Texas Monthly articles from July 2004

Texas Monthly archives from July 2004

Gas pains: tired of paying $2 a gallon to fill up your SUV? Here's how America ought to respond to OPEC's crude behavior.(Behind the Lines)(Sport Utility Vehicle)
July 1, 2004... A couple of years ago, TEXAS MONTHLY hosted a meeting of editors of city and regional magazines. Most of them came from points north: Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, Cincinnati, Minneapolis. After the meeting, I ferried several of the visitors...

Change happens.(Roar of the Crowd)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... Your article on Texas A&M ["Corps Values," May 2004] raised some fairly obvious points regarding the diversity and change that many college campuses are faced with today. But the cover art, with the line "Texas A&M faces its worst nightmare:...

Alamo survivor.(Roar of the Crowd)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... I wish to thank Gary Cartwright for letting me know what horrid shape I'm in [Texas Monthly Reporter, "Divine Secrets of the Alamo Sisterhood," May 2004]. I was moving along very nicely thinking I was young, beautiful, and rich, when Mr....

The real Vietnam?(Roar of the Crowd)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... I commend Kinky Friedman for serving his country by volunteering in Borneo via the Peace Corps ["Let Saigons Be Bygones," May 2004]. And I sympathize that he didn't want to be sent "back over to Asia to kill the same people." Wait a minute. The...

Around the state.(Calendar)
July 1, 2004... WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBILITY KEY (W) The place is accessible to wheelchairs: The main entrance is at least 32 inches wide and there are no steps; restrooms, however, are not accessible. (W+) The place and its restrooms are accessible. ...

Go fish.(Coming attractions: the month in sports.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... If you've ever tried to reel one in, then you know the struggle between fish mud fisherman can be quite a challenge and a thrill. From July 8 through 11, some seven hundred people test their strength, know-how, and guesswork (you gotta figure...

Breaking away.(Coming attractions: the month in sports.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Piano native (and Austin resident) Lance Armstrong is on a quest; to be the First cyclist to win the Tour de France six consecutive times. Some in the peloton think his best days are behind him. You be the judge. From July 3 through 25, go to...

Strike zone.(Coming attractions: the month in sports.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Way back in the winter of 2003, Roger Clemens (left) wasn't a major leaguer. He was a retired Yankee; his existence, dare we say it, rather average. "Retirement" didn't last long, however, and in 2004 the Rocket returned to the mound for the...

George Lopez: comedian George Lopez will be performing stand-up at the Frank Erwin Center, in Austin, June 26 and at the SBC Center, in San Antonio, July 24.(Hey, You! Look who's coming to Texas.)(Sacha Baron Cohen)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... What was your first act like? I did my first act the night of my high school graduation. I was embarking on a profession where you had to be entertaining and charming, and I wasn't equipped to take it 'all in. I couldn't take compliments. I was...

Fertittaville: the restaurant mogul has invested $150 million to help change the face of Galveston. Now critics warn that he wants to turn the Island into Atlantic City.(Letter From Galveston)
July 1, 2004... On a clear and sunny afternoon this past April, restaurant tycoon Tilman Fertitta was peering out the window of his helicopter, holding a toothpick between his teeth that pointed toward Galveston like a divining rod. Far below, the...

Encyclopedia Texanica: Anne Dingus solves the state's greatest mysteries.(Reporter)
July 1, 2004... Q: Ever since I was a kid in the sixties, I have seen mounted jackalope heads all over Texas. So who invented the mythical critter? A: Fortunately (unfortunately?), it wasn't a Texan. The credit generally goes to a Wyoming resident, Douglas...

Dreamland.(music )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... For a time, DALE WATSON had it all. The Austin transplant was one of the state's brightest rising stars, a honey-voiced honky-tonker with looks and talent to burn and a rapidly igniting career. It all derailed in 2000, when his girlfriend, on...

Off Ramp: Adventures and Heartbreak in the American Elsewhere (Henry Holt).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Two-time Pulitzer finalist HANK STUEVER pays loving homage to America's soft, strange underbelly in OFF RAMP: ADVENTURES AND HEARTBREAK IN THE AMERICAN ELSEWHERE (Henry Holt). The pieces, some previously published while Stuever was writing for...

Now Here Is Nowhere.(movies)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... A Dallas trio, THE SECRET MACHINES, decide they need a challenge, so they set off for New York City without much money, sharing a loft with their gear. Without the ways or means to do much else, they woodshed, developing the songs for their...

