Greg In The Desert

What kind of people live in Chandler, Az? Not me anymore but Richard Anthony Flores does, who drove nearly 80 mph while standing through his sunroof. The cameras on these section of freeways are made very obvious, the guy was trying to get someone’s attention.

During the first incident on Nov. 6, Flores reportedly reached 90 mph in a 65 mph zone on the San Tan portion of the Loop 202 near Lindsay Road.

In the other two incidents, Flores was captured on camera driving his Volkswagen Passat while standing through his sunroof. Those incidents occurred minutes apart on Nov. 11 on westbound U.S. 60 near Mesa Drive, then Alma School Road. Flores reached speeds of just under 80 mph, according to DPS.

Flores’ vehicle triggered DPS photo enforcement cameras 14 times in October and November. Investigators have tied Flores to eight of those violations.

Bailey said Flores “wasn’t surprised when he was contacted.”

He was also served with seven civil speeding citations.

A high school teacher in my hometown of Chandler, Arizona claims to have found a scorpion in his bag when he bought an egg McMuffin from McDonalds. The story on Channel 15’s website describes the scorpion as a baby and more venoumus than an adult.

It wasn’t just any scorpion — it was a baby scorpion, which is even more venomous than it’s adult counterpart.

Both of these statements are false. The scorpion appears to be a Vaejovis spinigerus, that looks like the same kind of scorpion I find in New Mexico. This is probably an adult as they don’t get much bigger than this. Had Channel 15 bothered to just use google, they would have found the ASU’s “Ask A Biologist” website where Christopher Putnam states

Other people say the sting of a baby scorpion is more dangerous than the sting of an adult, but again, this is false. The venom in a scorpion’s stinger is the same all through a scorpion’s life.

I suppose it is possible for the scorpion to find it’s way into the bag. I would hope it didn’t get into the bag at the restaurant but maybe in at the manufacturer or during transport. I wasn’t able to find where the bags are made. Scorpions are found in Chandler, but since the city has become more developed they are not nearly as common as they used to be. I find the whole story suspicious.

Today we got the news, 100 – 200 people will be laid off (or redeployed as they like to tell us) at Intel’s Fab11X, Rio Rancho. I won’t publicly discuss more than what the local news is reporting only that the management just got the directive and they haven’t quite figured out how they are going to go about it. We should know if we are in or out at the beginning of Q2 2009.

Also see local TV station coverage KOB, KOAT and KRQE

Update 1/28/08: 500 are being cut from the Chandler, AZ site.

When I first saw Barack Obama on TV with his campaign logo, i kept wondering why he was always speaking in the city of Chandler, Arizona (my home town). He wasn’t, their logos just look very similar. Maybe if they are far away and you squint your eyes.

How bizarre, I would expect schools to be overcrowded not due to insufficient enrollment.

Jordan Elementary School, a Mesa Public School located in Chandler, will likely close next school year because of declining enrollment, with its 486 students assigned to Frost or Pomeroy elementaries.

I went to Jordan Elementary in the late seventies and early eighties.

16GB iPhones released today. Took Apple long enough. If the retail Apple Stores have them, I will be buying one today.

Update 10:15 am: I was at the Chandler fashion mall Apple Store at 10am. They had them but had not processed them yet. They said come back in a 1.5 – 2 hours.

Update 02/06/08 6:19 am: I got the phone yesterday and have been playing with it all day. I was especially impressed with the box. The whole process of setting up an account and transferring the phone number from T-mobile was a terrific experience (I assume T-mobile will automatically cancel my account?) Yes, i know this is old news. I’m late to the iPhone game after all.

I have 3.61 GB left, therefore I was right in thinking I needed to wait. I’ve also watched some video podcasts which I didn’t think I would do much of. Maybe I should have waited for the 32GB iPhone?

My grandmother died last week, I am in Arizona for her funeral. She lived a long good life. Her Obituary was written by my Uncle Ted in a Springfield Ohio news paper.

SMITH, L. Ruth (Dibert) 90, died September 26, 2005, at 8:47 a.m. in Villa Jean Care Center, Chandler, Arizona. She was born October 5, 1914, in Clark County, Ohio, a daughter of Samuel and Alta May (Bishop) Dibert. She was a 1931 graduate of Terre Haute High School and a 1932 graduate of Westville High School, both in Champaign County, Ohio. She married Edward Donald Smith May 2, 1936 in Urbana, Champaign County, Ohio. She is survived by sons, Charles Edward [Sandy] Smith, Nelson Theodore [Lynda] Smith, James Richard [Sandy] Smith; daughter Betty Jean Richards; son-in-law, Robert Ray Jackson; 20 grandchildren; 26 great-grandchildren; brother, Charles Stephen [Mary] Dibert; sister, Mary Ellen Rowe; numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Edward Donald Smith June 22, 1981; daughter Ruth Mae [Smith] Jackson August 21, 1996; son-in-law James Jerome Richards February 12, 1992; grandson Ryan Anson Jenkins and granddaughter Cassandra Marie Genco; two brothers and three sisters. Ruth had moved to Tempe, Arizona in 1957 and resided at 1806 Hardy Drive prior to moving to Villa Jean Care Center. She was a steadfast member of Tempe Nazarene Church for over 40 years and will be greatly missed by her many relatives, friends and acquaintances. Until the last couple of years she never missed sending birthday cards to relatives, family and church friends throughout the United States. A gathering of family and friends will be held Wednesday, October 5, 2005, at 1 p.m., on what would have been her 91st birthday. GREEN ACRES MORTUARY, 401 North Hayden Road, Scottsdale, Arizona will be the location of a funeral service at 3 p.m. with burial immediately afterward in the cemetery nearby. Pallbearers will be grandsons, Xan Smith, Gregory Smith, Anthony Jackson, Bobby Jackson, and grandsons-in-law, Paul Cruz and Chuck Genco. Memorial contributions may be made to VITAS Hospice, 3737 North 7th Street, Suite 203, Phoenix. Arizona 85014, or to Tempe Church of the Nazarene, 3929 South Rural Road, Tempe, Arizona 85282. Published in the Springfield News-Sun on 10/1/2005.