Texas

Yet another piece of wisdom from Law School. Nicholson v. Smith
986 S.W.2d 54 : "Nature, in Texas, is a rich mixture. A great deal of it is compatible with human happiness and safety. But some is not. Nature is not tamed in Texas and those who seek the outdoors are exposed to its dangers. A good deal of the vegetation in Texas stings, sticks or stinks. Any number of insects and animals can hurt, or even kill you."

Into the Wild

200th post to the ol' Blog. Wow, time flies.

So this past week I went home for Thanksgiving, had a job interview, watched way too much football and didn't study nearly enough. But before leaving Lubbock for Dallas, I caught the movie Into the Wild. This was a movie I had waited for for sometime, and while I enjoyed it immensely, and it was exactly what I expected from having read the book, I would caution anyone thinking it's going to be an uplifting movie. It's not. In fact I'd put it in the same category as Legends of the Fall and Life is Beautiful. Movies I love, but are incredibly sad.

But I was inspired to buy the soundtrack, and it's got some really sweet music on it by Eddie Vedder. Here's 2 clips/songs. The first is the theme song of the movie, and if you're looking for an easy understanding of the movie, watch the video.


This second clip is my favorite song from the soundtrack, called Society.


Now I gots to go study some more.

Fried Pickles

So tonight I hooked up with my friend Becky and we headed on over to Po Melvin's in Irving for some Po Boy's. A Po Boy is kinda like a sub, only with twice as much meat as one would normally put on a sandwich - making it impossible to close, and a nice chore to fit inside your mouth. They're about the size of a nerf football.

Anyway, so me and Becks goin' to eat some Po Boy's, we sit down, and she starts a talkin' about fried pickles. Now, I've had lots of stuff fried, but never pickles, so I'm intrigued... and then I go to order an appetizer, and lo an' behold, at Po Melvin's they serve fried pickles. Of course I had to order them.

The verdict? They weren't half bad. And I am very grateful for the opportunity I had to try something different on Thanksgiving Eve.

I learned something useful in school

So I’m studying at the library on a Saturday. It’s awesome. OK, not really. Anyway, so I’m doing these notecards, and I just learned something interesting I felt like passing on.

What four elements determine whether an activity is abnormally dangerous? (the more of these questions that are answered yes, the more likely it is that the activity will be found abnormally dangerous)

1. Does the activity involve a high risk of serious harm to people/property?

2. Is there no way to perform the activity with complete safety regardless of how much care is taken?

3. Is the activity not commonly engaged in in the particular community? (E.g., blasting in a desolate area – no strict liability; in an urban area – liability).

4. Does the activity’s danger outweigh its utility to the community (a balancing test).

I just broke my rule.

There was man-on-man on my motorcycle tonight. I offer no apologies - it was a married man who needed a ride home, but still...

If you love freedom...

You'll love these links.
Cowbell
Pumpkins
Name not totally family appropriate, but very good website

In other news, I'm feeling better. Still not back to 100%, but we're getting there. And if you read the Pumpkins link, I want that shirt.

I've been sick

I've been pretty ill this week - which is not good since I only have 3 1/2 weeks until my first final. I've been trying to study a ton while falling asleep incessantly, and it stinks. Too much to do, too much to learn/review, and too sick to do it. Anyway...

I really enjoyed this article by Bill Simmons (The Sports Guy) on espn.com. I love that the Patriots are running up the score on teams - especially teams that suck. Part of this is because Tom Brady and Wes Welker are on my fantasy team. OK, that's a big part of it. But the other part is that I don't think there's room in sports for mediocre efforts.

And that's a big reason why I get frustrated in team sports. I don't get nearly as frustrated with the guy that just stinks as much as I do with the guy that just stands around and doesn't try. What, you can't run after the ball? Too tired? GET OFF THE FIELD THEN!

And in watching sports its often the same situation - the Patriots, like them or not - have set themselves up for a great season this year, while other organizations have not. Through the efforts of their players and the upper level management in getting players that will work, they are succeeding, and if other teams had tried as hard physically and mentally as the Pats they would succeed as well. Physically Tom Brady doesn't have anything over Vince Young or most of the other quarterbacks in the league. Once you get to that level it's about effort and decision making - areas that the Patriots management have succeeded in.

Anyway, that's my little rant on sports and stuff. So when I get feeling better I'll go run hard, box hard, and lift hard - without trying to rely on other people to do the same, because unfortunately they won't.

It never gets old

Chuck Norris went to Burger King and ordered a Big Mac - and got one!