Playing for the homeless

Have you ever heard of the band Junes Not Faking? They're a local group, and they're doing something pretty cool downtown.

Every other month, the band Junes Not Faking (JNF) has been playing a free concert to homeless people under the Commerce Street Bridge in downtown San Antonio.

The idea is to give something back to the community, said Jeff Lopez, lead guitarist, singer and manager for the group.

“We started to play the free concerts after the start of the New Year,” Lopez said. “I got the idea after watching an interview with one of the band members from one of my favorite bands, Blink 182.”

Lopez also credits Blink 182 as one of the musical inspirations for the band. JNF does more than just provide an afternoon of free entertainment to who ever shows up at the concert.

“Before we go to do the gig, we put whatever cash we have together and make a bunch of sandwiches and get as much soda and bottled water as we can,” said Lopez. “All we're trying to do is give a little something back.”

(from the Southside Reporter)

Rock the Bridge.

Absolutely nothing going on today

What's the attraction of local news casts? Local news, right? Surely something is going on in this town to warrant some kind of news story, even on a Sunday. Isn't there?

Not according to WOAI-TV. Here's a screen cap taken at about 3:45 p.m. on Sunday, November 8, 2009:



And here are the datelines for the stories listed above (I've skipped the sports scores and movie reviews):

"Complete Doppler radar coverage" -- San Antonio (This is the only local story)

"Doctors look for better ways to uncover heart attacks" -- Philadelphia

"5-foot snake missing after wreck" -- Troup, Texas

"Cockroaches wanted for good cause" -- West Palm Beach, Florida

"Jack Ruby's hat sells for $53,775 at Texas auction" -- Dallas

"Dad busts teen daughter for growing pot in her bedroom" -- Troy, Michigan

"Officer accused of spanking hanky-panky" -- Ocoee, Florida

"Microchipping pets only works if owner's info is accurate" -- San Jose, California


Yep, nothing newsworthy going on in this town on a Sunday. Check back tomorrow. Maybe something will be happening then.

Everywhere a sign

Dave at Silver Creek 78250 has some examples of signs that are puro San Antonio. One is refreshing in what you hope is its honesty, and the other is disappointing on its surface because the maker seems to think there are just so many people out there that would believe him. Sadly, some would believe that sign, but I hope not at many as the signmaker thinks.

Caring for a killer

That psycho jihadist is in town, and he's receiving the best care the Army can provide.

SAN ANTONIO – Army officials say the accused shooter from Fort Hood is now at Brooke Army Medical Center.

He was transferred from the Scott and White Hospital in Temple on Friday. He arrived in San Antonio around 3:30 p.m.

A Brooke Army hospital spokesperson says Maj. Nidal Hasan is in stable condition. Hasan was taken to BAMC because it's the only Level 1 trauma center in the Army, according to officials.

(from WOAI-TV)

All on the taxpayer dime.

Nice shot

Is shopping in heels strange? Maybe so, maybe not. Whatever the case, I sure like this shot that Shorty over at San Antonio Daily Photo took in her local grocery store.

Gettin' Hatfields and McCoys on the Northeast Side

This sounds interesting.

"We believe that some violent confrontation is going to happen," said Rick Thomas, one of the neighbors involved in the feud.

"I don't know why he attacks me," added Jim Rudd, another neighbor involved in the feud.

Thomas and Rudd said that their neighbor, who KSAT 12 News is not identifying, flashes them with his truck headlights and a high-powered spotlight at night.

The unidentified neighbor has also carved the words "bite me" with his lawn mower onto his lawn, placed nails in the greenbelt and scattered beer and soda cans on his yard, Thomas and Rudd said.

"He has told me on several occasions that he was going to kill my service dogs," said Rudd, who claims to be a fully disabled veteran.

"The worst thing is he's been seen with the beer cans in his underwear, exposing himself," Thomas said.

