When Baylor University was founded 180 years ago in Independence, the fact that its founders were slaveholders might have seemed unremarkable to their fellow Texas Baptists. Nearly half of the population in its home of Washington County was enslaved, and much of the prosperity of the county and state was tied to slavery. Judge R.E.B. […]
The post Just steps from a slaveholding founder’s statue, a new Baylor memorial honors the enslaved appeared first on The Waco Bridge.
In brief: Today we talk about the first dose of Arctic air this cold season, in addition to the chance of lake effect snow. We’ve also got a look at California which may shift quite a bit stormier later next week. Plus a lot of news to catch up on and the latest on NOAA/NWS challenges.
Autumn is going to autumn heading into the weekend. A big warm up is in store for the eastern half of the country ahead of a potent Arctic cold front. This will deliver a taste of early winter to much of the Eastern and Southern U.S. Houston, Austin, and San Antonio may threaten a record high temperature on both Friday and Saturday.
But a cold front plowing east on Saturday and Sunday will eradicate this warm weather and replace with the first real dose of Arctic air of the season. Morning lows on Monday and especially Tuesday will threaten records, mainly in the Southeast.
We will see frost and freeze make it all the way down close to I-10 to the east of Houston. Lows in the teens and 20s will be likely to the north from Tennessee into the Midwest. Chicago should be in the mid-20s on Monday morning, Minneapolis near 20, and Detroit mid-20s.
In addition, the first legitimate lake effect snow of the season looks likely behind this system. A few inches of accumulation could add up near the lakeshore in Michigan, parts of Indiana, and perhaps New York or Ohio. Not a major event right now, but it’s worth keeping an eye on. It’s that time of year.
Temperatures will warm up again next week.
It’s a bit early to get into specifics, but it does appear that a significant shift south in moisture is going to occur next week in the West. This should allow for significant rain to impact California, as well as significant Sierra snow.
Again, it’s too early to get into details, but ensemble modeling seems to support up to an inch or so of moisture in SoCal and 1 to 3 inches in NorCal. Operational guidance, including European AI modeling suggests there is higher side risk to these totals as well.
Bottom line: It looks like a substantial wet storm or series of storms may impact much of California by later next week.
Help me close my tabs by checking out some news from this week.
Derechos: Cool news out of Oklahoma where researchers are embarking on a project to catalog derecho events (hundreds of miles of damaging thunderstorm winds, many in the higher end of 75 to 100 mph) back to the 1950s. The idea is to try and understand what the correct environment for derecho development may be, which would help improve forecast accuracy. (University of Oklahoma)
Roanoke, Virginia: It’s been 40 years since a terrible flood struck Roanoke in 1985, causing $200 million in damage and killing 10 people. Massive flood mitigation efforts ensued, and it’s been successful, though there is still much work to do. I strongly encourage you also read Kevin Myatt’s flood synopsis of that event and how Hurricane Juan did and did not cause it.
Chattanooga, Tennessee: In Chattanooga, the Tennessee Department of Transportation is assessing how their infrastructure performed during floods in August that damaged 309 homes or businesses. The rain that fell was a 400 to 500 year event which blew past the design thresholds. We read about this a lot. We are getting better data through NOAA’s Atlas 15 project, but even that may become somewhat outdated as atmospheric moisture is increasing, leading to more frequent heavy rainfall events. (WTVC)
Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina: In Sullivan’s Island, a location that is seeing more frequent coastal flooding, the town produced a 154 page mitigation plan. It included policy recommendations. Despite the fact that it addresses an obvious problem, some residents are skeptical. It boils down to property rights and taxes due to the cost of mitigation. One councilmember chastised the community for not speaking up during one of the 15 sessions the town had to question the experts behind the plan. Democracy is messy and requires participation. People need to involve themselves in these discussions. (Charleston Post and Courier)
Kipnuk, Alaska: In Kipnuk, one of the villages severely impacted by Typhoon Halong’s remnants in October, a $20 million grant was earmarked by the EPA to help protect its infrastructure from flooding. A few months before the storm, the EPA informed Kipnuk that the “objectives of the award are no longer consistent with EPA funding priorities,” and they canceled the grant. While it may not have helped during Halong, it’s a reminder of how much mitigation work needs to be done across the country and why grant programs like this are critical to villages like Kipnuk. (Alaska Public Media)
Milwaukee, Wisconsin: In August, southeast Wisconsin was battered by some extreme, historic flooding. Now, FEMA and the Trump Administration are denying flood mitigation funding for public infrastructure. As U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore points out, and as I heard former FEMA Director Deanne Criswell talk about yesterday here in Houston, state and local governments can’t do these things alone. The tactic since this administration took office has been to rip the band aid off without a viable alternative in place or giving anyone a chance to prepare for what happens next. “Oh well” is not a solution. (Wisconsin Examiner)
Speaking of… I don’t want to overdo this section, but as has been the case for the last several months, we continue to have reasons to be concerned about NOAA in the current administration.
