Tuesday night at the Lake Highlands gym. With the win, the Rams retain sole possession of first place in District 9-5A, with a record of 7-1. It's a great time to be a Ram!

More photos after the jump.

Jared Patterson Sides with Terrorists

Jared Patterson sides with terrorists against the President.

What? Too much? Is that headline over the top? Inflammatory? Divisive? Juvenile? Yes, to all of the above. You'd hope that political discourse would be more respectful, searching for areas to work together to solve problems. You'd certainly hope that our would-be elected officials would set a good example. You'd be wrong.

Jared Patterson is running for Texas House District 112. He's a former Sachse city council member and is now seeking to replace Angie Chen Button in the Texas House. But he seems to be running more against President Obama than against Button. He's got a bit of a case of Obama Derangement Syndrome. He takes more cheap shots against the President than tell us how he'd solve problems with education, health care, water and transportation here in Texas.

After the jump, the Jared Patterson Facebook post that inspired the headline.

Stefani Carter's Friends are Few, But Rich

When last we looked, Stefani Carter appeared to be short of friends and money. Enough so that she decided to drop her bid for Railroad Commissioner and come back to Richardson to try to keep her District 102 House seat.

After the jump, a new look look at Carter's friend list.

This Is Not a Film (2011)

IMDB

This Is Not a Film (2011): Iranian filmmaker banned from making movies, facing prison, turns camera on himself. More protest than art. C-

Berkner: The End of a Winning Streak

From 2014 01 17 Skyline vs Berkner

The Berkner Rams' men's basketball team lost to the Skyline Raiders 65-62 Friday night in the Rams' gym. The defeat was the first district loss by the Rams since January 24, 2012 (Skyline 68-66), a winning streak of 24 games.

With the first half of the season now history, the Rams have sole possession of first place with a 6-1 record. There's a lot of basketball still to be played. Come on out and watch these talented young athletes put on a great show.

More photos after the jump.

S2L77: Not So Ancient Athens

From 1977 04 21 Greece

National Library of Greece

In the last installment, we toured ancient Athens. Today, we jump forward a millennium or two. Still in the past, but only a few decades and/or centuries. Practically yesterday, in other words.

More photos after the jump.

Anna Karenina (2012)

IMDB

Anna Karenina (2012): Sumptuous. Stylistic. Theatrical. Fans of Tolstoy won't like it, but if you must condense to 2 hrs, this will do. B-

Showdown: Berkner at Richardson

From 2014 01 14 Berkner at Richardson

It was the battle of the unbeatens in District 9-5A men's basketball. Berkner and Richardson, both sporting 5-0 records, met Tuesday night at the Eagles' gym to determine who would take sole possession of first place in the district. The game was played as high school basketball should be played, before an enthusiastic full house cheering every score.

In a wild game, the Berkner Rams prevailed 66-63. The Rams led by eight during the first quarter and by two at the half, then the Eagles led by eleven in the third quarter before the Rams came storming back in the fourth quarter to win by three as Richardson's three point attempt at the buzzer fell short.

A sad note: with 57 seconds left in the game, there was a collision on the court. Berkner's Torey Everett fell to the floor hard, where he lay for twenty minutes before walking off the court on his own power, but he sat quietly on the bench for the final seconds of the game. Let's hope he recovers quickly and fully.

More photos after the jump.

Review: The Warmth of Other Suns

Amazon

From The Warmth of Other Suns, by Isabel Wilkerson:

From the early years of the twentieth century to well past its middle age, nearly every black family in the American South, which meant nearly every black family in America, had a decision to make. ... Over the course of six decades, some six million black southerners left the land of their forefathers and fanned out across the country for an uncertain existence in nearly every other corner of America. The Great Migration would become a turning point in history."

After the jump, my review.

Survey Says: Recycle

The City of Richardson says it is committed to increasing recycling and wants residents' input to identify ways to improve the current recycling program. So, it's conducting a survey. Well, OK. The "survey" reads a little more like an advertising campaign to increase awareness of the existing recycling program, with questions like this:

Where do you currently get your blue bags? (Select all that apply.)

