Photo: Heritage Auctions

Every once in a while, I kick around on Dallas’ Heritage Auctions site, secretly pining from items that I have no use for/ my bank account can’t support. This is one of those items.

I spent my childhood like most boys born in the 80s: mimicking the every moves of Calvin Whateverhislastnameis. I bought every book, and literally almost cried when Bill Watterson hung up his pen.

But, if you’re like me, a $14,000 bid  for the original watercolor for the 1989-1990 Calvin and Hobbes calendar is not feasible. In fact, it would be so irresponsible that my soon-to-be wife would quickly become my never-to-be wife. That said, the People offices are at 750 N. St. Paul Street, Dallas, TX, 75201. We’re on the 21st floor, and we always accept gifts.

Chase Fletcher shows his disbelief after a scoreless overtime period. (Staff photo: Chris McGathey)

As a sports writer, you never know what you might see when you go to cover a game. If you attend enough games, you’ll witness just about everything that could possibly unfold. That’s why when you see something you’ve never seen before, it can be pretty cool.

Such was the case on Tuesday night at the Highland Park-McKinney North boys basketball game at Highlander Fieldhouse. After a rough first half, the Scots found themselves trailing by 12 early in the third quarter. Highland Park was able to whittle that lead away and tie things up on an Andrew Barnes layup with 21 seconds left in regulation.

The game ended up going to overtime. And that’s when the weirdness ensued. Neither team scored in the first extra frame. That’s right, zero points in five minutes. Making things even more astonishing is the fact neither team scored in the second overtime until Chase Fletcher gave the Scots a lead on a layup with one minute left.

Although quite a bit of it had to do with the Bulldogs stalling the ball on offense, we went 9:21 of game clock without a single point. Crazy.

The Scots ended up winning, 48-45, to wrap up a playoff spot and extend their winning streak to 10 games.

Today is National Signing Day, when high school athletes get to autograph letters of intent to accept scholarships from colleges and universities. Our crack staff will be covering three separate signing ceremonies at Highland Park High School this afternoon. Meanwhile, DISD has scheduled a single ceremony for all of its dozens of athletes. Let me repeat: three ceremonies for a single suburban school, one ceremony for an entire urban district. Remind me again which one is the bureaucracy.

Humor me for a moment as I put on my gossip columnist hat and entertain a little rumor. It’s not often that I get a phone call where someone dishes out dirt — that’s the kind of stuff I generally have to dig up myself.

Most commonly, phone calls and emails come flooding in about games won, galas well danced, and other joyous occasions. But yesterday, I got a call about the Junior Symphony Ball that included such memorable and visceral descriptions as “walking through vomit in cowboy boots,” “drunk fest,” and “complete orgy.” The caller, whose daughter attended the Jan. 28 ball, said chaperones turn a blind eye to alcohol and drug use, and that the event has been declining in decorum for years.

This all falls in stark contrast to the JSB that Michelle Duncan, co-chair of the event, attended.

“The things she’s attesting to are really not correct,” Duncan said.

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Here are the HPISD personnel changes from the past month, per the Jan. 17 Board of Trustees meeting:

Retirement

- Karen Zukoski, MIS music teacher, effective May 26, 2012

Leave of Absence

- Randy Allen, director of boys athletics (Though we hear this is just because of recovery from his car accident last year. Don’t worry.)

- Holly Bishop, HPHS science teacher

- Larry Jackson, HPHS economics teacher

- Amy Sepulveda, Bradfield gym teacher

- Kathleen Jackson, HPHS special ed assistant

- Carolyn Allen, UP instructional assistant

Resignation

- Alexey Soldatchenko, district computer technician

- Jack Hatley, special ed instructional assistant (to be replaced by Anthony Peters).

Addition

- Emily Caldwell, to fill a new special ed instructional assistant position at UP Elementary

We’ve told you previously about Jesuit booking big acts such as Randy Travis and Clint Black for its homecoming festivities. But St. Mark’s takes the cake by securing an appearance by Ben Stiller at its Celebrate St. Mark’s fundraiser. I wonder if Stiller is aware that Owen Wilson — his co-star in 10 films, including Starsky and Hutch, The Royal Tenenbaums, and the Meet the Parents series — was once expelled from St. Mark’s.

Leslie Melson and Jim Hitzelberger, the only two Highland Park ISD trustees whose terms are about to expire, have announced their intentions to seek re-election.

Hitzelberger joined the board in 2009 and holds the office of vice president. He is a 1974 graduate of Highland Park High School, where two of his sons are students. A third son attends Highland Park Middle School.

“It is an honor to serve HPISD and support the educational excellence that is a Highland Park tradition,” Hitzelberger said.

Melson joined the board in 2006 and was elected president in 2010. She and her husband, Jim, have four children who all graduated from Highland Park High School.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to give back to my community in this capacity and consider it a privilege to impact the success of our students,” she said.

HPISD trustees are elected at large and serve three-year terms. Municipal elections in the Dallas area will be held May 12. The deadline to file a candidacy is March 5.

So I was driving around the Park Cities area yesterday, rabble-rousing and door-knockin’, when I came across this street art.

I had never seen it before, so I was curious if anyone else had. First person to correctly identify its location wins my undying support for whatever you say in the comments section for the next month.*

* Note- Don’t be racist, or hatin’ on Rihanna. Those are my two breaking points.

Highland Park guard Tanner Stone (72) earned third-team all-state honors. (Photo: Jeremy Chesnutt)

Highland Park’s football team was well-represented on the 61st Annual Collin Street Bakery/Texas Sports Writer’s Association’s Class 4A All-State Team, which was released today.

Guard Tanner Stone, who is set to sign his national letter of intent with Duke on Wednesday, was named to the third team. The other five Scots — quarterback Brady Burgin, defensive back Mark Gottsacker, running back/kick returner Preston Miller, wide receiver William Morris, and linebacker Mason Shaw — were all honorable mention.

Aledo running back Johnathan Gray was named the Offensive Most Valuable Player, while Denton Ryan defensive lineman Mario Edwards Jr. was named the Defensive MVP.

A tired trope, but one that was bound to land here anyway.

I did a pretty cursory search for “Sh*t Park Cities Residents Say,” but didn’t find any hits. Isn’t there some engineering HPHS junior with an iPhone that’s willing to make this happen? A few quick suggestions:

- “Ugh, the parking’s always so bad at Snider Plaza.”
- “I saw Troy Aikman on the Katy Trail.”
- “Why is there ALWAYS so much construction on Preston Road?”