Volunteer work?
First, whether you blame Republicans or Democrats for the government shutdown that is currently gridlocking the country, it does not matter. In Washington it’s a chess match. To most average Americans, no one really cares who is responsible, they just want a solution. Alan Gerard’s “Balanced Weather” had a great post late last week on the heroic work that the Hurricane Hunters performed during Hurricane Melissa. Not only are these people not getting paid at the moment, they were flying into Melissa, an already hazardous mission, with extra volunteers and smaller than normal crews. They may have made some of their most dangerous flights in modern times doing this too. Let’s just repeat that: Volunteers. Doing arguably the most hazardous job in all of meteorology. Why is this? Because of the shutdown. And I am sure the fact that the Hurricane Research Division of NOAA is operating at half-capacity thanks to probationary firings earlier this year ordered by DOGE and the many retirements that were encouraged is contributing to this as well. This also comes after the administration’s proposed budget, a list of their priorities, would have scaled back hurricane hunter flights into storms.
We owe them a strong debt of gratitude for the work they do, and yes flying into a storm that is bearing down on Jamaica is part of their job responsibilities. Why? Because America has always been the leader in this space. It’s part of what has made American global science leadership great. I’m not sure relying on retired volunteers is a great way to ensure that continues, however. This administration’s handling of NOAA runs counter to the greatness mantra they regularly espouse. Anyway, read Alan’s post on this topic.
It’s four answers to four questions. Here we go…
1. Boss doesn’t care that new office isn’t accessible
I work in a director-level position for a center of a large university. We have experienced significant reductions in staffing following budget cuts and project terminations. Several staff also work remotely. We have a large leased office space off-campus, but now that we only have about 20 people who work in the office regularly (down from over 100), the university has decided that we need to move. This all seems reasonable to me.
However, the space the university has proposed is a converted rowhome with steep concrete steps into the front door, a very narrow and steep staircase up to the second floor with no landings, and a bathroom with a low-sitting toilet and no stability bars. There is a back door to an alley that does not have any stairs, but it is currently exit-only. When I toured the new space with the executive director (my boss) and another director, I raised concerns about accessibility and noted that it did not appear to comply with the American Disabilities Act. This space would not be open to the public, and we do not currently have any staff who use a wheelchair, but there are staff who might have difficulty navigating the stairs and bathrooms. I also expressed concern that anyone could easily fall down the very steep stairs and be injured. The other director shared my concerns and noted feeling a bit uncomfortable herself on the stairs.
I suggested several next steps, including: a list of questions for the Facilities team about the accessibility and requests for accommodations, such as stability bars in the bathroom, a portable/storable ramp for the front entrance, and granting entry access to the back door with an automatic opener; a list of questions for HR regarding how to approach accessibility concerns with staff, such as whether to ask staff to self-identify if they think they would have trouble with the stairs so we can try to accommodate a first floor office or advocate harder for a different office space; proactively reaching out to the Office of Institutional Equity, which handles disability accommodations, for guidance; and contacting to the Office of Occupational Safety and Health to document our concerns about the safety of the staircase.
My boss has largely shrugged this off and seems excited about moving to the new space. They seem to think this is a done deal and we have no room to negotiate. I have reason to believe this is untrue, but even if it is, I think that we should make more of an effort to document our concerns and advocate for our staff. I’d rather not go over my boss’s head, but I am troubled by the new office set up, the lack of my boss’s care, and the stark misalignment of this move with our own stated values of equity and inclusion. Do you have advice for what more I can do? Am I off-base in my concern, or is this something I should keep pushing on?
You’re not off-base. I’d say this: “I’m worried we’re setting ourselves up for legal and logistical headaches if we don’t address some of this before we move in, and it’ll be much less disruptive to do it now than after we’re already in the space. I’m happy to take the lead on it so it stays off your plate! Unless you object, I’d like to contact Facilities and the Institutional Equity office this week to make sure we stay in compliance.” If your boss responds that there’s nothing that can be changed, you could say, “I think to cover ourselves from a liability standpoint we need to at least alert them to what we’ve noticed so it’s clear we didn’t just ignore it. Can I move forward on that myself?”
2. I took a step back and feel like I’m failing
I recently left a job that I loved and was good at after a decade, due to moral injury (I worked in social services and under the current regime, things are … really not good in a way I could not handle being a part of). At the time I left, I was making very good money for my field.