(from KSAT-12)

Of course, we're not getting all sides in this story. If I remember to turn the TV on later, I might just watch this segment.

Unfortunate juxtaposition

When WOAI includes a "Watch" tag next to the headlines for its online news stories, that's a link that takes you to the video of that particular story.

I know that.

But still, when that tag is put next to a headline that contains language like that highlighted below, I can't help feeling a little creeped out.



I gave you a screen capture because I'm sure someone will notice that and correct it.

"Would-Be Craigslist Buyer Shot"

Be careful when meeting people to finalize a deal on Craigslist. Or at least be licensed.

Maymi Russell posted a listing to sell a camera on Craigslist, but he decided to do some research on Facebook on the potential buyer, Sammy Villa, before meeting him, said Sgt. Chris Benavides, a San Antonio Police Department spokesman.

When Russell arrived at behind an IHOP Monday afternoon to make the transaction, he saw a man who motioned Russell to finish the transaction, Benavides said.

Russell noticed something was wrong when two other men approached him. Moments later, they demanded the camera from him, Benavides said.

But Russell, who is licensed to carry a weapon, pulled out a gun and shot Villa, Benavides said. The two other men, John McFarland and Cameron McFarland, took off but were later arrested.

(from KSAT-12)

Bonus strangeness: the name "Maymi." But good on him for being aware of his surroundings. He kept himself from being a victim.

"Manu Undergoes Rabies Shots"

That's not something you hear said about one of your star basketball players just every day!

SAN ANTONIO -- Two days after swatting a bat that was flying around the AT&T Center during Saturday night's game against the Sacramento Kings, Spurs shooting guard Manu Ginobili confirmed that he is undergoing rabies shots as a precaution.

Ginobili showed up at the team's practice facility Monday afternoon with a bandage on his arm and acknowledged that he had started a round of rabies vaccinations. He underwent a series of five shots, and will have to undergo seven to 10 more shots over the next month.

"It was pretty funny at the time, but now it's not," Ginobili told reporters Monday.

(from KSAT-12)

Well, that's what you get for playing with bats.

Boo!

It's Halloween in San Antonio. Time for some scary stories.

Thankfully, the Express-News has a good roundup of goosebump-rendering stories that get told and retold in the Alamo City, including such classics as Midget Mansion, the Donkey Lady, La Llorona, the chicken-footed man in the dance hall (which I remember being called El Cameroncito, or something like that), and, of course, the thoroughly discredited yet widely believed tale of the ghost children at the railroad tracks.

Read and enjoy. And have a great Halloween!

Clumsy robber

Sometimes the bad guys make it so easy for the cops.

Police say Michael Kern, 18, was one of three men who attempted to rob a man at knifepoint Oct. 24 at an apartment complex in the 8700 block of Fredericksburg Road.

The victim said he was walking his dog when Kern and two others approached and repeatedly asked for the time, the affidavit says. One of the other men pulled a knife on the victim, who started running.

Investigators discovered Kern’s wallet on the ground next to a vehicle. The victim saw the photo and said, “That’s him,” identifying Kern.

(from the Express-News)

Chupacabra!

This time, it's near Houston! (Of course, there's passing mention of chupacabra sightings around here.)

SPRING, Texas—Paul Stuart drives down Gosling Road near Woodlands Parkway almost every day, but it’s not every day that he encounters a legendary beast. But Stuart says it happened, and it was so unbelievable that he immediately pulled out his video camera and began to record.

“When I rolled down the window and looked at it, it was very unusual,” he said. “Boys, that’s a chupacabra right there.”

...

But what makes Stuart’s story unique is that chupacabra sightings usually happen in Mexico or other parts of Texas—not here in the Houston area.

“This rare sighting certainly resembles what other people report as being a chupacabra,” said Stuart.

Keith Crenshaw, an urban biologist with Texas Parks and Wildlife, said there is no such thing as a chupacabra. After viewing Stuart’s video, he said he knew exactly what the unusual animal was.

