COMMENT OF THE DAY: YOU GO RIGHT AHEAD “When I first visited Texas in 1980, the TxDOT signs said ‘Drive Friendly.’ I thought this was a charming sentiment, so when the opportunity came to move here, I looked forward to ‘driving friendly’ with all the other Texans. Imagine my surprise when I got here, and went looking for those ‘Drive Friendly’ signs, only to find they had been replaced by ‘Don’t Mess With Texas’ . . . whoa. OK. My then-new husband told me that just meant that a gunrack gives you the right-of-way.” [Claire de Lune, commenting on Don’t Mess with Don’t Mess with Texas]
Sign up for the Newsletter
Tag: TXDOT
COMMENT OF THE DAY: JUST MESSIN’ WITH YA “More than once, a non-Texan has cited ‘don’t mess with Texas’ to me as an example of what they perceive as Texans’ aggressive, arrogant superiority complex. I love the sheepish look I get when I tell them, ahem, it’s an anti-littering campaign, and not something we made up to sound like bad-asses. . . .” [Katk, commenting on Don’t Mess with Don’t Mess with Texas]
Who’s upset about a new romance novel called Don’t Mess with Texas and its “numerous graphic references to sexual acts, states of arousal, etc.”? TxDOT, which owns the trademark for the book’s title, and has now filed a lawsuit seeking a restraining order against Hachette Book Group (the book’s publisher), Barnes & Noble, and Houston’s Christie Craig (its author). The book’s official publication date is today. Rifling through a few pages previewed on Amazon, the Houston Press‘s Richard Connelly finds one of them steamy sex scenes — but no reference to the evils of littering along state highways. A TxDOT spokesperson tells Connelly the state transportation agency has succceeded in a similar lawsuit before. Win or lose, Craig may be hoping the ensuing publicity will help spur sales of her upcoming how-to book, Wild, Wicked and Wanton: 101 Ways to Love Like You Are in a Romance Novel.
- Don’t Mess with Texas [Katy Budget Books]
- Texas Sues Over
PornSteamy Romance Novel Entitled Don’t Mess With Texas [Hair Balls] - Texas sues author over ‘Don’t Mess With Texas’ romance novel [Houston Business Journal]
- Christie Info [Christie Craig]
ATTACK OF THE TRAFFIC-SIGN ZOMBIES 
All-things-automotive blog Jalopnik takes uh, credit for the continuing wave of streetside zombie warnings gracing local newscasts nationwide, two-and-a-half years after the publication of their original how-to: “[There’s] no reason to demonize us here at Jalopnik. . . . The reason road signs are still being hacked is because hapless lowest-bid Department of Transportation contractors aren’t protecting their screens from zombified hordes with a simple Master-lock. And we’ll continue to spread that important message until they secure their damn signs — no matter how much the idiots at local news stations call us a ‘hacker website.’ They’re stupid enough to think that’s some kind of an insult. That said we still must remind you kids not to try this at home.” [Jalopnik; previously on Swamplot] Photo: Fox26 Viewer Amy
Denver Hopkins tells abc13 he’s the brilliant mastermind who spent 30 seconds at an open, unlocked keyboard attached to a downtown electronic construction sign over the weekend, changing the message from “Poop” to “;> LOL.” What harsh punishment will the Texas Dept. of Transportation seek to inflict on this sign hacker? He turned himself in this afternoon to the TxDOT offices at I-10 and Old Katy Rd. to find out. TxDOT spokeswoman Raquelle Lewis told Chronicle reporters yesterday that messing with the sign carries a fine of “up to $500.”
- Accused construction sign hacker turns himself in [abc13, via Miya Shay]
- Downtown traffic sign becomes butt of joke [Houston Chronicle]
- Previously on Swamplot: Comment of the Day: Catch Me If You Can, Sez ‘Poop’ Hack Perp, What Dirty Little Secret Was This Downtown Sign Hiding?
Video: abc13
Thanks to the reader who passed along this flyover video showing what a fat, happy, and rebuilt Highway 290 will look like as it wraps its newly grown tentacles around Beltway 8. The video comes from TxDOT’s fancy new my290.com website, which attempts to bring to the planned multi-billion-dollar highway widening program the feel-good vibe of a community barnraising. When construction begins in 2011, will we be able to follow the construction workers as they tweet?
The site features current maps and details of the plans for US 290 and the Hempstead Tollway. Notes the reader: “Looks like the NW mall is history, well, at least most of the parking lot.” Here’s a view:
