My dad told tall tales.

He told me that he was in the field artillery in World War I. OK.

He told me that he was a track star who played football against Notre Dame. Maybe.

He told me that he built an ice hut one winter and cooked jackrabbits. Hmmm.

You can see where his credibility started to wane a bit.

But no matter what tall tale he told, Thomas Cummings Sr. was a hero in my eyes. (more)

... And I'm having an Uncle Rico moment: "How much you wanna make a bet I can kick a football into this video board?"

 

I've had an eye-opener of a week when it comes to bicycles.

My 10-year-old son, Beaumont, has a new bike. He might start riding it to his new school, which is a few blocks away.

First of all, a lot has changed since I stopped riding bikes nearly 40 years ago. I had to order my bike from a Sears catalog. It was a purple, banana-seat Huffy with racing slicks. I learned to ride it, going speeds of up to 30 mph in our hay pasture -- on my own.

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#Rip MJ #michaelJackson One of the first things I look at in the morning: Newseum's Page 1s. This morning, I had a greater interest -- to see how newspapers worldwide played the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett. Who did it the best? Check here. I'm still looking.

I wonder whether it's going to be tough to get to Facebook late Friday night. That's when you'll be able to get your own vanity Facebook URL.

That means as many as 200 million Facebook users will be making a land grab for their own customized URL (as an Oklahoman, I can appreciate these Sooners). That also means cybersquatting (I'm one to talk; I cybersquatted twitter.com/jasoncastro a few months ago before giving it back).

Will Facebook's servers crash? Who's going to get facebook.com/mcdonalds? What's the chatter on Twitter? 

 

Just heard great news on the new 3GS iPhones. I know the Onion has reported the concern that some people show for iPhones. Well, I know how they feel.

It looks like Archie Andrews has made his choice: Veronica Lodge over Betty Cooper. Who would you have picked?

It's like the classic Ginger or Mary Ann choice. Do you go for the aristocratic one or the wholesome one? Depending on how shallow my mood, I flip flop on this answer.

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You're heard it before. Force yourself to forget this rap.

I've gone to Sonic many times, and I'm torn by this burning question:

Do you tip?

Leave your comment below. Disguise your voice if you have to. Your secret is safe here.

 

On the way to Muskogee, Okla., Friday, the text alert came over my phone: Wayman Tisdale had died.

Suddenly, all the static that had been coursing through my head -- music on the radio/loose ends from work/rushing to see my son's wedding -- went mute.

I couldn't believe it. I had to read it again.

The news caused me to drift back more than a quarter century. As a young sports writer in eastern Oklahoma, I had crossed paths with Wayman several times. He was my first look at basketball greatness. He was a standard.

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