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Good work if you can keep it

 The non-profit news site Texas Tribune apparently has unleashed a data-based investigation that has a lot of jaws flapping in the Lone Star State.

 Headed by former Texas Monthly editor-in-everything, New Yorker Evan Smith, the Tribune has an easy-to-use data grabber on which you can find the salaries of your local school superintendent or any in the rest of Texas. Hats off to the Tribune’s Matt Stiles and Brian Thevenot for an enlightening report.

 The information unleashed especially has many a neck reddening down here in Beaumont where it is little or no surprise that our sometimes controversial Beaumont ISD Superintendent Dr. Carroll Thomas is the state’s highest paid school executive.

 Thomas makes a very comfortable $324,212 per year. I would say what is most interesting about his salary is that it is earned for overseeing a district with 13,309 students.  The top four highest-paid supes following Thomas all have salaries in the 300 grand range. They oversee Fort Worth ISD (79,285 enrollment), Dallas ISD (157,352), Alief (45,230), and Houston (200,225 students).

 It seems much is made from other media using the Tribune’s information of “per-student” figures, the amount of dollars in salary per student, of each school leader. Maybe I am missing it, but I have yet to find much real significance in those figures other than in the “Gee Whiz” factor. The fact is a number of schools with smaller enrollments sometimes pay fairly handsome salaries to superintendents which would tend to skew the per-student number. Superintendent Fernando Castillo runs the Progreso ISD in the Rio Grande Valley’s Hidalgo County. The district has an enrollment of  2, 150 and Fernando draws a salary of $208,566. Thus, Castillo has a $97-per student figure while Daniel King who is superintendent of Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD in the same county “earns” $7 per student with his enrollment of 30,618.

 A total of 214 superintendents who run schools ranging from 500-2,500 students are paid salaries ranging from the high $99,000s to more than $46,000. Those are actually some of the lower paid supes in the state.

 While some of the salaries seem out of whack, especially when looking at enrollment, they also have to be seen in context. Texas has what I consider to be an inequitable school academic grading system. On the other hand, there are a lot of things I would do different if I was the King of Texas.

 Socioeconomics also have to be figured into a rating a school in the state’s “accountability system.” Thus, a superintendent’s ability in ensuring that a school has a tolerable rating many times has to be seen through the lens of the racial and economic make up of a district’s students. For instance, Beaumont’s Thomas heads a school with a majority minority population that has improved its grade from “Academically Acceptable” to “Recognized.” The latter is the second highest of six accountability ratings the state pulled out of its a** uses.

 Of course, Thomas has detractors who accuse him of everything from cronyism to worse.

 I should be more involved and aware of our local school system. But I have no kids in school. I am more worried about the federal government, city government and state government, in that order. So I will leave it to those who support Thomas, racists who hate him because he is black, or those who have anywhere from a modicum of sense to brilliance who do not think Thomas is doing a good job but aren’t likely to lynch him.

 This I will say. There are a whole group of professions with people who make very tidy sums of money because they have difficult jobs that are very often looked at by the public with a keen eye and scrutinized by an elected board of officials of whom  every decision is a political one. This group include school superintendents, high school football coaches (I suspect some in Texas make more money than superintendents), city managers and police and fire chiefs in urban areas.

 Is Carroll Thomas worth the sum of money he is paid and which makes him the highest paid school chief in Texas? I don’t know. I think, honestly, the only way to say is to look at his record once he is replaced. But I know I wouldn’t want his job. I wouldn’t want the job of Beaumont West Brook head coach Craig Stump. Nor would I want the jobs of the Beaumont fire chief Anne Huff and police chief Frank Coffin. I wouldn’t mind if Beaumont’s city manager got a better-paying job elsewhere. But that’s another story for another time.

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There is a remote chance I won't watch much TV tonight

 Since I got home from work an hour ago on this cold and rainy day, I have spent most of my time trying to program my TV remote control.

 I never can remember when reprogramming the remote. Is it the on and off button? The TV button? Play, forward, reverse. I did get the remote to cut the ‘vision on and off and to control the volume. Now if I could just get the channels to change. I mean, I wouldn’t  have that big a problem getting up to cut the TV on and off. But changing channels, that’s a (1 horse (2 house or (3 hose of a different color. I don’t know how many channels I have, not hundreds, but more than enough. And I like to flip through them.

