How was your Sunday? Hope you made it through the first weekend of our Shelter in Place here in Harris County - and elsewhere perhaps - OK.
I had a chance to explore an additional pathway or two where I currently run and walk. It was nice.
I'll make it back there soon, more than likely sometime next week. I certainly hope that you'll find some time to get outside of your residence and move a little bit.
Shout-outs to Paul Alli and Bill Dwyer for getting out the bike and putting down three miles on the track, respectively.
Certainly many things to keep in your prayers these days, including those that are on the front line of the public right now in those essential businesses.
Many, even more so first responders, of course, are putting their lives on the line in ways they never thought they would.
Thankfully my family is making it through things OK.
The first couple of posts were a bit whimsical in nature, but I just wanted to share some of the things that I've been reading and/or looking at, without buying into the 24-hour news cycle that is very easy to become saturated by.
Had my normal Whataburger breakfast, across FM 2920 from my house, but I went into Springwoods Village and had a solid 5.37-mile walk, enough effort to break a sweat on a pleasant day outside.
I've been working on cataloging a lot of magazines that I've held on to over the years. They are linked over on the right-hand side of this blog.
If there's an issue that you might think that you like, please drop me a note. I'm interested in passing some of these along (within reason).
Asking for a Penn State or Steelers cover might be too big of an ask. :-)
I made a quick trip to HEB, also across the road, for a couple of things, and for the first time, a lot of things were picked over.
To my surprise, the bread aisle looked pretty good, but, of course, have no clue when that food comes in.
I also put in 30 minutes on my Air Assault bike and started in, while doing so, on the book that I just had delivered on the schools that Julius Rosenwald and Booker T. Washington worked together on to establish schools for African-Americans in the segregated south before 1970.
Below are things that I've been reading that I've been both informed and/or encouraged by. Both sentiments could apply.
Some wise words from Clemson reserve running back Darien Rencher (something along the lines of what I shared from Dr. Charles Stanley yesterday):
If my family had stayed in Pennsylvania (instead of moving to Texas), I might have graduated from Tyrone in 1984 with Steve Bonta. He shared his perspective of living in China and being in Shanghai as word arrived about COVID19 spreading from Wuhan. Read it here.
Country singer Joe Diffie passed away on Sunday from complications from the coronavirus. Sad.
As I shared the story from the Tennessean on my Facebook page and here, the first song I ever played in my pickup truck when I used to have it was Joe Diffie's "Pickup Man"
+ Houston Methodist first in the nation to try coronavirus blood transfusion therapy [Houston Chronicle]
+ The U.S. Tried to Build a New Fleet of Ventilators. The Mission Failed. [New York Times via MSN]
+ Ohio Gov. DeWine says his talks with President, FDA confirm mask issue to be resolved [Toledo Blade]
+ ‘He’s Going to Do Whatever He Wants’: Jerry Falwell Jr.’s decision to reopen Liberty University’s campus amid the coronavirus pandemic has sparked anger and confusion—even among those usually sympathetic to him. [Politco]
+ Simple DIY masks could help flatten the curve. We should all wear them in public. [Washington Post]
+ The next frontier in coronavirus testing: Identifying the full scope of the pandemic, not just individual infections [StatNews]
+ McDonald's Made a Menu Change Nobody Could Have Predicted a Year Ago. Every Smart Business Leader Should Pay Attention [Inc.]
What else did I read today?
+ A Chain Reaction: Luby’s is in trouble. Can the iconic cafeteria chain endure? [Texas Observer]
What podcasts did I listen to?
+ Dan Rather Believes in the Good Sense of the American People [03/24/20; Texas Monthly]
+ Ep. 80: The Twin Sisters, Part 1 [03/22/20; http://wiseabouttexas.com/]
Interesting Texas history podcast. This talked about the two cannons that friends of the Texas Republic in Ohio sent to be used by the Republic Army.
The official entry from the Texas State Historical Assocation can be found here.
When I have race announced over the years or have acted in media relations or journalistic roles, people have commented at times about me having some form of encyclopedic knowledge.
I would allege that there are, at times, along with the God-given abilities, opportunities to practice the type of knowledge acquisition that I do.
One example of that is reading an old magazine or book.
Today, I had reason to grab the first publication on the top of a stack and it was a 1981 edition of a magazine that didn't last too long.
It was known as Texas Sports, but looking back it really contained a ton of great information. I probably didn't even really realize it at the time.
These are the articles in that edition that I read today.
May 1981 edition of Texas Sports
+ College: (Stanley) Floyd joins (Carl) Lewis in Houston's speed show
+ Interview: Don Zimmer by Randy Galloway
+ Sportswoman: A&M softball team pushing for national title
+ High School: Solutions or just more problems? by Bill McMurray
+ North Texas: Hard work, dedication built White Oak track dynasty
+ South Texas: Helmet put athlete back in action
+ West Texas: Texas' winningest baseball coach
+ Central Texas: Baseball players start young in Brenham
+ Amateur: Texas' powerlifting champion, Rick Gaugler still putting on weight
+ Texas Sports Hall of Fame: Where the memories of Lone Star legends are kept alive
The high school article, authored by the legendary Bill McMurray, discussed the addition of the second team in the UIL playoffs starting with the 1982 season and how it was introduced for consideration by El Camp football coach Buzzy Keith. It also discussed about how soccer got voted in as a UIL sport for the 1983 season, but votes on wrestling and gymnastics failed. (Wrestling, obviously, later would be added as an official UIL sport some time later.)
The "South Texas" story was about Little Cypress-Mauriceville athlete Cazzy Francis, who suffered a head injury in a 1980 boating accident. The story was about how he would wear a modified hockey helmet for the 1980-1981 season with hopes of being cleared to play football again.
(Today, he is the Senior Pastor of a church that he planted in Nederland called Pathway Church Mid County. His bio on the church's web site that he attended Arkansas State on a football scholarship and eventually signed a free-agent contract with Tampa Bay in 1987.)
The "West Texas" piece was about the success of Bobby Moegle, Lubbock Monterey's baseball coach who eventually would be inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 2013. A Waco Tribune Herald story said that "the 79-year-old Moegle is the winningest high school baseball coach in Texas history and currently ranks fifth nationally with 1,115 victories. He was 1,115-266-1 in 40 seasons at Lubbock Monterey, from 1960 to 1999."
Gaugler would turn out to be a 2010 inductee of the United States Powerlifting Federation Hall of Fame.
And the Sportswoman piece about the Aggie's women softball team revealed that then head coach Bill Galloway has been a long-time assistant at East Texas Baptist University after a long run of success at Louisiana Tech. One of their top opponents then was Texas Women's University, which abandoned its program in 1981. One of their players transferred to Cal State Fullerton, Kathy Van Wyk, and she has had a long, successful career as the head coach at San Diego State University.
Nevertheless a good, yet quiet day, but sad to see the carnage that this virus is leaving behind across the world.
Appreciate you following along. Hope you find these updates enjoyable and interesting.
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