Charter Communications Missing Channels Solution

Well. I've had me a day. It started with dealing with an off shore WaMu bank customer service center that specialized in gibberish.

It ended, well, it's not quite the end of the day yet, but by late late afternoon I'd solved my problem with Charter Communications lack of communicating as to why I can no longer watch Bravo or TCM.

Oh, Charter had explanations. But they were GIBBERISH.

So, this guy knocks on my door. He's from AT & T. Selling their new cable tv, phone and internet service. He quickly made quite a good case as to why I should dump Charter.

The number one thing that sold me is when the guy said AT & T does not use off shore customer support because they don't want to piss people off, they want to create good word of mouth. Like this blog.

Come October 14, AT & T will show up here and will install DVR's for 2 TV's. Converter boxes for 2 TVs. The Internet connection stuff and anything else needed. For way less than I've been paying that inept Charter Communications.

Once I'm up and running with my new AT & T system that is gonna be one fun call to Charter overseas to tell them I'm cancelling their crappy service.

America Not Number One In Alcohol Consumption

This afternoon I came across a list from the World Health Organization ranking the World's countries by how many liters of pure alcohol are consumed per capita per year in each country.

The United States did not do too well on this list. We aren't even in the Top 40. Little Luxembourg is the World's top consumer of booze at 15.56 liters per capita per year. The United States is #43 at a measly 8.44 liters. Luxembourg drinks almost twice as much as we do.

Australia drinks more than we do, coming in at #38 with 9.02 liters per. It's not much of a shock that Russia is drunker than us, #27 with 10.32 liters. France is drunker than the Russians at #17 with 11.43 liters. The United Kingdom almost cracked the Top Ten at #11 and 11.75 liters.

I guess it is no great surprise that the Irish are #2, drinking 13.69 liters of pure alcohol per capita per year.

America's neighbor to the north drinks less than we do, #50 with 8.00 liters. Maybe the Canuch's relative sobriety is due to excessive beer consumption with its lesser amount of alcohol than something like vodka.

Our neighbor to the south is way more sober than even the Canadians, coming in at #96 and only 4.50 liters per capita. Maybe the Mexicans don't drink their tequila and save it all for export.

It's a 4 way tie for most sober country at #197 and 0.00 liters of pure alcohol consumption per capita per year. The 4 totally sober places on the planet are Bangladesh, Somalia, Saudi Arabia and, this one is a surprise, one of the American territories, the United States Virgin Islands. I find that hard to believe.

You can look at the entire list by going here....

Washington Mutual Aggravation, Part II

I called Washington Mutual this morning. Once again, like I said yesterday, their account verification system is haywire. After a couple tries it gave me a hit #2 option to access a live banker.

I did so and got an Indian, I think, by Indian I don't mean Native American.

I explained the problem with them assessing a fee on a returned check that should not have been returned. I had to repeat myself multiple times due to each time the live Indian banker missed the drift.

Eventually he put me on hold. When he came back on he told me he was transferring me to his assistant manager, Eric.

I got to explain the problem again. Eric sounded as if he might have been an American in America. Eric eventually concluded the 2nd $12 fee was a mistake and he'd credit it back. I once more asked why the check was returned to the WaMu account on which it was drawn, with that account having plenty of money to cover the check. Eric said it did appear that that should not have happened. But that he couldn't verify it without seeing the other account.

Since I had that other account's verification info Eric agreed he could look at it. He did so and saw that 2 checks had been deposited on the 19th. But that he'd have to talk to his manager to figure out why the check drawn on that account was returned on the 25th, which, maybe coincidentally, was the day WaMu was taken over by the Feds.

Eric said he'd call me when he had an answer. So far, no call, and no crediting back to the 2nd account of the erroneous fee.

I hate banks and offshore customer support centers.

Chesapeake Energy's Rape of a Neighborhood

Yesterday I blogged about the damage being done by Chesapeake Energy to Scott Avenue in East Fort Worth, adjacent to the Tandy Hills Park Natural Area.

This morning I had incoming from Don Young, with pictures, on the same subject.....

Using the word "rape" as a metaphor should always be done sparingly and with sensitivity and only when people have grown numb to reality. In the case, I believe it is an apt word to describe the violence inflicted on the people whose lives are impacted by the action depicted in these photos. There is no better metaphor to express the sense of violation committed by Chesapeake Energy on this neighborhood and these extraordinarily rare and scenic prairie hills.

I urge you to come see for yourself what the City of Fort Worth has allowed to happen, once again, in east Fort Worth. The city staff, under the direction of Mayor Mike Moncrief, was presented with a clear choice: Deny the permit and risk a costly lawsuit or protect people and neighborhoods. In other words, enforce existing zoning regulations. No one said it would be easy or without risk. At the end of the day they chose to side with Chesapeake Energy and a handful of mineral owners.

Moncrief and staff did so with full knowledge of the negative impact to the neighborhood and nearby Tandy Hills Natural Area. They did so knowing that Chesapeake has plans to expand the drill site and add dangerous pipelines to the mix. Once again, they failed to do the right and honorable thing.

This latest attack should be more than enough reason to enact a moratorium on all new permits for gas drilling operations. Regardless of where you live in Fort Worth, this should concern you.
But, just being concerned does nothing. You, dear reader, must take direct action. Time is running out. Visit FW-Credo.org to learn how you can make a difference.

Also, if you will, let Mayor Moncrief hear from you: Mike.Moncrief@fortworthgov.org

Don Young
FWCanDo
P.O. Box 470041
Fort Worth, TX 76147

"God bless Fort Worth, Texas. Help us save some of it."

Washington Mutual Aggravation

When Washington Mutual, affectionately known as WaMu, went under last week we were assured this would cause no problems for existing account holders.

I beg to differ.

I have 2 WaMu accounts. On September 19 two large checks from the State of Texas were deposited.

A small check for only $100 was drawn on the first account and deposited into the 2nd account, that being the account I use for things like PayPal that I don't want to keep a lot of money in.

Today, September 29, I got a letter from WaMu telling me that I'd been assessed a $12 "Returned Deposit Item Fee" due to there being insufficient funds in the 1st account, that being the one in which a large deposit had been made 2 Friday's ago.

I then looked at my account online to learn I've been assessed a 2nd $12 fee which has been deducted as well as the original $100 check, which had been credited, but has now been debited from the 2nd account.

So, the other account, which has plenty of $ in it to cover the $100 check, has not had an overdraft fee or notice generated. So WaMu is charging the 2nd account a total of $24 dollars, claiming, even on the second attempt to run the check through, that there were still insufficient funds. Even though I could see, online, that there were.

Since it's all my money, I still have the $100. It just never left the 1st account. But I'm out the $24 in the second account. Which I'm fairly certain will be returned when I call and complain tomorrow.

The WaMu meltdown occurred right when this problem reared its ugly head. I suspect there is a connection.

When I opened the letter from WaMu I thought I'd just call them, since any other time there's been a problem they quickly fix it. Well. You call the toll-free number and get greeted with a cheery voice welcoming you to WaMu, now a proud part of Chase Bank. I was then asked to enter either my account number or the number on my debit card.

I tried the debit card first. Entered that, though it strained my eyes. Then I was asked to enter the last 4 digits of my S.S. card. Did so, to be told they didn't match. I was then asked to try again. Did so. Same result. Tried again, this time switching to the account number. Same result.

It was starting to annoy me, so I kept at it, a total of 7 times before I gave up. There is no way I incorrectly entered the numbers 7 times. Any other time I've called WaMu I instantly get through.

I've got the direct local number of my local WaMu guy. It was past banking hours. He'll get a call in the morning. I hope it doesn't make me cranky. If it does I guess I'll be joining all those other people who have withdrawn a total of multi $billions from WaMu, which is what hastened the meltdown and the Federal takeover.

A Comic Natural Gas Water Well Explosion

Incoming Barnett Shale natural gas drilling ruining the water supply humor from Don Young....

State Fair of Texas Comments and Questions

I keep getting a lot of questions about the State Fair of Texas, many of which I don't know the answer to. Some of which I do.

General Admission is $14. Kids under 48" get in for $10. If you are 60 or older it is also $10. Kids 2 and under are free. 60 and over is free every Thursday.

You can buy your Fair tickets at Kroger at a discount. Both General Admission and Season Passes.

The Fair opens at 10 am and closes at 10 pm on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays the Fair closes at 9 pm.

Official Fair parking is $10.

On Saturday and Sunday you can take the DART train to the Pearl Street Station where the State Fair provides shuttles to the Fair. The rest of the week DART isn't such a good option.

You can bring backpacks and food to the Fair. You go through a light security check at entry. It's not as bad as airport security.

I don't know if there are viewing screens outside the Cotton Bowl for fairgoers who just can't miss that Red River Shootout football game between Texas and Oklahoma. RV parking passes are available online. The only overnight RV parking is the night of the infamous football game. Why you would want to drag your RV to the Fair, but not to stay overnight, I do not know.

RV Parking with no hookups is $200. With electrical hook-up it's $275. If you are dragging a vehicle behind your RV it's another $75.

The Chevrolet Main Stage is free. You can see Jessica Simpson and Kellie Pickler there, among others who aren't familiar to me, like Michelle Branch, Jordan Pruitt, Kevin Fowler, Rodney Atkins, Bell Biv DeVoe and others.

The Midway operates on a slightly different time frame than the rest of the Fair and can shut down during bad weather.

I got a comment this morning on the YouTube video I made of last year's visit to the State Fair of Texas. I think it was from a little girl, judging by the syntax and the Internet nickname of diannadidi....

"i like state fair its awesome i like going on the log ride,going to aquaium,and going to see big tex!"

Chesapeake Energy's Destruction of Scott Avenue

Chesapeake Energy has begun its invasion of the Tandy Hills Park Natural Area Zone.

After Hiking a little bit on the Tandy Hills today I drove a couple blocks to look at Scott Avenue. That's the street that Chesapeake Energy wants to run a pipeline under homeowner's front yards. And use as the access point to the drill site.

There were multiples of the sign you see in the photo all along Scott Avenue. This particular one in the photo was in front of a house that also had a homemade sign to the left that says "NO GAS WELL ON SCOTT AVE."

Too late, the gas well appears to be on its way. There were several of what looked like abandoned homes on Scott Avenue. Many of the houses are quite large and of interesting design.

Scott Avenue already looks pretty messed up. I can see why those who live there are not feeling the love from the Barnett Shale that they are told to feel when they see Fort Worth buses. The worst hasn't even started. They have the drilling noise to look forward to. Then all those trucks breaking up the road and spewing a lot of dust. And after all that fun a pipeline will be run under their yards to carry non-odorized natural gas.

Back at Tandy Hills Park something odd has been constructed. It is near some playground type stuff, like swings. It appears to be a fence. But what does it fence in? Nothing. It is not perpendicular to the road, but at an angle. Why would the strapped for cash city of Fort Worth build this thing?

The only thing I can think of is it going to be a sign. I suspect Chesapeake Energy has paid the city of Fort Worth and are installing a sign telling the locals about the virtues of the nearby destruction of Scott Avenue. That should go over well...

Sarah Palin Saved From Witches By African

Well. Another surprise from Sarah Palin that I thought couldn't be true when I first heard it. But then, in my defense, my skepticism was heightened by the way the person telling me this worded it.

As in "Sarah Palin had some African cast a spell on her to keep her safe from witches."

The real story isn't quite that ridiculous sounding. Quite.

Three 3 years ago, Sarah Palin was in her Wasilla church where a visiting Kenyan pastor prayed for her protection from "witchcraft" in her run for office.

A video of this is on Sarah Palin's church website. Of course, the video is now going viral on the Internet in various forms, one of which you can watch below. The video shows Ms. Palin standing in front of Bishop Thomas Muthee in the Wasilla Assembly of God church. She holds her hands open as the preacher asks Jesus Christ to keep her safe from "every form of witchcraft."

"Come on, talk to God about this woman. We declare, save her from Satan," Muthee prays as two other guys place their hands on her shoulders. "Make her way my God. Bring finances her way even for the campaign in the name of Jesus. Use her to turn this nation the other way around."

The anti-witchcraft ceremony took place October 16, 2005. Sarah Palin formally announced her bid for governor 2 days later.

The Assembly of God is a Pentacostal church. I need to look that up. Seems like I remember nutty and Pentacostal going together before.

Sarah Palin Charged Victims For Rape Exam Kits

This morning I was talking to a New York Times reader about the Sarah Palin ongoing in-over-her-head meltdown. I was told that the New York Times had an article about Sarah Palin's town of Wasilla charging rape victims for the exam kit that police use to gather evidence.

I thought this was ridiculous. That it couldn't be true. But it was in the New York Times. That's not like some tabloid or the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The NY Times is a respected, by many, real newspaper.

Googling quickly provided proof that this bizarre story is true.

After Sarah Palin became mayor of Wasilla, Alaska she did some budget slashing. It was decided to pass the costs of rape exams off to the victims. The exam kits cost ranges from $500 to $1200.

Sarah Palin also believes that an abortion should not be allowed for a rape victim.

Meanwhile, this charging the victims for rape exam kits became such an embarrassment to the rest of Alaska that the state legislature passed a law to stop it.

I thought, Wasilla is a little itty bitty town, how many rapes can there be in that little town? Well, apparently quite a few. Alaska's sex assault rate is America's worst, 2 and 1/2 times the rate for the other 49 states.

The Huffington Post has a good article about this Sarah Palin embarrassment.

Texas: Love It Or Leave It

Except for the last paragraph I could have written this letter to the editor that was in this morning's Fort Worth Star-Telegram. It's the Mike Moncrief addition in that last paragraph that vexed me. Fort Worth's corrupt mayor is part of what makes Fort Worth delightful and the fact of him being in Fort Worth is proof that it ain't all bad? That's perplexing. But all that came before that in this letter made sense.....

I was warned but am still surprised

I guess the reason I find the discourse in the Star-Telegram so incredible is that I am a relative newcomer to Fort Worth and to Texas.

