QUESTION: Is there a place in the Longview area where we can take glass to recycle?
ANSWER: Yes, depending on what type it is. The city of Longview doesn't offer curbside glass recycling, but you can take glass bottles and jars of any color to the city's compost site at 2020 Swinging Bridge Road. (No light bulbs, mirrors or auto glass.)
Anyone may use the glass recycling service free of charge, including people who do not live inside the city. David Simmons, the city's recycling coordinator, said people may drop off as much glass as they want. There's also a "mixed recycling dumpster" for paper, plastic, metal cans, etc., that is open to the public and is free of charge.
The compost site is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
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Q: I just watched a Rangers baseball game. The field is just beautiful. How do they get it like that? What does it take to do that?
A: I wish I had a really fantastic answer for you. I do. I've tried multiple times to get someone with the Rangers to talk to me about just what kind of magic they're weaving into the field, but they've found Answer Line's kryptonite when it comes to providing good answers: silence.
So all I have for you is this little nugget of information I found online about Globe Life Park in Arlington. It describes in part what makes the field look so good. Here's what it says about the natural grass field:
"The infield playing surface of Globe Life Park in Arlington consists of certified Tifway 419. The turf was provided by Tri-Tex Grass in Granbury, Texas, and was laid in October 2007. Drainage lines are laid every 15 feet over the entire field. The playing surface is then covered by 4-5 inches of pea gravel and 10-12 inches of sand mixture as the field is expected to have the capacity to drain 9-10 inches of water per hour. The field's irrigation system allows the entire outfield to be watered from one station, producing 750 gallons per minute or 50,000 gallons per hour, as compared to 18,000 gallons per hour in Arlington Stadium.
For water efficiency, the soil is monitored by a below-ground sensor that detects when water is needed or even which zones of the field are dry."
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Q: I was just wondering if you can find out where the saying "rules were made to be broken" came from and if that's why so many people think they don't have to obey the rules that are around.
A: It's really almost un-American of you to suggest people should follow the rules. (Careful. Someone will revoke your membership.) It's especially un-American when you consider what I think was the primary source for this phrase: Douglas MacArthur. I found quotes by different people with variations of this sentiment, but the famous World War II general was quoted once as saying, "Rules are mostly made to be broken and are too often for the lazy to hide behind."
So is that why people don't follow the rules? I don't think anyone needed a good catch-phrase to push them toward that behavior. It's a part of who we are since. ... well, the garden of Eden.
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Q: Why are there so many TV commercials with dogs and cats in them? I get tired of looking at dogs and cats.
A: What can I say? Who doesn't love dogs and cats? (Oh, wait. You don't like dogs and cats. Sorry). In fact, I think perhaps the perfect television commercial would be one that somehow included cute puppies and kittens, a smiling, bouncing, chubby baby (Oh! I happen to have one available!), a madly-in-love couple walking into the sunset with an American flag in the background. Oh, and then the commercial should finish with another shot of a puppy and kitten. Cuddling. Or maybe some fireworks. Either would work just fine. I'd buy that product, whatever it is.
— Answer Line appears Thursday and Saturday. Email questions to answerline@news-journal.com, leave message at (903) 232-7208 or write to P.O. Box 1179, Longview, TX 75606.
