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Kidd a Maverick
January 31, 2008Everything I'm seeing on the web indicates that Jason Kidd, No. 5, the California Bear, will soon be wearing Maverick green again.
My sources (hint: ESPN insider) tell me Kidd is going to be involved in a multi-player deal that would send Jerry Stackhouse packing and bring Kidd in to run-and-gun with Josh Howard and Dirk Diggler.
Remember the old days of the three Js -- J. Kidd, Jimmy Jackson and Jamal Mashburn?
What a team that didn't amount to anything.
I think Kidd could seriously push the Mavericks over the top. He might be able to contain Tony Parker in the playoffs, depending if Chris Paul and the Hornets steal the show. They, last time I checked, lead the way in the west.
Mavs all the way.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 08:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Christian McPhate
January 30, 2008I love you Christian McPhate, MSU student. I love you McPhate, you purveyor of all things grand. The Wichitan needs you.
http://wichitan.mwsu.edu/2008-0123/index.asp
For those wondering what the above is all about, click the link and read the statement written by the above mentioned.
We at the TRN care about you. Peanut-butter-jelly time.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 09:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Little Old Lady blues
January 24, 2008I just caught a case of the Old Lady Blues.
In about one month I've had an old lady on my butt about what seems to be a bad car-buying mistake. She bought the car from a dealership -- not in Wichita Falls -- but ended up not wanting it.
She's called me twice with the same desperate adage. She doesn't really know what to do, but she's called asking for advice.
I told what I could, but I don't really deal with many financial crimes. She lives outside of Wichita Falls and bought the car in a surrounding county.
The car dealership is giving her trouble because she signed a contract. She said she couldn't get financed for the car initially, but they went ahead and got a loan out of Kentucky for what amounts to about $3,000 more than the car's worth.
She drives it for a little while, then she takes it back. She goes out of town and when she returns the car is in her driveway.
So she has it towed back to the company that financed the deal. And now she is where she is today.
I told her what I think is sound advice -- mainly avoiding bankruptcy because of it.
If anyone has had a car dealer do something similar give me a call. It might be a bigger problem than I realize.
That was a running complaint on my part. I wish her the best. It doesn't seem like she's got much family to help her out.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 08:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
"3:10 to Yuma" and "The Kingdom"
January 23, 2008Watched a couple of movies over the MLK holiday and I had to comment on how much I loved 3:10 to Yuma and how much I enjoyed the Kingdom.
3:10 to Yuma was an amazing movie. Christian Bale is a rancher down on his luck who runs into the crazy Australian Russell Crowe.
Crowe is a bad guy with a heart of gold.
Fortunately for the story line Crowe has to be transported across desolate lands to a train that will transfer him to prison.
Bale needs the money and agrees to take Crowe the distance. There's gun play and outstanding acting by Crowe's No. 2, Ben Foster, who at times steals the show.
You may remember Foster as the archangel character from X-Men 3.
3:10 to Yuma was a good movie. Even my wife thought so, and we typically don't agree on movies.
Kingdom was a completely different animal. It had an awareness about it. Jamie Foxx plays the lead character out to solve a suicide bombing in the Kingdom that killed one of his beloved coworkers.
Foxx, an FBI agent supreme, takes a team overseas to solve the puzzle with Middle Eastern red-tape.
A lot of people die and many explosions. It all adds up to a good movie. It's not a hunk of junk like Foxx's Stealth, so don't concern yourself with his previous film tanking. Foxx is a star -- plain and simple.
Jason Bateman takes a break from my dream of his Teen Wolf 2 role to play a the funny-guy-who-almost-who-gets-his-head-chopped-off role.
Go Bateman.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 08:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Maniac McGee at it again
January 17, 2008All I could do was laugh when I saw/heard this almost silent clip. Maniac McGee, you go boy.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 09:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Vote for Fun, BFS Style
Bowling for Soup has released a limited edition T-Shirt. It's funny considering the upcoming election. Too many people taking too much too serious.
Saturday Jaret and Erik are going to have an acoustic set at the Aardvark in Fort Worth. Tell me if its any good if you go.
Here's the site to buy the shirt...http://store.bandwear.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=Array&products_id=511
BFS baby. 
Posted by Clayton Hein at 09:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Trap Starz Click
January 16, 2008Concert at the End Zone this Friday, Jan. 18. I'm trying to build up the courage to tell my self to build up the courage to go. Well see.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 05:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
I want a Whopper
A story posted on the MSNBC website tels the tale of a really hungry 13-year old girl. Police say this Tampa, Fla. teenager walked into a Burger King and robbed the -- demanding a burger.
The girl was released from Juvenile Detention and I guess she didn't like "prison" food. She must have really had a craving that needed to be scratched.
She was wearing her PJs at the time and used a knife to try and get what she wanted.
Police said a witness heard the girl yelling, "Give me a … cheeseburger now!" The girl chased the employee through the kitchen before other employees subdued her, police said....that's taken straight off the MSNBC site.
Have a good lunch/dinner.
I also have to comment on how much I really like the "punk'd" Whopper commercials. People get frustrated a little too easily nowadays when they don't get their way. Calm down people. It will come, whatever it is.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sickest dunk of the year
January 11, 2008The other day the UNC Tarheels played the UNC-Asheville something-or-others in Chapel Hill.