I had been told (actually warned) about the “love it or leave it’ and “my country right or wrong” attitudes, the purposeful intermingling of church and state to achieve the religious right’s ends, the pervasive waste of resources here (i.e., pick-up/SUV heaven) and the general disdain for the less fortunate (just look at Texas’ ranking on any measure of commitment to social or educational services).

Whether the natives know it or not, Texas has, and continues to embellish, a well-deserved reputation as the most insular, regressive and politically inane state in the union.

What put me over the top was an article in the Sept. 22 paper about abstinence-only sex education, which said that, although Texas receives more federal money than any other state, it shares the highest teen birth rate in the land with New Mexico. Forget that every objective study indicates abstinence-only sex education is blatantly ineffective; this thinly veiled effort by the religious right to ignore both science and truth (while, incidentally, spending $20 million tax dollars) is a sham and a shame.

If we’re serious about making any headway against teen pregnancy and STDs, abstinence must be taught in conjunction with contraception.

To end on a happier note, Fort Worth is a delightful place to live, and any town that can claim Bob Schieffer, Dan Jenkins, Mike Moncrief and the Carter and Bass families can’t be all bad!

— Rufus Schriber, Fort Worth

Eating Like An Armadillo

I've been seeing a lot of armadillos at Village Creek Natural Historical Area. Yesterday while walking and today on my bike. They are sort of cute. Tootsie Tonasket thinks she wants to bring one home from here as a pet. Yesterday Mr. Ed picked one up and put it down on its back. The armadillo then rolled over and let out a squeaky bark noise and ran off. They can move pretty fast.

This morning I wore long pants for the first time in Texas since last winter. I went to Wal-Mart early, after swimming, even earlier.

The long pants are these Wranglers I bought up in Washington at the Shelton Wal-Mart the summer before I moved here. I thought I'd gotten the right size but when I got home I could barely get them on. They were not wearable. Then I thought I'd make these my fat pants. I knew I wanted to be skinnier so as to suffer the heat of Texas more bearably.

My goal was to be able to wear these Wrangler pants by the time I moved to Texas.

Well, that did not quite work out. Yes, by the time I moved I was able to wear them. But it was not comfortable.

Now. 10 years later, this morning, I found out that I can't wear my Wrangler Fat Pants anymore without a belt, lest I have yet one more Droopy Pants incident. And they are very comfortable. As in I could wear these on a plane.

So, this morning I found I'd lost more weight. I am in danger of dropping into the 150s. Why is this happening? It ain't like I'm trying to cause this. I think what's happened is I've been doing the early morning swimming in cold water. For quite a long swim. That must burn oodles of calories. Then later I'll go do something else physical. Obviously I'm burning up more calories than I'm eating.

Today I decided to change that. For breakfast I had 3 scrambled eggs with 6 pieces of bacon and two pieces of whole wheat bread smeared with butter. I just got done with lunch. I made homemade mac n' cheese with whole wheat noodles, a half pound of extra sharp cheese, lots of Parmesan and melted butter with onion sauteed in it. Plus deep-fried battered fish. And broccoli. And lemon-limeade made with real sugar.

I'm thinking this new program should stop or at least slow up this chronic weight loss. I tell you, it's a living hell being me.....

Taking The Trinity Rail Express Train To Dallas

This coming Friday I am going to do something eco-friendly. And new.

I'm taking the Trinity Railway Express, aka TRE, to Dallas. I need to go to a meeting in downtown Dallas. Taking the train seems like a sensible thing to do. It only cost 5 bucks. That's roundtrip. And once I'm in Dallas I can ride anything on the Dallas transit system with my TRE ticket.

The TRE runs from Fort Worth to Dallas. I'm in east Fort Worth, so my closest train station is in Richland Hills, about 2 miles north of here. Unlike anywhere in Seattle, it's free to park in the TRE parking lot.

Dallas has many many miles of light rail called Dallas Area Rapid Transit. DART for short. I've ridden DART before. It is a good thing.

I'm not quite certain how one gets from the Dallas terminus of the TRE train to downtown and if getting on DART is involved. I'm sure all will be revealed on Friday.

I have actually ridden a TRE train before. Last year the State Fair of Texas used a TRE train as one of its ways to shuttle fairgoers from remote parking lots to entry gates. It worked slick.

If I muck something up and get stuck in Dallas I've got a backup plan already worked out. It doesn't involve hitchhiking.

Sarah Palin, Katie Couric Interview & Russia

I'd been hearing comments regarding the 3 interviews Sarah Palin has given. I'd only seen a bit of one of them, that being the one with Charlie Gibson.

The Charlie Gibson bit, I saw, was the part of the interview where he asks Ms. Palin about the Bush Doctrine. She got a deer in the headlights look and stumbled for an answer.

Well, this did not bother me too much, because I could not have answered that question til a few weeks ago when I read Bob Woodward's State of Denial. I'm guessing the vast majority of Americans did not know there was something called the Bush Doctrine. It's not like there are an awful lot of us who would take any Doctrine of Bush as a serious thing.

And then this morning, I read a columnist who had gone from hoping Sarah Palin was up to the challenge to being totally sure she was in way over her head. The columnist said she'd lost count of the cringe-inducing moments and suggested Sarah Palin bow out now, before it gets worse.

I have now seen the cringe-inducing Sarah Palin interview with Katie Couric. It was way way way more cringe-inducing than I thought it could be.

I think Sarah Palin is a nice lady, very smart, but, she is not ready to be president. I like the lady. I felt sorry for her watching her make a fool of herself with no awareness she was doing so. She just is not ready for this.

The debate on Thursday should likely be the end of it. Already her polls numbers are dropping.

I think there may be some sort of twisted reverse sexism going on here. If a man picked for VP had sounded this stupid there would be an uproar. Remember Dan Quayle? He never came close to this level of ineptness. Remember the grief he got? I think come Thursday night the majority of us are going to be on the this ain't right bandwagon.

Below are two videos. When I read the print version of how Sarah Palin explained that Alaska's proximity to Russia gave her foreign policy experience, I thought it was just artful editing to make her sound stupid. But no, what actually came out of Ms. Palin's mouth might be the most astonishingly dumb thing I've ever heard a politician say. And that covers a lot of ground.

The second video covers more of the interview and displays woeful ignorance in other areas. Watching Ms. Palin try to come up with examples of John McCain taking the lead on economic issues was very cringe-worthy.....

Point Defiance Park and Exiles in Texas

When I was up in Tacoma I had myself a good time hiking all over Point Defiance Park. It's one of the biggest city parks in America. I YouTubed a video I made while hiking Point Defiance. This morning a nurse with the YouTube nickname of "flatsignedbooks" made a comment about the Point Defiance video. The Texas connection is what made it interesting. Apparently both me and "flatsignedbooks" are exiles in Texas from the Pacific Northwest.

Here's the comment and below that, the video.....

Hey man! Thanks for posting this. I am in Texas and these were my stomping grounds as a kid. I sure do miss the Pac N.W!

Paul Newman & James Dean

Below is a screen test for, I think, East of Eden. James Dean won that part. East of Eden was made in 1954 and in theaters in 1955. James Dean died in a car wreck in 1955. Paul Newman would live another 54 years after the below screen test was made. In the screen test both look so young. Probably because they were young. One did not get much older, the other lived to be an old man. I think living to be an old man is preferable to a car wreck.

Bad Taste, Good Taste, No Taste

Some wise guy once said good taste is better than bad taste, but bad taste is better than no taste.

I think it's in bad taste to talk about your own taste level. As in to say something like "I have extremely good taste." What an odd thing to say. That should be for others to judge, not oneself.

I knew this guy years ago, let's call him Bussell Fatz. He was one of the dumber people I've ever known. The dumber a person is the easier it is to be self-deluded, or so it has seemed to me. Bussell Fatz would often comment on other people's level of "class." And on his own high level of "class." He'd also talk about how artistic he was. And what good taste he had.

Bussell's artisticness consisted of making hideous wall hangings out of vinyl and carpet. He had no class, no artistic ability and really bad taste. It was a funny, sad spectacle to witness.

Bussell dated another former acquaintance of mine. They made quite a pair. Both self-proclaimers of extremely good taste. And high class. I remember seeing them together once and they had 5 different versions of plaid going on between the two of them.

That girl friend of Bussell's, in addition to having extremely good taste, was probably the biggest slob I have ever known. Totally slovenly. Living like a pig in a sty. How can one have extremely good taste and live like a pig? It's a perplexing conundrum. I don't think I'll devote much mental energy to this particular conundrum.

I like that word "conundrum."

Tootsie Tonasket To Texas

Tootsie Tonasket called while I was walking at the Village Creek Natural Historical Area to inform me that she is coming to Texas and wants to go to the Texas State Fair. Tootsie asked if she can stay at my place. I didn't know what to say, so I said yeah, I guess so.

Tootsie also informed me that she wants to go to Joe T. Garcia's and have one of their legendary margaritas. I have not gone to Joe T. Garcia's in a long time. Not since they filled in the swimming pool.

Tootsie also informed me she wanted to go see that Lake Grapevine place I've written about before. I told Tootsie I really wouldn't have a lot of time to play tour guide.

Tootsie then informed me she also wanted to see the Fort Worth Stockyards and see the herd of longhorn walk down the street. And have BBQ at that Riscky's place she's seen on my Eyes on Texas website.

And how many days is it that you plan to be here I asked. 5 was the answer.

I guess I can handle 5 days of Tootsie Tonasket. But I hadn't planned on going to the State Fair of Texas this year.

My New Niece Evie

I've got a new niece named Evie.

Have I mentioned before that my little sister and little Kristin are foster parents? The first kids they took care of were named Abby and Emilie. Abby was under one year old. I forget how long they took care of Abby and Emilie, but it was a long time. And then the kids went to live with their grandparents in Colorado, where they continue to do well.

When I was up in Tacoma the Two Mommies got a call asking them if they could take a troubled boy under 10. At the time they had me in the house, my mom and dad and way too much raspberry canning going on. So, taking the boy was not doable. They already had way too much on their hands.

It amazes me that they are taking care of kids. It's a lot of work. And both my sister and Kristin already have stressful jobs.

They also run a very tidy house. And, unlike my other sister, they have no maid helping. Well, they did have me for a month. I did a lot of vaccuuming. And dish washing. To my impeccable standards.

They like a real peaceful, quiet house too, which further impresses me that they take on the responsibilty of taking care of a little kid. They have a tendency to cry and make noises.

My sister told me that Evie has gotten used to them and is happy all the time, like you see in the photo.

I forgot to mention, in addition to Evie, they also have two cute, high maintennance poodles, Blue and Max. The poodles currently have a minor medical issue involving allergies that has Max wearing one of those funny cone things around his neck. Poor Max. He's a funny poodle.

Paul Newman Killed By Lung Cancer at 83

I must be getting old. So many TV and movie stars who in my mind's eye are young, are actually old. Cloris Leachman in her early 80s. That surprised me.

And now to read that Paul Newman has died from lung cancer and that he was 83, well, both those facts surprised me.

Paul Newman was real good in several of my favorite movies. Like Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. He and Elizabeth Taylor were at their peak in that movie. Hud is another Paul Newman movie I've watched more than once.

I liked Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid when I saw it in a theater, long ago, but off the big screen and on to my TV, that movie did not entertain me on second viewing. But Paul Newman was good in it.

When I read it was lung cancer that was the cause of death I wondered if Paul Newman was a smoker. I figured not, due to him being behind all those healthy Newman's Own food products. But the photo would seem to indicate he smoked, maybe only in his younger years. Lung cancer is a nasty way to go.

I've gotta look up how old Elizabeth Taylor is...76. I've not seen her in several years.

First Presidential Debate Down, Two More To Go

I surprised myself last night. Even though I found it pretty much a boring snorefest I made it through last night's debate. The debate had none of those memorable type moments that so many previous Presidential debates have had.

Like Gerald Ford saying Eastern Europe was not under Soviet control. For those of you born post the 1970s, up til the collapse of the communism, Eastern Europe was behind what was called the Iron Curtain. Basically the countries that the Soviet Union occupied after World War II the Soviets turned into communist states. If one of the Soviet's communist "allies" got frisky, like Czechoslavakia did in 1968, the Soviets would invade and squash the rebellion.

This type thing was why it was a laugh producing gaffe when Gerald Ford made his unfortunate assertion. He really never recovered from that one incident.

The first President Bush had a memorable debate moment that hurt him when he looked at his watch, as if he was bored and anxious for the torture to end. But he was on a stage that included Clinton and Ross Perot. I really didn't think it all that odd that he'd check the time. But it bothered others.

Michael Dukakis had a bad debate moment when he coldly and robotically responded to a question regarding the death penalty and what his position on that issue would be if his wife, Kitty, were raped and murdered. That was one odd debate moment.

Al Gore had some bad debate moments when he'd do a heavy sigh in response to something coming out of George W.'s mouth. Now that almost the entire country has done similar sighing it now just seems like Al Gore was ahead of his time.

The first debate between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan gave most of the country their first good look at Reagan. And he surprised a lot of people. He didn't come across as some sort of hardline right winger. Instead he came across as really likable, funny, and, well, presidential. While Jimmy Carter looked and sounded really weak, at one point Reagan zinging some Carter nonsense with his famous line, "There you go again." At the time it was a great debate moment.

So, last night, to my eyes and ears there were no memorable moments. John McCain seemed toned down. No flashes of crankiness. Barack Obama seemed less long-winded than usual, with fewer moments of speaking haltingly, like he has in previous debates. Obama seemed more forceful than he has before. Very measured.

McCain rarely looked at Obama, instead directing his attention to the moderator, Jim Lehrer. It made it look like McCain was ignoring Obama.

McCain repeated himself a few times. Whether this was due to him thinking he had to hammer in a point, or he forgot he'd already said it, who knows. I'm guessing an early sign of senility. Like twice he said he has not been awarded the Miss Congeniality title while in Washington.