In the two months since then, I have applied to everything within my field that’s available up to a 90-minute commute away. Due to needing to pay bills and anxiety over the current state of job-searching, I ended up accepting a position that I’m not honestly that happy with. While the work is similar to what I was doing and is in an interesting city, it is a title drop (coordinator down to project assistant) and a significant drop in pay.
For some reason, I cannot get over the feeling that I have failed and am now “regressing” professionally. I literally cried the whole drive to do the hiring paperwork because I just kept thinking of how stupid and under-qualified I must be, to not be able to secure a position of similar title or pay after over a decade of experience. Was my previous job just a fluke, and I wasn’t qualified to be working there either? Am I doomed to be an assistant making less than $40,000 a year once I’m 40, 50, and 60?
I know logically there are a lot of other factors at play, but I don’t know how to get over this feeling that I should be better than this by now. I can’t go back in time and join another industry or go to college for something else, and I don’t regret leaving my previous position with the situation that’s unfolding. But how do I shift my thinking away from this negative feeling of shame?
You got a job in a terrible job market where lots of people are spending exponentially more months job-searching. That’s not failure; that’s making a practical decision in a difficult situation, and doing better than a lot of your competition is!
You aren’t going to be stuck in this job forever. You took it because it made sense for you in the circumstances you’re in right now. At some point those circumstances will change, and you’ll move to a different place on your professional path.
In fact, there’s a ton of room to move from project assistant to coordinator jobs (and from there, beyond). It’s an incredibly common path for people to take! If you do well and become known as someone who’s conscientious and good at the work, it’s highly likely that you’ll be able to move up from here. (And this isn’t needing to jump from assistant to VP to get back where you were; you’re talking about a much easier move.)
3. Director tried to force us to donate to a birthday gift and was furious when we wouldn’t
I work in a government agency (outside the U.S.) with thousands of employees in different branches. My branch has 40-50 people working here, with two managers, the director, and the assistant manager.
Recently, the assistant manager hit pension age, 65, and invited everyone at our branch and around 200 other people to her birthday party, outside work hours. We don’t celebrate birthdays at our branch, as it has caused numerous hurt feelings when someone is celebrated more or less than others. Despite this, the director insisted that we all contribute to a gift for the assistant manager, with a minimum donation of $30 per person. This caused a huge argument, as for a lot of people (myself included!) this was a huge chunk out of our weekly budgets. (Over half the office are living paycheck to paycheck.) The director was challenged on this by multiple people. Conversing with some of my teammates, we all agreed that we could afford up to $20, but $30 was pushing us past a comfortable level.
The director, seeing how little was coming in, started to send first passive-aggressive, and then full-on aggressive, emails about not contributing. They started out with little threats like “Those not contributing will not be able to sign the card” up to “Nothing you could buy personally will be under $30, so don’t even try” and then escalated to lectures in weekly meetings about budgeting and threatening to send staff to the same budget advice service we direct our clients to. She personally caught me one day to advise how much money I must be saving as I don’t have children and “no costs”! I briefly rebutted this – I have student loans, rent, debt, and bills like everyone else! (And you understand how expensive cats are to feed.)
I ended up not contributing, and the gift ended up being over $1,000, surprising the assistant manager who had no idea about the gift situation.
The whole thing left myself and half the team feeling quite bitter. About 20 people didn’t end up contributing and we were persona non grata for about a month with the director. This isn’t normal, is it?
No, it’s not normal! Nothing about it is normal — from the compulsory donation amount (as opposed to a “suggested” amount, which is still problematic because it’s still pressuring people, but less so than making it compulsory), to the threats and lectures, to the implication that your life must be free since you don’t have kids, to the ultimate (and ridiculous) amount of $1,000 (!), to the freezing out of people who didn’t contribute. It’s all wildly inappropriate and wrong. It would be wildly inappropriate and wrong in a social situation; it’s triply so in a work situation, as well as an abuse of power by your director. Any chance you have HR that would care?
Something is deeply wrong with your director, and I’m betting this isn’t the only thing they mishandle.
Related:
I’m being pressured to contribute to gifts for resigning coworkers — and it’s increasingly obnoxious
4. Can my employer make me update my accommodation paperwork?
I have a permanent disability that never goes away (PTSD). I put in a request for accommodations and submitted a note from my therapist from my original diagnosis over a decade ago. My accommodations are very basic — just being able to work from home around the anniversary of the events that caused my PTSD. I already have some flexibility as a faculty member, but I know the importance of having formal protections in place.
The HR rep emailed me to say that they couldn’t identify anything in the documents that “suggests the conditions and need for accommodation are permanent or will extend past 2023.” However, my therapist and doctor’s notes from back then clearly diagnosed me with PTSD, which can get better, but is a permanent condition.