“It’s a coyote. It’s a coyote. No doubt,” said Crenshaw.

Crenshaw said the coyote had a very serious case of mange, and proper authorities need to be alerted.

(from KENS-5)

And the chupacabra was quoted as saying: I'z in ur state, xpandin mah reech.

Lyin' about the chupacabra

Alan at Blogonomicon watches a History channel show about a wolf-like beast from Eighteenth Century France, and he's disgusted. He even turns the show off halfway through. But, the important thing is that there is a San Antonio connection in the show (and you knew there had to be one)! Unfortunately, though, the guy from the Alamo City is a bit of an embarrassment.

The two guys on this show were some alleged cryptozoologist from San Antonio and a police profiler from somewhere else.

My first complaint: their conversations were obviously scripted. Either that, or they both have the most monotonous and un-modulated voices I have ever heard.

But the big complaint, and the one which made me turn it off and give up before even the 30-minute mark, was a blatant lie.

The so-called crypto guy was trying to show the police guy that some odd creatures may be out there, so he used some search engine (not Google) to hunt down the Cuero "chupacabra." He gave the police guy a brief synopsis of the case, and then said something like, "scientists still have not been able to determine what it was."

False. False false false false false.

Alan's right. That was a coyote, possibly a coyote/wolf mix, that the woman in Cuero found and was trying to insist that it might be a chupacabra. But of course no amount of DNA tests are ever going to convince someone who wants to believe in chupacabras to consider another possibility. So, we get guys like that on the History channel shows.

By the way, whatever happened to the History channel? They used to have such cool shows about actual history. Nowadays we seem to keep getting weird stuff from those guys. Oh well, there's still the Military History channel.

The Crucible?

Modern-day cult, or modern-day witch hunt?

According to an arrest warrant affidavit, Rosseau teaches middle school "science, keyboarding, and bible classes at a local Christian-based school. The affidavit states that a third teen reported she was asked by two other girls to join a 'secret society' call the "Order" which was based on the occult, magic, Freemasonry, and Christianity. The girl was told by the pair that to be a member of the society, she would have to be 'intimate' with the director, identified as Rosseau, in order to establish trust.

The girl said she met with Rosseau at the home of one of the other girls but refused to join the group. She was reportedly later told that Rosseau was receiving pressure from his superiors to have her submit to him.

Police were informed about the incidences after the girl got into an argument with classmates at school about revealing that Rosseau might be having sex with the two other girls. After police were told the girl had been in contact with Rosseau through computer chat room emails, police obtained permission from the girl's family to collect her home computer.

According to the arrest warrant affidavit, both of the other two girls initially denied having sex with Rosseau as well as the existence of the 'Order' when questioned by police. However, one of the girls later told her parents and police that she had been engaged in a sexual relationship with Rosseau for 10 months. She said she too had been recruited into the 'Order' by a friend and was told she should demonstrate her trust and strict adherence to the society by having sex with Rosseau. She told police that the friend who had recruited her had been having sex with Rosseau since 2007.

(from WOAI-TV)

I'm not sure what to think.

Gettin' Pee-wee in Von Ormy

Von Ormy, Bexar County's newest little town (pop. 1,300), is apparently big enough to support an adult theater. And at least one constable is reported to be an enthusiastic fan.

The three men, 73-year-old Lee Roy Tondre, 54-year-old Jose Terrasas, and 47-year-old Donald Allison, were arrested at the Twin Theatre in the 12,000 block of Fischer Road in Von Ormy after undercover deputies reportedly found them masturbating inside one of the theaters.

According to deputies, Terrases is the Reserve Chief Deputy Constable Precinct #2.

(from WOAI-TV)

"Prized Angora Rabbits Killed"

Bad day to be a rabbit in San Antonio.

