Category Archives: Uncategorized

Interstate 14 to San Angelo and Beyond?

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The yellow line represents the current designated route

San Angelo really wants an Interstate Highway running through its front yard (with apologies to John Mellencamp). Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Texas) has introduced legislation to the House of Representatives that supports expanding Interstate 14 through Midland and San Angelo. The expanded route would begin at I-20 outside of Midland and run through San Angelo to meet the planned route of I-14 at Brady, with another spur connecting to I-10  near Junction.

The most likely method for getting approval would come if the planned expansion could be attached to a major infrastructure bill such as that languishing in Congress with scant attention from the Trump administration. Although it would be nice to have a clearer shot at heading to parts west, Red isn’t holding his breath while waiting for this one.

Today in Texas History – May 1

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NOLAN RYAN 1991 BALLSTREET PROMOTIONAL CARD #34! RANGERS ...

From the Annals of MLB –  In 1991, in his 25th major league season and at age 44 Nolan Ryan pitched his record-setting 7th career no-hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays.  Ryan was not particularly happy about pitching that evening on four days rest, but he agreed to pitch because it was Arlington Appreciation Night and he felt he owed something to the Texas fans. Before the game, Rangers’ pitching coach Tom House was less than optimistic.

“Nolan was bouncing his curveball, huffing and puffing on his fastball. He had no location, and his changeup was non-existent. I’m thinking, Whoops, this is not real good.”

Despite warning House and Rangers’ manager Bobby Valentine to have some warming up before he even took the mound, Ryan cruised through the game with only a couple of good defensive plays required.  He struck out Roberto Alomar to close out the game.

Ryan retired after in 1993 with the all-time MLB of 5,714 strikeouts and the less desirable career record of 2,795 walks. His 324 career wins has him tied for 14th on the all-time list.  But the record of seven career no-hitters may be unbreakable.  Sandy Koufax is second on the list with four.  Among active players, Max Scherzer, Cole Hamels, Jake Arrieta, Tim Lincecum, Justin Verlander and Homer Bailey each have two no-hitters.

Today in Texas History – April 30

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From the Annals of the Missionaries –   In 1675,  the Bosque-Larios Expedition party left the mission of Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe near present-day Monclova, Coahuila on a mission to convert Native Americans in Coahuila. The expedition was led by Fernando del Bosque and Fray Juan Larios. Other members included Fray Dionisio de San Buenaventura, Captain Juan de la Cruz and ten Spanish soldiers, Lázaro Agustín, the governor of the Indian pueblo of San Miguel de Luna,  and twenty Bobole Indians. On May 11, the expedition reached the Rio Grande downriver from Eagle Pass. Bosque claimed the river for Spain renaming it the river the San Buenaventura del Norte. On May 15,  the expedition encountered several chiefs who had received reports and asked the missionaries to come to teach and baptize their followers.  Bosque administered an oath of allegiance to the king and celebrated a Mass. The Spaniards probably traveled more than 100 miles into Texas reaching a site in present-day Edwards County that they called San Pablo Hermitano.

Trumph – The Insult Comic President (™)

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Today on Fox & Friends, Trumph the Insult Comic President was in rare form.

“Well I can [testify with Mueller].  The problem is, that it’s such a, if you take a look, they’re so conflicted [what with trying to actually follow the law instead of kowtowing to my incredible greatness], the people [pond scum] who doing the investigation – you have 13 people who are Democrats [being led by a traitorous Republican of course], you have people who worked on Hillary Clinton’s foundation [including Hillary Clinton – can you believe that Mueller has hired that bitch], they’re all, I don’t mean Democrats [ISIS followers], they’re like, the real deal [did that make any sense – yeah, I thought not].  . . . By the way, you take a poll at the FBI, I love the FBI [that’s why I call them corrupt all the time], the FBI loves me [I have the photos to prove it], but the top people at the FBI, headed by Comey [commie bastard who handed me the election on a silver platter] were crooked [I should know about crooked].  You look at the corruption at the top of the FBI [investigating me for example], it’s a disgrace [and again I should know].  And our Justice Department [aren’t they really my law firm now?] – which I try and stay away from [meaning I work the refs pretty darn hard], but at some point I won’t [shortly before they haul me away in cuffs and leg irons] – our Justice Department should be looking at that kind of stuff [real crimes like being a Democrat and claiming I lost the popular vote], not the nonsense of collusion with Russia [Hear that Vlad – I got your back baby].  There is no collusion with me [other than porn stars of course] and everyone knows it [everyone who only watches Fox News that is].

