Last Chance To See 600 sq mi: Hidden
Missed Connections: Gefilte Fish...and "Chain Connections"
H-Town Rock
Rock Talk, Vol. IX
Good morning, Houston. It's November now, and you know what that means: We're at the beginning of nearly two straight months of Christmas. Retailers put their holiday decorations up early in hopes that shoppers will see them and get in the buying mood — but will it work? Not necessarily, if most shoppers are like Sharon Baker, who the Chron found at Macy's downtown. "I do like Christmas, but I need time to celebrate Thanksgiving first," she said. "I'll be thankful to have the money to buy Christmas presents — after Thanksgiving."
>> Looking for the truth about Baby Grace: It's been a week since the body of a young girl in a box washed ashore at Galveston Bay — and though police have gotten leads from across the country as to her identity, they haven't yet figured out who she is. Several tipsters said the believe the body is that of Madeleine McCann, a 4-year-old British girl who disappeared from a Portugese resort in May, but authorities say the evidence doesn't seem to point that way: "Based on the totality of the circumstances, we do not believe it's [Madeleine]," Galveston County Sheriff's Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo told the AP. For now, officers are working their way through missing persons reports from across the country, checking with other law enforcement agencies to see if any details match. "We're sorting through a lot of leads," Tuttoilmondo said. "Nothing has hit a home run yet."
>> Confession, evidence tossed in Nowak case: A judge in Florida agreed Friday to throw out evidence against Lisa Nowak, the former astronaut accused of making a cross-country drive earlier this year to confront a romantic rival. Orange County Circuit Judge Marc L. Lubet said investigators took advantage of Nowak, who hadn't slept in more than a day when she gave information in a long interview after being arrested, so her confession shouldn't be considered. He also granted a defense motion to drop a number of now-infamous pieces of evidence in the case, including diapers Nowak allegedly wore while driving from Houston to Florida. Though Orlando police detective Chris Becton said Nowak wasn't confused and sleep-deprived when he interviewed her, Lubet said Becton didn't read Nowak her Miranda rights and wrongly promised to talk to prosecutors on her behalf if she cooperated. "He made threats and used coercive psychological techniques," the judge wrote in his decision.
>> This week's weather: Cooler temperatures and clearer skies will return this week after a cool front passes through the area late tonight — but it still won't be cold. Expect a foggy morning today giving way to a partly sunny afternoon with a high of 84; tonight, showers could develop after midnight as the temperature drops into the lower 60s ahead of the front.
Now, how about some headlines?
- The Harris County Republican Party has launched an investigation into County Commissioner Jerry Eversole's spending habits
- An energy forum for presidential candidates planned for November in Houston has been moved to Feb. 28, just before the Texas primary
- An Amber Alert remained in effect this weekend for Adelene Ruiz, a 17-year-old woman who investigators worry was kidnapped by her estranged boyfriend
- U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee has called for a formal probe into sexual harassment charges against U.S. District Judge Samuel Kent of Galveston
- The future of Bush Intercontinental could involve a complete reconfiguration of the airport, at a cost of $5 billion
- Authorities think they've found the body of 18-year-old Roger Frank, who went missing while canoeing in the Sabine River last week
- UH presidential finalist Renu Khator: "I want to make things happen"
- Teachers, parents and students at Ryan Middle School gathered last week to support Principal Cimberli Johnson, who is accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a student
- Meet the Seadog, a device working to convert waves in the Gulf of Mexico into electricity
- The East End has been a neighbor to Houston's refinery complexes for years — but how much longer will East Enders put up with the pollution?
- A southeast Houston man was shot yesterday inside a home he was remodeling; an investigation is under way
- Gas in Houston jumped 10 cents a gallon last week — but it's still the cheapest in the state
- A man was found shot to death inside a car in northeast Houston on Friday morning
- A new HPD computer system will make it easier for police to track stolen vehicles by scanning drivers' license plates and comparing them to a database
- Wondering where to go for great Tex-Mex in Houston? Check out KTRK's picks — and enjoy
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I absolutely loathe Christmas shopping, more specifically the hype associated with it. Someone please turn down the dial on the marketing machines and let's get back to kids getting a bag of marbles instead of a PS3 and a cell phone.
Not a scrooge, but I can't stand the barrage of media crap like some moron with a microphone standing at the front of the line at Wal-Mart just before the doors open on the first day the "it toy" (think Elmo) goes on sale.
"It's pandemonium down here. One deranged shopper went to the hardware section, fueled up a chainsaw and returned to cut off the arm of a woman who had earlier snatched a limited edition Gentlemen's Club Barbie from his clutches."
Obligatory seasonal shopping makes me cringe a little bit. I try to do mine throughout the year, as I come across things or as I think of them.
Someone told me that the whole diaper issue with Lisa Nowak was, indeed, a big farce that the media ran away with before it could be retracted. She did not wear diapers as has been widely reported and joked about.