Congratulations Brewers

Tonight I watched the Milwaukee Brewers defeat the Tampa Bay Rays to win the World Series for the first time. It had to feel good for long-suffering Milwaukee fans - this is the franchise's first title in its 58 seasons of existence - and it brought back pleasant memories of watching my team finally do it almost a decade ago. Especially since the Brewers, like the Astros, had come so agonizingly close before:

Milwaukee had its moments before -- a lone pennant in 1982, led by Hall of Famers Robin Yount and Paul Molitor. National League Championship Series appearances in 2011, 2018 and 2025. But the Brewers had never been able to break the ceiling and win a World Series title. This year, they left no doubt. They took down the San Diego Padres in four games and the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers in a sweep. Those same Dodgers had eliminated the Brewers in their previous two NLCS appearances, the greatest recent obstacle between Milwaukee and that long-sought championship.

Any team that keeps the Dodgers out of the World Series is alright with me.

I almost felt sorry for the Rays, who are now one of only four MLB teams to have never won a World Series. On TV it really looked and sounded like their own fans were outnumbered by Brewers fans in their own ballpark.

But then I remembered that they were the Tampa Bay Rays. 

The Halloween candy is too damn high

Bad news for trick-or-treaters: higher candy prices may cause people to skimp on the sweets they give out this year:

This Halloween, the biggest jump scare may come at the checkout counter, where candy prices are giving shoppers sticker shock.  

Popular candy packs, from sour gummies to chocolate bars, have surged more than 15 percent over the past year, according to a recent analysis. Tariffs and the war in Iran are among the factors cited for rising costs across consumer goods.

As Texas families grapple with higher prices, candy sales are also taking a hit. Sales of non-essential items like candy fell by 11.7 percent as of mid-September, according to a study by market research firm NielsenIQ. 

It's not just the higher prices for candy itself. Higher prices on everything else, from food to fuel, are causing households to cut back on what they're putting into their candy bowls this Halloween.

"Some of the decisions they're making about Halloween candy, it's not necessarily because, 'I notice it's more expensive than last year,' it's, 'I can't afford it this year because I've paid so much more for so many other things. I just don't have the financial means to buy it this year," said (NielsenIQ's Chris) Costagli. 

Sorry, kids! Make sure to tell your parents that this is all because of a fat orange thing that is not a pumpkin and tell them to vote accordingly.

It's times like these when I'm glad I live in a neighborhood that lacks trick-or-treating activity...

#14 Houston 13, #10 Utah 21

This was the perfect opportunity for the Cougars. Previously-unbeaten Texas Tech and BYU had both been upset earlier in the day. The presence of ESPN College Gameday had put national focus on their game against Utah. Win, and UH would be in the driver's seat for the Big XII Championship and become the talk of the college football world. 

Of course, they Cooged It. 

The Good: The Cougars slogged their way to a 3-0 lead at halftime and a 10-0 lead until late in the third quarter. WR Amare Thomas had 133 yards receiving. The defense intercepted Utah QB Devon Dampier twice. 

The Bad: The interceptions aside, Dampier spent the evening making the Cougar defense look stupid. He rushed for 150 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 204 more. All in all, the UH defense gave up a jaw-dropping 430 yards of total offense. It didn't help that the Cougars were utterly unable to make a tackle.

That said, the defense only gave up 21 points in this game (the last score being surrendered to that the Coogs could get the ball back). That should have been enough, had the offense done its job. It didn't, managing a season-low 13 points.

Connor Weigman was clearly not 100% healthy for this game, and it didn't help that one of his main targets, TE Patrick Overmyer, left the game with an injury early on. The result was an offense that sputtered, only being able to score on three of its ten possessions. Drive-killing penalties didn't help.

The Ugly: Weigman's sack-and-fumble with 2:20 remaining in the game essentially sealed the loss. Credit goes to Utah's defense for drawing up a devastating blindside blitz at the game's critical moment.

What It Means: I had this game penciled in a loss before the season even began. The Utes are a good team and the atmosphere at Rice-Eccles Stadium is as intimidating as any place in the country. So the outcome, while disappointing, is not surprising.

However, if the Cougars are ever going to get to the next level under Willie Fritz, these are the games they need to find ways to win. This loss, as well as the loss to Texas Tech back in September, show that Houston has a lot of work to do before they become on the Big XII's truly elite teams. Ryan deems this game a "missed opportunity." 