Perfect Circle (Small Beer Press).(books)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Seeing ghosts turns out to be the least of Will "Dead" Kennedy's problems in SEAN STEWART'S magical PERFECT CIRCLE (Small Beer Press). The psycho-thriller's 32-yearold alt-punk protagonist loses his crummy pet-store job, gets shot in the chest,...

Together We're Heavy.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Have these guys seen the news lately? It's not really the time for sunny optimism. Or maybe that's the point. Dallas's POLYPHONIC SPREE, led by ex-Tripping Daisy front man Tim De-Laughter, is a twenty-odd-member band that traffics in Sgt....

Corpus Christi.(book publishing)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... In the hands of South Texas native BRET ANTHONY JOHNSTON, human emotions are exotic beasts and CORPUS CHRISTI (Random House) is the zoo where he puts them all on display. The ten stories in this debut collection--all set in and around the...

Greg Ott, free: the philosophy graduate student who was convicted of killing a Texas Ranger in 1978 has finally been released and is getting on with his life.(Where Are They Now? Catching up with characters from our pages.)
July 1, 2004... Greg Ott had been on my mind since January, when I testified at his parole hearing, but until I saw him on May 25, just after he was released from prison, I had seriously doubted this day would ever come. He had been locked up for more than 26...

Apocalypse now: Dallas, the state's mecca of materialism, is the global epicenter of doomsday theology? The end may be nearer than we think.
July 1, 2004... The public-relations firm that Dallas recently hired to come with a catchy new slogan for the city probably won't pick "Athens of the Apocalypse." Even so, the only thing that sets Dallas apart from other American cities similarly replete with...

One school left behind: Austin's experimental Garza High rescues troubled kids and sends an overwhelming majority on to college. So why does George W. Bush's education reform law consider it a failure?(law)
July 1, 2004... Ellie McClain is exactly the kind of student George W. Bush's No Child Left Behind Act is supposed to rescue, a kid who was left behind from the get-go. Ellie's father went to prison soon after she was born and died of AIDS in 1994, when she...

The framing of Mario Medina? We may never know if a young American really murdered the editor of Nuevo Laredo's largest newspaper. In the Mexican criminal justice system, guilt is often beside the point.(court cases)
July 1, 2004... One thing I've learned as a journalist working on the border is that stepping into the space of a criminal investigation in Mexico can be something like entering the world of magical realism. I was reminded of this in May, when I arrived one...

Susan Combs: the 59-year-old state agriculture commissioner--and wanna be comptroller--on what a school-finance fix will really cost, what she's learned from ranching, and what it will be like to have a son fighting in Iraq.(Talks)
July 1, 2004... A big-picture question to begin: What's the state of state government? It's actually pretty good. Of course, there has been some anxiety about funding. But take the Agriculture Department: We were asked to cut 15 percent and we cut 18 percent,...

Them's fightin' words! From East Coast eggheads to English snobs and French peaceniks, the whole world's against Texas. They blame us for the president. They call us gun-toting, abstinence-promoting, capital-punishing cowboys. They think we're a bunch of hicks. Where we come from ...(Cover Story)
July 1, 2004... UNTIL AMERICA INVADED IRAQ, it was possible to go through life for long periods without falling victim to the Texas stereotype. Trips to New York could pass uneventfully, without anyone asking me why I didn't have an accent. A New England foray...

Peace be with you. And also with you. Unless you're gay. Last year, after the Episcopal Church installed its first openly homosexual bishop, a group of dissenters, led in part by conservative Texas clergymen, vowed to put up a fight. And did they ever. Will their new alliance destroy the 215-year-old denomination?
July 1, 2004... IN THE PRIESTHOOD OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH, the Reverend Canon David H. Roseberry has long been considered something of a prodigy. In 1985 he founded Christ Church in a Plano home with a mere 18 people and quickly built it into a powerhouse with...

Stop and smell the lavender: groves of olive trees of vineyards. Acres of vineyards. Herds of goats yielding tangy cheese. Is this Texas or the South of France? Nowadays, the foods and flavors of Provence can be found a lot closer to home. Here's where--plus recipes tres delicieuses.(locations)
July 1, 2004... It happened the first time I visited the South of France. My boyfriend and I were nuzzling our way through the countryside in a rented Renault when suddenly the same idea struck us like a bolt of summer lightning. Seldom had we felt so close,...