 Now I don’t have any problem with just leaving TV for one night, or at least until I get another remote or fix this one (Anyone know how to troubleshoot an RCA Universal 3-device remote Model No.RCR311ST?)I’ve got three books I plan to read over the next couple of weeks. Unfortunately, none of them are repair manuals for that particular RCA remote.

 Oh well, if it isn’t one thing Roseanne Roseannadanna, it’s another.

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I am I said helps Hurricane Ike victims

Did you ever read about a frog who dreamed of being a king and then became one? Well, no. Not that I can recall.

Neil Diamond may have thrown out some esoteric lines in songs he has written over the past however many decades, as in the lines above from “I am I said.” This makes me wonder, in reality, I am, I said? No, I guess I am not I didn’t say. He was, he said. But he said he was. Oh well, you can’t always hit a home run.

I have pretty much liked Neil Diamond’s music since the 1960s. Some of his songs sound better sung by others such as “Solitary Man” rendered by Chris Issak. And, of course,  Diamond’s “I’m a Believer” just isn’t believable if it isn’t done by the Monkees. Nevertheless, even though millions of younger people may say “who?” when mentioning Neil Diamond, he is, I say, a very durable entertainer.

What gives entertainers additional, or perhaps some will say, I said, true worth, is what they do beyond writing and singing songs, playing pro basketball or hosting a talk show. I’m just saying. I said. Diamond’s worth has probably risen considerably by some of my neighbors lately. When I say neighbors, I said, I mean people who live in my neck of the woods, or Gulf Coast. The point is Diamond has used money from merchandise sold at his concerts to build 12 homes for families who lost theirs’ during Hurricane Ike last year.

Tommorow, a couple who live on the Ike-ravaged Oak Island –north of the Bolivar Peninsula — will move into the first home to be built thanks to Diamond’s largess. Diamond has a history of helping others and decided to assist those whose homes had been obliterated last year when Ike struck.

So say what you will about Neil Diamond and his songs. I like a lot of his songs and have for years. But it’s nice to hear of someone putting their talents into something really worthwhile.

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When rude robots attack

Today turned out to be even stranger than the day before.

No, my truck wasn’t struck by a flying condom traveling down the freeway like I believe it to have been yesterday. Also, nowhere did I see Houston Mayor-Elect Annise Parker being all Christmasy by donning her gay apparel. Sorry, I just had to use that one. I didn’t see Houston’s first openly gay mayor-elect yesterday either although I mentioned her in this venue.

But the top of my windshield or edge of my truck’s roof did get struck by a brick-sized chunk of what appeared to be concrete as I drove home from Houston to Beaumont on Interstate 10. The piece of whatever it was just seemed to come out of nowhere. It reminded me of a similar incident that I wrote of here. There were plenty of big trucks in the three lanes ahead of me so the chunkaroid could have come from one of them. I wasn’t close to any overpasses, which is good because I am concerned about having an overpass collapse on top of me. I mean, I’m not obsessed with the thought, but with the state of our infrastructure these days you have to keep on your toes. People who are psychopathic or who otherwise have nothing to do occasionally will likewise throw objects onto vehicles from overpasses. I just threw that in to scare the hell out of you.

The strangest part of my day happened as I stood waiting for an elevator at the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Hospital in Houston. A veteran who appeared to be fairly disabled and was traveling in a rather speedy wheelchair was kind enough to physically accompany me to MRI after I had asked a VA employee in the hospital how to get there. I had been there before and would have eventually found it but this considerate man insisted on showing me how to get there. It was as this gentleman and I were standing at the elevator that a robot rolled silenty up behind us and told us to move so it could get on the elevator.

It turns out this is one of the robots the hospital purchased in 2004. The hospital bought two of the so-called “Helpmate” robots which were named “Jewels” and “King Tut.” I’m sure there is a cute story behind the names. Oh well. The robots are basically rolling couriers that can deliver up to 200 pounds of medications and supplies to different locations in the hospital. They are programmed with a map of the hospital. When they encounter an obstacle such as today, they also have the ability to announce — in either English or Spanish — that something is in the way and then ask that the obstacle be removed.

robot

 With the disabled fellow and I being the obstacle, I found this walking, talking storage cabinet to be rather imperious. But the way things have been going for me lately, I figured if I said anything the robot might have done something like zap me with death rays. Even if it didn’t I don’t think it is wise to cross a robot with an attitude.

