Morning Roundup: Time for chaos edition

Good morning, Houston. Remember all the hype surrounding Y2K? Well, it looks like we're in for it again, on a smaller scale: Daylight Saving Time will begin three weeks earlier than usual this year, which could confuse the heck out of computer software that was programmed before 2005, when the law changing the DST date passed. Call it DST2K ... 7. Whatever. Anyway, older software was programmed to change the time the first Sunday in April, but now we'll have the time change the second Sunday in March, which means programs that keep track of what time it is will be an hour off for three weeks. "Organizations could face significant losses if they are not prepared," warned the Information Technology Association of America. Looks like Houstonist's organizational method isn't so bad after all.

>> Oh, the humanity: What started as a typically saccharine Valentine's Day sale became a blazing holocaust Wednesday morning when a truck careened into a tent where flowers and teddy bears were being sold, then burst into flames. The driver of the truck and the car that hit it ended up in the hospital, as did two other people; as for the V-Day goodies, they were almost a total loss. Feeling particularly sadistic? Here's a slideshow.

>> Police investigating office shooting: Police are still trying to figure out why a man walked into the break room at Service Wire Co., a northeast Houston manufacturer of electrical wire and cable, yesterday afternoon and shot a man who was waiting for his wife to get off work. Several Service Wire employees who were in the room wrestled the gun away from the suspect and held him until the cops showed up; the victim died, but no one else was hurt. "The motive has dumbfounded us at this point," HPD Sgt. Mark Newcomb said. "There's no reason for this gentleman to be shot like this."

>> I swear there's a park under here somewhere: Pine Gulley Park in Seabrook is covered by as much as 30 inches of sand in some spots, and Seabrook Mayor Robin Riley knows why: the sand has been pushed there by traffic at the new Bayport shipping terminal, she says. According to Riley, the sand is preventing people from launching boats and is blocking the exchange of fresh and salt water — that, in turn, could bring more alligators and mosquitoes and affect Seabrook's shrimping industry. Ah, progress.

>> Today's weather: Seriously, it's cold out there. We got close to freezing last night, and we're still there now. But things will change in a bit: Look for some clouds this afternoon, but very little chance of rain; the high will be around 46 with a wind chill at or just below 40. Tonight, bundle up for a low of 29. And in case you're wondering, yeah, things will get a little warmer this weekend.

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