The Cougars now take a much-needed week off to regroup and recover before hosting Cincinnati.

This was Houston's first-ever loss to Utah; the Coogs were 5-0 against the Utes before Saturday night.

#20 Houston 35, #18 Oklahoma State 32

A 14-3 halftime lead for Houston turned into a second-half shootout, as the Cougars and the Cowboys traded scores. Oklahoma State got within three points late in the game but were unable to stop the Coogs from running out the clock on their next possession and securing their first win over a ranked opponent this season.

The Good: Houston QB Conner Weigman threw five touchdown passes, a career high, as part of an evening that saw him pass for 343 yards and rush for 54 more. WRs Amare Thomas and Trent Walker both had more than 100 yards against the Cowboys. The Houston defense forced two turnovers and held the Cowboys scoreless on a 4th-and-goal on the two-yard line.

The Bad: Oklahoma State QB Drew Mestemaker carved up Houston's pass defense. He finished with 365 passing yards and three touchdowns of his own. Houston had a tough time containing Cowboy RB Caleb Hawkins, who ended the night with 125 receiving yards and 68 more on the ground.

The Great: After being maligned on social media for poor attendance at their last home game, the Cougar faithful showed up in force for this one, selling out TDECU Stadium (official attendance was 42,544) and creating an amazing atmosphere for football. It certainly didn't hurt that this was a night game, rather than another 11 am kickoff that fans hate.

What It Means: The Cougars are now 6-1 overall, 3-1 in conference play, and still have a shot at the Big XII Championship. However, a very tough game against Utah in Salt Lake City looms this Saturday.

Martin Marroquin thinks Weigman "taught a master class" against Oklahoma State, while Pistols Firing laments that "time and time again, the Cougars made the plays when they needed, and the Cowboys just couldn’t."

#22 Houston 35, Kansas State 16

Last Saturday the Cougars notched a surprisingly solid road victory against the Kansas State Wildcats.

The Good: TE Patrick Overmyer caught four touchdown passes, tying an FBS record for most touchdown passes caught by a tight end. All four of those passes came from QB Conner Weigman, who was 19 of 30 for 242 yards. Houston's rushing attack added 233 yards and a score, and the Coogs did not turn the ball over. 

Defensively, the Cougars frustrated KSU dual-threat QB Avery Johnson (16 of 30 for 182 yards, two touchdowns and an interception) and kept Kansas State out of the end zone until late in the third quarter. I don't think Houston's defense from a few weeks ago would have managed such a strong performance. 

The Bad: K Jonathan Dimas missed a field goal and the Cougars were flagged 8 times for 74 yards. 

What It Means: As hard as it is to believe, we've reached the halfway point of the regular season. The Cougars are 5-1 and are still in the hunt for a spot in the Big XII Conference Championship Game. But they've got more tough games coming up, including a prime-time clash against nationally-ranked Oklahoma State at TDECU Stadium this Saturday. If you haven't attended a UH game in awhile, this would be a great opportunity to do so.

Claws and Effect thinks that this game was "as dominant a display as we’ve seen on the road against a Big 12 opponent," while Ryan sings the praises of the Cougars' offensive line.

A really bad place for a gas station

 Yeah, this is pretty much the last thing my neighborhood needs:

Some Midtown residents are banding together to oppose a proposed convenience store and gas station on McGowen Street between Milam Street and Travis Street.

City officials are scheduled to meet Thursday to decide whether to approve the development.

"The first thing I thought was, 'Well, we're just going to have more people hanging out at a gas station,' and that discourages me from wanting to walk," said Brenda Franco, who lives across the street.

Franco moved to the area because she can walk to and from work, and she often uses the light rail, which is just a block away.

"Thinking of the impatience of drivers here, more than likely cutting through this gas station parking lot," she said. "That's concerning. I'm definitely against it. I want to keep Midtown as it is, which is walkable."

Midtown is one of three neighborhoods in our city that the city council has designated as a walkable place, which means special rules apply to development.

But the developer is asking city officials to make an exception.

I am familiar with the parcel of land where this gas station is proposed to be built because I walk or drive past it almost every day. The space is currently a parking lot; it was previously associated with the Cadillac dealership on the other side of Travis but when that establishment shuttered it became a pay lot for Midtown club-goers. The property is certainly ripe for redevelopment, but a gas station is definitely not its ideal use.