Am I right to think that the department is not allowed to get into the business of diagnosing me? That these medical documents should be enough to move forward? I am currently working to get additional documentation (moving means my doctors are out of network, so I’m finding new providers), but I was very surprised by the email back with this particular language. Is there anything I should be aware of and do? I checked the ADA website, but it wasn’t super clear what they are allowed to ask questions about when I provided verification of my diagnosis.
They’re not diagnosing you; they’re saying that the paperwork you submitted is over a decade old and they need something more recent indicating that the need for accommodations still exists currently. That’s allowed under the ADA, and it’s not unreasonable.
The law does say that you don’t need to do this if it’s obvious that the disability still exists, such as if you were blind or missing a limb. But while PTSD can be permanent, it isn’t always — and when we’re talking about a note that’s more than 10 years old, it’s reasonable for them to request updated documentation since disabilities and needs can change over time. (Here’s what the Job Accommodation Network says about this.)
The post boss doesn’t care that new office isn’t accessible, mandatory birthday contributions, and more appeared first on Ask a Manager.
Let’s see how Mr. Rockford does without any water…
WASHINGTON—Reaffirming the Trump administration’s promise to crack down on individuals providing supervision and instruction to youngsters across the United States, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stated at a press conference Thursday that daycare workers have walked freely in this country for far too long. “Time and time again, we have allowed these people to watch our kids while we’re at work with no consequences,” said Noem, adding that caregivers would no longer get off scot-free for tending to children’s every need. “Previous administrations have done nothing while these dangerous offenders indoctrinated our children with letters, shapes, and numbers. But now America is back, and we will not stand for this. The Biden-era nightmare of childcare providers doling out apple juice with impunity is finally over. Americans can sleep soundly knowing that ICE remains dedicated to getting these caregivers out of our essential workforce.” Noem then stepped away from the podium to deal with staffing shortages that arose when DHS employees could no longer find childcare.
The post DHS: ‘Daycare Workers Have Walked Freely in This Country For Far Too Long’ appeared first on The Onion.
Tom Brady revealed that he and his family used non-invasive technology to create a clone of their beloved dog after the original pet passed away. What do you think?
“It would’ve been much more humane to clone a shelter dog.”
Yvonne Canales, Systems Analyst
“Well, that really fucks my parlay.”
Barry Niestradt, Bracelet Model
“You’d think he could afford a new dog.”
David Wohlers, Curling Announcer
The post Tom Brady Clones Dog appeared first on The Onion.
Hey man, is that you putting on all that weird stuff? #CowboyWho
“New York millionaires are plotting their exit from the city after the election of Zohran Mamdani, the socialist who plans to increase the taxes of the rich.”
—The Telegraph
Well, looks like the unthinkable has happened—Zohran Mamdani will be the next mayor of New York City. As the founder of a bro culture clickbait site who has been repeatedly accused of sexual misconduct, I hate to see this city going in such an obviously bad direction. If New York City is no longer going to be an unaffordable police state run by crooks, I’m taking my hard-earned sex-pest dollars elsewhere.
When I heard Mamdani had won the Democratic primary a few months ago, I was so incandescently angry that I scissor-kicked a hole in my drywall. I couldn’t stand the thought of a socialist running a city that is supposed to be managed by egomaniacal kleptocrats. Still, I held out hope that Mamdani’s sex-offender opponent would ultimately prevail. Now, my fellow wealthy serial molesters and I have no choice but to move our ill-reputed businesses elsewhere while we find other towns full of unsuspecting women to harass. Good luck without us, Gotham.
It’s appalling that Mamdani is going to use his new position of power to make New York more livable for average citizens at the expense of industrious job creators/alleged rapists like myself. I earned every penny of my fortune the hard way—by eating pizza and talking about sports—and I am not about to fork over an extra cent just so dishwashers and barbacks can afford to buy groceries. If I had a choice between my taxes going up by 2 percent and every New York schoolchild getting enough to eat, you better believe I’d be letting those little brats scour the subway for enough loose change to buy a chopped cheese. Starvation builds character.
When I’m in the city, I want the authentic New York experience—getting served a hot slice of pepperoni pie by a Turkish immigrant who commutes in from Pennsylvania because he can’t afford to live anywhere in the five boroughs. Call me old-fashioned, but I prefer a city where everyday residents have to work three jobs and are under constant threat of eviction. Anything short of an excruciating existence for the working class just doesn’t cut it for me.
New York City municipal politics is supposed to be a Kafkaesque bureaucratic machine designed to benefit the elites. The mayor of New York should be a mustache-twirling Batman villain whom everyone despises, not a handsome, bearded Zillennial whom crowds cheer for every time he hops on stage at the club to explain his plans to freeze rent.