All in all, I guess I'd call the debate a tie.

Tex Appeal at the State Fair of Texas

The State Fair of Texas started today in Dallas at Fair Park.

In my current condition I don't know if I'll be going to the fair this year. Or down to Round Top this weekend.

I'm not in the mood to walk. After years of bragging that I've cured myself from getting back aches, I've got one. I think I either overdid swimming or sitting at the computer. Or both.

I was listening to WBAP radio's news at noon and a fairgoer was going on and on about how delicious the 2008 Big Tex Choice winner was. To me it sounds disgusting. Chicken-fried bacon, using extra thick bacon, double-battered, breaded, then deep-fried. With either ranch or honey-mustard dipping sauce.

At the State Fair of Texas you can not use United States currency to buy things like food directly. You must wait in a line to buy coupons and then pay for your chicken-fried bacon with coupons. I don't know how many coupons the chicken-fried bacon costs. If I remember right last year it seemed like the Big Tex Choice foodstuff was in the 6-8 coupon range. A coupon is worth 50 cents.

If you don't use up all your coupons you can not turn them back into U.S. currency. You can save them for next year and use them at the fair. Unless something scandalous happens, like a few years back someone stole a lot of coupons from wherever the leftover coupons were stored after the end of the fair. So, they voided that year's coupons from being used at future State Fairs of Texas. This did not seem fair to me.

If I do go this year I am going to stay til it gets dark this time so I can watch the fireworks/light show. The first time I went to the fair the fireworks/light show was about the best of that type thing I'd ever seen. A huge globe rose out of the water and somehow images were projected onto the globe. Fireworks and laser beams shot all over the place.

This year the show is called Illumination Sensation. It fires up at 8 PM. In addition to the usual fireworks there is some sort of high-tech 3-D light screen and liquid fire fountains shooting flames skyward with computer generated graphics timed to music.

If I do go to this year's fair it will be on October 17. Jessica Simpson will be singing at the Chevrolet Main Stage. It's free, I think.

Maybe if my back doesn't get better I could do the fair in a wheelchair. That might be fun.

Chesapeake Energy Bulldozes Neighborhood

Important incoming from Don Young. But before I get to that I've got to tell you that a lot of people showed up for yesterday's Moratorium Rally, as in dozens upon dozens showed up before the Fort Worth Ruling Junta's last meeting with the people of Fort Worth in their "Talk Fort Worth" program.

On to the message from Don Young.....

As I type this at 10 am, 9/26/08, Chesapeake Energy crews are bulldozing into one of the last pieces of original Fort Worth Prairie and cutting dozens of giant trees at the east end of Scott Avenue in Fort Worth, Texas.

Scott Avenue is a very narrow and winding street and includes some historic homes, including the oldest occupied house in Fort Worth. The drilling rig that weighs in excess of 120,000 lbs. is expected to be transported down this street, possibly as soon as tomorrow morning.

This controversial gas drilling site is adjacent to Carter Avenue where Jerry Horton and other residents have been protesting a 16" high-pressure, un-odorized gas pipeline that Chesapeake wants to install under their front yards. It is also due west of Tandy Hills Natural Area, one of the most unique ecosystems in the state of Texas, according to biologist, Prof. Bruce Benz, of Texas Wesleyan University. It has been studied and catalogued by botanists all over the state, including Bob O'Kennon with the Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT).

Despite all of this, the City of Fort Worth issued a permit to drill the Thomas 1H gas well last Tuesday and allow Chesapeake to access the remote site from Scott Avenue. The company was recently fined for beginning work on the site before receiving a permit.

A neighborhood gathering is scheduled for Saturday morning at 9 am.

Your support is needed to demonstrate to the City and Chesapeake that their actions are unacceptable. Come join us for a cup of coffee.

Map of 2900 Scott Avenue

Exit Beach Street off I-30 and drive north to Scott Ave. East on Scott to the dead-end. Park on Scott Avenue or nearby.

Don Young
FWCanDo
P.O. Box 470041
Fort Worth, TX 76147

"God bless Fort Worth, Texas. Help us save some of it."

Survivor Gabon: Earth's Last Eden

Well, I continue being unable to watch more than an hour of TV. Last night I was sure I'd make it through the 2 hour Survivor premiere. I usually like Survivor. I thought the 2 hours would be some sort of improved intro that made it easier to get hooked.

Instead it turned out to be 2 episodes back to back. I bailed after barely making it through the first episode.

One of the things I like about Survivor is the locations. Exotic locales that I'll never see but would like to. But the Earth's Last Eden didn't thrill me too much.

It's always hard to get hooked on a new Survivor. It's too many people to keep track of and it takes awhile to get to know the quirks of their personalities. Or for there to be any sort of plot-line.

One strange thing, Survivor started out with a walk through the jungle, heading to a beach. The Survivors were dressed like they were going to work in an office. Most of the women in dresses. A couple of the guys in suits with ties. In the jungle.

I'm thinking Survivor is yet one more TV show I'm not going to be watching. What's wrong with me? I used to be so easily entertained.

Tonight's Uncertain Debate

The only convention speech I listened to in its entirety was Sarah Palin's. In all the years that there have been Presidential Debates I have only missed one, that being a debate between Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. I'd gone picking apples in Eastern Washington with my mom and dad and we didn't make it back to the west side of the mountains in time for the debate.

So, even with my ability to watch much TV in serious decline I'm almost certain I'll muster the energy and focus to watch the debate if it happens tonight.

I'm guessing John McCain will let this play out all day long til it's time for him to hop on a plane bound for Mississippi with him telling reporters that enough progress had been made today that he felt okay about wasting his precious time debating Barack Obama.

Speaking of Barack Obama, why has Rush Limbaugh taken to calling him Barry? I've heard no one else call him Barry.

UPDATE: As usual, my prediction about tonight's debate was wrong. McCain did not wait til the last minute to announce he'd show up. Instead he let it be known this morning that he'd be in Mississippi tonight and head back to Washington immediately after to continue to try and prevent the Financial Pearl Harbor from happening.

Washington Mutual Survivor

My nerves are on edge. This morning I found in my inbox 5 emails sent just after midnight from a former acquaintance. I'm concerned she may be in the throes of some sort of meltdown. I've seen this happen before.

But what's really got my nerves on edge is the non-stop financial meltdown. No, I'm not talking about my personal non-stop financial meltdown, I'm talking about that other one to which they can't seem to agree on a solution in Washington, D.C., with a big meltdown at the White House yesterday.

Then to open the morning paper to read that my bank was seized by the Feds overnight in the biggest bank collapse in U.S. history, well, it just makes me nervous.

I'm guessing the new WaMu branch being built near me is likely not going to be opened.

This morning's woeful article about the WaMu collapse in the Seattle P-I said the collapse was precipitated by $16.7 billion in deposits being pulled since September 15.

I'm thinking maybe I should go pull 1 or 2 of my billions out of WaMu and put them somewhere safer. Though, supposedly the money is currently safe. But what if the warned about Financial Pearl Harbor happens? Will any money be safe if that happens, that isn't tucked under your mattress?

Hurricane Strikes Mexico

Alma, the Sweet Songbird of the South, singing this Saturday at the Tarpon Ice House in Port Aransas, sends me some amusing emails. Every once in awhile I'm not sure if one of the Alma emails has maybe crossed the line into the world of politically incorrect, or not.

Like this one Alma sent me today......

A Category 5 Hurricane Hits Mexico.

Two Million Mexicans Die and Over a Million are Injured.

The Country is Totally Ruined and the Government does not Know Where to Start and is Asking for Help to Rebuild.

The Rest of the World is in Shock.

Canada is Sending Troopers to Help the Mexican Army Control Riots.

Saudi Arabia is Sending Oil.

Other Latin American Countries are Sending Supplies.

The European Community (Except for France) is Sending Food and Money.

The United States, not to be Outdone, is Sending Two Million Non-English Speaking Mexicans to Replace the Ones Who Died.

God Bless America!

My Fabulous Tacoma Relatives

I was talking to one of my oodles of blog readers and was appalled that I'd left that blog reader with the impression that my dear little sister and equally dear little Kristin had created a nightmare for me while I was staying with them.

No. No. No. That is not correct. Kristin and Michele and Blue and Max made me feel like I was a King staying in some sort of 5 Star Hotel. I don't recollect ever being so pampered or treated so kindly.

There was not a single moment where I felt even in the slightest way uncomfortable or unwelcome. My entire time in their house I was talked to in the nicest, most respectful manner imaginable.

I'm sure I must have done at least one thing that got on someone's nerves, at least a little bit, but I heard nary a word about anything I might have done that wasn't kosher. Even though I knew I did some questionable things.

Like setting off the security alarm despite being told not to open a door.

Or burning steaks to a blackened crisp. They ate the charred remains as if they were the tastiest steaks they'd ever had, with nary a complaint. A few days later they even let me barbecue chicken using my multiple flipping method, despite it being horribly controversial and not allowed when I burned the steaks. Ironically if I'd used my multiple flipping method with the steaks, they wouldn't have been burned black.

When I forgot to water the backyard plants, killing several of them, not a word was said, the plants were simply replaced. To my embarrassed chagrin.

I could go on with more examples, but you get the drift. I absolutely totally enjoyed my stay with Kristin and Michele and Blue and Max. It was other parts of Tacoma that set my nerves on edge.

There, now the record has been set straight.

I Would Change My Name

A Hurricane Ike Survivor on TV....

I Vote For No One

A week ago John McCain said the American economy is fundamentally sound. Yesterday he suspended his presidential campaign and opted out of tomorrow's debate because the economy is now in crisis in dire need of his attention.

Meanwhile Joe Biden thinks FDR was President at the time of the 1929 stock market crash and that FDR spoke to the American people about the crash via television.

Which likely doesn't strike Sarah Palin as odd since she thinks the Founding Fathers initiated the Pledge of Allegiance and put it under God. At the same time she thinks banning books is a doable thing in a democracy in which freedom of speech is one of its founding tenets.

And then we have Barack Obama who thinks there are 57 or 58 American states. And who repeated over and over again that over 10,000 people died in a Kansas tornado. Among other gaffes.

I was appalled awhile back when I read that the majority of Americans could not tell you when the Civil War took place. I am more appalled that someone running for the highest office in the land doesn't intuitively know that 10,000 people dead from a tornado would be a disaster of historic proportions.

Or that the Pledge of Allegiance came about in the 1890's at the instigation of a preacher and that God didn't get added til the 1950's.

Or that FDR did not become President til 1932, 3 years after the stock market crash of 1929. And that the first look Americans got at TV occurred in 1939 at the New York World's Fair. Or that an American President did not talk to the American people via TV til long after 1929.

I'm thinking I don't think I can vote for any of these boobs we have to choose from this time. I'll just stay home and mutter the Pledge of Allegiance a dozen times come the first Tuesday in November.

John McCain Suspends Campaign & Debate While Clay Aiken's Gay

Can't I have a peaceful lunch without hearing something shocking on Fox News?

It was bad enough to be told that Clay Aiken had shocked his fans and the rest of civilization with the news that he is a father. And gay. These revelations came via People Magazine.

I'd barely digested the shocking news about Clay Aiken when special breaking news had John McCain announce that he is suspending his campaign to return to Washington to participate in finding a solution to the financial crisis. This includes postponing Friday's debate and when that debate is held sometime next week, switching the subject from foreign policy to the economy.

McCain asked Barack Obama to do the same. To go along with the debate postponement and to return to Washington. They are both senators, after all. It seems the responsible thing to do.

But, I was looking forward to Friday's debate. I don't take postponed gratification well.

More Bad Gas News With Your Morning Coffee

Incoming from Don Young. A list of links to articles in the Star-Telegram, including the shocking one at the top of the list. Plus a wise saying from Confucious....

1) The Texas RRC voted unanimously, yesterday, to use Oil & Gas Clean-up Funds to speed up drilling permits. There ARE 49 other states to live in, you know. Choose carefully.

Click here to read the story.

2) Former Fort Mayor Bob Bolen has joined the Motley Fool Mayor's Chorus in singing the praises of urban gas drilling. I'm sure Moncrief and Barr requested this bit of corporate drivel.

Click here to read the story.

3) Do not underestimate the impact of the Thomas Drilling site in east Fort Worth. This 3-pronged assault on West Meadowbrook is THE Tipping Point for anyone paying attention. This is the Alarm Bell that must be answered. Be ready.

Click here to read the story.

4) Remember: Moratorium Rally Thursday afternoon at 5:30 pm.

5) "I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand."

Confucius

Saggy Pants in Fort Worth

A couple days ago I was sitting out on Miss Puerto Rico's balcony watching the passing parade of humanity when a shirtless guy came into view. He strutted along with his pants about down to his knees with huge boxer shorts shining bright for all to see.

Miss Puerto Rico said, "That is just not appropriate." That sounded funny spoken with her accent.

I thought this pants down fad was just a D/FW Metroplex thing. I didn't see any pants down to the knees when I was up in the northwest. When I mentioned that it was nice seeing everyone wearing their pants properly I was told that that fad had come and gone a couple years ago.

Fort Worth and other towns in this metro zone have tried all sorts of things to get guys to pull up their pants. There are billboards around town as part of what is called the "Pull 'Em Up" campaign.

Apparently that campaign isn't going too well. Fort Worth's Mayor Mike Moncrief thinks the city should put up posters at various venues around the area, like the Fort Worth Zoo.

And put bumper stickers on the city's cars and trucks. So that, as Fort Worth's esteemed mayor said, "Wherever they go with their pants down around their ankles, they're going to see signs that say 'Don't do that.'"

I've got a much better solution. As in make the sagging pants thing not cool. I'm doing my part. I went out and about today with my pants sagging. Which you can see in the photo at the top. Sure, I got some curious looks. But I'm sure at least one saggy pants wearer saw me and thought to himself, "Geez, that ol' cracker looks like an f-ing fool. I ain't gonna do that anymore."

