NASA's Orion spacecraft slides under the Tollway Friday. (Photo: Strauss Marketing)

Don’t worry, there were no little green men driving the truck.

The above photo (h/t Strauss Marketing) is of NASA’s Orion spacecraft, which will stop in Dallas tonight as part of a cross-country tour. The photo was taken at Lovers and the Tollway.

Check out the interstellar ride outside the American Airlines Center this weekend, and for more information about the tour, visit NASA.

SMU running back Jared Williams fights for extra yardage. (Photo: Kendall Webb/RoadTripSports.com)

The SMU football team released its 2012 schedule today.

The Mustangs, who are coming off an 8-5 season that included a bowl win over Pittsburgh, will open up at Baylor on Sept. 1. The Bears went 10-3 last year, but they will not have Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III back at quarterback next season. He is headed to the NFL.

SMU’s home opener will be one week later against Stephen F. Austin. That game will be the first of three straight at home. The Mustangs will take on Texas A&M on Sept. 15 and TCU on Sept. 29 at Ford Stadium.

The Conference USA opener for SMU is Oct. 6 at UTEP.

Late last week, I spotted a house on Wentwood that still had a Santa Claus on the porch and a Nativity in the yard. I was prepared to mercilessly make fun of that this morning — the one-month mark since Christmas Eve’s eve — but the decor was put away over the weekend. However, I do think this same house still has some Halloween cobwebs hanging from the second-floor windows.

So, I’ve been kicking around a story idea about property values for some time, since they’ve stagnated pretty much everywhere across the country.

I’m getting the data on this from the appraisal district, but I wanted to throw the question out to you all as well: has your home valued declined? Secondly, does this bother you? For instance, if you’re not trying to sell it right now, the lesser evaluation would mean lower taxes, so it probably wouldn’t matter much.

Just an idea I’ve been playing with, and since I don’t own a house in the Park Cities, thought I’d throw it to you.

I was awestruck by this massive white house on the corner of University and Dickens yesterday. It’s obvious a lot of work is being done on the site, but I couldn’t immediately tell if it was a remodel or a new build. A new house in such a classic style would be a breath of fresh air, but a look at the street view function on Google Maps leads me to believe this is a remodel. If so, bravo to the owners for not tearing such a beautiful old house and starting from scratch.

The University Park City Council denied a request to allow backyard chickens in the city Tuesday evening, following months of campaigning by invested residents.

The Council split, 3-2, on the decision.

For more information, pick up this week’s Park Cities People.

A few weeks ago, I reported that the University Park Public Library would move soon. Now we know the date.

The library in the Chase Bank building will close Jan. 21, and reopen in the Peek Services Center (4420 Worcola Avenue) Feb. 1, according to a statement from the library. Not all books will be shelved, though all will be available to library patrons.

The library is expected to move into its permanent home in the Plaza at Preston Center in early 2013.

After months of clucking around, the University Park City Council will discuss allowing backyard chickens tonight, at 5 p.m.

The proposal made its way through committee in December, with restrictions on the number of chickens and the sizes and locations of the coops.

Honestly, I just want this thing to end so I don’t have to keep coming up with more chickens puns. I’m cluckered out.

According to the details posted on the library’s Facebook page, the sale began less than 20 minutes ago and goes til 8 tonight. Tables, chairs, audio books, DVDs, toys, and art are available. Call 214-750-8350 for more details.

For those who just can’t wait to get our paper every week and read the police blotter, now you can do it in real time. Head to the University Park Police Department website, where they map the crimes, day by day.

Is this new? I don’t know, but it’s new to me. The map also allows you to plot the registered sex offenders in your neighborhood, so have at it.