Tyler Hansbrough is a white dude I love to watch play basketball. Sheer effort is his game mixed with a little talent.
I remember him going for 50 against George Tech when he was a freshman a few years ago. What a game that was.
Anyways Hansbrough had to square off with one of the biggest men on the planet in Asheville's Kenny George.
George is 7'7''. Hansbrough might be 6'10''. Watching the two play was like watching a six footer and seven footer. the disparity of their size was crazy.
The sickest dunk occurred when Hansbrough got the ball at the top of the key drove and skyrocketed over George, who has to barely get on his tippy toes to dunk.
I'd never had believed it until I saw it on ESPN. George leads the country in blocks for NCAA basketball. But the dunk is something that will always be engraved in my memory.
The Tarheels ended up winning the game. George almost seems to be a Barnun and Bailey escapee.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 11:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Ain't No Love
January 10, 2008"Ain't No Love In the Heart of the City" has always been a deep cut off Jay-Z's Blueprint to me. But last night I was watching an interview and the music playing during the interview was the original tune.
It never really dawned on me to actually check on who made the original. For those who don't know it was Bobby "Blue" Bland.
Funny name, amazing results. Anyways, Bland was featured on iTunes recently and I didn't take notice. Then last night the interview is aired and I started searching the iTunes database.
There it was in all of its original glory. So I downloaded the album, his greatest hits, and have enjoyed at my leisure since 1 a.m. last night.
Here's the original with some dance steps by some random white guy. It's almost Napoleon Dynamite-ish. Enjoy.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 09:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Seinfeld malaise
January 09, 2008After reading the front page story on the paper about Seinfeld I got a little upset, angry and depressed. It's an odd mixture of emotions to get after reading the front page of the paper, so I'll explain.
I'm upset because Wichita Falls is an odd town when it comes to selling tickets and bringing in talent to display. Everywhere you go you hear about people with nothing to do in this crappy town in Wichita Falls.It's a puzzle to solve.
There have even been meetings hosted by the city to determine what makes the city's heart beat. Warning... we need a pace maker.
I'm angry because it seems like every time a show doesn't sell the MPEC points its finger at the city.
But what is the MPEC doing wrong? What about promotion. They don't like to announce shows when a show is schedule for a date around the corner. Don't know why, but they'll dodge questions until the show is "officially" announced.
Marketing doesn't seem to be like that big of an engine. Sure they'll make a couple of plugs on the radio and put a few ads in the paper, but that seems like that's about it.
When Cher, probably the best selling show in Kay Yeager history, came they had TV commercials. They also did something with the TV stations giving away tickets. I remember trying to call in and answer the questions to win.
I also don't see ads in the regional papers. MPEC probably claims that we are a region with about 400,000-ish people ready to be entertained. But I probably won't see a Seinfeld ad in the Archer County Advocate. I don't even know how hard they hit MSU. It's a resource of discretionary income that needs to be tapped twice and then some.
I'm also depressed because no matter what happens we'll still have to go to Dallas on our leisure to be entertained. Somethings not right.
I also have to blame myself a little. I've reviewed a lot of shows for the paper, but when push comes to shove, I think I've bought tickets for only a couple of shows. I know I bought Scarface tickets. I guess everyone, including me, needs to do a little more.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 09:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Jay-Z & Apple
January 04, 2008Jay-Z recently stepped down from his position from Def Jam. Rumor is he's headed to Steve Jobs' side of the world to help pioneer a music label with Apple.
iTunes has been a huge success from the word go, so I see the most prolific rapper of our time being a success.
In a time where record labels are laying off one after another, the move to a smaller label is going to be the way to go. Of course the CEO is still going to get reimbursed for doing whatever it is they do, but the artist might be able to develop.
I think it took Fleetwood Mac something like 17 albums before they released Rumors.
Jay-Z is big enough to sell on his own. The guy is a brand himself - sneakers, clothes, alcohol, and on and on. I don't know why he left Def Jam, the staple of the rap industry since Beastie Boys, but I heard a lot of artists on the label were more than ticked off at him.
All of the Christmas promotion album went to American Gangster. My buddy called me and asked me if I knew Freeway or Beanie Sigel had an album out. I replied "no" and he said "see."
With an Apple label, which I see being completely digital, the artist and the label will stand to make more money.
No more shipping and receiving of CDs anymore. You might also see a couple FYE's close by that time also. You can already see floor space at stores shrinking because CD sales have slumped at a ridiculous rate.
Jay-Z might have a couple more albums in him - he's on the wrong side of 40, but he could be ushering in a new age of music with the move to Apple.
Steve Jobs has done it again. Buy some AAPL stock why don't ya.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 09:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
I kissed a man
January 02, 2008It happened, not as it may seem, but nonetheless I still kissed a man New Year's....
I was blindsided. I was talking to my wife about all of the good times ahead of us in '08, and then all of a sudden someone grabs my face and smooches me.
I was shocked. So was my wife. I was kissed by my friend was trying to leave the party with pizzazz. He sure shocked me.
What a new year's eve celebration. Maybe all the Jager bombs him and I were doing finally got to him. Who knows.
I really didn't know what to do. I guess I'll just have to embrace it. He didn't slip me the tongue, which would have probably made me barf.
Thank you Christopher Hall. Love you too dude.
Posted by Clayton Hein at 09:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