If Mayor Moncrief and the rest of the Ruling Junta would drop their pants and wear them down around their knees and visit local schools, I'm sure this stupid fad will come to an end quickly.

Or just wait it out. Most trends start on the coasts and then spread to the less trendy zones. Give it a few years and I'm sure the news that this goofy trend is no longer cool will spread to Fort Worth. Of course, hastening that awareness might be a good thing.

I don't think we need to worry about the girl participants in this fad. They seem to wear their saggy pants much more tastefully.

Let's Talk Moratorium Fort Worth

Fort Worth's Ruling Junta has decided to talk to the people of Fort Worth about their city for the 3rd time in something like 50 years. One of the opportunities for the people of Fort Worth to talk to the Ruling Junta takes place 6:30 PM Thursday, September 25 at Will Rogers Memorial Center Auditorium in the goofily named Fort Worth Cultural District.

At the same time that the Ruling Junta is listening to the people another group of concerned Fort Worth citizens will be holding a rally at the same location, a rally to give voice to the idea that Fort Worth's Ruling Junta should listen to the Fort Worth citizens who believe a more cautious course be taken regarding the massive drilling going on in the Fort Worth urban zone, the first time such activity has been allowed in a densely populated area.

You can find details of the Moratorium Rally here.

And, as if to rub salt in the wounds of those trying to chart a more cautious course, yesterday, on Tuesday, the Ruling Junta approved Chesapeake Energy's gas permit near Tandy Hills Park.

And now, back to the Ruling Junta's "Let's Talk Fort Worth" nonsense. In the Fort Worth Star-Telegram today there was a full page ad for the Talking Project and Thursday's listening session. The Ruling Junta even has a website devoted to this. Fort Worth is laying off workers, shortening library hours, among other things, due to a huge budget shortfall that is not being helped by any windfall from Barnett Shale, but they can afford full page ads and a website for their "Let's Talk Fort Worth" project.

Here's some typically deluded verbiage from one of the 2 full page propaganda ads that the Ruling Junta placed in today's paper....

"Fort Worth is a thriving, dynamic progressive city known for its cowboys and culture---everything from world class museums, corporate headquarters, and NASCAR to an abiding reverence for its unique Western heritage.

Today, Fort Worth is recognized as one of America's safest, most livable communities with plenty of fertile ground for economic growth. The city's successes and accomplishments are no accident, though. They are the result of thoughtful planning by city leaders who have been guided by the vision of the residents they serve."

It goes on and on from there. Where do I start? Progressive city? Known for its culture and cowboys? Known by whom? You in the rest of the country, do you know anything about Fort Worth? Known for its corporate headquarters? Radio Shack lost its headquarters, Pier One Imports lost theirs too, to, I think, Chesapeake Energy. Is that what they mean by "known?" As in known for corporate boondoggles?

Livable? With gas drilling going on all over town and hundreds of miles of pipelines being laid to carry odorless gas? That's livable? With homeowners being threatened with eminent domain unless they agree to have a pipeline shoved through their front yard. That's livable?

Fort Worth is known for being safe? The town couldn't even keep open its signature park at the north end of downtown, called Heritage Park, due to crime problems.

Thoughtful planning by the Ruling Junta? Huh? Where is there any evidence of any thoughtful planning? Has any member of the Ruling Junta thought maybe it'd be a good idea for Fort Worth to build some sidewalks, like what exist in actual progressive cities? You might want to start with something simple like that.

Fort Worth Urban Gas Drilling Moratorium Rally

Urgent message just in from Don Young.......

WHAT:

Urban Gas Drilling - Moratorium Rally

PURPOSE:

We are calling on the City of Fort Worth to impose an immediate MORATORIUM on all new gas drilling permits and pipeline activities until the City has a Master Plan that addresses the Total Impact of urban gas drilling production.

WHEN:

Thursday, Sept. 25, 2008

5:00 p.m. - begin gathering

5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. - MORATORIUM RALLY

(Rally held prior to the City of Fort Worth's, "Let's Talk Fort Worth" event)

http://www.fortworthgov.org/townhall2008/

WHERE:

On public property in front of the Will Rogers Memorial Center Auditorium. (It's perfectly legal.)

3401 W. Lancaster Avenue - Fort Worth

BRING:

1. Posters, Banners, signs
2. Cameras - Video & Digital
3. Friends, Family and Neighbors!

Dancing With The Stars & Cloris Leachman

GO TO MY DURANGO TV BLOG FOR MORE DWTS

Well, just as I thought would happen, I didn't make it through very much of last night's Dancing with the Stars. I made it almost through the first dance, that being one with a kid I've never heard of from a TV show I've never seen called Hannah Montana. He was dancing with Julianne Hough. She's won a couple times. She's a young blonde. Together their combined ages were less than 40.

Last night I didn't make it long enough to see the oldest person they've ever had on the show, 82 year old Cloris Leachman, dance with the oldest pro they've had on the show, named, I think, Corky Ballas, he being the dad of another of the pro dancers, that being Mark Ballas.

Cloris and Corky's combined age was something like 143. So, I found out I don't need to watch the show live. It's all been YouTubed. This takes out all the commercials and all the boring stuff that causes me to quit watching.

I've now seen Cloris do her dancing. She is very amusing, as you can see for yourself in the video below. She appears to be in great shape. So does Susan Lucci who is 61 or 62. I'll put the Susan Lucci video below the Cloris one. Dancing with the Stars is on again tonight. And again tomorrow night. As much as I enjoy watching people do stuff I know I can't do, I don't think I'll even try to watch.

King Tut and Big Tex and The Usurper

A few minutes ago I got an email from one of my Eyes on Texas viewers, Deborah Lane-Miller, very upset because she saw a news blurb that made her think that when the State Fair of Texas opens this Friday, September 26, that Big Tex will be standing next to what she called "Usurper of Big Tex."

Here's Miss Deborah's email....

I was horrified to see in the Quick news that in honor of the Tutankamun (?sp) exhibit there is a new statue standing NEXT TO BIG TEX! How inappropriate. If this is truly where it will be placed, I think this is absurd. Big Tex should not share his space or his limelight with anything else! I have been a faithful fair-goer for decades, as has my family. Please rethink this.

Regards,
Deborah Lane-Miller

Well, I reassured Deborah that Big Tex was posing with "The Usurper" for a photo op only. That during the Fair "The Usurper" would be standing somewhere near the Fair's entrance.

What "The Usurper" actually is is a jackal-headed guardian of the dead called Anubis. Anubis is Egyptian. Anubis is at the State Fair of Texas to help promote the upcoming "Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs" exhibit. He isn't here to usurp Big Tex.

Speaking of Big Tex, the big boy got new clothes this year, including a very bright yellow shirt.

New Dallas Cowboy Stadium Photo

Yesterday I was at the Super Wal-Mart across the street from the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium, for the first time in months.

So, I took a picture or two. The stadium has gotten huge looking. I should have taken a picture of the view from the east side. That really showed the size of the thing.

It looks like the roof is done. Glass is being installed on the sides. It's all very shiny and bright. The seats are being installed. I don't know what that big yellow and white rectangle thing is. I'm guessing it's some sort of electronic sign or maybe a giant video screen. I don't know why they'd want a giant video screen pointing towards Wal-Mart though.

Dozens of lawsuits, brought by people who believe their homes were stolen from them by the City of Arlington and Jerry Jones, continue to move forward.

Are You Mad At Me? Why Don't You Call?

Awhile back my mom, who I call whenever I get gas to tell her how much it currently costs, told me my sister wanted my mom to ask me what she'd done that had me mad at her.

I asked mom why my sister thought I was mad at her.

My mom said she thinks that because you don't call her anymore.

To which I said, but she never calls me, I'm always the caller, but I don't think she's mad at me due to not calling me.

The psychology of this perplexed me. So, I called my sister and asked her why she was mad at me. Why do you think I'm mad at you my sister asked? Because you never call me, I said.

I don't call because I'm afraid I'd be interrupting something, she said.

If it was interrupting something I wouldn't answer, I said.

Again, the psychology perplexes me.

Now, I have some people who call me all the time. I don't always answer. If they didn't call me I wouldn't think it was because they were mad at me. I have at least one person who no longer calls me due to being irrationally upset with me. But I don't miss those daily phone pesterings.

My biggest sister never calls me. I used to call her about once every couple weeks. But when I was up in Washington a couple years ago her behavior so appalled and annoyed me that I did not call her til about a month before I flew up there in July. Her behavior had not improved this most recent time up north. I wonder if my biggest sister accurately perceived that the lack of calls indicated I was not happy with her?

Probably not. These relatives of mine seldom seem to get anything right.

So, my new way of thinking is I'm assuming anyone who does not call me is mad at me. Why they would be mad at me is a mystery. I won't be calling any of them, well, except for my mom's gas calls. So, they can assume, accurately or not, that I am mad at them.

Oh, I'll likely call my sister who lives in Phoenix. She's a good phone talker. And it's not like she absolutely never calls me. She calls whenever a family friend or relative dies. And she called the morning of August 20 to ask how happy I was to be heading back to Texas. She'd also endured a long stay up north that coincided with part of my stay. We empathize with each other's pains.

However, my Phoenix sister's visiting up north pains are much less painful than mine. She's thinking of going up there again, soon. I don't plan a return to the northwest until 2018 at the earliest.

Lulu and the Beautyberry Bush

Yesterday I mentioned seeing a bush with berries that were an otherworldly color of purple.

Overnight one of my favorite Southern Belles, the soon to be in Texas, Miss Lulu, identified the purple berries as being from a Beautyberry Bush.

So, now I know what it is. I looked up Beautyberry Bush. The berries are edible, but not very tasty. Birds don't like them, so the berries stay on the bushes unmolested. I think I'll taste one when next I see one.

Veteran's Park, Fry's and a Bad Router

Today started off okay. I went swimming early. The water was cold. I liked it. That's not my swimming water you see in the photo. That's a pond at Veteran's Park in Arlington. Those are turtles sitting on the log. I like turtles, but not in water I swim in. I've had a turtle incident or two. Their heads look like a snake when they are swimming towards you. Not a good thing for a snakeaphobe to see.

A few hours after swimming I needed to go to Fry's to get a new network router. That's when the fun began. I like Fry's. I've bought a lot of computer stuff there. I've returned a lot of stuff to Fry's. They are always good about it.

On the way to Fry's I went to the aforementioned Veteran's Park in Arlington to go on a walk. I like Veteran's Park. I see some odd things there at times. Like Disc Golfers. And people dressed like pirates pretending to do battle with each other. Within the past year a Veteran's Memorial has been added to Veteran's Park. It's a nice memorial, except one thing about it sort of disturbs me. As in there are these two marble-like boxes that look like coffins. I don't know what else they could be intended to be.

Today as I walked along the paved trail I saw something amusing. Apparently yesterday someone was walking with someone named Sara and Sara got grumpy. So, Sara's co-walker made note of her grumpiness by chalking a message onto the sidewalk for all to see. I think I'll start leaving chalk messages when I experience moments of inappropriate grumpiness. I would have needed a whole box of chalk when I was up in Tacoma last summer.

Veteran's Park has this rather cool section of the park called the Wildscape. This is a demonstration zone showing Texans how they can landscape using native to Texas plants that require less water and less maintenance. Parts of the Wildscape are paved, other parts are bricked, other parts are a boardwalk and the rest is just a natural trail.

The Wildscape has a lot of flowers and herbs and things that grow what look like berries. One of the berry bushes has these clumps of whatever it is in the most unnatural shade of purple. My photo does not do justice to the color.

So, after I was done at Veteran's Park it was time to go to Fry's. I bought a router. Or so I thought. But, I had been misdirected by a Fry's employee, few of whom speak anything but an Indian dialect of English.

I left Fry's and headed to Arlington's Chinatown to get goodies at my favorite Asian Market. That went well. Got back here and quickly figured out I'd not been sold a router. So, back to Fry's. It is about 15 miles from here, maybe 20. Got to Fry's, got rid of the non-router, got an actual router. Got back here, plugged it in and all is well again in Durango World.

It doesn't take much to make me happy.

Sunday's Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief Protest

Incoming from Don Young about Sunday's Fort Worth protest at an event featuring Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief....

A skeptical group of protesters in front of the Railhead Smokehouse.

From left, Ed Sakerka, Mike Phipps and Don Young.

We were also joined by Debora Young who took the pics.

2008 Emmy Awards Award For Being Bad TV

I got home a bit before 7. Made a bowl of popcorn and turned on the TV. I tried to watch the Emmy Awards. Sometimes those type shows can be amusing. But it's been years since I've managed to make it through to the end of one of them. Not the Academy Awards, not the Tony Awards and definitely not the Emmy Awards.

I lasted about 10 minutes last night. For the first time the hosts of reality shows were nominated. The 5 reality show hosts were the hosts of the Emmy Awards. This did not go well. Only 2 of them, American Idol's Ryan Seacrest and Dancing with the Star's Tom Bergeron do their hosting thing on a live show. Survivor's Jeff Probst, Project Runway's Heidi Klum and the host of that awful game show, Deal or No Deal, Howie Mandel were the other 3 reality hosts. Jeff Probst was the winner.

The host of the reality show that always wins as best reality show, Phil Keoghan, was not one of the 5 best reality show hosts, even though his show, The Amazing Race, won again as best reality show.

The Emmy Awards reality show hosts seemed to be working without a script. For the majority of them ad-libbing was not a forte. It was painful to watch. And sort of embarrassing. I turned to another channel about a minute after Tom Bergeron and William Shatner decided Heidi Klum was over dressed, so they started taking her clothes off til she was stripped down to hotpants.

Normally I would find such a thing worthy highbrow entertainment. But last night it rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe because it wasn't funny.