First, there are already multiple gas stations in close proximity to this one, including one just a short distance up the street at the corner of Travis and Hadley. I'm really curious to know how the market analysis that was conducted for this development, assuming there was one, justified the need for an additional gas station and convenience store in this corner of Midtown. It seems like oversaturation. 

Second, this part of Midtown has a large homeless population and this gas station will become a place for them to loiter and panhandle the very second it opens. Anybody who has tried to get gas at any of the nearby existing stations (or, for that matter, has tried to get groceries at the Midtown Randall's) knows what I'm talking about. Another gas station in this location will just worsen the existing situation, which is already bad.

Third, this property is just one block away from a light rail station and across the street from two apartment complexes, one of which has a historic marker affixed to it. This property is a paradigmatic example of a place worthy of pedestrian-friendly, transit-oriented development. A gas station/convenience store is neither.

Finally, putting a gas station on this property will represent a huge lost opportunity. This is because properties that become gas stations tend to remain gas stations; the costs associated with removing the underground storage tanks (which usually involves environmental remediation) generally make redevelopment of gas station sites uneconomical. That means that once this is built, it's going to be there for a long time, even as the properties around it change. 

The bottom line is that putting a gas station/convenience store on this site is an incredibly lazy, unimaginative, and unnecessary use of piece of a property that could be developed into something so much more valuable and restorative for the neighborhood. I'm rarely someone to criticize somebody else for the way they use their property, especially since I live in a city that famously does not have zoning laws, but this is a ridiculously stupid proposal that will do lasting damage to Midtown's urban fabric.

The KTRK article doesn't go into the nature of the variance the developer is requesting.

Is the Great Topo Chico Shortage of 2026 finally coming to an end?

Our long national nightmare may be over:

After months of being harder to find on store shelves, Topo Chico Mineral Water is making a comeback — and Texas will be the first state to get it.

Coca-Cola, which owns Topo Chico, said the mineral water is beginning a phased return to stores in Texas, with plans to bring the product back to additional states in 2027.

The return comes after a shortage that affected Topo Chico Mineral Water for much of 2026.

Last February, the beloved Mexican mineral water began disappearing from store shelves while upgrades were made to Topo Chico's production plant in Monterrey, Mexico. Since then I've had to make do with other brands, whether they be Mexican (Penafiel, Mineragua) or H-E-B's house brand. Although all of these brands are serviceable, none are as good as Topo Chico.

The comeback is starting in Texas.

Topo Chico said it is beginning a phased return of its mineral water in the state before expanding to other parts of the country in 2027.

That means Texas shoppers could begin seeing the familiar glass bottles return to store shelves after months of limited availability. The company did not announce a single nationwide return date, since availability will roll out in phases.

Sure enough, Corinne found some bottles of Topo Chico at a local convenience store a couple of weeks ago. And I discovered a pallet full of the familiar yellow 12-bottle boxes of Topo Chico at my local H-E-B late last week. It was a sight for sore eyes indeed, although I personally prefer the larger plastic bottles. Hopefully Costco will begin carrying those in the 24-pack trays soon as well. 

In addition to the return of the classic mineral water, Topo Chico is also rolling out a line of canned mineral waters. As has been the case since 1895, all the water comes from a spring at the foot of the Cerro del Topo Chico in Monterrey.

I'm just glad that I can enjoy Topo Chico again. This was way worse than the 2021 shortage, which was traumatic enough. 

#20 Houston 27, Central Florida 17

After an abysmally slow start - the Cougars were down 0-17 midway through the third quarter - Houston rallied to score 27 unanswered points and notch their first conference win of the season.

The Good: Once the Cougar offense finally woke up midway through the third quarter, they were all but unstoppable. QB Conner Weigman threw for 239 yards and rushed for 50 more, including all three Houston touchdowns. The Coogs ended that game with 393 yards of total offense.

The defense, surprisingly enough, kept the Cougars in this game, limiting the Golden Knights 17 total points. UCF could convert only 4 of its 14 third-down conversion attempts. 

The game's winning margin came courtesy of K Jonathan Dimas, who made two field goals (including a career-long 46-yarder) and earned Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week honors. 

The Bad: How disastrous was the first half for Houston's offense? The Cougars got within ten yards of the UCF goal line three times - and came away with zero points. 

