On The Spot Blog

Ok, so there’s a rapper out there that has the same name as me.  He seasons his rhymes with his name.

I used to be joked at when talking about football in High School, since there was a NFL player with the name Mike Jones as well.

I laughed with co-workers who see my identification badge,  I let the jokes roll other places (although not my primary ringer, I have the “Who’s Mike Jones” ringtone in my cell phone).

I spoke to another co-worker, who shares the same name as “Fresh Prince” Will Smith.  He said in the hey-day of the performer, he was joked at as well.

A former manager of mine was named Tim Taylor, and during the run of the Tim Allen hit series “Home Improvement” he was frequently referred to as the “Toolman” - I even would occasionally throw a “I don’t think so, Tim.” to have fun with it.

But, it comes to a point of disrespect after a certain point in time.  A co-worker, routinely tries to impersonate the rapper, calling out my name for no reason but to annoy me.

Being that Mike Jones, the rapper, and myself both live in Houston, it has compounded the problem.  By my count, there are 123 telephone listings for Michael or Mike Jones in the Houston area. 

Despite the fact that he mentions his phone number (and according to the stories I heard, it is legitimately his phone number) in a rhyme, I have had phone calls from several teenagers from all over the country, at all hours of the day and night, wanting to talk to the performer.  I’ve shunned most away, but still, getting the phone calls at 2am and 3am that pushes it over the line.

My question is, why is it that those of us virtual unknowns must suffer because one person with a common name rises to fame? 

In the pre-Internet days, if I wanted to look up a phone number in another town, I made the trip to the local library, and looked it up in the phone books of major cities they had there. 

I also was taught to respect privacy of those celebrities.  If I see a celebrity (even a local celebrity) I will say hello, but not create a scene.  I’m reminded of a story told by a sci-fi convention promoter, when he was at the airport picking up William Shatner.  Mr. Shatner had just arrived, and needed to take care of “business”.  He entered the nearest men’s room, and another patron came running out exclaiming that he just did his “business” next to Captain Kirk!  The resulting mob scene created a nightmare for the promoter and Mr. Shatner, since they were on a tight schedule. 

I had an opportunity to see a performance at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee a few years ago, and Bill Anderson, an Opry regular, made an appearance that evening,  at one point inviting his son, daughter-in-law, and grandson out on stage.  He commented that if anyone gets a good picture, he would like a copy.  The following year, he performed at an event in my hometown, and I obliged by taking him two 8×10 prints that I took of it.  He offered to autograph one for me, but I declined, asking if I could get a picture with him, to which he obliged.

In these days of school curriculums being crowded with much more than the old reading, writing and arithmetic, certain social things like respect seem to be getting forgotten.  It’s time for schools to remember that social skills need to be taught as well, and respect should be at the top of the list.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Beginning with this piece, I plan on writing several topics using the catch-line “It’s All About…”  Hopefully, many of these will be timely (I’ve had three or four on my mind, but working on a presentation for my real job has precluded me from writing them), and I can post one a week, my time permitting.

Any city you travel to, you are inundated with noise.  All hours of the day and night, noise surrounds us.

Some people in our fair city want to make noise.  Some make their noise with loud stereos, or loud car exhausts.  While annoying, these only last a few moments until the assault ends for the rest of us.

What I’m talking about is the stationary kind of noise.  Noise that goes non-stop for all hours.  Residents around Memorial Park were vocal about the noise generated by traffic on the new I-610 bridge over I-10 at a recent city council meeting.

I understand the citizens concerns, as I spent 5 years living 100 feet from a freeway in Kansas City prior to my move to Houston.  All hours of the day and night, motorcycles accelerating to insane speeds, truckers using exhaust brakes to slow down, and general noise from the road — and there were no noise walls to filter it out.

Another kind of noise is business noise.  As I sit here and write this, a local club has started their nearly frequent tradition of having a live DJ outside when the weather’s nice.  Though the establishment is two blocks away, I can hear the bass of the music, droning constantly from about 8pm until 2 or 3 am.  Last year, this even occurred on Sunday Nights, leaving me with a tough day at work the next day.

While I have reported this problem to HPD, it not always results in the establishment resolving the problem.  In fact, last year, one night I reported it, they got louder, and it took a second call to quiet them.

A private hall directly across the street is frequently rented on weekends, and in the two years I have lived here, I have never heard the live bands that frequent the facility.

Much like how my apartment complex mandates not disturbing our neighbors in the overnight hours, it’s time for the city council, TXDOT and other organizations to think about what can be done to reduce the assault on our ears. 

TXDOT should mandate noise-reducing technology be incorporated into all construction projects.  While they are constructing “Noise Walls” along most of the Katy Freeway corridor, the resulting walls that would have fenced the park would be over 30 feet tall!  Other changes could be made to reduce the impact without an ugly huge barrier surrounding the park.

The city should enforce the noise ordinance whenever possible, manpower permitting, and consider escalating fines for people and venues that frequently violate the ordinance.  Failure to comply should also be considered when the business applies for liquor license renewal.

As far as the loud exhausts, any local grocery store throwing out large citrus fruit, let me know…