There are always risks and uncertainties involving a new coaching staff, especially one led by somebody with no previous head coaching experience. But I'm looking forward to the reign of new University of Houston coach Kevin Sumlin. He has a stout resume, having spent the last five years working under Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops as the Sooners' offensive coordinator. Previous to that, he
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Rotation 5 complete
Posted on 9:16 AM by jackline
I am at DXB, waiting for Delta 7 to board. From there, it's fifteen glorious hours to Atlanta. I'll spend a few hours there before continuing to Hobby; I should be back in Houston about 22 hours from now. I'm not looking forward to the long-ass trip and the accompanying jetlag, but I am looking forward to getting back home.As this point, it looks like at least one more trip over here is in my
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
More on the drinking age debate
Posted on 7:11 AM by jackline
A few months ago, I took note of a movement aimed at lowering the drinking age. At the time I didn't think the idea would go anywhere. Thanks to the continuing efforts of a former Vermont college president, however, the idea seems to have received a boost:The college presidents said they wanted a national debate on the 21-year-old drinking age. They got it.For years, former Middlebury College
First day of school
Posted on 6:30 AM by jackline
Kirby pauses on the steps before beginning his first day of pre-K at his new school. I hope he enjoys it and will one day forgive daddy for not being there for the big event...
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Burj Dubai
Posted on 5:32 AM by jackline
I took these pictures yesterday while visiting the new, and as of yet relatively empty, Souk Al Bahar. Pictures just can't do this thing justice.
2008 North Texas preview
Posted on 5:21 AM by jackline
Todd Dodge had an outstanding career as a high school coach at Metroplex powerhouse Southlake Carroll, but his first year at the helm of the North Texas was anything but. The Mean Green could only manage two wins last season, and many of the ten losses - 10-79 to Oklahoma, 7-66 against Arkansas, 7-45 against Troy - were downright ugly. Dodge and his staff have a lot of work to do in order to
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Desert Safari!
Posted on 10:38 PM by jackline
The "Desert Safari" is a de rigeur tourist activity in Dubai, but I had never been on one until yesterday. A driver in a Toyota Land Cruiser picked myself and a couple of other people up at my hotel and drove us out towards Hatta, where we joined about twenty or thirty other Land Cruisers, formed a caravan and made our way across the dunes:The meandering ride through the dunes took us up along
Thursday, August 21, 2008
2008 college football outlook
Posted on 2:28 PM by jackline
Exactly two years ago today, I sat in a Dubai hotel room and wrote about the upcoming college football season. Amazing how history repeats...Anyway, with college football one week away - the first games will be played on the evening of Thursday the 28th - I guess it's time for me to get to work. I'll provide my preseason takes on the University of Houston Cougars and the University of North Texas
The survival of the commercial airline industry
Posted on 8:26 AM by jackline
Oil prices are beginning to moderate, which is bringing some financial relief to a domestic airline industry that has been ravaged over the past several months by high fuel prices. Many airlines had taken to implementing new fees, cutting routes, and reducing the size of their workforces in an attempt to offset the higher fuel costs, while other airlines have ceased operations altogether. But it
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
But what's going to happen to Sammy LaCorte?
Posted on 8:07 AM by jackline
The decision by the Finger family to rebrand their local furniture business means that yet another hometown brand is disappearing. Fingers Furniture Co., a Houston presence for 81 years, is assuming the identity of Wisconsin-based Ashley Furniture. The Houston Press, which is obviously going to miss those Fingers commercials on the ten o'clock news, is not impressed:"Ashley"? Sounds pretty damn
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Wrong Birmingham!
Posted on 8:33 AM by jackline
Seriously, how could a mistake like this not get noticed ahead of time?Britain's second-largest city, Birmingham, has a new skyline — only it belongs to its Alabama namesake.Birmingham City Council distributed 720,000 leaflets that praised residents for exceeding recycling targets, carrying a message that read: "Thank You Birmingham." The message appeared stamped across a photograph of the city's
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Widespread dust
Posted on 9:24 AM by jackline
A couple of days ago a dust cloud descended upon Dubai. Of course, this is not exactly an uncommon weather phenomenon here. Visibility was reduced, but not overwhelmingly so. The dark sky and blowing wind reminded me of what it sometimes feels like in Houston when a thunderstorm is approaching. At least the dust kept the temperatures down; the day's high topped out at only 99 F!
Watching the Olympics
Posted on 9:04 AM by jackline
At my hotel I can follow the Olympics in any of three languages:a. Arabic,b. German, orc. Italian.This isn't so bad, however, because I don't have to sit through NBC's inane, annoying and commercial-laden coverage of the Games.It's worth mentioning that even the Arab announcers on Abu Dhabi Sport are absolutely fawning over Michael Phelps.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Rotation five
Posted on 7:33 AM by jackline
Dubai again. At the rate my passport filling up with UAE entry and exit stamps, I'll need a new one before too long.The trip out here was not quite as much of a hassle as the last one; I didn't really get any sleep this time, but Delta's in-flight entertainment system managed to not crap out until the flight was almost over so I got to watch a movie and listen to some music to pass the time. I
Katherine Jane Johnston 1940 - 2008
Posted on 5:42 AM by jackline
I can't say that I knew my Aunt Jane especially well; she divorced my uncle when I was still young and lived in Oregon for most of my life. Last Thanksgiving was the first time I had seen her in years.Jane, who had relatively recently moved back to her childhood home in northern Oklahoma, had been in an Oklahoma City hospital - ironically, the same hospital where she studied to become a nurse -
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
There goes Edouard
Posted on 7:02 PM by jackline
Tropical storm Edouard made a slight detour Monday night, making landfall north of Galveston early Tuesday morning and sparing Houston a direct hit. Not that it would have mattered; the storm simply wasn't that strong and, other than some localized flooding, did not cause any major damage as it passed to the north and east of Houston and into the center of the state to dissipate.Truth be told,
Monday, August 4, 2008
Here comes Edouard
Posted on 9:41 PM by jackline
A tropical system formed rather suddenly off the coast of Louisiana over the weekend and is now headed this way. Edouard will probably be a strong tropical storm or even a weak hurricane when it makes landfall sometime tomorrow. As of late this evening its projected track takes it right over Houston:There is, however, a possibility that its track could be shifting to the east. We won't know for
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Putting my foot down
Posted on 10:57 AM by jackline
Another exciting edition of my least favorite month is upon us. As was the case two years ago, I'll be spending most of it over in Dubai, where it is even hotter than it is here in Houston.But it's good to be back home again, for at least a few days. As I mentioned in a previous post, the constant travel is beginning to take its toll - not just on myself but on my family as well - and I'll be
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