Bag of Randomness
Friday, October 30, 2026

Man, what a tough week for the Star Trek community: not only losing Walter Koenig from the original series, but also the captain of The Next Generation. I’m sure I’m not the only one who finds it interesting that William Shatner outlived Sir Patrick Stewart, who portrayed the captain of the following generation’s Enterprise. 

Anyone else a fan of this George C. Scott film? If so, here’s a recent notable death. To my surprise, I learned it premiered at the USA Film Festival in Dallas, so there’s a local connection.

Peter Medak, veteran director of The Krays and The Changeling, dies aged 88

It was a very cool moment when the World Series champions, the Milwaukee Brewers, walked into Lambeau Field during last night’s game between the Packers and the Panthers to show off their hard-earned trophy.

When I drove past this gas station the other day, I couldn’t help but wonder about their “WE ARE OPEN NOW” sign. I hope they didn’t pay for it by the letter. If so, they could have saved money by omitting “NOW”.

Retired local KXAS meteorologist David Finfrock is a lot more opinionated than I expected on his Twitter account. 

This is not one of your more uplifting articles. It reminded me of some of the most fascinating (yet macabre) reading I’ve done about burying the dead after the D-Day invasion of Normandy, and the subsequent disinterment and transportation of the soldiers’ remains to the U.S. after the war.

Link

  • The Army is preparing for the grim possibility of burying fallen soldiers on the battlefield, testing how fast it can dig temporary graves while preserving remains for eventual identification and return to families after the end of a conflict. 

    During an exercise in North Carolina, engineers, preventative medicine teams, chaplains and fatality management specialists prepared for mass temporary interment not used on a large scale since the Korean War, the Army announced in a release last week.

  • Commanders can plan for an engineer company with the requisite equipment to dig and cover trenches for up to 2,400 bodies every 24 hours, if operating nonstop.

A Kentucky man becomes the first humanist granted religious exemption from AI

(RNS) — David Durman, an administrator at the University of Kentucky, said using AI would cause him to offload his thinking and decision making, which would violate his humanist views. He hopes other Americans will rethink their views on AI, too.

Cinema chain offers hypnosis: Forget your favorite movie and watch it for the first time again

What if you could erase the memory of your favorite film? Not the hint of what’s in the box at the end of Se7en, not the shock of The Matrix’s dojo scene, not the familiar beats of La La Land’s opening. Just the same excitement and wonder as the very first time.

That’s the premise of a new event from Dutch cinema chain Pathé called Rewind. On Monday, November 9, 2026, 30 film enthusiasts will attempt to forget their favorite film under expert guidance and then watch it again in the cinema at Pathé Buitenhof in The Hague.

James Madison University offers a heck of a view when you have to go.

Okay… but which one is Tim Duncan?

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Friday, October 30, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Monday, October 26, 2026

The Cowboys play tonight. They hold a primetime record of 1-7-1 since the beginning of the 2025 season.

I voted on Saturday with about an hour left before the polls closed. There was a first-time voter. I know this because the election officials made an announcement, and everyone in the room applauded. It was actually a sweet moment.

Every election official I encounter, I always make sure to thank them for doing their part to help our democratic republic (see what I did there😉).It’s also a job I really want to do, just something about being part of the process.

In Denton County, we are provided ballpoint pens to fill in these squares. It’s a pain in the rear, and I don’t know why we aren’t provided felt-tip pens or something that makes it a little easier. Cost savings, I guess.

Of course, I grabbed an “I Voted” sticker. I’m not sure why, but it makes me feel good. Dallas has pretty cool stickers that were designed by a high school student.

 

It’s funny that Dallas County Sooners and Aggies will have to sport the mascot of the University of Texas should they wear it.

In other Texas-related voting news:

Bexar County responds to complaints of voting machines changing selections

The average American armed forces inductee in WWII was 26 years old, 5′ 8″ tall, 144 pounds, and had 9 years of formal schooling.

Saturday Evening Post

My father was 19 years old, 6 feet tall, and  127 pounds.

A nice hidden-in-plain-sight detail at Mount Vernonafasfd.

This small piece of history can be found in the Yellow Room. Martha Washington’s fifteen-year-old granddaughter, Eliza Parke Custis, etched her name and the date on the glass of this window, overlooking the Potomac River. She paid visits to her grandmother and step-grandfather at Mount Vernon, sharing a warm relationship with both.

I’ve only seen Bea Arthur in Maude and The Golden Girls.

Mom speaks out after son found alive in Arizona hospital’s morgue

An Arizona mother whose toddler was mistakenly pronounced dead after a near-drowning recently said she is “infuriated” after learning more about the medical care her son received hours before he was found breathing in a hospital morgue.

Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders take legal action against My Chemical Romance over onstage costumes – Dancers at the band’s Hollywood Bowl concert this week wore outfits that appeared nearly identical to the cheerleaders’ iconic white and blue uniforms, a court filing said.

According to court documents obtained by the outlets, dancers wearing Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders-style uniforms took the stage during My Chemical Romance’s first performance at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Oct. 21 — the first in the band’s five-night residency at the venue..

Video footage shared by concertgoers on social media appeared to show the dancers holding fake guns while protecting the band from military forces.

The dancers are subsequently depicted being shot, with some crawling offstage, according to TMZ.

Former Texas Tech professor sentenced to 40 years for making, selling fentanyl including ‘pink flamingo’

According to court documents, Taylor was an assistant professor of supply chain management at Texas Tech’s Rawls College of Business when he began distributing fentanyl powder in the Lubbock area.

I don’t think football announcers write on the screen with a teleprompter anymore; they all rely on fancy animations and graphics.

