Prelude

An evening at Prelude, a nighttime outdoor art exhibit in the Dallas Arts District. Beautiful weather. The greatest company. An inspiring message of determination and hope. Serendipity. An encouraging prelude to an uncertain next act.

Chemical Imbalance at BHS

Chemical Imbalance at Berkner HS: Spoof of Jekyll and Hyde. Lots of fun in this farce, just before Halloween. Support your high school theater.

POTD: Cairn

From 2016 09 04 Bar Harbor

Today's photo-of-the-day is of a rock cairn in Acadia National Park in Maine. Look closely for it. Human handiwork is no match for nature's majesty.

Difret (2014)

IMDB

Difret (2014): Lawyer defends Ethiopian girl charged with murder in a society where women have few rights. Maddening story told plainly. B-

POTD: Beach View

From 2016 09 04 Bar Harbor

Today's photo-of-the-day is a distant view of Sand Beach in Acadia National Park in Maine. "Sand Beach, in Acadia National Park, is nestled in a small inlet between the granite mountains and rocky shores of Mount Desert Island. This gorgeous 290 yard long beach is one of the most popular points of interest on the island."

Dallas to Suburbs: Drop Dead

Regionalism is dead. It was killed over DART's desire to build both a downtown Dallas D2 line and a suburban Cotton Belt commuter train line. DART included funding for some preliminary work on a second DART line (D2) line through downtown Dallas in its 2017 budget. It also included funding for some preliminary work on the Cotton Belt.

The latter became the casus belli for the mass transit war between Dallas and its suburbs to the north.

Review: Anne of Green Gables

Amazon

From Anne of Green Gables, by Lucy Maud Montgomery:

Matthew Cuthbert's father, as shy and silent as his son after him, had got as far away as he possibly could from his fellow men without actually retreating into the woods when he founded his homestead. Green Gables was built at the furthest edge of his cleared land and there it was to this day, barely visible from the main road along which all the other Avonlea houses were so sociably situated. Mrs. Rachel Lynde did not call living in such a place LIVING at all. 'It's just STAYING, that's what,' she said as she stepped along the deep-rutted, grassy lane bordered with wild rose bushes. 'It's no wonder Matthew and Marilla are both a little odd, living away back here by themselves. Trees aren't much company, though dear knows if they were there’d be enough of them. I'd ruther look at people. To be sure, they seem contented enough; but then, I suppose, they're used to it. A body can get used to anything, even to being hanged, as the Irishman said.'"

Did anyone raise his eyebrows when he saw my latest reading selection? Was it unexpected? There's a reason I chose "Anne of Green Gables." Actually, two reasons. And I'm glad I did.

After the jump, my review.

POTD: The Old North Church

From 2016 09 02 Boston

Today's photo-of-the-day is of a window in the Old North Church in Boston, famous for its role in the American Revolution. The church's story is told in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, "Paul Revere's Ride." Can you still recite the opening lines?

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

He said to his friend, "If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light,--
One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm."

Source: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

My Beautiful Broken Brain (2014)

IMDB

My Beautiful Broken Brain (2014): Young woman's recovery from brain damage. She knows the things she lost. Her spirit isn't one of them. C+

POTD: Apples, 9 For $2.00

From 2016 09 02 Boston

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Boston Public Market in late summer, when apples are on sale, 9 for $2.00; organic blueberries, $1.00 a pint; and strawberries, 3 pints for $2.00.

The Danish Girl (2015)

IMDB

The Danish Girl (2015): Transgender artist in 1920s. Movie made 30 years too late. What should be shocking is now routine. Slow moving. B-

POTD: ... and Rowboats

From 2016 09 02 Boston

Today's photo-of-the-day was taken in downtown Boston, not far from the Sailboat, Yacht, and Paddlewheeler.

OTBR: London's Langthorne Park

Latitude: N 51° 33.318
Longitude: E 000° 00.198

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".

Who Won the Vice Presidential Debate?

Who won the Vice Presidential debate between Mike Pence and Tim Kaine? It depends on which scorecard you are using.

Repeat Tweets: Drats. I wasn't ready.