Speaking of Tom Bergeron and Dancing with the Stars. Tonight starts the new season of that show. I liked Dancing with the Stars. Til last season when I bailed about 2 weeks in. There just were no amusing characters that I enjoyed watching. But, this season we have 82 year old Cloris Leachman trying to dance. She's funny. Susan Lucci should be amusing. That awful pseudo-celebrity, big-butted Kim Kardashian should be amusing. But, from what I've seen of her on her Keeping Up With The Kardashians reality show, she's really stupid. I don't see how she'll be able to remember the dance moves. Lance Bass of boy band fame might be funny. Rocco DiSpirito, celebrity chef and reality show star, can be funny. He can get sort of intense and temperamental.

I'll let you know if I make it through 2 hours of Dancing with the Stars tonight. Highly unlikely. Unless it's real amusing.

Sunday Biking at River Legacy Park

I'm convinced there is something good happening in my zone of Texas. As in there is a big increase in the number of Texans going outside and getting exercise.

When I first discovered River Legacy Park in Arlington, soon after my exile to Texas, I was amazed such a nice park with such good trails had so few users. That is no longer the case. Today there where hundreds of Texans out biking, walking, roller blading and jogging.

A couple years ago River Legacy Park built a bridge across the Trinity River to connect to new paved trails and a new parking/picnic zone on the north side of the river. This added about 4 new miles to the trails. It was a good addition, going through old growth oak trees that I call the Emerald Forest of River Legacy. That's part of the new trail and the bridge across Hurricane Creek, in the photo.

The long range plan for this Metro zone is to supposedly have paved trails along the Trinity River running all the way between Dallas and Fort Worth. Fort Worth needs to add some more miles of trails to get to the Arlington trails. Dallas needs to head further west with its trails on the Trinity. Grand Prairie, that is a town between Dallas and Arlington, just opened a section of trail along the Trinity. So, piece by piece it is slowly coming together. Likely not to be completed in my lifetime, but maybe by the time my grandchildren, if I had any, are my age.

Fannie Mae Freddie Mac Attack

I am not too embarrassed to admit I really don't understand any of this current Wall Street mess. Or why the Federal government, meaning the taxpayers, are about to bail out the mess with 700 billion bucks. That's $2000 for every man, woman and child in America.

I remember the first time I ever heard of Fannie Mae was way back in Economics 101 in college. I thought it an odd childish sounding thing to call what I think then was a federal agency. I'm probably wrong about that. I did not get good grades in economics. I don't think Freddie Mac had been invented yet.

I know Fannie and Freddie have something to do with shoveling out money to those who lend money to those who can't afford the money they are borrowing.

Back when the flood of foreclosures started up I don't recollect there being any sort of emergency program proposed to help those caught up in bad loans.

So, Mr. Bad Debt loses his house, the bank then takes possession of the house. The value of the house may have taken a hit, but it is still able to be sold to a new buyer. So, the banks loaned out all this bad credit, that didn't get re-paid, putting the banks in jeopardy. I guess that's it. But how did it add up to almost a trillion dollars?

I really don't get it. Why is 7/10s of a trillion dollars needed to rescue the money lenders? And why is there this rush to get this legislation passed in record time? Where did all the money that got loaned go? Why hasn't there been some sort of effort to fix the bad loans, as in re-structure the loans that suddenly had their monthly payments go way up to the point the home buyer could not afford the mortgage payment? Why wasn't/isn't that where the fix is?

Like I said, I did not do well at economics in school. It was very confusing to me. Still is.

Sunday Protest Against Fort Worth Mayor Moncrief

Incoming from Don Young. Get yourself downtown to protest Fort Worth's Mayor Mikey and his outrageously corrupt conflicts of interest regarding natural gas drilling in his town, from which he receives revenue in a criminal conflict of interest that would have had him booted out of office and serving time in jail had this taken place in more enlightened locales in America.

Below is the Protest Information.....

Who among you are willing to exercise your right to protest the Mike Moncrief administration?

You can do so today...

When: Sunday, 9/21/08. Noon - 2 pm

What: Mayor Mike Meat & Greet (fundraiser)

Where: Railhead Smokehouse (on the sidewalk around the building)
2900 Montgomery St. (just south of I-30 behind the Shell station)
Parking on the street

Bring: A picket sign with your message for Mayor Mikey.

Many people believe that Moncrief with the support and collusion of his "Seventh Street Gang" of good old boys, his Oil and Gas buddies and hand-picked elected officials are DIRECTLY responsible for an out of control gas drilling ordinance that affects YOUR health and safety, YOUR property values and YOUR parks and quality of life.

In Fort Worth, the buck stops with Mike Moncrief.

Hiking and Picnicking at Rockledge Park on Lake Grapevine

It seems like I'd just gone to Rockledge Park on Lake Grapevine. But it was way back on Memorial Day, at the start of summer. It was hot and crowded on Memorial Day. Today there were a lot of people playing in the water, but the park was not crowded. And it was hot.

Today me and my entourage mainly stayed on the beach, with one renegade taking the upper trails.

There were several people fishing. Unlike some lakes in Texas you can eat fish you catch in Lake Grapevine. Even clams grow in this lake. I saw a lot of clam shells today. I doubt there are any fresh water crabs in the lake. But I wouldn't be too shocked if there were.

Lake Grapevine is a legitimate Army Corps of Engineers flood control project, unlike the dubious Fort Worth Trinity River Vision. The Army Corps of Engineers built several nice parks on the shores of Lake Grapevine. There are dozens of miles of mountain bike and hiking trails. Well maintained by the Dallas Off Road Bicycle Association (DORBA) people.

I believe Lake Grapevine is my favorite outdoor place in the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex. I used to live way closer to it and played there way more often. Now it's only a few times a year.

Lake Grapevine was made 50 or 60 years ago when a giant earthen dam blocked a little creek. I think the name is Denton Creek, but I'm not sure. You drive across the dam to get to Rockledge Park from the town of Grapevine. Part of the road across the dam goes over the dam's flood spillway. I don't know if the lake has ever gotten flooded enough to go over the spillway. I have seen Lake Grapevine high enough to flood the parks and cover the picnic tables. If it got high enough to go over the spillway, this would be a bad thing. Grapevine Mills, a mall on steroids, is in the shadow of the dam. I think it'd get wet if water went over the spillway.

Today when we first got to Rockledge there were dozens of what appeared to be students of some sort, with clipboards, climbing all over the cliffs. I don't know what they were doing. The photo does not do justice to how odd it looked.

After the hiking, Costco pizzas were our picnic. It was a good picnic. After the picnic I went to my favorite grocery, Sprouts Farmers Market, in Southlake. Got all sorts of good stuff. Sprouts is opening more stores in this metro zone, with one rumored to be in Fort Worth. I hope it is in my zone of Fort Worth. That'd be a good thing.

The Morbidly Obese Perplex Me

I'm probably going to be treading on dangerous ground here. Verbalizing my opinion about those who are obese.

Obesity is fresh on my mind due to going to the Super Bowl Buffet yesterday for lunch. Sitting right by me were two totally morbidly obese women. It was not difficult to see why they were obese. First off, going to a buffet? Not a smart choice. Second bad choice? The stuff those two put on their plates and in their mouths. Mounds of everything deep-fried. And they did not miss a single item from the dessert area.

From my personal up close observations of obese people they all seem to have some things in common. Emotional issues beyond the eating disorder is one. Low self-esteem is another. Self-indulgence in areas beyond food is another. A lack of self-discipline in other parts of their lives is another. As in they are usually slobs. Yes, I know that's harsh, but, it's the sad truth.

When you get so fat that you have trouble putting shoes on, trouble getting up from a sitting position, trouble breathing, your doctor having told you that you are morbidly obese, how and why do you make the decision to put more bad stuff in your mouth? What makes you reach for that cookie or donut or ice cream or fudge? I can't understand this type of out of control self-indulgence. Is it a mental illness?

Now, I've never been what one would think of as fat. I have weighed more than I do now. As in I think at my heaviest I was somewhere in the 220's zone. That would have been when I lived in Washington. Of course, I thought it was all muscle. It wasn't.

Now I weigh in the 160's zone. So, I know what it's like to lose weight. It isn't that hard to do. It makes a huge difference in how you feel to be leaned out. I've always hated flying. I did not realize that being skinnier would make such a difference til I flew north in July and back in August. Best flights ever. Never felt uncomfortable and squeezed in.

When a person gets to the point of morbid obesity they are so fat that their body needs way more calories than does a normal sized person just to maintain. As in, to support all that weight a person who is 300 or 400 pounds over their ideal weight probably needs 5 or 6 thousand daily calories just to stay even. If the fat person ate a normal calorie load they'd lose a pound or more a day. Particularly if they are still able to be somewhat mobile.

I've known a couple of surgeons who talked about what it's like to operate on smokers and fat people. With the smokers as soon as you cut them open you can smell the smoke. With fat people it makes operating way more difficult due to the fat making everything greasy and slippery.

Okay, I'm done talking about obesity for now. Now, next time you want a cookie reach for a carrot instead.

Inexcusable: Taking Advantage of Old People

How does someone become such a lowlife human being that they could rationalize taking advantage of old people like this guy in my former state of Washington did? Appalling......

LONGVIEW -- At his sentencing hearing, Tom Sigea described himself as a simple man inept at finances. But investigators say Sigea squandered his elderly parents' money.

Judge Jill Johanson sentenced Sigea on Thursday in Cowlitz County Superior Court to 28 months in prison on four counts of first-degree theft. Sigea had earlier entered a modified guilty plea, in which he did not admit guilt but acknowledged he likely would be convicted if the case went to trial.

Sigea lived with his parents -- who were in their 80s and suffering from dementia-- for three years in their $400,000 Kalama home. Investigators say he lived well while his parents, who had $1 million in assets, lived downstairs in filth and poverty.

The 53-year-old had full power of attorney over his parents' affairs after he persuaded his brother to give up his share of that privilege.

Sigea's mother Lila Sigea has died. His father Albert now lives with a grandson in California. Deputy Prosecutor James Smith told the judge that Albert Sigea wanted his son to receive a severe penalty.

Sarah Flohr, the Cowlitz Bank trust officer handling the Sigea estate, says the stolen cash, legal costs and other expenses amount to about $850,000.

Cancel Your Citibank Credit Card Before You Die!

Alma, the Songbird of the South, sent me this and it seems too ridiculous to be true, but then again, it matches some of my experiences with calling various customer service centers....

A lady died this past January, and Citibank billed her for February and March for their annual service charges on her credit card, and added late fees and interest on the monthly charge. The balance had been $0.00 when she died, but now somewhere around $60.00. A family member placed a call to Citibank.

Here is the exchange:

Family Member: 'I am calling to tell you she died back in January.'

Citibank: 'The account was never closed and the late fees and charges still apply.'

Family Member: 'Maybe, you should turn it over to collections.'

Citibank: 'Since it is two months past due, it already has been.'

Family Member: So, what will they do when they find out she is dead?'

Citibank: 'Either report her account to frauds division or report her to the credit bureau, maybe both!'

Family Member: 'Do you think God will be mad at her?'

Citibank: 'Excuse me?'

Family Member: 'Did you just get what I was telling you - the part about her being dead?'

Citibank: 'Sir, you'll have to speak to my supervisor.'

Supervisor gets on the phone:

Family Member: 'I'm calling to tell you, she died back in January with a $0 balance.'

Citibank: 'The account was never closed and late fees and charges still apply.'

Family Member: 'You mean you want to collect from her estate?'

Citibank: (Stammer) 'Are you her lawyer?'

Family Member: 'No, I'm her great nephew.' (Lawyer info was given)

Citibank: ' Could you fax us a certificate of death?'

Family Member: 'Sure.' (Fax number was given )

After they get the fax:

Citibank: 'Our system just isn't setup for death. I don't know what more I can do to help.'

Family Member: 'Well, if you figure it out, great! If not , you could just keep billing her. She won't care.'

Citibank: 'Well, the late fees and charges do still apply.' (What is wrong with these people?!?)

Family Member: ' Would you like her new billing address?'

Citibank: 'That might help...'

Family Member: ' Odessa Memorial Cemetery , Highway 129, Plot Number 69.'

Citibank: 'Sir, that's a cemetery !'

Family Member: 'And what do you do with dead people on your planet???

Super Bowl Buffet in Fort Worth

It has now been a month since I escaped the verbal and physical abuse Tacoma inflicted on me. And the conspiratorial attempts to fatten me up.

A month of being back where everyone treats me nice has restored me to my former pre-traumatic stress syndrome state of mind. As in I'm happy again.

Just in the last week I've had a nice lady from Dallas tell me that talking to me lifted a burden from her shoulders and made her feel so good she had to call her mom to tell her. In the past month I've been asked if I'm a newspaper columnist and have twice been told I should write a book. I've been told I've lifted the spirits of an Ike survivor. I've been told I'm too easy-going. These are all things I would never hear in Washington. I know really nice people in Texas.

But then, today, a bad thing happened here in Fort Worth. Someone here must be thinking I'm too skinny, just like those who tried to fatten me up in Tacoma. I was taken to the Super Bowl Buffet against my will. This is across the street from where I live. You don't drive there unless it is too hot or too cold or raining or snowing or ice storming. Today was none of those, so we walked.

The oddly named Super Bowl Buffet used to have an even odder name when it was called Super Asia Buffet. It's the best Chinese Buffet I've been too. I've been to a lot of them. Real good sushi too. I ate only the healthy stuff and avoided the deep-fried shrimp and other goodies of a like sort. I'll no more gain weight from this lunch indulgence than any of the attempts to pork me up when I was up north.

Tomorrow I'm going to Sprouts. That's my favorite grocery store. Tacoma needs a Sprouts Farmers Market. There really are no good grocery stores in Tacoma. There is one the Tacoma locals think is good, called Metro, and it is just awful. Way over priced for bad looking produce in a dinky store with narrow aisles that reminded me of Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market. I shouldn't say there are no good grocery stores in Tacoma, there is a Trader Joe's. But I didn't get to go there. They do have a Top Foods which is like a downscale version of its parent Haggens store, but it's no Haggens. Tacoma needs a Haggens. And a couple Super Wal-Marts.