The magnificent seven: these Olympic hopefuls embody the best Texas values: hard work, perseverance, ambition, and a burning desire to get out of the state in August. Even if they don't all make it to Athens, we'll still think they're as good as gold.(Portfolio)
July 1, 2004... raasin MCINTOSH 22, TRACK AND FIELD (HURDLES), HOUSTON "I'm waiting in the shadows right now, but I'm ready. I'm ready to step up," says the University of Texas's Raasin McIntosh, whose debut as a hurdler was less than auspicious: She...

The unknown soldier: a year ago, newspapers reported that a 40-year-old staff sergeant from Corpus Christi had died in Iraq, the 239th U.S. fatality since the war began. But the story of Hector Perez doesn't end there.
July 1, 2004... THE FIRST time Elisa Perez ever feared for her life, she was taking a shower. It was an early April morning, more than a year ago. The warm water was spraying her face and neck when her chest began to pound. The bathroom spun and lost its...

Letters home: seventy-five Texans have died since the fighting began in Iraq. These are some of their last words.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... HAVE TO KEEP REMINDING myself that this is an actual war," wrote Second Lieutenant Jonathan Rozier, a recent graduate of Texas A&M's Corps of Cadets, to his wife in March from Kuwait, four months before he died. "This is history in the making....

Pat's pick: Julia's bistro.(The Dining Guide)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... On the outside, this Houston newcomer is black and white, inside--no joke--it's red all over: cherry, fire-engine, magenta, crimson, electric pink, and burnt orange. If that caffeinated color scheme doesn't wake you up, the menu will: With...

The dining guide.
July 1, 2004... POLICIES AND DEFINITIONS The Dining Guide is a service to our readers. The magazine accepts no advertising or other consideration in exchange for a listing. Reviews are written by resident critics in the cities that we list. The reviewers'...

Nice ice, baby.(Season's eatings: timely treats for your culinary calendar.)(La Paletera )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Forget sorbetto, gelato, and ice cream. Our new favorite summer cool-me-down is the paleta, Mexico's answer to the Popsicle. It's frosty and fruity and comes in dozens of flavors both familiar and exotic. Little known north of the border until...

2004 Texas Rising Stars: listed by primary area of practice.(Texas Rising Stars Super Lawyers[R])(Directory)
July 1, 2004... This listing should not be construed to mean a lawyer is a certified specialist in the indicated practice area. Page numbers with # indicate a profile on the specified page. ADMINISTRATIVE LAW Mendiola, III, Lino, Andrews Kurth, Austin...

Can same-sex partners adopt a child in Texas?(Texas Rising Stars Super Lawyers[R])(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Texas does not have any statutes that permit or prohibit same-sex adoptions statewide. It is one of 14 stares in which trial courts have granted second-parent adoptions to same-sex couples. In these cases, one partner is allowed to adopt the...

How is property divided after a divorce?(Texas Rising Stars Super Lawyers[R])(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Depending on the state, the courts will divide property based on schemes of community property owned equally) or equitable distribution (based on who the most.) Texas recognizes community property, which includes all earning during the marriage...

What is the safest way to give a young person money for the future?(Texas Rising Stars Super Lawyers[R])(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Under Texas Transfers to Minors Act, a guardian can be in charge a money gift until the minor turns 21, at which point it is automatically transferred to him or her. To ensure that the money is used for education, a better option is setting up...

How can owners share full property rights on a house?(Texas Rising Stars Super Lawyers[R])(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... To ensure a "right of survivorship" under Texas law, the owners need to take title in joint tenancy. The owners also must make a separate written agreement stating that they share ownership of the house in joint tenancy. Source: Texas...

At Sloan*Monsour, P.C. we pursue justice on behalf of our clients.(Texas Rising Stars Super Lawyers[R])(JOHN SLOAN AND DOUG MONSOUR)
July 1, 2004... JOHN SLOAN AND DOUG MONSOUR REPRESENT people who have suffered serious injuries at the hands of others. Serious injuries often affect every aspect of a person's life to include their careers, family and dignity The effects of a serious injury...

Arrivederci, melanoma: I've spent nearly sixty years in sun-drenched Texas--so why was I so surprised to see spots before my eyes?
July 1, 2004... I was just a small boy when our family dentist in Houston told my father it was imperative that he have his wisdom teeth taken out immediately. Fifty years later, my dad had them removed. My old-timer friend Earl Buckelew once told me he never...