Repeat tweets from September, 2016:

• Sep 1 2016: Drats. I wasn't ready. MT @MarkSolomonsr: "September is National Preparedness Month. Don't Wait. Make your emergency plan today."
• Sep 1 2016: Department of Defense Budget: $585,000,000,000. Terrorism funding: $0. Lying Ted's disinformation: Priceless. Twitter.com
• Sep 1 2016: RT @DonHuffines: "Dove season is a great time for Texans to get outdoors & enjoy the vast, unrivaled beauty of our great state!" And kill something.
• Sep 1 2016: RT @GregAbbott_TX: "Texas will ban sanctuary cities & keep our communities safe." You can't have both. Sanctuary cities help keep our cities safe.

After the jump, more repeat tweets.

The Trump Coalition

In a column in the New York Times, conservative columnist Ross Douthat gives the best, most concise explanation for how voters can support Donald Trump despite his "low character, his penchant for inflaming racial tensions, his personal corruptions," his "zest for self-sabotage, his wild swings, his inability to delegate or take advice," his seeming to be "gross and seedy and bigoted," even his "wretchedly stupid conduct since the first debate."

The key to Douthat's explanation is that there are different reasons for different factions supporting Trump. It's this coalition that gives Trump his shot at winning the White House.

Homecoming: Berkner 35, WT White 10

The Berkner Rams defeated the WT White Longhorns 35-10 Friday night in Berkner's Homecoming Game. It's a great time to be a Ram!

Attend a game yourself to see all the action, including the game, cheerleaders, drill team, colorguard, marching band and all the rest that make high school football the best value in sports entertainment. Remember, without the band, it's just a game.

Bonus photos after the jump.

POTD: Sailboat, Yacht, and Paddlewheeler

From 2016 09 02 Boston

Today's photo-of-the-day was taken from Boston's Fan Pier Park looking towards downtown Boston.

Anomalisa (2015)

IMDB

Anomalisa (2015): Motivational speaker has breakdown in Cincinnati hotel. Stop motion puppetry does little for this odd, wooden movie. C+

Indoor Practice Fields...for Swimming

The Richardson ISD asked voters to approve $437 million in bonds in 2016 for a range of capital projects, including $60 million for four indoor practice fields for a variety of activities including athletics. Voters did approve. But the RISD board of trustees took a lot of abuse from voters who thought the district was squandering money.

POTD: Taxi to the Airport

From 2016 02 14 Mumbai

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the streets of Mumbai, India. The taxi to the airport led to a long flight from Mumbai to Dubai to D/FW. This brings to an end the series of photos-of-the-day from India. India is a large and fascinating country — a photographer's delight.

Review: A Brief History of Seven Killings

Amazon

From A Brief History of Seven Killings, by Marlon James:

There's a reason why the story of the ghetto should never come with a photo. The Third World slum is a nightmare that defies beliefs or facts, even the ones staring right at you. A vision of hell that twists and turns on itself and grooves to its own soundtrack. Normal rules do not apply here. Imagination then, dream, fantasy. You visit a ghetto, particularly a ghetto in West Kingston, and it immediately leaves the real to become this sort of grotesque, something out of Dante or the infernal painting of Hieronymus Bosch. It's a rusty red chamber of hell that cannot be described so I will not try to describe it. It cannot be photographed because some parts of West Kingston, such as Rema, are in the grip of such bleak and unremitting repulsiveness that the inherent beauty of the photographic process will lie to you about just how ugly it really is."

Spoiler alert: This novel is not brief and there are way more than seven killings. But the excerpt above is an accurate description of the world depicted in this novel. The novel won a shelf-load of awards, probably deservedly so, but be warned: it's not for everyone.

After the jump, my review.

Fundamentals of Caring (2016)

IMDB

Fundamentals of Caring (2016): Man takes care of handicapped teen. Both have issues. Road trip buddy movie. Sweet, but by the book. C+

POTD: Ellen's Mumbai Peeps

From 2016 02 14 Mumbai

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the waterfront by the Gateway of India in Mumbai. Tourists from all over the world come here to see and be seen. Getting your photo taken with strangers is both easy and fun.

A bonus photo is after the jump.