SAN ANTONIO -- Lupita Rocha is bracing for what she has to tell her brother when Pedro Gonzalez returns from out of town on Sunday. Six of his 14 beloved Angora rabbits were stabbed to death, according to San Antonio Police. A seventh will survive, but because of its other injuries, Rocha said a veterinarian has told her it is now paralyzed.

Rocha also said she was told that rabbit’s terrified prize-winning mate died of a heart attack.

“Who, who would do this?” said Rocha outside her brother’s mobile home in the 7600 block of W. Military Drive. “I can’t believe there are people out there who would brutally murder, I mean, stab them.”

(from KSAT-12)

Oops. She let the mask slip a little bit there.

And how can one determine that a rabbit has died of a heart attack? I suppose a veterinarian could figure that out, but to what end, besides tugging on the heart strings of readers? It's a sad thing that somebody killed all the Rocha's rabbits, but let's not take the anthropomorphizing too far.

Oh, and would this be a bad time to mention how much I love rabbit stew?

A dedicated employee

Certainly an odd situation, and an even odder response to it.

One man fought more than traffic on his way to work Thursday.

He says he was driving his green Cadillac near Hwy. 90 and Military Dr. when someone started shooting at him.

Four bullets hit the car, and although shots grazed his head and chin, he kept right on driving to work.

The man says he didn't do anything to provoke the shooter.

Police don't have much to go on in the case. They do know that the accused gunman was driving a black Impala.

(from KENS-5)

He probably didn't have any sick time or vacation time left, so he had to go to work, bullet wounds or no bullet wounds.

Practicing religion

If you stop by your neighborhood bakery, and your baker displays a few hooves and animal skins, you might want to ask him if he can cure cancer. He might say yes. But I don't suggest you ask him to actually cure whatever disease afflicts you, at least not without consulting your doctor (regular, not witch) first.

WOAI reports on just such a man here in San Antonio.

We spotted several birds, a dog and turtle behind the West Side building. We also saw where animals had clearly been killed and left outside.

When News 4 WOAI asked Jesse Mercado, the owner of Celia’s Bakery, about what was going on, he explained “this is part of the religion, you need to eat the animals, you need to eat it."

Mercado says the religion is called Yoruba, and it's similar to voodoo. When we were out there, he demonstrated some of the rituals that are part of his religion.

He told us he’s “capable to cure anybody with cancer, any disease."

Mercado practices in the building next to the bakery. And inside that building a cat head.

However, Mercado says, "I don't have nothing to do with cat."

(from WOAI-TV; slideshow here)

Sure you don't have nothing to do with cat. Just the cat head. Makes for a good bakery decoration, I bet.

A thief who should have thought a little more

If you steal someone's trailer, and you find out there's a professional race car inside of it, you might want to consider that the car might be difficult to drive around in without drawing attention. So you might leave it behind. But, if you do decide to take the race car, and even if you think it would be a good idea to hide it so you can keep it, you might do well to stash it someplace away from where you grow all your pot.

Police say it started this weekend when they recovered a stolen trailer on W.W. White. Police contacted the owner, who is a professional race car driver. He asked if his racing car was still in the back of the trailer. It was not.

Police say through their investigation, they identified a person of interest. On Tuesday, the department flew its Eagle Helicopter to search for the car. It was located in the backyard of a house on Tucker.

The suspect had an outstanding warrant so he was immediately arrested. Police the suspect's mother also lives at the house, and gave consent to search. That's when detectives found an addition to the house in the back. Inside they said it was like a greenhouse for growing marijuana plants.

(from KENS-5)

Car crashes into house

No fences were hit in the attack, but a fire hydrant and a tree did not come out so well.

SAN ANTONIO - Police tell News 4 WOAI the driver of an SUV lost control and crashed into a home on Craig Street near downtown. The driver not only took out the porch, but a fire hydrant and a tree as well.

We're told he was arrested on an outstanding warrant, but will also face drunk driving charges for this crash.

(from WOAI-TV)