The State Fair of Texas and the Ku Klux Klan

The State Fair of Texas will be starting up in about a week, running from September 26 through October 19. It's in Dallas at what is called Fair Park. That's where the Cotton Bowl is. Football gets played in the Cotton Bowl. During the Fair, Texas plays Oklahoma in what always seems to be a big deal here.

The Cotton Bowl has had millions of bucks spent on it to renovate it from its run-down state to a new shiny state of near perfection with more seats, more restrooms, more room and more places to eat.

If you've never been to the State Fair of Texas you should make the effort. It'll be good for you to do something non-sedentary for one day of the year. Wandering around the Texas State Fair can be exhausting. Wear comfortable shoes.

Below is a video about a couple who did research into the history of the State Fair of Texas. Interesting info about Elvis that I pretty much already knew, but I did not know that way back in a different era the State Fair of Texas had a Ku Klux Klan Day......

An American Carol & An Innocent Man in Texas

A Texas woman is trying to exonerate a dead man she wrongly accused of raping her 23 years ago. The innocent man died in prison from complications of asthma that his family claimed were not properly treated. DNA testing proved the dead man did not commit the crime. Another inmate confessed.

Meanwhile there will soon be a movie in theaters called An American Carol. In this movie ghosts of America's past give Michael Moore a tour of what the world would look like today if America never went to war. The ghosts do this because they are annoyed that Michael Moore and moveon.org are trying to ban the 4th of July.

George Washington, George Patton, John F. Kennedy and others give Michael Moore his tour.

To his horror, Michael Moore learns that if the Union had not decided to preserve itself that he would be a modern day slave owner with a huge plantation. I don't know, but I'm guessing in this movie a lot of the world is controlled by Nazis. Or maybe the Soviets defeated the Nazis without our help, which would make a lot of the world controlled by the Soviets.

Sounds like an interesting movie. That David Zucker guy who made the Airplane and Naked Gun movies is the maker of An American Carol. I'm sure much hilarity is involved.

They are still trying to decide whether or not to include the current ending, which has Gary Coleman washing cars and passing a cleaning rag off to someone off screen who he calls Barack.

Below is a movie trailer for An American Carol....

Natural Gas Drilling Polluting Water

Incoming info from Don Young pointing me to an interesting article in the Christian Science Monitor regarding the damage being done to the nation's water supply by the hydraulic fracturing process that is used to release natural gas from stubborn hard shale.

The area around Fort Worth has been the practice ground for this new drilling procedure for about 5 years. It is now spreading all over the country.

Read the whole article here.

Below is a scary excerpt about what happened to one Texas family....

The nation’s shale-gas guinea pigs reside in 15 counties around Fort Worth, where shale-gas extraction using hydraulic fracturing has been validated in recent years. The results have brought wealth to some, but infuriated others.

Charlotte Harris and her husband signed a mineral lease last year. But she’s upset now. She sharply recalls a day last November when her drinking-water well died and a new gas well 100 yards from her Grandview, Texas, home was born.

She washed dishes that morning as usual, she says in an phone interview. But after a shower, her skin itched terribly and she realized the water had a sulfurous odor. Later that day, without warning, her toilet erupted. Water shot out of it “like Niagara Falls.”

About that time, she learned, powerful pump trucks at the nearby well site were sending pulses of water mixed with sand and chemicals thousands of feet down into solid shale to fracture it to increase the flow of gas. She and her husband now believe some of that fluid escaped under pressure much nearer the surface.

After the Harrises complained, the drilling company had the water tested but found no problem. Harris’s next-door neighbor, John Sayers, had a lab test his well water. The lab found toluene, a chemical used in explosives, paint stripper – and often in drilling fluids.

Almost a year later, the Harris family well water, once clear and sweet, is murky and foul-smelling. Ms. Harris’s husband, Stevan, trucks in about 1,500 gallons twice a week, at 15 cents a gallon.

“We’re not using that [well] water for anything at all,” Mr. Sayers says. “I was told not to drink, wash, or anything. Not even water my grass with it.”

Charter Communication Internet Woes

Yesterday afternoon my Internet connection ceased being connected. I dread calling Charter Communication and eventually being connected to someone in the Philippines calling himself Joe and not speaking English very well.

Well. Yesterday's call brought fresh aggravation. After I'd entered all the identifying info I was told there were outages all over Alabama. I'm not in Alabama.

Then I was told to hold for very important information about my area. A woman's voice came on telling me the date and time. And then told me due to Hurricane Ike my area was experiencing widespread outages. She then gave me a number to call to find out when service would be restored in my area.

Well, I'm not in the Hurricane Ike damage area. So, I hit a button. A voice told me I really needed to listen to the message. And then it played again. I went through 3 rounds of this when another voice asked if I'd like to speak to a customer support technician. Hit '1' if you do.

I hit '1'. Almost instantly a woman answered speaking perfect English. She asked identifying info including the last 4 digits of my SS #. Then she told me there were problems in West Fort Worth. I'm in East Fort Worth I told her.

She then told me she saw no problem with my connection. She then wanted me to reset the modem. Had already done that. About then the connection started working again.

Before I got off the phone I asked if she was in the Philippines. No, she said she was in Florida. She said people are often surprised not to get a Philipino.

So, this morning the Internet went out again. I dreaded it, but I called again. This time I didn't get the Hurricane Ike message. Instantly got a real person on the line. An American. Is Charter improving customer service? So, someone is supposed to arrive to fix the connection between 2 and 4 this afternoon, calling an hour before to confirm.

We'll see how that goes. In the meantime, I'm using Miss Puerto Rico's Internet Connection. It's DSL and I don't believe it has ever been down.

John McCain's Phone Call To Sarah Palin

Please excuse John McCain's inexcusable profanity in his phone call to Sarah Palin asking her to be his Vice-President.....

WaMu And Other Economic Disasters

Washington Mutual pulled out of Krogers, here in Texas, a couple years ago. This made the closest WaMu to me about 9 miles. The 18 mile roundtrip to deposit a check costs a gallon of gas. Something seems wrong about that.

I'd been noticing a new construction near my friendly neighborhood Super Wal-Mart. Last week it identified itself. It's a new WaMu branch. This is a good thing.

But, WaMu seems to be in trouble. When they pulled out of Krogers they were in trouble. And now those troubles have gotten way worse. So, I'll just assume this new WaMu won't get finished, so as to avoid anymore disappointment in my disappointment heavy life.

All these bad things happening to famous names like Merrill Lynch makes me nervous. I fear we are heading towards some bad bad times.

John McCain wants to assemble a commission to look into these vexing economic issues. Wasn't it a commission that recommended all that de-regulating that's led to the desperate situation we're now in? Wasn't John McCain part of a long ago bank type scandal? Something called the Keating Five. Or Fifteen. It's so hard to remember. I guess I could look it up.

At least Barack Obama seems to understand we've got some serious problems. Though I don't hear a lot of re-assuring solutions. Probably because there aren't any.

Texas Weight Loss, Tootsie Tonasket & Tacoma

I heard from Tootsie Tonasket this morning with a report on her weight loss success. Tootsie has been following my strict regimen for almost 6 months now. She has shrunk from 219 pounds to a new low of 158!

Tootsie's chronic back pains and joint aches have gotten way better, likely due to all the walking I have her do.

Tootsie Tonasket now weighs less than me. But I also have been continuing to shrink. Not that I mean to. I have shrivelled to a new low of 166.

I guess I need to eat more. But I eat a lot. Really I do.

When I was up in Tacoma, right from the start, I thought those people were in a conspiratorial plot to fatten me up. No matter how many times I said that I don't usually eat dinner, over and over and over again I was forced to eat dinner, lest I be charged with even more serious counts of being anti-social and ignoring and avoiding the house guests.

Cheesecake, a known weakness of mine, was brought into the house. And then, just to be cruel, even though it was well before its pull date, the cheesecake was tossed in the garbage. I was being double-binded, ying-yanged by these people. Pure torture.

Another one of my known weaknesses, potato chips, were always in supply. In various flavors.

There was a large supply of various alcoholic beverages in a wide variety, which I was encouraged, over and over again, to consume, at will, forget about the calories.

I lost count of the number of times I was brought to McDonald's. One of the times for the usual forced evening meal feeding, which, like I said, I rarely eat, where I was presented with a Filet-o-Fish, French Fries and a full sugar Coke. There was a lot of pressure to have a Hot Fudge Sundae, but this was one of the rare occasions when I successfully resisted. Likely because my pushily insistent little sister was not in attendance. Even though it was my Mom and Dad's Anniversary, she could not find the time to go to McDonald's with them. Shameful. Mom and Dad said they felt like my little sister was avoiding them. I meant to have a talk with her about that.

I was forced to consume other restaurant feedings in the evenings in Tacoma. Once at a seafood place called Steamers. It was good.

And then, as if to make one final attempt to fatten me up, on my last night in Tacoma, they insisted on taking me out to eat. What cuisine I was asked would I like? I defaulted to seafood and suggested a McDonald's Filet-o-Fish, which I really like.

No. McDonald's is out, I was told. Either Anthony's Homeport, Katie Down's or Duke's Chowder House. I'd been to both Anthony's and Katie Down's, so I opted for Duke's.

So, at Duke's, nothing was spared in the final attempt to fatten me up. I was ordered to order a cocktail. I opted for a Bloody Mary with 2 giant Prawns. Hot out of the oven Sourdough with butter was brought out. I was told to eat loaf after loaf.

By this point in time, during my month of brainwashing in Tacoma, I did what I was told.

And then the appetizers showed up. One was a delicious, filling crab concoction. The other was a lot of mussels in a broth in which you dipped rye bread.

I was stuffed by the time the appetizers were done. I was then told to order a beer.

I'm going to explode I feared. But I did as I was told.

And then the main course arrived. Halibut and French Fries. I had no option but to eat it all.

By the time I was done I was not able to walk easily. A wheelchair was provided to get me to the car.

I somehow made it back to my sister's without fainting and crawled up the stairs to my sleeping zone with the army cot in the HOT area they call the Tropics. After about an hour my sister came up the stairs with her final attempt to fatten me up. She'd made a giant Long Island Iced Tea out of some liquor remnants she'd found somewhere. Along with the remains of the giant potato chip bag from Costco.

I was able to eventually consume the Long Island Iced Tea. I then blogged a heavily censored version of the evening and then passed out. I did not touch the potato chips.

Despite their evil attempts to fatten me up, I did not gain any weight during my month of eating like a pig and drinking like a fish in Tacoma. When I think of all the money they wasted trying to put some meat on my bones, it just appalls me. All that cheese, all that meat, all that butter, all those desserts, all those bags of chips, all those bottles of wine and beer. All that could have fed a starving family in Africa for a year.

I guess I'll start having melted butter on my evening bowl of air popped corn and see if I can stop this continuing unnecessary weight loss. Or go buy some pants, jeans and shorts that fit me.

Topless Joint Upsets Some In My Fort Worth Neighborhood

I believe the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex has the world's highest per capita number of women working in strip clubs. There are dozens upon dozens of Strip Joints, also known as Gentlemen's Clubs, throughout this metro area.

Long ago I learned from a Texan, I'll anonymously call G the Texan, that going to a Strip Joint, with your dad, is a right of passage in Texas when you turn 18. G the Texan was shocked to learned no such thing exists in my former zone of Washington. Yes, there are a few topless joints up there, but not like what exists here in Texas.

I never went to a topless bar in Washington. I have gone to a strip show or two in British Columbia. There was always a good one at this place called Izzy's and at the PNE. That is the Pacific National Exhibition in Vancouver. The PNE is sort of like the State Fair of Texas on steroids. I don't know why they don't have a strip show at the State Fair of Texas. They do have a Women's Museum there.

Some people in my neighborhood of Fort Worth are in a tizzy due to a Strip Joint being built. This is to be across the Trinity River in a Dry Zone. One would think my side of the river would be the preferred location for a new Strip Joint, since I'm in a totally Wet Zone. I think across the river it is a totally Dry Zone, meaning, I don't think you could even carry your own bottle of beer into the new Strip Joint.

Maybe with a Strip Joint within walking distance I'll finally visit one. I'd ask G the Texan if he wanted to attend the grand opening, but I'm sure he's banned from such things now that he is married.

Video with details below....

Inexpensive, Effective, Noisy, Edible Smoke Detector

From Lulu, an inspired observer of the latest in Redneck Home Furnishings....

The Repo Man Strikes

Just when I think things can't get any worse. The Repo Man strikes.

Alma, my Sweet Songbird of the South, barely recovered from Hurricane Ike's various aggravations, got fresh, unnecessary aggravation yesterday.

Alma is down in Port Aransas, Texas. If you read my blog religiously, you already knew that.

The car she has been buying, that she needs for work, has had a major malfunction of late. That's why Alma's brother-in-law had to come get her off the island and away from any interaction with Ike.

Alma was slightly behind in her car payments on the car that did not run. Alma had communicated with her lender, who let her know they would work with her to get her back up to speed, so to speak.

And then, yesterday, Alma looks out her window to see no car. Her guitar and all her music stuff and other important things were in that car.

Alma ran out of her house and down the street and found the Repo Man stuck in the mud with her car in tow. She asked him to let her get her stuff. He told her she'd have to go to Corpus Christi to recover her possessions.

About then a Port Aransas cop, who Alma knew, showed up, assessed the situation, told the Repo Man that he made a mistake in not extending the courtesy of letting local law enforcement know he was going to take a car. The cop told Alma to get her stuff. The cop then drove Alma and her stuff back to her place.

In the meantime I'm thinking right now all these huge multi-billion dollar financial institutions, that have shafted who knows how many people, are now asking for bailouts from the Feds. While little people, like Alma, don't have that avenue of help. The Feds are not going to help Alma out with her car problem. Or the financial woes Ike caused her.

Who would order in a Repo Man days after a place is recovering from a hurricane? That just ain't right.