What happened to the old New York, where creepy freaks could make an honest living running manosphere blogs that advertise virility pills in between slightly racist hot takes on sports? What happened to the New York that catered to Wall Street coke heads, shady tech founders, and crypto-fascist billionaires? What happened to the New York that was run by predators, for predators?
Instead, New York is going to turn into a communist hellhole where poor people are barely exploitable anymore. If that’s the case, count me out. I’m packing up the offices of my toxic masculinity troll site and taking my miscreant talents somewhere they’ll be appreciated, like Florida or Texas. Let’s see how the Big Apple fares without frat boy media companies and our sexual-deviant dollars. Millionaire perverts are the lifeblood of this city.
Plus, I’d much rather swipe the apps in a city where I’m not already on all the local dating-safety watchlists.
In brief: In today’s post we explore the very warm highs of the region’s forecast, including the potential for an unprecedented 90-degree day in November. After heat on Friday and Saturday the region will experience a sharp cool down as a front arrives to push lows down to around 40 degrees.
In its long history Houston has never recorded a temperature of 90 degrees, or higher, in November. This is because days are shorter, the Sun angle is lower, and generally we are seeing regular fronts that bring cooler air into the region. However due to a combination of uncharacteristic warmth and compressional heating, it is possible that we could hit 90 degrees on Friday or Saturday at the city’s official monitoring station at Bush Intercontinental Airport. It will be close, and we’ll be monitoring things.
Conversely, our region is forecast to have its coldest nights of the season, so far, next Monday and Tuesday mornings. There is a decent chance, probably at least 50 percent I would guess, that the city’s official weather station at Bush Intercontinental Airport will hit 40 degrees. Naturally, being a weather nerd, I wondered whether that was early. So I checked the data. Answer? It would be, if only slightly. Based on data going back to 1889, the average date of the city’s first 40-degree (or cooler) temperature reading is November 13th. (Next Monday is the 10th, and Tuesday is the 11th).
We are seeing fog develop across the region this morning, and the National Weather Service has issued a dense fog advisory through 9 am. Please take care driving. This is due in part to very light winds and temperatures and dewpoints being an identical 60 degrees in many locations. When the fog clears we will have a sunny day with high temperatures in the mid-80s. Lows tonight will drop into the low- to mid-60s, and dense fog may very well return early on Friday.
These will be sunny and hot days. The National Weather Service presently forecasts a high of 88 degrees at Bush Intercontinental Airport on Friday, and 89 degrees on Saturday. We’ll see if we hit that historic 90-degree mark. Friday night will be warm, with temperatures in the mid-60s. I expect the front to arrive sometime between Saturday evening and Sunday morning, bringing drier and cooler air into the region. At this point I don’t anticipate much, if any precipitation with the front.
A breezy and cooler day with clear skies. Expect highs around 70 degrees. Winds will be gusty, especially during the middle of the day with maximum gusts of 25 to 30 mph possible. Lows on Sunday night will drop into the low 40s on Sunday night, with cooler conditions for outlying areas.
A chilly day, with highs perhaps topping out in the lower 60s. Winds will die down. Lows on Monday night will drop to around 40 in the region, with inland areas seeing the 30s.
After the cold start to Veteran’s Day, we will see a gradual warmup, with highs likely returning to around 80 degrees by Wednesday, and remaining on the warm side into the weekend. Rain chances look low. Another front is possible later next weekend, but our overall confidence in the forecast is low.
Glasstire counts down the top five art events in Texas.
For last week’s picks, please go here.
A work by Vicente Telles included in “Manos de Memoria”
1. Manos de Memoria
Presa House (San Antonio)
October 24 – November 30, 2025
From Presa House Gallery:
“Presa House Gallery proudly presents Manos de Memoria, a two-person exhibition featuring New Mexico artists Vicente Telles and Eric Romero. Through works grounded in cultural memory, ritual, faith, and labor, both artists invite viewers to engage with the hands — the makers’ hands — as vessels of lineage, resilience, and creative transformation. Manos de Memoria has been over a year in the making, organized by Rigoberto Luna in collaboration with Vicente Telles in anticipation of his participation in The Outwin 2025: American Portraiture Today at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, where his work was one of only 35 portraits selected from more than 3,300 entries. While the museum’s recent decision to “proactively postpone” the exhibition ahead of a potential government shutdown was disappointing, Presa House Gallery and Telles remain committed to moving forward with this long-planned presentation in San Antonio. The exhibition features five new paintings and a large hand-painted wooden sculpture created especially for Manos de Memoria. Joining him is fellow Albuquerque-based artist Eric Romero, who makes his Presa House debut with an entirely new body of work.”
Read more about how the government shutdown is affecting Texas artists here.