Diplomacy (2014)

IMDB

Diplomacy (2014): Swedish diplomat and German general debate fate of Paris as Allies advance. Each faces the trolley problem. Gripping. A-

POTD: Mumbai Waterfront

From 2016 02 14 Mumbai

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the waterfront by the Gateway of India in Mumbai. It's right in front of the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, target of a terrorist attack in 2008. Ten men in inflatable speedboats came ashore here, split up and attacked multiple sites in south Mumbai. The attacks killed 164 civilians and security officers. It took four days for authorities to regain control.

Bonus photos are after the jump.

Firewall in Old Downtown Richardson

City of Richardson

The rendering above is of the new police and fire department facilities planned for old downtown Richardson. There is little news here. The old facilities were outdated. The 2015 Bond Program funded part of the reconstruction. The 2016-2017 budget funds more. I knew all that, but seeing this rendering triggers the thought that this might turn out to be a huge missed opportunity for Richardson.

POTD: Hare Krishna

From 2016 02 14 Mumbai

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Mandir, a temple in Mumbai, India, of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

A bonus photo is after the jump.

Campbell Road Deterioration Outlined

"Campbell Road Improvements Deterioration Outlined."

There, Richardson, I fixed the headline to your "Week in Review" item. Widening Campbell Rd from US 75 to Collins Blvd is not an "improvement."

Those added lanes will fill up as fast as you can pour the concrete. TxDOT is overhauling Central Expressway (again). Adding lanes to Campbell Rd only encourages the added cars on US 75 to use Campbell Rd. You can't build your way out of traffic congestion. Induced demand is the phenomenon that after supply increases, more of a good is consumed. Road construction is Exhibit A.

Son of Saul (2015)

IMDB

Son of Saul (2015): Holocaust tale of futility. Premise unbelievable without insanity. Characters and acting leave me numb. Passionless. B-

POTD: Dhobi Ghat

From 2016 02 14 Mumbai

Today's photo-of-the-day is from Dhobi Ghat, an open air laundry in Mumbai, India. "The washers, locally known as Dhobis, work in the open to wash the clothes from Mumbai's hotels and hospitals."

A bonus photo is after the jump.

The Frozen Chosen (2014)

Netflix

Frozen Chosen (2014): Spear-fishing on frozen Lake Winnebago in Wisconsin. Will leave you cold, but if you grew up there, must see. C-

POTD: James Bond's Hotel

From 2016 02 12 Udaipur

Today's photo-of-the-day is of the City Palace in Udaipur, India. The palace plays the part of a hotel James Bond stays at in the movie Octopussy.

Embrace of the Serpent (2015)

IMDB

Embrace of the Serpent (2015): Amazonia in 1909, with shaman and scientist, false messiah and rubber barons. Heart of Darkness. B-

POTD: Octopussy's Floating Palace

From 2016 02 12 Udaipur

Today's photo-of-the-day was taken from the shore of Lake Picchola in Udaipur, India. It shows the Taj Lake Palace. The hotel was the setting of the island home of James Bond's nemesis, Octopussy. Bond swims up to the palace disguised as a crocodile. Well, OK then.

P.S. It seems like maybe we've been following James Bond around.

Who Got Snookered on Plano Road?

At its July 25 meeting, the Richardson City Council approved a zoning change to accommodate the development of a 43-unit community of apartments and/or townhomes on 2.7 acres on the east side of Plano Road south of Arapaho Road.

Who are these new apartments/condos going to be marketed to? According to the city staff report accompanying the zoning change request, it's senior citizens.

The applicant's intent is to provide a residential project for the City's aging community that is different than the other available types of housing such as patio homes, independent living facilities, and assisted living facilities. The applicant has developed other senior housing in the City including the Twin Rivers independent living facility at Belt Line Road and Glenville Drive and the Twin Rivers assisted living facility on Plano Road, just south of Campbell Road, which is currently under construction. The applicant states that there is a market for seniors who desire to purchase, rather than rent, a low maintenance home without stairs.

Source: City of Richardson.

The developer did the Twin Rivers senior living community. Each planned unit will have only one story, perfect for seniors who no longer want to navigate stairs. So, seniors it is, right?