• Purchase them at Heights Recreation Center
  
• Purchase them at Huffhines Recreation Center
  
• Purchase them at the Senior Center
  
• Purchase them from City Hall
  
• Purchase them from the Municipal Service Center
  
• Redeem free offer listed in the Mayor's yearly residential recycling letter
  
• Picked up free bags at the Trash Bash
  
• Picked up free bags at the Cottonwood Art Festival
  
• Picked up free bags at the Wildflower! Arts & Musical Festival
  
• Picked up free bags at the Citizen Police Academy Alumni Association (CPAAA) Recycling Day
  
• Picked up free bags at Huffhines Art Trails event
  
• Picked up free bags at City Wide Pet Day
  
• Picked up free bags at the America Recycles Day
  
• I purchase them from the grocery store
  

The city doesn't need the survey to find out the answer to this question. Surely, the city has better information about how many rolls of blue bags are distributed through each of these outlets than any information this unscientific survey is going to collect. But maybe some people taking the survey will learn about a different, more convenient outlet, so OK, I get it. (Not only do I get it, I did it myself -- I used my blog post to spread useful information. You're welcome, City of Richardson. ;-)

Where the city just might learn something from its survey is from the open ended questions, the fill-in-the-blank for what the city could do to make recycling easier. After the jump, my own answer.

Russian Ark (2002)

IMDB

Russian Ark (2002): Fly-on-the-wall tour of Hermitage Museum. Balls, concerts, court come to life. All in single camera take. *Very* odd. B-

Rams Win Over W.T. White

From 2014 01 10 WT White vs Berkner

The Berkner Rams easily defeated the W.T. White Longhorns 78-54 Friday night at the Berkner gym. With the win, the Rams' district record improves to 5-0, while White drops to 2-3. It's a great time to be a Ram!

Elsewhere, the Richardson Eagles defeated the Skyline Raiders 60-43 to improve their record to 5-0, matching the Rams atop District 9-5A. A showdown between the two district leaders is scheduled for next Tuesday in the Richardson gym.

More photos after the jump.

OTBR: An Australian Paddock

Latitude: S 38° 19.980
Longitude: E 144° 13.308

A child on a road trip with his family asks, "Where are we?" and the father answers, "Let's check the map. We're off the blue roads [the Interstate Highways marked in blue on the road atlas]. We're off the red roads [the US and state highways]. We're off the black roads [the county highways]. I think we're off the map altogether." It was always my dream to be off the map altogether.

After the jump, a few of the random places (and I mean random literally) that I visited vicariously last month that are "off the blue roads".

Computer Chess (2013)

IMDB

Computer Chess (2013): 1980s B/W documentary about computer chess tourney? No. Avant-garde. Surreal. Bergmanesque. Maybe watch it high. D+

Rams Roll Past Pearce

From 2014 01 07 Berkner vs Pearce

The Berkner Rams easily defeated the Pearce Mustangs 60-34 Tuesday night at the Pearce gym. With the win, the Rams' district record improves to 4-0, while Pearce drops to 1-3. It's a great time to be a Ram!

Elsewhere, the Richardson Eagles defeated the W.T. White Longhorns 58-44 to improve their district record to 4-0, matching the Rams atop District 9-5A.

More photos after the jump.

Richardson City Council Cuts Back its Schedule

If the council approves changes to its schedule, it would skip work sessions on fifth Mondays. In addition, the proposed schedule also would omit meetings on MLK Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day, the Monday that falls during the Richardson and Plano school districts’ spring break, the Monday following Independence Day and the meetings that fall on the week of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day.

Source: The Dallas Morning News.

After the jump, four reasons why this is a good thing.

Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

IMDB

Star Trek Into Darkness (2013): Starships swim, garbage trucks fly, Kirk struts. Safe, formulaic, campy, non-stop bloodless violence. C+

Basketball: Richardson 75, Lake Highlands 64

From 2014 01 03 Richardson vs Lake Highlands

Before a small crowd at Lake Highlands High School on Friday afternoon, the Richardson Eagles improved their district record to 3-0 with a 75-64 win over the Lake Highlands Wildcats, who dropped to 0-3.

More photos after the jump.