Ana Villagomez, “Blue Trance,” 2025
2. Ana Villagomez: The Fugitive Sensations
Josh Pazda Hiram Butler (Houston)
September 20 – November 15, 2025
From Whitewall:
“At Josh Pazda Hiram Butler, Houston native Ana Villagomez layers abstraction with texture, gesture, and geometry in The Fugitive Sensations. Her canvases evolve through processes of sanding, peeling, and repainting, generating surfaces that hold history and depth. Vibrant colors collide with architectural framing, recalling both vernacular design and surrealist traditions. Villagomez’s influences reach back to her family’s creative resilience in Houston’s East End, where the blending of labor and imagination shaped her outlook. The resulting works glow with the tension between construction and erosion, order and improvisation-each painting becoming a site where personal memory meets collective symbolism.”
A work by Sarah Fox included in “Lion Laughs Last”
3. Sarah Fox: Lion Laughs Last
grayDUCK Gallery (Austin)
October 11 – November 16, 2025
From grayDUCK Gallery and Sarah Fox:
“The world speaks to us through everything she holds, sometimes in whispers, sometimes in screams. I see the way the grass turns brown under the blazing Texas sun, her blades curling inward. I watch how the San Antonio River breathes differently in drought and flood, her moods teaching me about survival and rage. But she also speaks through the old stories, the folk and fairy tales that have warned us for centuries: don’t enter the forest at night, don’t marry the man who hides his true nature from you.
In this body of work, I’ve woven sculpture, painting, drawing, and puppetry into a fable of my own making. This is the beginning of Chapter Two: Lion Laughs Last. As you move through this exhibition, you journey from Chapter One into the beginnings of Chapter Two, following the current of these interconnected stories. In both, women find themselves held by Mother Nature, guided by her, set free by remembering their own strength. Through my work, I seek to remind everyone, especially women, that we are not separate from the natural world’s power and wisdom — we are part of her endless capacity for resilience, transformation, and righteous fury.”
Jer’Lisa Devezin, “Glyph,” 2025
4. Jer’Lisa Devezin: Texturized
Hamon Art Library SMU (Dallas)
August 18 – November 26, 2025
From Hamon Arts Library:
“Devezin’s work engages in research through the lens of her personal experience centering identity, place, Southern culture, nostalgia, and socioeconomics. The works in this exhibition revolve around Devezin’s process of investigating materials to further explore the function of space, form, and abstraction.”
5. Elena Rodz: Familiar Horizons
South Texas College (McAllen)
August 25 – December 1, 2025
From South Texas College:
“Elena Rodriguez grew up in Chalk Mountain, Texas, a small town with a population of 25. She earned her MFA in Painting from the New York Academy of Art and completed her BFA at Washington University in St. Louis, where she also minored in Film and Media Studies. After spending some time away, she returned to her home state and now works with the Department of Art and Drama at Del Mar College. Recently, she was honored with a Corpus Christi 40 Under 40 award. Rodriguez’s work examines the beauty found in the everyday and often overlooked aspects of life. As she puts it, ‘My art is an exploration of the beautiful mundane — asphalt, weeds, and suburban banality. I create the sensation of déjà vu for a place one has or never has been.’”
The post Top Five: November 6, 2025 appeared first on Glasstire.
As we approach to the season of office potlucks, catered parties, and other holiday meals with coworkers, let’s discuss the many ways in which they can go wrong — from alarming cuisine to cheap-ass rolls to riots over the chili cook-off to tantrums over insufficiently abundant shrimp.
Please share your stories of potlucks, cooking competitions, catered parties, and other office meals gone awry!
The post when office potlucks and catered parties go wrong appeared first on Ask a Manager.
A reader writes:
I was curious about where the line is on religious accommodation, and at what point it’s okay to say an accommodation cannot be made.
I had an employee who needed an accommodation that allowed them to take lunch at a different time from the rest of the company once a week. This was somewhat inconvenient but I was able to accommodate them. Later they let me know that they were going to need additional accommodations, which again were doable but inconvenient. I also noticed that their work performance suffered during certain times when they told me they needed to fast for their religion. They didn’t make me aware of any of these needed accommodations until they’d been hired and working for a couple of weeks. At one point someone suggested that in order for me to accommodate this employee I should to work additional hours myself.
Ultimately I was able to accommodate this employee with minimal frustration, but what if it hadn’t been as easy? What if there’d been a standing meeting that they were needed for during the time they needed to take their lunch that couldn’t be easily moved? I want to be as supportive and flexible as possible but at what point am I able to say “this goes past reasonable”?
I answer this question — and two others — over at Inc. today, where I’m revisiting letters that have been buried in the archives here from years ago (and sometimes updating/expanding my answers to them). You can read it here.
Other questions I’m answering there today include:
The post how much do I need to accommodate employees’ religion? appeared first on Ask a Manager.
Space Chief! He’s running over us! Alright!