OTBR: Estonian Sunset

Latitude: N 59° 12.840
Longitude: E 023° 32.772

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: Donald Trump is a Shape Shifting Lizard

Repeat tweets from August, 2016:

• Aug 2 2016: Fun pastime. Type "Donald Trump is..." into Google and see what Google suggests. I got "Donald Trump is a shape shifting lizard."
• Aug 2 2016: Less fun pastime. Type "Hillary Clinton is..." into Google and see what Google suggests. I got HRC "is winning" and HRC "is a man."
• Aug 2 2016: MT @GPollowitz: "Katrina Pierson just blamed Obama and Clinton for changing the ROE that "probably" cost Cptn Kahn his life." North Texas's own Katrina Pierson says time-traveling Obama is responsible for Capt Kahn's death in 2004.

After the jump, more repeat tweets.

POTD: The Blue Room

From 2016 02 12 Udaipur

Today's photo-of-the-day is from inside the City Palace in Udaipur, India.

Dope (2015)

IMDB

Dope (2015): Geek from tough hood wants to go to Harvard, gets mixed-up with drugs. Implausible plot and dialog. Vulgar, violent, dopey. D+

POTD: The Colors of India

From 2016 02 12 Udaipur

Today's photo-of-the-day is from inside the City Palace in Udaipur, India.

Affordable Housing in Richardson

On one hand, people complain that Richardson is putting up more and more apartments. (And by people, I mostly mean the neighbors near the apartments. Others might be opposed, but they aren't as conspicuous in their complaints.) Apartments can be considered affordable in comparison to single family houses.

OTOH, people complain that Richardson doesn't offer enough options for low-income families who need subsidies to afford any reasonable housing. (And by people, I guess I mean me. If anyone has gone before the city council to lobby for more affordable housing for low-income families, I missed it.) The apartment developments that are approved seem to promise enough amenities to make them unaffordable to low-income families.

POTD: Udaipur Framed

From 2016 02 12 Udaipur

Today's photo-of-the-day is taken through a window at the City Palace in Udaipur, India.

Twinsters (2015)

IMDB

Twinsters (2015): Korean twins raised apart in US and France who discover each other at age 25. Lightweight, giggles, emojis. I liked it. C+

POTD: Putting Their Backs Into It

From 2016 02 12 Udaipur

Today's photo-of-the-day is from outside the City Palace in Udaipur, India.

Theeb (2014)

IMDB

Theeb (2014): 10 yr-old boy with Arabs, Turks and an Englishman cross Arabian desert in 1916. Survival story as stark as the landscape. B-

Richardson's Budget - Black or Red?

It's August and that means it's time for Richardson budget roulette. Will the proposed city budget be balanced? You'd think that would be a simple question. Isn't the city required by law to have a balanced budget? Well, yes, but it all depends on the meaning of "balanced".

Last year when I looked at this question, I concluded that the city's 2015-2016 budget was indeed balanced and didn't require use of that sneaky asterisk ("plus reserved fund balance and other financing sources").

After the jump, reviewing that conclusion and looking ahead at 2016-2017.

Review: How Not To Be Wrong

Amazon

From How Not To Be Wrong, by Jordan Ellenberg:

Proving by day and disproving by night is not just for mathematics. I find it's a good habit to put pressure on all your beliefs, social, political, scientific, and philosophical. Believe whatever you believe by day; but at night, argue against the propositions you hold most dear. Don't cheat! To the greatest extent possible you have to think as though you believe what you don't believe. And if you can't talk yourself out of your existing beliefs, you'll know a lot more about why you believe what you believe. You'll have come a little closer to a proof."

"How Not To Be Wrong" is not a book about math. Well it is, but only if you first understand that math is not about memorization of the times table. It's about a way of logically thinking about the world. "How Not To Be Wrong" also happens to be another of Bill Gates's book recommendations for this summer.

After the jump, my review.

POTD: Using Their Heads

From 2016 02 12 Udaipur

Today's photo-of-the-day is a street scene in Udaipur, India.

Mustang (2015)

IMDB

Mustang (2015): Modern Turkish girls rebel against strict home life. Controversial depiction of rural Turkey. Clichéd, but still moving. B+