John McCain's Teleprompter Problems

In this video John McCain blames his nephew's incompetent handling of the teleprompter keyboard for his frequent miscues...scroll down the list to find the John McCain Teleprompter video. I could not seem to get the right embed code and instead it turned into some sort of entertainment news thing that started off with Britney Spears. I don't want Britney Spears on my blog...

Lulu Is Heading To Texas

Along with Lauri. Two of my favorite Southern Belles are heading to Texas in less than 2 weeks. These two call themselves Chippys. I am not sure, but I think a Chippy is someone who takes something someone else might have not seen as art and the Chippy turns it into something purty.

The Chippys are going to be down in Round Top for this twice a year event that's something like the biggest in the world for those who collect antiques and cool stuff that people make.

Again, I'm not totally certain, but I think this Round Top thing has gotten so big it has had to spread to surrounding towns in order to contain all the collectibles that find their way to Central Texas. Here is a website with Round Top/Antique Weekend info.

Now, Lulu and Lauri have some appreciation of my skills in regards to these type shows. They have made an excellent case (Jalapeno Margaritas) as to why I should show up there. Today I looked at how far it is from here, a bit less than 300 miles. I've driven to Austin easily in one day, Round Top isn't much further than Austin.

What makes this trek to Round Top sound appealing to me, besides the Chippys, is it is going somewhere different for once. That and Lulu and Lauri have mentioned this Jalapeno Margarita thing that sounds intriquing to me.

When I first heard of a Jalapeno Margarita I thought the ladies were teasing. So, I Googled it. There is a lot of Jalapeno Margarita info. Including recipes, even one from Fort Worth's renowned cowboy chef, Tim Love.

Here's the simplified way to make a Jalapeno Margarita.....

No. I'm not gonna say have the Chippys make one for you. Here's the recipe....

Ingredients

1 jalapeño, poked with a knife
1 1/3 cups tequila
1 cup orange liqueur
1 cup fresh lime juice (10 limes)
3 tablespoons superfine sugar
Kosher salt and ice

Directions

1. In a jar, steep the jalapeño and tequila; keep at room temperature for 3 days.

2. Strain the tequila into a large pitcher and discard the jalapeño. Stir in the orange liqueur, lime juice and sugar.

3. Pour the salt and a small amount of the margarita onto 2 rimmed plates. Dip the rims of 6 glasses into the margarita, then into the salt. Fill each glass with ice, pour in the margarita and serve.

Cheers! And here's to hoping to see some Chippys soon, down further south in the Round Top zone.

Clinton & Palin In 2012

Expert prognostiator that I am, always with an opinion, seldom correct, I am now going to make my prediction as to the outcome of the upcoming Presidential election. And the election of 2012.

I believe, come election day in November, the Obama-Biden ticket is going to lose to McCain-Palin.

McCain, being an old man, is only going to serve one term. The McCain presidency will be fairly popular with the people, much more so than the disgraced Bush presidency.

Sarah Palin will win the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.

Hillary Clinton will win the Democrat presidential nomination in 2012.

Hillary Clinton will beat Sarah Palin, to finally win the presidency, in the election of 2012. Making Hillary the first woman to be elected president.

One week before Hillary's inauguration John McCain will resign as President.

Making Sarah Palin, for one week, the first woman President of the United States.

Thus robbing Hillary of being the first female President, but still basking in the glory of being the first woman to be elected President of the United States.

Bill will take a cue from Sarah Palin's husband Todd and suggest that he be referred to as the First Dude.

Soon after they move into the White House, again, Hillary will announce she no longer needs the First Dude and is divorcing him.

Hillary's popularity ratings soar.

I forgot to mention, Hillary will pick Barack Obama as her Vice-President in 2012.

I doubt Hillary will re-marry.

The Dallas Trinity River Project

Dallas had a vision about the Trinty River before Fort Worth did. But Dallas does not call theirs a vision. It's just the Trinity River Project. The Dallas project will give Dallas a huge lake, some very cool bridges and a lot of new recreation areas. All in all, to me, the Dallas project makes way more sense than the Fort Worth project. That and the Dallas project will enhance an existing huge flood plain, not destroy existing good stuff, like the Fort Worth vision does. Let alone the dozens upon dozens of businesses dislocated by Fort Worth. You get a good look at the Dallas 'vision' in the video below.

Fort Worth's Trinity River Vision

Interesting little news video. You get so see some of the notorious players, like Kay Granger's son, he of the nepotism charges. And Fort Worth's notorious mayor, Mike Moncrief. You get to see the notorious Trinity River Vision Project underway. And you get to see some of what is being destroyed by this vision.

T. Boone Pickens Energy Plan

Makes sense to me...

One More Stupid Thing I've Done In Texas

When I was up in Tacoma earlier this year I walked a lot. Right out of my little sister's house. You exit the front door to a walkway that connects to a sidewalk that connects to other sidewalks that you can walk all over town. That is a Tacoma sidewalk you see in the photo.

My sister lives in the swanky north end of Tacoma. A former acquaintance lives in the less swanky south end of Tacoma. About 6 miles from my sister's. One day I was at the less swanky side of town and decided to walk back to my sister's. It was a nice, long walk. Sidewalks all the way.

Tacoma is heavily landscaped. When you walk the sidewalks it is sort of like being in a park. Very nice.

So, today, I don't know how I managed to be possessed by an idea of total idiocy, but I needed to go to the Post Office. It's about 2 miles from here. So, I decided I walk to the Post Office. Seemed like a good idea at the time.

Well, Fort Worth is a large city. Over 3 times bigger than Tacoma in population. But it is sadly lacking in a lot of big city amenities. Like sidewalks. Maybe 15% of the route from here to the Post Office and back had some semblance of a sidewalk. Narrow little things. Large sections of the route were basically worn down foot paths, where hapless Fort Worthers, like myself, had worn a path through the weeds.

The amount of litter was astonishing. As was the variety. But I made it to the Post Office. I decided to make a loop of it and get back here via a different route. This was a mistake. Way fewer sidewalks. I guess I don't notice how sparse the sidewalks are when I'm driving.

I crossed over I-30 on a very old bridge that also had no sidewalk. It must have been built back when I-30 was a tollway, before the Feds mandated sidewalks on bridges.

I was barely on the other side when I was accosted by 3 pit bulls. Loose pit bulls. I clapped my hands together real hard to scare them. This worked, but I ended up with a real sore spot on the palm of my hand.

Soon after the pit bull attack I stepped on a glass shard. It penetrated my shoe, but not my skin. The "ouch" made me lift up my foot in time to prevent further damage. I pulled out the glass shard and continued on my way.

Suffice to say, I made it back here. I will never try and walk the mean streets of Fort Worth again. Unless I have to.

Meanwhile, Fort Worth continues to be enamored of a messianic vision, that I've mentioned before, called the Trinity River Vision, a vision to build a little lake, some canals, a flood diversion channel and some wetlands restoration.

I wish Fort Worth had the vision to build some sidewalks. Maybe the canals in the Trinity River Vision will have sidewalks.

It's Almost Icy Cold In Texas

Last night the temperatures here in Fort Worth plummeted into the 50s. Brrrrr. Slept like a baby with the windows open and no A/C running.

This morning about 7am I contemplated going swimming. At first I decided against it, figuring the water would be too cold. But then I decided to give it a try.

Well, the water in the pool was way warmer than the air. This made it feel good to get in the warm water. Though it did take a few seconds to get adjusted to the water, which must have been in the low 70s.

I've now decided I'm going to keep on swimming every morning all the way through winter. Unless there is an icestorm making it too slippery to go outside. I may change my mind about this plan at a later date.

Texas Railroad Commission Makes Entire Town Mad

The population of the little Texas town of Era is in full umbrage mode due to the fact that the Texas Railroad Commission totally ignored their concerns, even after legions of Eraites travelled all the way to Austin to verbalize their concerns in front of the Commission.

The Texas Railroad Commission is the oddly named Texas government entity that oversees that gas drilling industry, among other things. It is widely believed to be a completely corrupt tool of the gas industry.

Last week Dallas ABC affiliate, WFAA-TV's reporter, Brett Shipp aired a real good report about what has happened in Era. You can watch the Shipp report here.

Stehekin, Bears, Boats, Bikes, Hikes, Eating & Lake Chelan

Looking through old webpages today I've come to the realization I don't do anything new, different, fun and adventurous anymore. This must come to an end. Soon.

I'd forgotten about the fun of Stehekin. That's an isolated town, deep in the Washington North Cascades and the north end of Lake Chelan. Accessed only by boat or hiking or plane.

The summer before I moved to Texas. Or was it the summer before that, a group of 7 or 8 took the Lady of the Lake up Lake Chelan, to stay at the Stehekin Lodge. We took our bikes along. We were barely off the boat when we were greeted by our first of what was to be dozens of bears. Like the one you see in the photo.

Below is an excerpt from one of my 3 webpages about the trip to Stehekin. Go here to read the whole thing.

"The Way to Stehekin is definitely over the Road Less Traveled. Stehekin is situated at the end of 55 mile long Lake Chelan, deep in the North Cascades of Washington, accessible only by boat or foot or floatplane. No phones, no TV, no radio. Very likely the most remote, isolated location in the Lower 48 of the United States. None of your companions on this little adventure had been to Stehekin before. It was to be 4 days of discovering the delights of a world far removed from our usual Urban Madness..."

Proof Of My Memory Loss

I was looking through some old, odd stuff and came across something that appalled me, appalled me, I tell you. A thing from my old old website known as "The Durango Files." Sort of a distant precursor to this blog, a distant precursor in which I webpaged my various travails and tribulations while I still lived in the Pacific Northwest.

I don't know if it was a function of my psyche blocking a painful memory, or my memory itself falling to disrepair, but I came across an accounting I wrote over a decade ago which should have served me as a cautionary tale, that I should have remembered. But, fool that I am, I'm all about giving people second, third and sometimes fourth chances. I no longer have such a foolish policy. I'm all about being Draconian anymore.

Anyway, here's an excerpt from the beginning of this memory jarring account.....

The following took place at the resort community of Sunriver in Central Oregon. Six different individuals with a total of nine different personalities were imprisoned in Hell Lodge on a deserted cul-de-sac for 5 long days of HELL.

The expedition had been arranged by a middle-aged married couple named Jack and Lulu. The other participants were their teenage son, Leo, a temporarily separated from her husband woman named Zelda, a compu-nerd, out-of-date, commie wannabe, who insisted on being called Trotsky; and one totally well-adjusted, completely sane person, your guide on this journey into the netherworld of the human mind, Dr. Durango Jones.....

Go here to read the entire painful episode.....

Alma Returned to Port Aransas Safe From Hurricane Ike

Alma is safe back in Port Aransas, her cottage on the gulf intact. Read on for Alma's account of her encounter with Hurricane Ike. And scroll way down if you want to see a photo of Alma's Boyz who survived Hurricane Ike with her.....

Hey you Guys,

I've posted all of the Hurricane Ike News from Port Aransas emails in my MySpace blog. The MySpace post includes emails I received in response and responses my long-time pal, Durango, received from posting them on his blog.... I've also included lyrics from one of my favorite songs by Blue October that was playing as I drove from Harbor Island to AP. I hope you like....

I woke up and went to the Stipes Store by the ferry and got my caffeine and ice for what has now come to be regarded as that damn meat and cheese. Why did I even bother? I just can't see food going to waste. Maybe I starved in a past life...who knows?. They were doing good business for the people getting ready to leave and the locals that were staying. They were selling massive amounts of ice, beer, sodas, gasoline, water, etc.

I got on Cotter to go home when I ran into my new "friend" from Oceans of Seafood who was waiting for the owner to come down from his residence next door and open the restaurant. They would be open for lunch. We chatted briefly and he told me I was the only left on the Island freaking out. But he did say that the Island was starting to flood from the West side at Shorty's Pasture. I don't understand how everybody could be so calm. I told him I would be checking out the beach and he suggested I go the Cotter Street way as Beach Street was already flooded. I checked out the beach by the Jettys and couldn't find a way to check it out so I followed a truck past the Marine Center and yo, there beyond some little Dunes you could see that the sea was already to the Dunes there. It looked like the sea would be over the Jettys very soon. After I took in the sight, I drove to the Beach St. access road and parked amoungst the surfers who had clogged up Beach Street in search of some good waves. I went home and my "new friend" was looking at my car. They weren't able to figure out what was wrong with it and left.

After mostly taping containers shut (mostly to make myself feet better) even tho that would have diddly effect on anything carried by the sea, I went to eat lunch at the Beach and Station Street Grill. They were doing fair, steady business to the locals who decided to stay and me. I was taking a brief lunch break at the only place that was open. I had a bowl of their killer gumbo with some toasted, crusty french bread and came back home.

I watched the news as they were now saying that Hwy 361 was flooded in places and that the road on Harbor Island (the other side of the ship channel once you take the ferry) was also flooding. I feared that I would be stuck here with the crazy locals who showed no fear or respect for the Hurricane. I then doubled my speed which resulted in discovering my deodorant didn't work and getting my nice white blouse filthy. I was now just tossing things in the car, crying and freaking out that I would lose whatever remained in my "cottage". I finally came to a point where I said, "it's in God's hands" and put the dogs in the car and hit the road.

The water in the ship channel was as high as I've ever seen it. The little ferry boats were valiantly taking passengers back and forth. I must say, it was one smooth ride considering. I thought for sure that we would be jostled about by "rollers". Rollers are large rolling waves. They are the kind of waves that could and might make you sea sick. When I'm outside on deck standing on the boats when there are rollers I instinctively reach out for something to hold on to. The deck hands laugh as they've told me that there are people who step on their brakes. As if that would do anything! It's kinda funny. But, no...no rollers, just a quick current of water filling up the channel. No dolphins. Just birds taking advantage of the disoriented fish.