Ever feel like you have a “special connection” with an artist? Like if the two of you could only meet, you would be instant BFFs? This phenomenon is what experts call a parasocial relationship. On the surface, it might sound harmless, but the truth is that parasocial relationships have been shown to make people lonelier and exacerbate mental health problems. Plus, I bet Pedro Pascal hates them.
Seriously. Pedro’s a sensitive and authentic guy, and there’s nothing less authentic than experiencing a one-sided relationship with somebody who doesn’t even know you exist.
There’s nothing wrong with being a fan. The problem is when people become obsessive. Go to any pop star’s Instagram, and you’ll see exactly what I’m talking about. Take the comments on Harry Styles’ account, for instance: “Harry, I love you,” “Harry, you saved my life,” “Harry, I can’t live without you.” Honestly, it’s creepy. Whenever I see that kind of thing, I wish Pedro were beside me. I can see him rolling his chocolate brown eyes and saying, “Ugh! These people are insane!” I’d just love to pick his brain over it sometime. Maybe over dinner and drinks at Trattoria da Pippo. He went there in 2023.
The effects of celebrity obsession aren’t just psychological. Parasocial relationships can also take a heavy toll on fans’ wallets. Taylor Swift fans will spend hundreds of dollars on endless “deluxe” editions of the same album, and thousands on concert tickets. Meanwhile, the most I’ve ever spent on concert tickets was $200 to see the Cure, Pedro’s favorite band. Sure, $200 is also a lot of money, and so was the $600 I spent on a plane getting to L.A., but it was all worth it for the chance to spend the night in the front row with my back to the stage, scouring the crowd for Pedro’s face as I screamed out his name.
I’m not trying to be judgmental about parasocial relationships. I just can’t relate. The crux of the matter is you don’t know these famous people, no matter how many movies, interviews, podcast appearances, Narcos episodes set to slow motion, or shaky, raw footage from 2014 Game Of Thrones Comic-Con panels zoomed in on their face you may have watched.
Isn’t that right, Pedro? I can picture him vigorously nodding his head right now.
Parasocial relationships are ruining fan communities too. Online fandoms used to be a fun, open-minded place where people could make new friends and express themselves. Now, these “stans,” as they proudly call themselves, seem to think they can read their favorite celebrities’ minds. The other day, a bunch of these crazies ganged up on me to claim that the things I was posting in our forum would make Pedro “feel unsafe.” Uhh, I’m sorry. How would you know how Pedro “feels”? Have any of you basement dwellers even met him? I have. Nine times. Three times outside red carpet premieres, twice by following his limousine, and four times through window panes as he stood alone in his kitchen, drinking a cup of tea.
Ten times if you count the police lineup.
Maybe I’m being unkind. It’s important to have empathy for others, especially for those who may be struggling. It’s likely many of these fans simply don’t have friends or family members they feel close to in real life, and sadly, parasocial relationships seem to have filled that space. That’s why I’m ultimately so grateful to have Pedro in my life, sending me messages through the screen of the jailhouse TV.
The post I Bet Pedro Pascal Hates Parasocial Relationships appeared first on The Onion.
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MI—In what they described as a collaborative effort to share resources and information in defense of U.S. territory, Pentagon officials confirmed Monday that all six branches of the armed forces were present at the arrest of undocumented nanny Paola Soto. “It was like the invasion of Normandy the way every American military division descended on that baby’s bedroom, where the nanny was working,” said neighbor Valerie Beatty, explaining that the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Space Force all appeared to work in a coordinated fashion, employing more than $75 billion worth of defense technology and top-secret surveillance equipment to ensure the successful detainment of the 64-year-old Guatemalan migrant. “She’s small, maybe 5 feet tall, but she somehow looked even smaller as they swarmed around her in their helicopters, fighter jets, Humvees, and tanks. They told us it was necessary to guarantee her arrest went smoothly. Honestly, I have no idea how the Navy even got a submarine this far inland.” At press time, the undocumented nanny had reportedly escaped after all six branches of the U.S. military fell to friendly fire.
The post All 6 Branches Of Armed Forces Present At Arrest Of Undocumented Nanny appeared first on The Onion.
The happy couple held an elaborate reception for their closest loved ones and a handful of people they’ll point to in photos years from now wondering who the fuck they even are.
The post Carl Brooks and Evan Perth appeared first on The Onion.