Today in Texas History – April 26

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Eerste zeereis van een container exact 60 jaar geleden | Flows

From the Annals of Shipping News – In 1956, the SS Ideal X left Port Newark, New Jersey bound for the Port of Houston.  The Ideal X was the world’s first modern container cargo ship.  The IX was a converted World War II T-2 oil tanker Potrero Hills.  She was later purchased by the Pan-Atlantic Steamship Company, modified to  carry shipping containers and rechristened Ideal X.  She carried 58 containers on her first voyage to Houston where she was met by 58 trucks who hauled away the containers launching a new paradigm for shipping.

Red’s Random Texas Photo of the Day

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GORILLAS DON'T BLOG: Vintage Postcards: Six Flags Over ...

A little known fact – when Six Flags Over Texas first opened in Arlington – people were shot dead in gunfights on “Texas Street” several times a day for the amusement of the park patrons.  As a youth, Red witnessed a few of these mass shooting incidents not knowing that they would later become so commonplace as to barely arouse public ire. The practice made for both high employee turnover and a lower unemployment rate in the area.

Photo from http://www.gorillasdontblog.blogspot.com

Today in Texas History – April 24

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Reproduction Magnolia Petroleum Company Motor Oil Sign ...

From the Annals of Big Oil –  In 1911, the Magnolia Petroleum Company was founded.  The MPC was an unincorporated joint-stock association comprised of several other companies including primarily the John Sealy Company of Galveston. In 1931, Magnolia became an affiliate of Socony-Vacuum Oil Company. The Magnolia Petroleum Company merged with Socony Mobil Oil Company in 1959. Its operations became part of Mobil Oil Company, an operating division of Socony Mobil.

UT-Houston Vanishes

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The powers that be at University of Houston, Our Poor Idiot Governor and whining Sen. John Whitmire got their way.  Instead of another academic flagship coming to the drastically underserved higher education market in Houston, The University of Texas system has put the 300 acres it bought near the South Loop on the market.  Red can’t decide who he is more disappointed in – the Houston powers that were so interested in protecting their little fiefdom of higher ed that they could not see the incredible benefits (jobs, opportunity, research, further real estate development and educational symbiosis) that another major university would bring to Houston – or The UT System for caving in and abandoning the State’s largest city because of some poorly-based opposition.  Whatever.  It is done for a generation and it is doubtful that an opportunity to build a campus so close in to the city center will ever arise again.  This is an incredible loss to Houston and to the state.

And Whining John – not satisfied with having screwed up the opportunity of a lifetime has to then kick UT in the nuts on the way out the door.  Whitmire now gloats as he claims that UT overpaid for the parcel and will have trouble getting its money back.

Red is officially endorsing both Damian Lacroix and Hank Segelke in the Democratic Primary to unseat Whitmire from his Senate seat that he has obviously held for way too long at this point.  Whitmire needs to go!

Today in Texas History

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Roy Orbison Vernon

From the Annals of Rock & Roll – In 1936, Roy Orbison was born at Christ the King Hospital in Vernon.  His family moved to Fort Worth and later Odessa and Wink where he spent much of his childhood.  Orbison got his first guitar as a gift from his father at age 6 and by age 7 Orbison was a dedicated musician.  RO began singing and in a rockabilly band – the Wink Westerners – in high school and met Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash when they played in Odessa.  Orbison attended North Texas State in Denton to study geology in case music did not work out.  After seeing fellow student Pat Boone make a success, Orbison became convinced he could make it as a musician.  Ultimately, Orbison was signed by Sam Phillips of Sun Records but he did not flourish at that studio.  His real success came after leaving Sun and signing with Monument Records. From 1960 to 1966, twenty-two of his singles reached the Billboard Top 40 including No. 1 hits “Running Scared” and “Oh, Pretty Woman.”