It was 60 years ago today.
I wonder what they are thinking at the former U.N. Ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley campaign this morning. See this from CNN:
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley lost the non-binding Nevada GOP primary to “none of these candidates,” according to a CNN projection, an option voters have to express their dissatisfaction with all of the candidates on the ballot. Donald Trump did not compete in Tuesday’s primary and he was not on the ballot.
None of these got 63%, Haley got 31%, but please send her more campaign dough. Oh, brother.
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U.S. House Democrats could probably give their GOP colleagues tips on how to go about impeaching folks. Just saying.
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Off the Kuff has a take today on the Harris Central Appraisal District (HCAD) Board of Directors elections here:
HCAD candidate filing update
Posted on February 7, 2024 by Charles Kuffner
Hey, remember how I said I was going to check and see if we had any candidates for those newly to-be-elected positions on the HCAD Board of Trustees? Well, I checked, and as of yesterday afternoon no one had applied for any of the three positions as yet. The filing deadline is 5 PM on Friday, February 16, so there is still time. I also checked to see if the HCDP was working on making sure that interested folks knew about this and was told yes, that is happening. I’ll check again next week and let you know what answer I get at that time. Maybe there’ll be some news coverage of this between now and then. In the meantime, go see that first link if you yourself want to apply.
Stay tuned.
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The Astros and Jose Altuve agreed on a contract extension. Altuve is signed through 2029. Now go get Alex Bregman an extension.
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It was 60 years ago today that the Beatles came to America when they landed at JFK International Airport, and the rest is history. John Lennon and Ringo Starr were 23 years old; Paul McCartney was 21 and George Harrison 20.
February 7, 1964, was a Friday and we were all anxiously anticipating their Sunday evening appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show on our black and white TV.
73 million folks in America watched the Beatles on the evening of Sunday, February 9, 1964. That was about 40% of the US population at the time.
They played “All My Loving,” “Till There Was You,” “She Loves You,” “I Saw Her Standing There,” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand.”
Commentary was a sixth grader and 11 years old back then. Folks know the Beatles were a major influence on me growing up. At their peak, I went from a sixth grader to a senior in high school. They were the soundtrack of my life. I bought all their albums and singles when they were released. I had Beatles posters. The “White Album” also came with a poster and four individual photographs of each Beatle that I still have.
Every album got better, different, original, pushing the envelope, going where no one had gone before – “A Hard Day’s Night,” “Help,” “Rubber Soul,” “Revolver,” “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” “The White Album,” and “Abbey Road.” You get the picture.
I remember watching the flicks “A Hard Day’s Night” and “Help” at the old Brunson Theater in Baytown. I went to H-Town movie theaters to see “Let It Be” on the big screen when it was released. Same for the “Concert for Bangladesh.”
I saw George Harrison and Ravi Shankar in concert in 1974 at the Tarrant County Convention Center in Fort Worth. I still have the program that they handed out that night. Also performing was Billy Preston and Tom Scott.
I saw Paul McCartney and Wings in 1976 at the Summit and McCartney again in Dallas in 2002, and at Toyota Center in 2005.
I have their albums and albums of their individual works from all of them. CDs and DVDs. I have books on the Beatles. I have gear including a lid, ski cap, short and long sleeve t-shirts, socks, and a windbreaker. I drink my coffee out of large mugs and have four Beatles mugs in my morning rotation. I also have Beatles glassware.
I have a framed poster of the lyrics to “All My Life.” I have a framed hanging that just says, “Let it Be.” I have the Beatles Monopoly game, a Beatles Trivial Pursuit, Beatles playing cards, a Beatles jigsaw puzzle, Beatles Christmas tree ornaments, and two Beatles lunch boxes.
I know I am leaving something out. Oh, yeah, the miniature guitar in the featured photo.
I was sad when they announced they were breaking up in 1970. I was stunned and devastated when I learned John Lennon was murdered in 1980. My heart broke when George Harrison left us in 2001.
I think I have mentioned this before. Every now and then when I am out and wearing Beatles gear, a person will point at my gear and say something like “great band.” If they are younger than me, I will respond with “how many are still alive.” I will get an occasional uh, uh, uh.
The Beatles certainly had a profound impact on my life and on the lives of quite a few million Americans, I am guessing. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
