Morning Roundup: www.smalltowntexas.com edition

Good morning, Houston. The Internet has become such a part of our lives that it's hard sometimes to step back and see just how pervasive it really is — but the folks at Domain Name Wire came up with an interesting way to do that: They counted the number of URLs advertised along Highway 71 and I-10 between Austin and Houston. The grand total? More than 68, including the whopper qualityconcreteandswimmingpools.com (which doesn't seem to work for us, but whatever). Al Gore would be so proud.

>> Baylor hospital groundbreaking set for July: Baylor College of Medicine will begin construction on its first-ever hospital in July, a 1.1 million square foot, 256-bed complex that will be finished by 2010. The hospital, to be located adjacent to the VA Medical Center, will be funded through an existing building fund, bonds and fundraising; it will have adult emergency services, but not a trauma center. Dr. Peter Traber, BCM's president, said the hospital will emphasize gene-based medicine, which could use patients' genetic information to diagnose and treat disease more precisely. Eventually, a second phase of construction will bring the hospital and clinic complex to 2.7 million square feet and 600 beds.

>> As if the price of gas isn't robbery enough: According to KPRC, thieves have been targeting women at local gas stations — specifically, stealing their purses as the women pump gas. Jamie Daniel is one of the victims; she said she was getting gas on Wednesday on Richmond Avenue when a car pulled up next to hers and two men jumped out and took her purse. It all happened so quickly that Daniel said she didn't realize she had been robbed until people around her told her so: "I started to smell smoke and tire burning from [the thieves] peeling out," she said, "I heard another patron peel out after them to chase them down, but they lost them." Police recommend that women keep their purses with them and that people lock their cars, even if they're standing next to them.

>> 2007 Texas Bowl date set: The Texas Bowl will be back at Reliant Stadium for its second year Dec. 28, game officials announced Thursday, but it's still up in the air whether this year's game will be the success last year's was. The 2006 Texas Bowl between Rutgers and Kansas State drew 52,210 people, the largest crowd since 1972 to see a bowl game in Houston not involving a Texas team, but that could be a hard act to follow. This year's game — between a Big 12 team and a Conference USA team — will be televised on the NFL Network.

>> This weekend's weather: Looks like today's weather might be pretty similar to yesterday's: Though we're starting off cool, we can expect partly cloudy skies and a high of 68 this afternoon. More clouds will move in later today and the temperature will drop into the mid 40s — and then cold air heads in for the weekend. Expect rain most of the day Saturday and in the morning Sunday, with a high of 50 on Saturday and 54 on Sunday and lows in the upper 30s both nights. Kinda makes us glad we hadn't already packed up our sweaters ...

Y'know what else is cool? News.