Here is an update for those interested in the reason for my visit to the hospital. I met with the neurologist who turned out to be a good listener. We went over my blood work drawn and analyzed earlier this week as well as previous blood tests, for readings of areas which could indicate a cause for my neuropathy. None of the markers, including thyroid function, were  abnormal with the exception for those tests that might indicate diabetes.

Despite my primary doctors saying I was a “near-borderline” diabetic although not fully over the line, an analysis found that my last test showed a somewhat high reading and an average of the last three tests indicated a bit higher reading than normal. The higher readings appeared to coincide with a very unnerving weight gain over the last six to eight months that my former internist said could have been due to some medicines I am taking.

The doctor also took note that I had been experiencing a shooting low back and hip pain which could indicate a pinched nerve, hence my trip to MRI this morning for an appointment which will be next month to get images of my back.

As I await tests the doctor is adjusting the Lyrica I am taking for the neuropathy and I must seriously begin dieting, no small feat at Christmas season, to see if diabetes or another reason is causing my pain.

I was frank but diplomatic with the doctor in saying that with about a third of the cases like mine being caused by diabetes, I was concerned about a physician just seeing some numbers and immediately focusing on that disease as the cause rather than some of the hundred others. And he indicated that he understood my concern.

So, I go into the holiday season still not knowing what’s interrupting my life but perhaps a little closer to finding out some answers, or not. As for now, I think I’ll be okay if I don’t have dreams tonight about pushy robots.

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Musings in the former shadow of the Astrodome

 Maybe in days long ago one could say I was sitting in the shadow of the Astrodome. But not these days.

 I am spending the night in what’s meant to be an extended stay motel, mostly for people who have family or are receiving treatment at the nearby Texas Medical Center. I saw the Astrodome when I drove up Fannin but it is mostly dwarfed these days by Reliant Stadium and the Reliant Center kind of blocks all the shadow of the ‘Dome these days.

 As for my lodging, I am impressed. It’s a nice, clean little room with pots and pans and an electric range on which to cook and of course your microwave, coffee maker, a two-slice toaster medium sized refrigerator-freezer, TV, chair and bed. That about does it.

 The Homestead Houston Medical Center-Reliant Center’s room is not the more-than-I-needed suite at the Residence Inn by Marriott in Bethesda where I twice stayed while taking training courses for my part-time job. But for $41 and some change for tonight it’s a steal.

 Yes, $41-something. I decided to take a chance on Hotwire.com. This place showed up at around $55 per night on all the other travel sites. But with taxes and “recovery fees” (whatever that is) the total came to about $75. That’s why I double checked with the hotel to make sure I had the room at the stated price. If I don’t go all berserk and throw the refrigerator out of the window it might just work out. Hey, hotel people — if you are reading this — I’m just making a point. I forgot what it is though.

 It has been a foggy, rather mundane day. The fog and rain on the I-10 drive to Houston wasn’t too bad. About the only weird thing that happened is that some kind of synthetic-type material blew from out of nowhere and landed on my antenna. I don’t want to gross anyone out but it was covered with streaks of mud and, it looked to me at least, kind of like a condom. Perhaps it was a condom that made it through Hurricane Ike. Some people got antenna balls. I got rubber balls, bouncy bouncy. Fortunately, it didn’t stay long.

 Tomorrow I’ll see another neurologist at the VA. At least it won’t be a long trip, maybe a half-mile. I sure hope this doctor can put me on a path of either figuring out what is causing my neuropathy or not. As I think I have mentioned before, even if I don’t find out the cause then I can start developing a plan to live with this “nerve disease” as one diagnosis put it. This thing has interrupted my life. I tried to not let it. But so much for plans.

 And I’ve got arthritis coming from out of the woodwork. It must be the weather. I was hoping to meet up with my old high school friend and neighbor, Patti. But I don’t really feel up to going out now. That all pretty much sucks, if you know what I mean.

 Oh, I drove into a foggy Houston this afternoon on the day after the city elected it’s first lesbian mayor. At least, the first acknowledged gay person. And guess what happened? I didn’t get propositioned by hordes of gay guys once or not one gay person sneaked up upon me with intentions of kidnapping me for a “queer-eye for the straight guy” makeover.  Even though, I could really use a makeover. But I’m sure if some kind of calamity happens in Houston that the Rev. Pat Robertson will blame it on the citizenry having elected Annise Parker to lead the nation’s fourth-largest city.