Truth in advertising

The insurance ad says, “It’s not just a vehicle; it’s who you are.” 

Studying my transportation options outside, I find I’m a good bit older than average, have a lot of body damage, not too fast, creak over the bumps, have dim eyes, emit foul odors and have questionable starting ability in cold weather.

Bladder cancer and me

I’ve been nagged over the years by a suspicion my heart was in danger of crashing. That very concern helped drive me to the doctor for a checkup in August. My heart passed various tests with flying colors, but there was another problem. As it turns out, I had a tumor in my bladder.

Cancer is something I never really considered as a threat, but in a few minutes one afternoon in early October, I went from thinking I was dealing with another kidney stone to facing cancer.

Let me address the big question quickly. There are still some questions remaining, but we hope the entire tumor was removed a couple of weeks ago. It seems likely I’ll go through the surgery again, but the jury’s still out on that. Once we’re confident all of it is gone, what follows is a regimen of treatments (to stifle further growths) and regular checkups designed to catch new tumors in the earliest stages. The survival rate for bladder cancer caught at this stage is very high.

Why am I telling you this? Because there were signs that should have alerted me to a possible problem, but I did not follow up on them because I thought I knew what was going on. I just knew in my heart I had a kidney stone.

My simple message: If you see blood in your urine, get it checked out.

If you know someone who might benefit from following my story, I have a page where I’m writing about it. The idea is to motivate to action and to alleviate concerns by explaining the process. You’ll find it at http://www.squidoo.com/bladder-cancer-and-me.

One final thought: I know many of you will feel you should write a quick note to me, and that’s fine. But more importantly, share with your friends the warning I’m sounding.

Baffled by DQ

I really like Dairy Queen. There's something comforting and down-home about the chain of restaurants.

The stores are usually locally owned (or do a great job of appearing to be) and they're operated with a sense of community. The food is consistent; you know what to expect wherever you are. They actually make malts when most places only offer shakes.

I've always loved the advertising slogan of the affiliation of stores in the Lone Star State, where they designate the red Dairy Queen logo as a "Texas stop sign."

The restaurant is such a fixture that I included it as an item on the A Small Town In Texas project.

But, then ...

With all that said, there is one negative thing ... equally consistent ... I simply cannot understand.

Why are Dairy Queen rest rooms so terrible?

I'm sure there are exceptions, but the memories of any I've encountered are obliterated by the vast majority of DQ rest rooms that are filthy.

I get it that Dairy Queen wants to be associated with memories of the good old days, but maybe it's OK to spark those memories with food and friendly service, trusting that a clean, modern rest room only enhances the experience.

Use the comment section to share your own stories and/or tell me I’m wrong.

Bad timing

Do you think McDonald's might be having a few regrets in Texas about its latest billboard campaign?

Should you not understand this because you're not up with current Texas events (or you're looking at an old entry), much of Texas, including the area where this was taken in Bryan, has been fighting record wildfires. The fire that caught the nation's attention, at Bastrop near Austin, was said last night to be only 30 percent contained, had burned 36,000 acres and destroyed 1,400 homes. Two fires near Bryan had burned 4,000 and 5,000 acres and consumed dozens of homes.

A Small Town in Texas

“I’m from a small town in Texas.” It’s become a cliché. Texans often compete over who came from or who lives in the smaller town.

Yet, there are people who do not understand what a small town is, that it is far more than simply being a community of few people. Furthermore, they might tend to lump small towns together, totally ignorant to the vast differences between Overton (population 2,350) and Port Aransas (3,370).

So, let’s help them out. If you have knowledge of one or more small towns in Texas, I beg your participation in an ambitious project I’ve kicked off called, naturally, “A Small Town in Texas.”

Its origin is rooted in a long-ago desire to put together a travel book using local recommendations for local dining places. I’ve visited too many great cafes that I would not have entered without the word of a local resident. Now, with the power of the Internet and social communities, I’ve taken the idea past restaurants to ask Texans to tell the world about their little towns.

If you have information or opinions about one or more small towns in Texas, please pitch in. I began with populations of about 5,000 or smaller and have used only incorporated towns. I do not mind using slightly larger towns and will include unincorporated communities as things go along.

At this moment, I have 59 pages built for towns ranging from Port Isabel in the southern tip of the state to Texline and Sanford in the Panhandle, from Anthony near El Paso to Hemphill near the Sabine River.

Start at www.squidoo.com/a-small-town-in-texas and find your towns on the list. Click through and participate. You may identify yourself if you wish or you may remain anonymous. Tell us the neat things about the town. Be sure to vote in the Speed Trap poll. Each town even has comment areas to list or talk about the good things for which the town is known and even the not-so-good things. Fill in the gaps on the page about schools, fire department, shopping, etc., and, by all means, suggest what else should be added.

If you do not find your town listed, go to the bottom of the page – “Where to, buddy?” – and tell me what town should be added next.

ONE MORE THING ... Please spread the word to your friends. The more, the merrier.

By the way, this is my first mention of the pages to anyone, so you’re getting in on the ground floor. That is, you have a lot of information you may add.

Madness fun

Are you ready for some NCAA basketball tournament Madness?

A Texas Voice is sponsoring a somewhat different approach to the traditional tournament bracket pick’em contest. I’ve set it up under Yahoo’s fantasy sports and have named the group Crazy Brackets.

No longer funny

Face it, Charlie Sheen is toast ... and so should be his career.

We are family

You have surely heard about the killer earthquake Tuesday in Christchurch, New Zealand. Media outlets in the U.S. have given the story some play over these first several hours, though that will likely die down rather quickly, particularly if things in Libya continue to deteriorate/accelerate.

Valentine code

I stumbled across an article on MarieClaire.com that purports to decode what particular Valentine’s Day gifts really mean.

Stop the hate speech

Information about the shooting of U.S. Rep Gabrielle Giffords was slow getting to me Saturday. Instead of monitoring news, I was nursing a cold with old movies, sports and frequent naps.

Therefore, by the time I heard about the killing of six and wounding of more than a dozen in Tucson, there were plenty of people already pointing fingers.

What's that?

Though I kept telling myself it was the same thing and I knew the rewards could greatly outweigh the inconveniences, there remained years and years of delays, excuses and procrastination.

When I was 12, the school nurse told my mother about my poor eyesight. In short order, I was wearing glasses from the time I rolled out of bed until my head hit the pillow at night. Minor changes to my life paid great dividends in being able to see clearly.

When I was somewhere in my 40s, I became aware of the fact I could not hear as well in my right ear as my left. Instead of promptly addressing my hearing loss and getting a hearing aid, I made adjustments.