S2L77: Ancient Athens

From 1977 04 21 Greece

How much has ancient Athens changed in the last 35 years, compared to the 2,500 years before that? Dunno. I know some of the statues around the Parthenon have been moved to an indoor museum in Athens to protect them from air pollution (that is, those statues that weren't already carted off to the British Museum in London centuries ago). But beyond that, I'm not sure how the tourist experience is different at these sites. Do these photos look out of date in any way? If anyone who has been there recently has anything to add, let's hear it.

More photos after the jump.

Repeat Tweets: Depp and DiCaprio Together

Repeat tweets from December, 2013:

• 1 Dec 2013: What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993): Depp and DiCaprio together, back when they played ordinary, believable characters. Less is more. A-
  
• 1 Dec 2013: With the losses by Skyline and Jesuit, District 9-5A is out of the football playoffs. It's now time for basketball to take center stage!
  
• 4 Dec 2013: MT @SenTedCruz: "Restoring economic growth ought to be a bipartisan objective." So should ensuring every American has health care. #wacko
  
• 5 Dec 2013: Headline: "Tom Pauken Drops Race For Governor." He finally realized that voters don't want a candidate whose top issue is the Vietnam War.
  
• 6 Dec 2013: MT @ezraklein: "Unusually strong jobs report today. +203,000 jobs. Unemployment down for the right reasons." GOP blames Obamacare.
  

After the jump, more repeat tweets.

Auld Lang Syne: Jesuit 65, Berkner 68

From 2013 12 31 Jesuit vs Berkner

The Berkner Rams men's basketball team bid goodbye to 2013 with an always close 68-65 win over the Jesuit Rangers on the afternoon before New Year's Day at the Berkner gym. It's a great time to be a Ram!

More photos after the jump.

The Hobbit - The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

IMDB

The Hobbit - Smaug (2013): Tolkien would recognize it. Jackson added love interest, some humor and lots of mind-numbing CGI action. C+

Lookout, TCEQ is Coming to Plano

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has prepared a draft permit which, if approved, would establish the conditions under which the new Lookout Trash Transfer Station (LOTS) must operate. The TCEQ has made a preliminary decision that this permit meets all statutory and regulatory requirements. Naturally, dissatisfaction with this decision is directly proportional to proximity to the site.

After the jump, the next act in this long-running drama.

S2L77: Delphi

From 1977 04 21 Greece

Delphi was believed by ancient Greeks to be at the exact center of the world. It was the home of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle of the ancient world. It was also the site of the Pythian Games, the precursor to the modern Olympics.

More photos after the jump.

Merry TubaChristmas - 2013

From 2013 12 24 TubaChristmas

TubaChristmas was celebrated in Thanksgiving Square in downtown Dallas at noon on Christmas Eve, the 36th annual performance of about 200 tubas, sousaphones, euphoniums and baritones. Oh, the joyful sound!

More photos after the jump.

Duck and Cover - ctd

In reaction to the controversy over the comments of the Duck Dynasty guy, Phil Robertson, in a GQ interview, I said I was reading Isabel Wilkerson's "The Warmth of Other Suns." That book is getting better and better the farther I read. Wilkerson spells out plenty of reasons why blacks in the Jim Crow South would not say "Those doggone white people" to a white person, reasons different from the conclusion of Phil Robertson that blacks were happy with Jim Crow.

Blacks living in the Jim Crow South had good reason to distrust *all* whites -- a single careless comment to the wrong person at the wrong time and their livelihoods, their homes, even their lives could be lost. I'm surprised that this is a controversial statement today for anyone, but it seems to be, given some of the reader reaction I've received to my original post. Apparently, the mythology that blacks were happy with racial discrimination persists to this day.

After the jump, another passage from Wilkerson that provides another example of this.

HS Basketball District Play Tips Off

From 2013 12 20 Lake Highlands vs Berkner

District 9-5A basketball tipped off its 2013-2014 district season with rivalry games in Richardson. The Richardson Eagles defeated the Pearce Mustangs 61-51 at Pearce High School, while across town at Berkner High School, the Rams defeated the Lake Highlands Wildcats 76-62. Berkner had a balanced offense, with four players in double figures. Lake Highlands' Jamarice Preston led all scorers with 19 points.

More photos after the jump.