Can you remember a VEEP pick that's attracted this much attention? Sen Barack Obama is very likely to announce it this week - via e-mail. Supporters who sign up on his website will be some of the first to know as soon as he makes the decision public. The Democratic convention will start next week in Denver, and while Obama and his family have been vacationing in Hawaii, his opponent Sen McCain has been touting the senior senator's foreign policy experience. Pretty easy to do, given all the interest in the Russian-Georgia conflict. Regardless, Sen Obama will get back in the fray as soon as he sends out one long-awaited text message! He spoke to a VFW group today. Sen McCain spent the day on an off-shore oil rig. We'll have the latest at 5pm on News 8.

 

Highs in the low 80s??  Lows in the Mid 70s?? In Texas? In August? This is bizarre. My wife and I took our three kids to a swim park in Carrollton over the weekend, and it was actually CHILLY. Wow. Pete says we can expect more scattered rain over the next few days. And then there's Tropical Storm Fay approaching Florida...probably won't affect us much. But this is a strange month.

So the 5-day war seems to be over now with a cease-fire holding between Russia and Georgia. Or is it still simmering? Depends on the source of information. US humanitarian efforts are now in full swing, and an international court is considering Russia's alleged 'ethnic cleansing' in this conflict. So Russia wants to "crack down" on the old Soviet empire, and yet at the same time be recognized by the West as a legitimate world power, free of humanitarian violations. Is it hypocritical? 

And at the same time, Russian and Georgian beach volleyball players squared off against each other at the Olympics! Amazing. Georgia won, by the way.

Wow. How about that 100m relay last night! The French team had been talkin smack and the Americans took em to task. Amazing finish. yes I know it's on one of the "other" stations. But still. This is the Olympics.  Will Phelps win all 8 golds? I personally much prefer the Summer Games, and I'm looking forward to Track & Field. This is great TV.

Today at 5pm on WFAA, we'll have more on the investigation into the horrible bus crash last week in Sherman, and another snake has escaped from Moody Gardens! Plus - will we get some 'heat relief' in the form of rain?

Ok I've been off the map for a week. Mea Culpa. August is brutal if you're not in Montana, Right?  Hydrate, Hydrate.

This bus tragedy in Sherman is devastating. At least 13 people killed and 40 more injured. All the victims were traveling from Houston to Missouri for a religious gathering this weekend. We have several crews covering the tragedy. One problem for the hospital is finding adequate interpreters to convey information between the medical staff and victims.

Have any questions about the pending switch from analog to digital TV? We'll have engineers staffing our phone bank today on News 8 @ 5.  You can make sure you're ready.

Anyone have a good idea on how to keep the family entertained AND COOL this weekend? Maybe Hurricane Harbor, maybe a movie. Maybe something else. We need ideas at the Brady House!

Do you like clowns? Other than TV news anchors, I mean. Well guess what? Ringling Bros - Barnum& Bailey are in town at the AAC! My wife and I took two of our kids last night, and we all loved it! I was even the guest RingLeader/RingMaster on behalf of WFAA. Lotta tigers, elephants, jumping dogs and trapeeze folk. The circus is the circus and even in this age of advanced CGI movies and 400-channel TV surfing, it's fun to know that an age-old form of entertainment still thrives.

Also - did you know now Garland has a case of Crypto? And Barack Obama's in Texas today. And Exxon-Mobile made more money in the 2nd quarter of this year than any company - EVER! We'll have those stories and a lot more today on News 8!

Wanna talk back to the TV? Wanna comment on a Channel 8 news story? Well guess what - now you can!!  Today we've added a pretty cool feature to the
WFAA website that allows viewers to upload comments on specific stories, read other comments, and basically have an on-line dialogue. You can critique us, suggest a follow-up or another person for us to interview. Or just rant!

Also - have you heard Plano-based Benigans is SHUTTING DOWN? Yep the whole company. We'll have that story on today at 5... and we're also looking into a popular private school in Grand Prairie that's closing the door permanently - St. Andrew's Episcopal School. Teachers have been educating kiddos there for 44 years. But no more classes after August 15th... 

The dreaded trips. Triple digit heat. Ugh. Day in, day out. With little relief in sight. How do you people cope with it? Go to Montana? Stay indoors. Crank up the A/C? Today we're talking to seniors on a fixed income who have very little flexibility when it comes to paying that high electric bill. I think I should change into flip-flops and shorts before I leave the newsroom...

This social media phenom is amazing. Several people have told me I should Twitter. I'm gonna pitch a story in our newsroom on the Twitter trend.  I need suggestions / tips / examples of how different companies / families / groups have used Twitter to keep in contact. Any ideas?

Is anyone ELSE suffering from sleep deprivation? Wow. I am. Staying up late to handle the checkbook, clean up the kitchen and handle e-mails... is just NOT a good idea. We have three young children, and the youngest ones ALWAYS get up early (6ish).  Still.. it's a BIG news day. We had an armed robbery outside a Wells Fargo bank in South Dallas this morning, and now it sounds like a hostage situation in Irving that we're following for our noon newscast. News never stops... sleep deprivation or not!