The Texans’ season ended over the span of 3 minutes in last night’s game against the Stealers.  Leading 13-0 with the half closing in, they managed to give up 24 points in less than 3 minutes.  This may be considered an improvement over last season when the season ended in one play – Richard Sherman’s pick six in game 3.  O’Brien has done a lot for the team, but he has not extirpated the loser mentality.  Playoff teams do not have complete meltdowns like we saw on MNF last night.  The Stealers found the weak underbelly and ripped it clean open.  Texans will be lucky to win 6 games now.

Photo – Houston Chronicle

George Hermann, a millionaire oilman and Houston native, died in 1914.  In his will, Hermann bequeathed approximately 450 acres to the City of Houston for creation of a park and Hermann Hospital.  The park which bears his name has become one of the great urban parks in America.  Among other things it features – the Houston Zoo, Hermann Park Golf Course (allegedly the first desegregated public course in the U.S.), the Museum of Natural History, the Miller Outdoor Theatre, the newly redesigned Houston Garden Center,  a Japanese Garden, miniature train, McGovern Lake and numerous playgrounds, running trails, picnic areas and other attractions.  It is a must see for any visitor to Houston.  Sadly, the statue of Hermann sits mostly unnoticed in an obscure corner of the park.

In 1541, Francisco Vazquez de Coronado wrote to Charles I, King of Spain, describing for the first time the Llano Estacado or Staked Plains.  The Llano is a high tableland extending across much of the Texas panhandle and eastern  New Mexico.  In Texas its eastern boundary is marked by the impressive Caprock which runs hundreds of miles across west Texas.  Coronado was overwhelmed by the vastness of the Llano Estacado.  As he wrote, “I reached plains so vast that I did not find their limit anywhere I went, although I travelled over them for 300 leagues.”  He further describes them as having “no more land marks than if we had been swallowed up by the sea.  There was not a stone, nor a bit of rising ground, nor a tree, nor a shrub, nor anything to go by.”  He was also the first to write about the incredible herds of cattle (bison) that he encountered and the first to describe the various plains Indians that he encountered.  Of course, he never found the Cities of Gold that he was looking for.

Midland is named one of the 10 richest cities in America.

http://houston.citybizlist.com/article/214458/midland-among-10-richest-cities-of-america

President Mirabeau B. Lamar and his Cabinet arrived in the newly designated Texas capital of Austin in 1839.  Lamar had commissioned Edwin Waller (who would become Austin’s first mayor) to lay out the new capital city on the site of Waterloo – a controversial decision because Austin was on the very edge of the Commancheria and the target of raids from the Commanches and their allies.  The move was part of a grand scheme to extend the reach of the Republic – with dreams that it might someday touch the Pacific.  Despite at least one later attempt by Sam Houston to relocate the capital to Washington-on-the-Brazos, the decision stuck and Waterloo was transformed from a small village into the capital of a new nation.

Stand by Your Man by Tammy Wynette

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwBirf4BWew

Awesome hair and lip-synching.

1995 is remembered for the MLB strike that wiped out the post-season.  A consequence of the lack of October baseball (and the NFL having not yet come up with the idea of even more Sunday football) was the decision to move the UT-Rice game to Sunday night for a national TV audience.  My wife and I made a last minute decision to attend – something possible when Rice was still playing in a 70,000 seat stadium.  There had been some fairly violent thunderstorms during the day and a lot of rain, but as the game approached the rain was holding off.  We brought some rain gear and bought a couple of cheap seats in the end zone (when you could still sit in the end zone at Rice Stadium).  UT would later complain that it was raining every time they had the ball, but that is part of the myth.  There was very little if any rain during the game.  UT had just come off of a rousing victory against OU in the Cotton Bowl where backup quarterback James Brown and pulled off an almost perfect game.  He was 17-22 passing with a passing touchdown, a rushing touchdown and one interception that wasn’t his fault.  At least 3 of the other incompletions were dropped balls that should have been caught.  For some reason, Jon Makovic – in his infinite wisdom about such matters – went back to his mediocre starting quarterback Shea Morenz who had a less than mediocre day going 18-39 for 163 yards and touchdown.   UT promptly fell behind 9-0 after the Owls kicked a field goal and recovered the ensuing kickoff and immediately scored again.  Given the lead, the Owls’ defense played an inspired game helped by having the wrong Longhorn quarterback at the helm.  The Owls’ by then old-fashioned wishbone running game was effective at taking time off the clock and held the ball for almost 40 minutes.  At one point in the second half when things were looking grim, I trained my binoculars on Brown.  He was sitting on a table on the sideline, smiling and seemingly joking with some other players.  I thought, “He knows he isn’t getting into this game.”  Which seemed incredible to me -given the possibility of UT losing to Rice for the first time in 29 years.  And I was right.  UT scored late to pull with 2 at 19-17, but the onside kick failed.  It was an amazing victory for Coach Ken Hatfield in his first season at Rice.  As the clock ticked down, my eyes were on the Owls student section.  One particularly tall and athletic looking student leaped the rail, sprinted across the field and in one jump was grabbing the crossbar of the south end zone goalpost.  Within seconds the end zone was swarmed and the goalpost fell within less than two minutes.  It was the only time I have ever actually seen the goalposts torn down – and it was at Rice Stadium!

