December 2005

don hackett, 1942-2005

this has been a very sad couple of days. kathryn’s dad died suddenly last saturday morning, of a heart attack. he was such a nice man. it seems so unreal. i will never forget him and the barbershop quartet singing “sunrise, sunset” from fiddler on the roof, to kathryn and brett at their wedding last may. everyone in the room was in tears. it was fantastic. kathryn is doing way better than i probably would be in the same situation. she’s a tough cookie. it’s so hard, though. i’m glad she’s got a strong supportive husband and a good circle of friends. the memorial service is tomorrow afternoon at 4. HACKETT JR., , DONALD EDWARD Was born August 30, 1942 in Akron, Ohio to Donald Edward Sr. and Marie Mild Hackett. He passed away suddenly on December 17, 2005 in Richardson, Texas. Don was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, class of 1964 and served in Vietnam. He was also past president of the local Naval Academy Alumni Association. One of the great passions of his life was barbershop music. Don was an active member of the Town North Men of Note Chorus and a former member of the Vocal Majority. Don was preceded in death by his father, Donald Sr., and brother, Robert. He is survived by his loving wife of 14 years, Diane; daughter, Kathryn Hackett; Kathryn’s mother, Susan Hackett; mother, Marie Hackett; and other family and a host of cherished friends. A memorial service is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. Wednesday, December 21, 2005 at Restland Funeral Home, 13005 Greenville Ave. Dallas, Texas 75243. If you would like to make a donation in his honor, please consider: Southwestern District Youth in Harmony Fund c/o Richard Morrison, 4028 Eggenhufer, Plano, Texas 75023. 

Read Moredon hackett, 1942-2005

christmas commercialism, take 2 (final)

today i had more success at finishing my shopping than yesterday. i located and purchased the one remaining xmas gift for doc — the one in whose pursuit i had the “bitch experience” at town east mall last night and i think that i also forgot to mention that the traffic was so terrible (like dorothy parker said “this was fancy terrible. this was terrible with raisins”) that it took me about 55 minutes to get out of the mall parking lot and home, which is only about six miles total — at the dallas galleria, and although i was dreading driving over there and trying to park and navigate through the hordes of rich folks, it was surprisingly calm for two weeks before christmas. (boy howdy, that was one hell of a run-on sentence!) the salesdrones at the galleria kiosks have apparently been instructed to snag passersby by any means necessary to bolster their holiday sales. they were very agressive, almost uniformly so. a woman at a skin care products kiosk stepped in front of me as i was walking past and said, “ma’am, can i ask you a question about your skin?” in a way that made it clear that my skin was dry, alligator-like, ugly, blemished, and in desperate need of the kind of help that only her $180 sea weasel placenta sugar scrub could rectify. a dude at a jewelry kiosk (ugly jewelry, at that) accosted me and tried to grab my upper arm while intoning in a low voice “i have something very special to show you, miss.” yeah, i bet you say that to all the girls. what do you say to these people? it’s not in my nature to be rude and ignore them. i think i usually say something like “no thanks” […]

Read Morechristmas commercialism, take 2 (final)

yesterday it was summer, today it’s 17 degrees

yesterday it was summer, today it’s 17 degrees i am not kidding. well, ok, it wasn’t summer yesterday, but it was last saturday. it was seriously over 90 degrees, according to the thermometer on my shaded porch. and today it was 17 degrees when i got up for work. dallas freaks out whenever there’s any kind of winter precipitation. yesterday we had the barest hint of freezing rain, and while it was true that there were thin glazes of ice on a lot of surfaces today, that wasn’t any reason for the whole city to shut down. but it did. all the school districts, and most of the universities… except, of course, for mine. which explains why i was awake, crabby, and outdoors at 7:30 a.m. i wasn’t about to drive when i didn’t know what the conditions were (and knowing how dallas people drive on ice, which is to say, the same way they drive every other day of the year, too fast and too close), so i left the house at 7:30 and walked 1/2 mile to the bus stop. pure misery. the wind was blowing hard enough to make my ears numb and tears run freely from my eyes. it felt like they were freezing on my cheeks. i’m glad i had some hot tea with me. my steamy peppermint savior. my clever plan to avoid having to drive today backfired when i got to work and realized that the university had made the call at 7:35 to delay opening until 10 a.m. i’d been checking my email and voice mail all the way up until the time i left the house, but missed it by 5 minutes. i was so mad! ben let me leave at 3:30 today to make up for the fact that i […]

Read Moreyesterday it was summer, today it’s 17 degrees

Rest Of U2 Perfectly Fine With Africans Starving

Rest Of U2 Perfectly Fine With Africans Starving SAN FRANCISCO—Rock band U2, currently on tour in North America, is well-known for its human-rights advocacy, particularly its ongoing campaign to eradicate poverty in Africa. Less known to fans of the Irish supergroup, however, is that the lion’s share of these efforts are made by lead singer Bono. The three other U2 members are perfectly okay with the dismal plight of Africa’s poor. “Yeah, that Africa stuff is Bono’s thing,” The Edge said. “I don’t mind if he pursues other interests, but I really try to focus on the guitar riffs that give U2 its characteristic sound.”… [more] 

Read MoreRest Of U2 Perfectly Fine With Africans Starving

fetchez la vache!

ok, how freakin’ cool is this?! monty python toys. need a little killer rabbit of your own (“death awaits you all with nasty, big, pointy teeth”)? how about a black knight complete with detachable arms and legs (“it’s only a flesh wound”)? or the Beast of Aaaaaaaaargh, complete with Brother Maynard-eating action?? the spanish inquisitor looks pretty goofy, though. if only… if only… if only they had a little holy hand grenade! i’d be forced to buy that.

Read Morefetchez la vache!

one thing at a time

one thing at a time. one thing at a time. baby steps. things seem so overwhelming sometimes. i think i’m on top of it all because i have 48 little piles of things on my desk or on my floor, and this somehow makes me organized. but nothing gets done. i keep shifting piles and not doing ANY of the tasks no matter how small, because it being in a pile of things to take somewhere or on a list of things to do makes me think that i’m staying ahead of the game. examples: send this form in. glue this picture frame back together. take these coupons downstairs and put them in the coupon bin. put this pile of things in my work satchel. take this stuff back to the bathroom. throw this pile away. get the songs off this cd. put this pile of stuff in a box for the attic. put the box in the attic. write checks to these charities. send these subscription cards in. but something being “on the list” does not make it “done.” i make lists and piles all the time but lack the motivation to actually tackle any of the tasks. it’s overwhelming. so… i constantly have to remind myself: baby steps. one thing at a time. don’t think about the rest. just pick one thing and do it, that’s all. just one. i can get a sense of accomplishment out of doing just one tiny thing. really. but i forget that sometimes (ok, all the time) in my quest to be as efficient as possible. it’s like i want to pick up all the piles of things and walk on a route throughout the house, distributing everything where it needs to go, making stops to take any necessary actions, and at […]

Read Moreone thing at a time