Columns/Opinions

  Mayor Mark Bricker wants city council members to RSVP with the city on events they plan on attending.
   Raising the issue at last week’s regular council meeting, Bricker said council members attending – by invitation - an Oct. 2 city parks advisory board workshop on the parks master plan constituted a quorum.
   Parks and Recreation Director Shawn Blackburn said last week the workshop wasn’t posted and didn’t have an agenda. 
   “It was a review of the master plan,” he said.
   Noting the meeting wasn’t posted, Bricker said council members’ presence didn’t comply with the state open meetings law.
   The same holds true for any events where enough council members in attendance would make a quorum, including charter review meetings or Bay City Community Development Corporation sessions.

   Sometimes I worry about my columns when I finally manage to get them finished before my deadline.
   You might be asking yourself why, or you might not.
   To be frank, I worry that sometimes my humor isn’t translated very well in plain newsprint.
   There’s only so much you can do with words when explaining something or telling a joke.
   I often get better feedback in person.
   Apparently, I’m very animated and expressive.
   I’ve got several tones and character voices I mimic depending on the joke or situation at hand.
   And nearly none of that transfers to text decently.
   For some odd reason, I can make my friends laugh when I say “pudding” a certain way.
   I suppose it has something to do with the way I look when uttering the word.
   I’ve done if in front of a mirror before and can’t manage to make myself laugh.
   So, I’m at a loss on that one.

   Having been born and raised here in Bay City, the Rice Festival has been a part of my life as long as I can remember. It’s hard to say how many parades I’ve been to, how many floats I’ve ridden on or how much cotton candy I had as a kid. This year I have the distinct honor and privilege of serving as the President of the Bay City Lions Club for the 2017 – 2018 year and during the 72nd Annual Rice Festival.
    The Bay City Lions Club consists of men from throughout the community who work together towards a common goal of living the Lions motto; “We Serve.” 
   Our Rice Festival Chairman and all of our Committee Chairman have been hard at work and this year’s Rice Festival promises to be as good as any other. 
   Through the generous support of all of our participants, we are able to make contributions throughout our community, across the state, and toward international humanitarian projects through Lions International.

   It’s now five straight weeks for the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock-index to reach record highs.
   This comes with the 30-year anniversary of the Oct. 19, 1987 market crash, where the markets lost 22 percent in value in one day. 
   The best lesson from that day was the market recovered most of the loss within months. A value investor running against the herd made a short-term fortune. 
   The turnaround for the high-tech crash, in the late 90s, took a bit longer but value investors came out smiling. 
   The same thing happened in 2008. The problem here is that most investors have no money available when the correction comes and they have little stomach to fight the crowd. The moral to this trip though recent history is that these moments come around about 10 years apart. These corrections or crashes are set off by unpredictable events.

   Congress has designated the third week of October as National Save for Retirement Week. What lessons can you learn from this event?
   First of all, save early – and save often.
   The earlier you start saving and investing, the less you will have to put away each year to accumulate the resources you’ll need for a comfortable retirement.
   And by putting time on your side, you’ll be able to take advantage of compounding – the ability to earn money on your principal and your earnings.
   Here’s another suggestion: Contribute as much as you can afford to tax-advantaged retirement accounts, such as an IRA and your 401(k) or similar employer-sponsored plan.
   Finally, try to overcome barriers to building your retirement savings.
   One such barrier is debt – because the higher your debt payments, the less you can afford to invest.
   Do what you can to keep your debt under control.

   There are four women who are mentioned in the genealogy of Christ; they are Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba. 
   What I love about this is how God places Rahab into the genealogy of Christ despite her background. When we read about her story she is described as a gentile harlot in Jericho. 
   Rahab was the first recorded Gentile convert. Joshua sent two spies into the city, but as they were in the town when some found out about them and they had to hide. 
   Rahab kept them in her house because of her faith in God. She told them “For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt…When we heard it, our hearts melted…because of you; for the Lord your God, 

  Saturday I went to the NHRA Nationals in Ennis with my dad, brother and a few of the kids who still can be manipulated into hanging out with us.  
   The last time I went to any type of races was when I was probably in fourth or fifth grade. Nothing much has changed. They are loud, smoky and fast.  
   In 3.6 seconds, a top fuel race car goes 326 mph in 1,000 feet. I tried to video the actual race from the starting line of the racetrack to the finish line. 
   It was impossible. I could not turn my phone fast enough to get the car zooming by. If you blink, you miss it. It is that type of fast.
   Being a bit of an adrenaline junkie, I voiced the thought a few times out loud that I would like to drive one of those cars. 
   My days of speed started young with a “Big Wheel” and progressed from a Green Machine Go-Cart from Sear’s to an ATV in no time. I inherited this love from my Dad. 
   My kids evidently are carrying on the tradition too. 

   Topping out at just over $13 million for its opening domestic weekend, “The Foreigner” is not breaking any records.
   Well, at least not in the US.
   Internationally, it’s garnered over $88 million and has totaled out for a rather impressive return.
   Jackie Chan has been out of the spotlight for nearly a decade and mostly has lent his voice to animated characters.
      But, this film proves he’s still got some action chops left to show off.
   Granted, it’s a bit like Liam Neeson’s “Taken” flicks, but, has an interesting twist.
   Chan plays Ngoc Minh Quan, a former Vietnam Special Forces member turned Chinese restaurateur in London.
   Quan seeks justice when his daughter is killed in an Irish Republican Army (IRA) terrorist attack.
   The IRA is any of several armed movements in Ireland in the 20th and 21st centuries dedicated to Irish republicanism, the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.

      Agricultural Situation
   Land preparation processes continue throughout Matagorda County a majority of the land is prepared and waiting for the fall application of nitrogen for crop production. 
      Decision will need to be made in the near future on the crops to be planted so that the proper amount of nitrogen can be applied. Prices of commodities will influence the decision as well as crop rotation. Second crop rice harvest will begin and we will discuss this in greater detail next week. 
   With the warm weather and adequate moisture pastures continue to make excellent growth. Army worms continue to be a problem throughout the county. 
          Ornamental plants
   We continue to see many of our ornamental plants beginning to deteriorate. Many of these plants have root problems associated with the winter freeze. Drought conditions and standing water from hurricane Harvey 

   Clocking in at official two hours and 44 minutes, the long-awaited “Blade Runner” sequel is about 45 minutes longer than its predecessor.
   Thirty years after the events of the first film, a new blade runner, LAPD Officer K (Ryan Gosling) unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what’s left of society into chaos.
   K’s discovery leads him on a quest to find former LAPD blade runner Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) who has been missing for 30 years.
   Both incorporate elements of Phillip K. Dick’s 1968 story, “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?”
   I haven’t personally read the story, but, it’s now on my list.
   The film is a sort of slow-burn and requires a decent working knowledge of the first.
   Plus, you get to see all kinds of new gadgets and devices while keeping in-line with how groundbreaking the first film was.
   Visually, it’s stunning and pays careful homage to the original.