Photo – Houston Chronicle

Attention Texas Voters –  Get Ready to Whip it Out.  The Fifth Circuit stayed enforcement of a lower court ordered that would have prevented Texas election officials from requiring voters to show a photo ID prior to voting.  The basis for the ruling was that the lower court’s order came too close in time to the election and the US Supreme Court has repeatedly found that judicially ordered changes to the electoral system should not be made in the days before an election.  The Fifth Circuit panel specifically noted that election training materials had already gone out to election officials across the state and that the court order eliminating the photo ID requirement would have to be communicated by “word of mouth.”  Really?  I understand that the Court seemed to be following the Supreme Court’s directive to not mess with election protocols too close to election day, but a one-sentence directive to election officials could solve this.  How about — “Nobody has to show a photo ID to be eligible to vote in person.”

Anyone who know anything about elections, knows that the hanky-panky begins and ends with mail ballots – and the Texas Voter ID law does nothing to address that problem.  There are almost no documented instances of in-person voter fraud reported.  The fix was for a problem that did not exist and clearly designed to keep the po’ folks from voting by erecting another barricade to entry to the polling place.  So far so good in that respect.

This week’s NFL Prediction Six-Pack

“I don’t know whether I prefer Astroturf to grass. I never smoked Astroturf.”

Joe Namath

I am personally for legalizing medical Astroturf in all 50 states – but not the District of Columbia.

Last week 4-2. For the season 10-8 and trending in the right direction.

Your Grass in Greener in the Other End Zone Pick of the Week

Texans over Stealers. Face it – Texans will either win ugly or lose this season.   This one could be very ugly – hideous in fact.  The Stealers are not as bad as they seem despite getting crushed by the Browns on Sunday.  The Texans are not as bad as they looked in the first half against the Colts either.  But neither team is able to put together a complete game so far.  This one comes down to special teams play and the Texans special teams have been reasonably special so far   Houston 23 Pittsburgh 20.

Your Ass is Grass Pick of the Week.

Titans over OTNA’s. Many thought Kurt Cousins was the answer.  They failed to realize, however, that the question was “Who should be my backup quarterback that rides the pine all season?”  Meanwhile, the good news for the Titans is that they finally managed to win a home game.  The bad news –  very few teams will suck as much as the Jaguars.  But the OTNA’s are trying.  This week’s Shit Bowl is just real darn shitty.  Keep 911 on your speed dial if you dare to watch this fetid fecal fight. Tennessee 13 Landover MD 10.

Your Really Good Grass Pick of the Week.

Bengals over Colts.

Must see TV this week and my pick for game of the week. I normally shy away from picking teams that have played extensive OT games the week before.  Especially against a team coming off of 3 extra days of rest.  But as a reward for the tie with the Panthers (and the likelihood of adding enormously to the complexity of the possible playoff scenarios that keeps someone up late at night in the last weeks of the season), I am picking the Bengals to upset the surging Colts.  Actually, the Colts were lucky to withstand the late charge of the Texans Thursday.  Bengals have to be pissed about urinating away a victory.  And something about the Colts smells like death.  And not the good death either. Cincinnati 35 Indianapolis 31.

Your Hiding in the Grass of the Week.

Lions over Saints. Lions made a few Saints back in the day in the Colleseum.  I often refer to professional football as modern-day gladiation – without the losers being immediately killed of course.  I just like the vibe here. Detroit 38 New Orleans 24.

Your Grazing in the Grass Pick of the Week.

Chargers over Chiefs. My pick for game of the week.  Chargers are red hot having won 5 in a row.  Their performance against the Raiders was inexplicably awful and yet they managed to pull out the victory.  Teams of destiny do that shit.  Kind of like the Chiefs last year – until destiny caught up with them.  Destiny lowers the boom earlier this season. Chiefs’ playoff chances take a nosedive.  But not before pushing Chargers to the limit again.  San Diego 38 Kansas City 35.

Your Grassfire Week.

Bears over Dolphins. Bears are -3.5 at home against the Fins.  Is this too good to be true.  Probably.  But nothing else is making my boat payment this week.  Chicago 24 Miami 17.

Dwight David Eisenhower, General of the Army and 34th President of the United States was born in Dennison, Texas in 1890.  His family moved to Kansas shortly afterward, but he was the first U.S. president to be born in Texas.  After leading the U.S. to victory in the European Theater, Ike, as he was known, was extremely popular and was recruited by both parties to run for President.  His Presidency was relatively successful, ending the Korean War and avoiding any major economic crisis.  His tepid  response to McCarthyism was characteristic of his somewhat reluctant form of leadership.  And of course he bequeathed us Richard Nixon.  His odd and largely ignored turn against the military-industrial complex at the end of his time in office is still mysterious given his background and the rising tenor of the Cold War.  Ike could not find a place in the Republican Party today. He may have also been the best Presidential golfer.