In his noon address, the mayor said that while he still believes the toll road is the best alternative for dealing with traffic issues, “other numbers have surfaced” that he wants to examine before making a final decision. After mentioning the cows that stopped south-of-downtown traffic this morning, he reiterated: The toll road is the right way to go to relieve such problems, and “we’re going to show that with the numbers.”

So, does that mean his mind is already made up on the matter? Not at all, Rawlings said after his talk. Then, what was the clarification? “There was the sense that I was wobbling” on the toll road, he replied. But, “I’m not wobbling.” It’s not that he wants to go ahead with the toll road regardless of the TxDOT answers, he explained; he could still be surprised by them. When yours truly looked confused, Rawlings added: “It’s a matter of tone.”

In other luncheon news, the chocolate cake was excellent.

“When 30 cows can block (traffic) in both directions, it shows me we need to do something.”

I just had one of our interns do some checking, and — other than the magically expanding super highway that appears in my as-yet-unpublished collection of children’s mysteries, William W. Williams and the Case of the Inscrutably Polite Burrito, and Other Stories — the amount of roads that would not be blocked by 30 terrified cows is roughly zero.

But you know what? I think I may have read this situation wrong. The “something” part, I guess, is open-ended. In other words, I think Mayor Mike may have finally looked at my proposal (I cc’d both Citizen Mike and Respondent Mike on it, so maybe they showed him). It’s what they call in the business a “game changer.” Not to go into too much detail, but it calls for constructing a series of wormholes across North Texas, obviating the need for cars and, by extension, all roads. In other words: this never-ending debate just got AWESOME.

UP TOP, CITIZEN/MAYOR MIKE!!!

But you can see Carlene Cockburn Kristin Chenoweth in what one could practically consider her hometown tonight. The powerhouse singer is putting on a rare, nearly sold out concert tonight at the Winspear. She’s very famous for her turn as Glinda in the Broadway production of Wicked, and recognizable from The West Wing, but I think I loved her best as pie waitress Olive on Pushing Daisies, which was a freaking fantastic show. I also really like “Taylor the Latte Boy” even though the song is from 2005 and lattes are way more expensive now. She’ll sing songs from her new album, Some Lessons Learned. But don’t worry: she’ll reprise hits from Wicked, the musical Promises, Promises, and Glee. The unfortunate thing is that most of the seats left are singles, but you can get partial view seats together up in the dress circle.

If you are a fan of our baseball team, chance are you’ll recognize this name (and the voice behind it): Eric Nadel. And it’s his birthday. He’d really like it if you would celebrate with him this evening at the Kessler Theater, especially since the voice of our Texas Rangers has donated his birthday to two very good causes. His wife, Jeannie, is a crisis counselor at Contact, a local 24-hour help line that’s been around for 45 years. Singer/songwriter Daphne Willis works with the nonprofit To Write Love On Her Arms, which provides support for teens and college kids struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury, and suicide. Tickets are just $10, and all the proceeds from Nadel’s bash (including a silent auction) will go toward both groups. Ray Johnston Band will open the show, while Willis headlines.

For more to do tonight, go here.

This week’s edition seems to target critics who argue that prostitution, while illegal, is often still voluntary, and includes the tale of a young New York prostitute who was branded by her pimp. (”Such branding is a reminder that women being sold on the streets in America are — not always, but often — victims rather than criminals,” Kristof writes.) Most of the girl’s dates, she says, came from Backpage.

This newest column comes amid heavy pressure on the company’s advertisers, 36 of which have already pulled their ads, and attorneys general around the country.

Keep An Alternate Route On Hand If You’re Driving North on Central This Weekend. Just in case this happens.

Mother of Deported Teenage Runaway Files Federal Lawsuit. Remember Jakadrien Turner? She was the Dallas runaway who told police she was a 21-year-old Colombian national (she was 14 at the time), and ended up being deported to Colombia. She spent seven months living in shelters until her family tracked her down, by which time she had also gotten pregnant. Her mother is now asking for $15 million in damages.

Niggardly. It’s a perfectly fine word and totally unrelated to that other N-word. But it’s essentially the same damn word. Too dangerous.

Whinge. It means nearly the same thing as “whine,” so, in context, readers will think we meant to use “whine,” and that zany “g” will make them think we goofed. Our readers are smart, but I think “whinge” trips up even smart readers.

Pussy. Get your mind out of the gutter. I’m talking about an infection. The problem here, of course, is that studies have shown that 87 percent of Americans have their minds in the gutter.

Lightninging. Mike brought this one up. He claims that if it’s thundering outside, then it should also be lightninging. Mike is insane. This is not a perfectly fine word. We’re not printing it.

A war starts and U.S. ships find themselves on the wrong end of enemy mines. Ships get sunk and sailors die, but even more importantly, the Navy loses control of the sea. The reason is that during peacetime, the Navy’s mine countermeasures force was allowed to deteriorate. Quickly, the Navy builds up a mine countermeasures force that is second to none and it performs brilliantly. But once the war ends, the minemen who don’t become civilians seek more career-enhancing billets elsewhere in the service. Within a few years, all but a few of the minesweepers have been scrapped or sold and the hard-earned institutional knowledge forgotten. But then another war starts, and the Navy again lacks a viable mine countermeasures capability and the cycle starts all over again.

You want an example? Brendan has one for you:

In October 1950, an American-led, 250-ship United Nations task force tried to send an invasion force ashore at Wonsan. But then they discovered there were more than 3,000 mines floating between them and the beach. Minesweepers were sent in but they proved unequal to the task. After three minesweepers were sunk and more than a hundred lives lost, the invasion was called off. … [T]he task force commander, Rear Adm. Allen E. Smith, famously lamented: “We have lost control of the seas to a nation without a navy, using pre-World War I weapons, laid by vessels that were utilized at the time of the birth of Christ.”

If you’re one of those people (I’m one) who can’t flip past the History channel without getting sucked in to whatever they’re broadcasting about WWII, you’ll find the whole story fascinating. Recommended.

Have you ever asked yourself why you don’t get more excited about the prospect of taking a trip to downtown Arlington? You inevitably reach the conclusion that you just don’t find the place appealing because it lacks the crudely drawn symbol hoisted atop a flagpole that would really get you jazzed about visiting.

Well, no more excuses. This morning the Downtown Arlington Management Corporation had a skydiver drop in on downtown Arlington (see the Star-T video embedded above) to reveal its new branding effort. They promptly raised their new flag for all to see.

It’s possible that this means the neighborhood has officially seceded from the rest of Arlington, but I’d need to check Texas state law to verify that, and who’s got the time to do anything but plan my next to trip to downtown Arlington after being floored by its logo?

I’ve placed an image of it only after the jump, so that you can make sure you’re sitting down and take a few deep breaths before viewing.