SACRAMENTO, CA—Passing the Democrat-backed initiative with a resounding 60% of the vote, Californians overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure this week to redraw the cartoon character Garfield. “The people of California have spoken, and they want their funny pages to have an obese orange tabby cat who reflects the character design sensibilities our Founding Fathers stood for,” said California Gov. Gavin Newsom, adding that the proposition to drastically alter Garfield’s eyes, limb proportions, and fur coloration was a direct retaliation against Texas Republicans’ ongoing efforts to redraw Dilbert. “While Garfield has historically been redrawn every 10 years based on input from Jim Davis, these are not normal times. We cannot go back to the squinting, quadrupedal Garfield of the 1970s and ’80s. Republican overreach is jeopardizing the comic strips we hold dearest, and Californians have given us a mandate to create a Garfield who is taller, a little fuller in the hips, and has whiskers that move around more in response to his emotions.” At press time, California Republicans had reportedly moved to block the Garfield redrawing process with an extended arc focusing exclusively on Jon Arbuckle and his former roommate Lyman.
The post Californians Approve Measure To Redraw ‘Garfield’ appeared first on The Onion.
Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani made history Tuesday night when he was elected the first Muslim mayor of New York City. The Onion fact-checks the claims being made about Mamdani.
Claim: Mamdani is a nepo baby.
True: Mamdani is the eldest son of Bill de Blasio and Ed Koch.
Claim: Mamdani will destroy New York City.
False: Rapidly rising sea levels will destroy New York City.
Claim: Mamdani is a communist.
False: Any real communist will happily spend six hours explaining why this isn’t true.
Claim: Mamdani adheres to an extremist interpretation of Sharia law.
False: Mamdani remains honor-bound to the ancient samurai code of Bushidō.
Claim: My uncle says Mamdani will abolish the entire NYPD.
True: Your uncle does say that.
Claim: Mamdani met his wife on Hinge.
True: But it won’t happen to you.
Claim: Mamdani ended Andrew Cuomo’s political career.
False: Cuomo ended Cuomo’s political career.
Claim: He’s 34.
True: It’s time to get your shit together.
The post Fact-Checking Claims About Zohran Mamdani appeared first on The Onion.
“It’s a minor revision to the program’s goals.” Luke and the Panel (Ian MacIntyre, Clare Blackwood and Megan MacKay) dive into the details of Mark Carney’s budget, speculate on the politics of getting it passed, debate Carney’s cozying up to China and pour one out for our beloved Blue Jays. Then The Approximately 10 Minute […]
The post Carney reduces Trudeau’s tree planting program from 2 billion trees to 2 appeared first on The Beaverton.
In brief: Houston’s forecast remains more or less the same, with warming days and nights heading into the weekend, followed by a sharp cooldown on Saturday night. This front will be relatively short-lived, but bring two cold nights into the region.
Lows are about 10 degrees warmer this morning, but this will still be our coolest morning until Monday, probably. Winds are calm, but will be southerly later this morning, indicating the ongoing return of the onshore flow. Highs will be in the vicinity of 80 degrees. Skies will be mostly clear today, and remain so for pretty much the rest of the week as high pressure dominates. Low temperatures tonight will drop into the lower 60s, with slightly cooler conditions for outlying areas.
A similar day to Wednesday, although the southeasterly winds may be slightly more pronounced, and humidity levels a touch higher. Highs, again, will be around 80 degrees, or just a bit warmer. Lows on Thursday night will only drop into the upper 60s.
These will be warmer days, especially for early November. Expect highs in the mid- to upper 80s across the region, with mostly sunny skies. With dewpoints in the 60s it will feel humid, but not super sultry like the summertime in Houston. Lows will drop into the 60s on both nights, although areas north of I-10 may see cooler temperatures later on Saturday night. That’s because I think the front will reach our northern areas on Saturday evening or night, and push off the coast by around sunrise. This looks like a dry passage, although winds should pretty rapidly shift to come from the north.
This will be a breezy, sunny day with highs likely topping out in the lower 70s. Temperatures on Sunday night will drop into the mid-40s in Houston, with cooler conditions further inland.
We are going to see ideal cooling conditions on Monday and Monday night, with lighter winds. Expect highs to perhaps only reach the low- to mid-60s. As for Monday night, temperatures should drop into the 30s to the north of Houston, with a few areas (i.e. Trinity and Polk counties) near but not within the Houston metro area flirting with a light freeze. In Houston itself I think temperatures remain in the vicinity of 40 degrees, but this is likely to be the region’s coldest night of the season.
Tuesday is likely to bring highs of around 70 degrees before we return to temperatures of around 80 degrees for the rest of the work week. As for rain chances, they’re very low, to zero, for the next 10 days.
I don’t know much about lowrider culture, but I appreciate the unique styles and artistry.
I’m really happy to see – and a little shocked, given our current situation – these lowrider stamps were just announced by the USPS. (via Kottke)
Last Sunday, I listened to this Song Exploder episode breaking down “Low Rider” by WAR. Cool story and a fun listen.
We could all benefit from a little trip and some slow and low creativity these days.
☮️❤️