 

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Monday, October 26, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Friday, October 23, 2026

At trivia night, I saw a man wearing a peculiar shirt. It advertised a place in North Carolina called “Biscuits N’ Porn.” It is indeed a real business in Nags Head, North Carolina. You can look up the details yourself. One Reddit review said it was “trashier than expected.”

As Don King would say, “Only in America!”

I have no idea if those are current gas prices.

One phrase that drives me crazy is, “I’m just saying.” And I have a coworker who says it at least five times a day. No, seriously, I started to keep a tracker of how often he says it. It’s his crutch; he leans on it heavily, and it drives me batty. Unlike people who use it trying to be provocative or opinionated, he uses it because he lacks the skill set to provide substance or context.

He’s a real oddball. A couple of weeks ago, I told him and another coworker that I work closely with that I would be late to work the following day because of a medical appointment. He then felt the need to follow that up with, and he meant this with all seriousness, “Just to let y’all know, I’ll be out of the office every six months for a dental appointment.” It was so bizarre. I was telling the team because my absence the next day might affect our work. He didn’t even let us know when his next dental appointment is. I think there was a Seinfeld episode about a guy like this. You know, that person who always has to relate himself or herself to any story or situation. “My mother died of cancer.” “You know, my aunt had a cat that died of cancer.”

But what game was he watching? Most passionate fan of the year?

Husband accused of taping his wife to a chair in the basement so he could watch football in peace

A husband in Virginia has been accused of taping his wife to a chair in the basement so he could watch a football game on TV without being interrupted.

Walter Cronkite is rolling over in his grave.

Link (Paywall, but here’s a substack summary.)

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This is another story behind a paywall, but it sure caught my attention. So sad.

Something smells fishy.

Houston Chronicle: Texas won’t say which private schools and vendors are profiting from state vouchers

This was just too cute not to post. I love the creativity.

And I couldn’t help but post this one as well.

The NY Times recently posted an hour-long interview with Bono and The Edge. The latter had this to say, “People have said of U2 that we’re the band that people who don’t know that they believe in God like.”

Number 31 is on the sidelines.

Such a bummer that the great Bob Uecker couldn’t live long enough to see his Brewers make the World Series. And I had no idea that cranberries were grown in Wisconsin.

No one fought harder for every yard.

 

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Friday, October 23, 2026

Bag of Randomness
Monday, October 19, 2026

To my surprise, and perhaps yours, Marion Ross, best known as Mrs. Cunningham on Happy Days, is still alive. She’ll celebrate her 98th birthday this Sunday. Her last screen credit was in 2021. I only know this because I watched Terms of Endearment for the first time over the weekend. And, as I always do, I read the movie’s Wiki and IMDB pages and researched the cast and crew.

Shirley MacLaine (who many forget is Warren Beatty’s sister) and Debra Winger did get along well. MacLaine wrote in her book that Winger once farted on her face, and Winger later confirmed it in an interview.

Jack Nicholson won an Oscar for portraying a retired astronaut from the Apollo program. Amazingly, Burt Reynolds, Harrison Ford, and Paul Newman all turned down the role.

I was surprised to see Danny DeVito in this Oscar-winning film, albeit in a small role. Can you name all the films that DeVito and Jack Nicholson have both been in? How about just the number of films that they have both been in?

The answer is 5.

Film Nicholson’s role DeVito’s role
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) Randle McMurphy Martini
Goin’ South (1978) Henry Moon Hog
Terms of Endearment (1983) Garrett Breedlove Vernon Dahlart
Hoffa (1992) Jimmy Hoffa Bobby Ciaro
Mars Attacks! (1996) President James Dale and Art Land Rude Gambler

I always thought it was cool that early in his career, Nicholson made an appearance on The Andy Griffith Show.

While reading legendary cartoonist Tex Avery’s Wikipedia page, I discovered Bugs Bunny’s iconic catchphrase originated from a Dallas high school.

College football has seen upsets galore this season. The Notre Dame vs. BYU game caught my attention. Steve Young did the intro, which got me thinking that it would have been a cool thing to see both him and Joe Montana as honorary captains before the game. But that would probably be best for a bowl or playoff game.

This also happened.


Speaking of Steve Young, I always thought it was cool how Bill Bates helped him up and gave him a hug at the end of this game.

It seems like Joe Buck and Troy Aikman have a strained relationship. I’ve admired Aikman as a football player, but have always felt he was thin-skinned. There have been a few moments on The TICKET he’s appeared to be easily offended. He’s hinted that he’s entertained the idea of working as a GM of an NFL franchise, but stated his daughters were too young and he’d like to have some experience before diving in. Well, his daughters are adults, and he’s been a paid advisor for the Dolphins. So, I expect after he and Buck broadcast the Super Bowl this season, that’s the last we’ll see him in the booth. I’m sure he wants to do something new after spending more than a quarter century doing the same job. And if that does happen, I have a crazy prediction. He’s going to offer Bob Sturm a job, who used to work for Aikman, doing something with stats, I think.

That Tesla demonstration was amazing. I’m surprised we’ve never seen a James Bond or a Batmobile do something like that. But, Tesla didn’t have the first car that could hang upside down.

Coogler makes some great stuff, but I’m awfully skeptical.

Ryan Coogler’s ‘X-Files’ Reboot Picked Up to Series at Hulu

I could never find an update to this story:

Man dies after jumping or falling from Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells, police say

However, a friend has told me it was a suicide. He was the ex-husband of one of my classmates. They have two adult children.

High school QB dismissed from team after calling audible, 12 teammates suspended for supporting him

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Monday, October 19, 2026