Rushing's Ramblings

  (The Alcalde is a publication of Texas Exes org, named after Gov. Roberts, who signed the university into existence in 1913. "Alcalde" is the Spanish name for a town's chief magistrate)   There are three stories of note in the September/October issue of The Alcalde.  The front cover contains the phrasing “The Sports Issue,” yet, the first article that caught my attention with great interest was about research conducted at UT by chemistry graduate student Abby Gatmaitan.  Approximately 8% of global seafood products are mislabeled, but the number is closer to 87% for some species, like snapper.  Fish fraud has significant consequences on health (mercury and other contaminants), the environment (overfishing), and the economy (higher prices for mislabeled fish).  The government inspects less than 1% of imported seafood.  Ms. Gatmaitan discovered that by using the MasSpec Pen, a Sharpie-sized device developed by a UT chemistry te...

(I manage the Highland Lakes Democratic Women's Facebook page and am the proud president of our 110-member organization.) Yesterday, Bryan Walker, a Marble Falls City Council member, confronted me on our FB page. He stated, “I have attempted to remain indifferent in watching your post. Plain and simple, we have reached a point I cannot tolerate. Comparing Republicans to the Taliban is a different level of hatred that I will not tolerate. I hope you will consider changing the attacks on individuals that have different views than you. I am obviously nonpartisan as a Councilmember, but I am highly disappointed in your recent posts.” I responded, “Thanks for your input. Thank God this is a free country, and we can freely express our opinions. I’m highly disappointed and cannot tolerate City Council members who claim to be “nonpartisan” yet post pictures of themselves at a Republican Party meeting cozying up to a Republican Congressman. In response to your objection about the Texas T...

I've been divorced for many years and don't want to marry again, although I have periodically met potential partners through online dating sites for the past ten years. Several of the great guys I met through the years proved to be excellent companions for a while. My experiences could fill a book, but I wonder if anyone would be interested in reading about old folks dating. I go through periods when I simply am not in the mood to meet anyone new, and it's primarily because of too many dismal recent experiences I've had when encountering someone for the first time. Lately, the men in my shrinking pool of potential partners have aged considerably and had various health or personality issues, or they are my political opposite, which immediately eliminates them. There seems to always be a deal-breaker in these meetups, even though I desperately try to weed out the ones I know would not be a good match before I embark on the inevitable meet-and-greet process. I'm fully...