The right stuff to know for Lubbock
The opening night for Texas Tech basketball Tuesday was perfect. United Supermarkets Arena was packed to watch the first men’s Final Four banner unveiled, along with a Big 12 championship banner. Before that, the sold-out crowd was into it. A loud version of the Matador Song gave me chills – literally. The crowd stayed loud … Continued
I no longer care for the National Football League. Well, I kinda do … but it’s connected to college football. If the Kansas City Chiefs are on TV with former Red Raider Patrick Mahomes playing quarterback, I’m interested. Since he’s been injured, I don’t care as much about the Chiefs. I’d like to see the … Continued
I walked into the Elkhart Truth newsroom the morning of Sept. 11, 2001 to see the managing editor watching the newsroom television. Walking toward him I saw a plane fly into one of the World Trade Center towers. I looked at him. He looked at me, then said: “That’s the second plane.” Our world changed … Continued
I love The Shack barbecue on north Frankford. And I’m not alone. I was recently walking out of The Shack with a to-go order and there was a young woman in the parking lot, putting her food in her vehicle. She looked at me, holding a bag of rub she’d gotten. “Look what I got!” … Continued
We were herded into an area for the media back from the main stage with a walkway between us and some of the crowd. It was a momentous day – the opening of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif. on Nov. 4, 1991. I was the editor of the Thousand Oaks News … Continued
The menu grabs your attention … especially if you’re a Texas Tech sports fan. At the All-American Eatery & Catering Company, all the menu items are named after Texas Tech All-Americans. There’s the: E.J. Holub hamburger on sourdough or jalapeno bun. Marsha Sharp chicken fried bacon BLT Zach Thomas chicken strips Bam Morris steak fingers … Continued
Last Saturday I had a religious experience … and it wasn’t in church. Although, in Texas, barbecue is a holy topic. This all started when I noticed two South Plains barbecue places landed in Texas Monthly’s list of top 25 new barbecue places … Pitforks and Smokerings in Slaton and Rejeno Barbecue in Olton. Saturday, … Continued
There’s a movement out there to name Loop 289 after Chris Beard, Texas Tech basketball coach, who just took the Red Raiders to the Final Four. Cool idea … but why not name the new Loop 88 after Coach Beard. That way, anytime there are stories in local media about work on the new road … Continued
I wondered if it was going to be a frustrating night for Red Raider fans when I got off the Southwest plane in Austin. I saw my flight to Lubbock that was supposed to land an hour before tipoff of Texas Tech’s national championship game with Virginia was now going to land around game time. … Continued
What’s the best thing about Texas Tech basketball? Star Red Raider player Jarrett Culver is from Lubbock and went to Coronado High School? Tech’s killer defense? Head coach Chris Beard’s fun “Fireside Chats” with Breaking News alerts telling students if they came to Anaheim for the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games they could stay … Continued
My daughter Rebecca called and said, “Hi grandpa!” She had a little boy – 8 pounds, 10 ounces and 21 inches long. He sounded so big. A week later I was in Los Angeles to meet Noam. I held him. Such long and little fingers. Cute little nose. Lots of red hair. He now seemed … Continued
America is broken and beyond repair. Let that sink in a little. Our national debt continues to rise. It’s embarrassing and just one of a bunch of things that don’t get fixed. Border security is another. Why can’t we fix things? Because we have two Americas and they cannot agree. So let’s do something radical … Continued
The spot in rural Iowa off Interstate 35 was a bit of a challenge to find. Once we found it, there was a short saunter along the side of a field. Then we found … where four fields meet … the metal monument to Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson … … Continued
While thinking about Martin Luther King Jr. during the three-day weekend celebrating his life, my thoughts turn to “Star Trek,” the Golden Globe-winning movie “Green Book,” and Sasezley Richardson. Whoopi Goldberg wanted to be on “Star Trek: The Next Generation” because she was a fan of the original “Star Trek,” which ran on network television … Continued
So the federal government is on the verge of shutting down … again. Excuse me if I’m not losing sleep. I used to visit Washington D.C. on business at least once a year. During many of those trips, I drove down the Mall. I’d look at building after building after building and wondered about all … Continued
So Texas Tech has hired Utah State’s Matt Wells as the new football coach. Glancing at my Facebook feed, not everyone is thrilled with Kirby Hocutt’s decision. Example: “Does Texas Tech AD Kirby Hocutt turning to Utah State’s Matt Wells to be the new head coach make any sense to anybody? Who gave him the … Continued