The Ugly: The announced attendance of 25,593 was considerably larger than the actual number of butts in seats at this game and the program is getting dragged accordingly on social media. While it's hard to defend the shitty UH fanbase (and I was part of the problem because I was at a family event in Louisiana instead of at the game), I think the UH faithful - what there is of them - have made their opinion clear about 11 am kickoffs. 

Better marketing would help as well. The program rolled out special space-themed helmets for this game but this was not announced until the night before the game.  

What It Means: The Cougars are now 1-1 in conference play with a tough stretch of games ahead of them, beginning with a road trip to Manhattan, Kansas to take on the KSU Wildcats this weekend.

#25 Houston 42, Georgia Southern 28

Willie Fritz returned to Statesboro, Georgia to face the team he once coached. He left with a closer-than-expected win.

The Good: The Cougar offense was unstoppable. They scored touchdowns on six of their seven full possessions and amassed 441 yards of total offense. In addition to throwing four touchdown passes, QB Conner Weigman rushed for a pair of scores. Re'Shaun Sanford II led all rushers with 120 yards, and the Coogs did not turn the ball over.

The UH defense forced a turnover and held Georgia Southern to 66 total rushing yards. But the Eagles really didn't need to run the ball because...

The Bad: The Houston pass defense was abysmal, surrendering 289 yards to the Eagles. Georgia Southern QB Max Johnson completed 26 of 38 passes with three touchdowns and no interceptions, while Eagle WR Alex Taylor ripped through Houston's secondary with 119 receiving yards and two scores. UH's pass defense, or lack thereof, is quickly becoming the most concerning story of the season.

The Ugly: Houston's special teams was caught flat-footed and allowed Georgia Tech to recover an onside kick after their first touchdown. The Eagles would go on to convert that recovery into another score and tie things up. All of a sudden a game that looked like an easy Cougar win became something of a nail-biter.

What It Means: This game was always going to present a challenge for the Coogs. They were playing the second of back-to-back games on the road, while Georgia Southern was hosting a Power Four team at its stadium for the first time ever and Eagles Coach Clay Helton was facing his alma mater. It stands to reason that they would be hyped up for this game and pull out all the stops (i.e. the onside kick) to try to win; in fact, this game might have been even closer had Georgia Southern not been flagged nine times for 64 yards. So I can't be too upset that Houston beat a Sun Belt program by "only" two touchdowns.

That being said, if the secondary doesn't improve - and quickly - the Cougars are going to be at a huge disadvantage against Big XII opponents. That includes Central Florida, who comes to TDECU Stadium this Saturday.

#22 Houston 26, #13 Texas Tech 28

They say football is a game of inches, and Houston QB Connor Weigman could have used a couple of them late in the fourth quarter as he lunged to score a two-point conversion that would have tied the game with 49 seconds remaining. Alas, the ball was ruled down just short of the goal line, and Houston fell to Texas Tech in Lubbock, 26-28.

The Good: Weigman passed for 282 yards and three touchdowns. TE Patrick Overmeyer caught eight passes for 72 yards and a TD, while WR Amare Thomas caught seven balls for 72 yards and a score. WR Koby Young made a ridiculous 42-yard circus catch, while DB Jalen Mayo made an incredible one-handed interception.

If you look at the stat sheet, the Cougars had a great game. They had more total yards, more first downs, more third-down conversions, a greater time of possession, and fewer turnovers than the Red Raiders. Unfortunately, the only stat that matters is the final score.

The Bad: I was rather disappointed in the defense, especially their inability to tackle or put pressure on Texas Tech QB Will Hammond. Weigman had a good day but not a great one, as 11 of his 38 passes fell incomplete. He also fumbled while attempting a scramble.

The Ugly: Aside from the poor tackling, the Cougars did not do themselves any favors by committing seven penalties for 60 yards. Special teams play wasn't stellar, either; the Cougars gave up a lot of yards by not fielding punts. 

What It Means: This was the biggest game on Houston's schedule, and the Cougars could have come away with a statement win had they played just a little better: fewer incomplete passes, better tackling, fewer penalties, better special teams play. As Ryan notes, "the Cougars had plenty of chances to win, but Texas Tech was the better team when it mattered most."

The Cougars now make a (frankly rather bizarre) road trip to play the Sun Belt's Georgia Southern Eagles. I was originally thinking about making this roadtrip and spending a few days in Savannah, but decided against it as I'm still in financial recovery from my last trip to the Atlantic Coast.