As I drove past Harbor Island, past the Fin and Feather, past Hog Island, I could see that the fishing encampments and bait shops and RV Parks were all already flooded. I mean water all around them. I drove on past the ghost town of Aransas Pass. I drove on the highway and drove past North Beach and the sea had already flooded most of North Beach where I usta live. There was water already surrounding the little shack where I lived a year ago. Water was almost up to the Sea Lab. I drove over the Harbor Bridge, made my way on the Crosstown, tried to find a doggie crate at the Greenwood Walmart but they were out, tried to go to PetSmart but they were closed, went to the Everhart Walmart and they only had a large doggie crate. I had to leave the boyz in the car each time I went in a store. It was awful and I felt terrible. I was now $60 more in the hole. I finally made it to my sister's in near hysterics. It's all too much. I suffer from anxiety and got off my Klonopin, so by now I'm thinking that maybe I still need them. My hands are shaking and I hate this.

My sister was calm and I love that family so much. The kids were sheer joy to be around. My nephew is phenomenal. He's Pre-K but he can already read. It's amazing. My niece is so gentle and kind to animals and my dogs warmed up to her like I've never seen them warm up to anybody before. They actually loved the whole family. They were nervous, too. Even tho they were having the benefit of a backyard, all they wanted was to know where I was, laid by the back door whimpering and once we brought them inside and put them in the new crate I got on the way in, they calmed down. They had to be in a crate because Jack, my sister's little terrier didn't cotton to having 3 other dogs in his territory. It's only natural. We had to put my dogs outside when her dogs were inside and vice versa. We spent a nice day watching the Weather Channel and cartoons on Nickelodian.

My sister in Houston had it bad. It was scary and they lost power. They were debating whether to come down here after they learned they wouldn't have electricity for up to TWO WEEKS. I hope they do come down. It's intolerable without AC.

I tried to sleep but it was difficult. The dogs would whimper when they couldn't see me. So, at 1am, completely exhausted, I covered their crate with a Sponge Bob blanket, and lay down on the couch where they could see me. I turned off the lights and when they finally settled down, sneaked off to sleep in my nephews Harry Potter bed. When I finally slept, it was not a good sleep because I kept getting up everytime the dogs made noise. I didn't want them to wake everybody up. The dogs were just totally discombobulated not being in their own home. And I'm sure they could read "my energy" as I was worried I'd lost everything. When they settled down, I crashed so hard it seemed like 5 minutes when I woke up 5 hours later. I stayed up for an hour and went back to bed and slept til 9am. It seemed like 5 minutes.

I saw a report where somebody on some jettys in the area (didn't hear where) tried to help somebody in trouble, got swept off the jettys by a giant wave, and was washed out to sea. Wow. I read on my phone that a tree fell thru the roof and killed someone who was inside sleeping. I read where a 67 year old man refused to leave Surfside. They found him drunk in the morning. He drank his way thru Ike. A woman delivered a baby during the storm at a shelter. She was assisted by a specialist in geriatric psychology who hadn't delivered a baby in 20 years. The police reported thousands of calls from frightened people who had changed their mind about riding it out. And, of course, people were rescued from their attics and roofs.

Saturday morning, we mostly watched Sponge Bob and Mighty B cartoons and giggled and laughed. Drank good coffee and had papa con huevo tacos for breakfast. My niece and I tried to keep the dogs calm. We ate some good snacks. My sister cooked up some good stuff. And I tried to work up the energy to shower and get ready to come back to Port A. I was completely drained. I drank copious amounts of coffee but it did nothing. I was depressed and very tired. I tried to take a nap, but it just wasn't gonna happen. I started at 3pm to try to pull myself together. By 5pm or so, I had broken down the new dog cage, downloaded a Hannah Montana song (See You Again) into my laptop, gave the CD (it was the only song I liked) to my niece, rounded up my stuff and loaded it in the car. With her help, we loaded the dogs in the car and I was headed home.

I decided to pay my Cricket phone bill. Just remember, you get what you pay for. I stopped in AP for some chicken. Everywhere I looked I saw tired people. Many, I'm sure wondering how they would make up the money they spent making sure their families were OK.

There were reports of people en masse returning generators and other stuff they bought at Home Depot (and the like) since they didn't use them. The problem with this storm scenario is that people spend grocery, rent, utility, etc. money to survive the storm. To save their families. In other words, spending money they don't have. I would do the same thing. It's this kind of stuff that makes people decide they will hunker down the next time this happens. With our luck down here, next time, it will be "the Big One" but we won't listen to the hysteria mongering media. I am about $200 in the hole and my mental health took a beating.

Yes, I am safe. Yes, it could've just as easily hit here. Just 100 miles South and I would've lost everything except for what I loaded in the car. Yes, I am lucky. I have a home to come home to. I have a job to come home to. I still have all my crap. This great place to live is still here. The 1st cold front of the season blows in tomorrow so that signals the end of Hurricane Season. Yes, I am still alive. My family is alive. My Port A friends are gonna razz me good for over-reacting (in their eyes).

This Hurricane thing is terrible and I fear it will take me time to sort thru the emotions. I was just throwing stuff (literally) and now must clean house before anything comes back in the house. Maybe that, too, is a good thing. I can now set up the table for my desktop computer like I always intended to, at least for the next 2 weeks as I try to deal with this ginormous electricity estimated bill. I have an interview for a second job at a very nice resort hotel. I have gigs coming up at the Tarpon Ice House and Sips and my coffee work continues at Sips. I will probably just take all that damn cheese and meat back. There's no way I could ever even eat that much meat and cheese. I can see me constipated and farting for the rest of my life with that cheese.

My work is cut out for me.

To respond to the folks on Durango's blog...no, I don't know where the Mustang Towers are. I'm sure I've seen them, but I don't think I dropped papers there so don't know where they are. Maybe they're called something different? I dunno. I haven't see the beach today yet. I'll cruise by before I go back to CC to return my bro-in-law's car. I hope my boss, Joanne, did okay. They drove inland.

I would like to thank all of you with your kind words of care. I am so overwhelmed and touched by the concern. Robert, Chuck, Durango, Carol, and Nancy come to mind. It touched my heart that you care. Funny, Dallas got more Ike rain than we did. IT DIDN'T EVEN RAIN HERE. The mosquitoes, tho, are mutants and we could solve the energy crisis by saddling them up and riding them!

The Boyz are each laying down and sleeping soundly surrounding my sitting butt as I type this. They are exhausted. The cat, Selena, was howling loudly at the door a few minutes after we were all huddled in front of the AC. The heat index here today was 106 degrees. And people wonder why the locals wear minimal clothes. I look forward to the cold front and the change in season. We have a forecast of - get this - rain for the next 3 days. Oy.

So, I am eternally indebted to my sister. I regret that I had to be an additional burden to my sister who already has a family to care for. It was quality time with my niece and nephew that I adore.

I come from good people. I love Port Aransas and would be devastated if I couldn't live here. There's just something about this place.

And yes, I realize that I am lucky (all things considered)....

love,
alma

Hurricane Ike In Fort Worth Video

Hurricane Ike has been blowing and dropping rain for hours today. If you didn't know it was a hurricane you would think it was just any old regular rainstorm with a little wind. That goes on all day long.

So, about 5 or so I decided to go over to Miss Puerto Rico's and see if I could get some windy video. That didn't work out so well.

So, I decided to take a short drive. To the Post Office. It's a short distance away. So, the video below starts at my local Post Office and then I head back towards where I am now. On the way I went through the Albertsons parking lot and remarked that as long as I've lived here I've never driven through the Albertsons parking lot and not seen at least one obese Texan.

The video below ends with the windy view from the aforementioned Miss Puerto Rico's.

Saturday Morning Weather Service Hurricane Ike North Texas Update

I wasn't sure in the previous blogging if it was the outskirts of Ike I was seeing and feeling this morning while swimming. but the latest update, below, from the National Weather Service, confirms we are already experiencing Hurricane Ike here in the D/FW Metroplex.

A Hurricane wind warning is in effect along and east of a line from Athens to Hearne. A tropical storm wind warning is in effect along and east of a line from Jacksboro...to Stephenville...to Gatesville. A flash flood watch is in effect east of I-35. At 9 AM...the center of ike was just northeast of Huntsville. Heavy rain has begun to impact Robertson and Leon counties...and the rain will increase in intensity and areal coverage as ike moves north at around 20 mph. Rainfall rates may exceed 3 inches per hour. The center of ike is expected to be near the southeastern corner of Anderson County around noon. Outer rain bands have already reached the I-35 corridor...from Dallas/Fort Worth to Waco. These and additional rain bands will affect much of north Texas throughout the day...with intermittent rain and wind. Residents are urged to be aware of the potential for flooding even in areas outside the flash flood watch. Northerly winds of 20 to 30 mph have enveloped central and east Texas...and will continue to....

Alma Made It To Safe Harbor From Hurricane Ike

I got word from Alma, the Port Aransas songbird, that she made it to safety. She does not have access to a computer, yet. When she does she'll share the details of being an evacuee.

Matt Damon Opines About Sarah Palin

Hurricane Ike Has Arrived In Fort Worth

That's the view from my window this morning. We are not going to get a direct visit from Hurricane Ike here in Fort Worth. But his outskirts are already touching us.

I was swimming this morning about 8 and could see the clouds moving in the direction Ike was rotating. So, I assumed it was the outer edge of the hurricane.

After about 20 minutes of swimming it suddenly got a bit windy. And then with no pre-warning drips, a downpour started. Two hours later the rain has slowed, but the winds have picked up.

I believe it is several hours before the remains of Hurricane Ike get this far north. Watching TV a bit ago, Ike hasn't really totally moved out of Galveston and Houston yet.

It should be an interesting day.

Texas Headache Cure

I used to get headaches all the time. It impacted my ability to enjoy most anything. I was either worried I'd get a headache. Or I'd get a headache.

Going to any family thing was a guaranteed headache.

I recollect going to the Western Washington State Fair, knows as "The Puyallup", only once, without getting a headache.

I remember going to the Vancouver World's Fair back in 1986, twice, both times getting memorably horrible headaches. I remember one of them was so bad my eyes felt like they were bleeding and I got lost heading back to the border. If you've ever tried to find the U.S. border after midnight on the Canadian roads you know it's a living hell and could give you a headache if you didn't already have one.

I took my oldest nephews to Vegas the summer before I moved to Texas. The first 2 days I had a splitting headache.

The first 2 days of any road trip I would always get a splitting painful throbbing headache.

Even Chinese food used to give me a headache. But I think that was MSG caused, before that stuff ceased being used.

And then I moved to Texas. I did not get a headache on the first 2 days of the 6 day move to Texas.

I don't recollect having a headache the entire time I've been in Texas. But then my memory can be a bit faulty.

The only time I do remember a Texas-related headache was in early August of 2001 when I drove myself back to Washington. I had a headache by the time I was out of Texas. That first night, in Pueblo, Colorado, I thought my head was going to explode. When I woke up the next morning, the headache had not gone away. It stayed with me all that next day until the part of Wyoming where you enter Utah and you drop elevation thousands of feet into the Salt Lake basin. Suddenly I was headache free.

Was that headache related somehow to knowing I was heading to an event in Washington that involved the relatives and others? I don't know. I suspect not, because I saw the relatives and others up in Washington in the past month or so. And they provided plenty of headache material, but I did not get one, not a single headache. Painful memories. Yes. Headaches. No.

The only thing I can think of that has cured my chronic headaches is Texas. How Texas cured my chronic headaches, I have no idea. Being able to do stuff outside year around? The extended HOT weather? More BBQ? The water? Less exposure to toxic people? I don't know. But if I had to hazard a guess, I go with the last option. It's the only clear variable that I can discern.

All I know for sure is life is an awful lot nicer knowing I can now do just about anything, be stuck on a plane for 6 hours, be stuck with an annoying person for days, be up in Washington for a month and not get a headache.

It's a miracle. Thank you Texas. I'm forever grateful.

Incoming Goofy George From A Goofy Georgian

The Georgia Magnolia known as Lauri the Chippy sent me an amusing video that made me wonder how anyone can think Sarah Palin isn't qualified to be president if this goober was. For 8 years....

Help Cuba Recover From Hurricane Ike

I was appalled to read this morning that the U.S. offered the Cubans a paltry $100,000 to help with their Ike aftermath. And to send in some damage assessment teams.

The Cubans said no thanks to the money and that they had the damage assessment under control.

But the Cubans politely asked, would you pretty please lift the trade restrictions so that we can buy lumber and other building supplies? And if you could also pretty please sell us some food supplies, on credit, that would also be helpful.

Our benevolent government said no to the Cuban plea.

We've had Cuba under an embargo for decades now. To what purpose? The Soviet Union is gone. Cuba no longer has a communist patron. China is still, supposedly, communist, be we trade with them like maniacs. And China has nukes. And an awful lot of Chinese. Cuba is just a little island that drives around in American cars from the 50s.

Cuba poses no threat to America. America does pose a threat to Cuba.

I think it's time to be good neighbors and even though we don't like our neighbor's way of doing things, they are still our neighbors. And they need help. And if we help our neighbors it is more likely we'll get them to think of us more kindly and be more open to our suggestions as to how they run their house, than if we treat them like the bad neighbors from hell.

Yes, I know the anti-Castro Cuban-Americans in Florida would go all ballistic if the U.S. suddenly adopted a more enlightened policy towards our communist neighbor.

But. It's the right thing to do. Any country that gave us Ricky Ricardo, I want to be friends with.

Below is video of what Cuba just went through with Hurricane Ike. I wonder if Cuba will offer to send in a damage assessment team tomorow to Texas? And $100,000.

Hurricane Ike Hitting Galveston Hard

That's the view from Miss Puerto Rico's balcony at about 3 pm here in Fort Worth. While watching the news about Hurricane Ike while I had lunch I heard a Fort Worth weather guy say the clouds we are seeing are Ike related, pushed ahead of the storm.

Twelve hours before Ike is expected to hit Galveston the storm surge is so strong and the waves so big that they are already over the seawall. And I was surprised to see Geraldo Rivera knocked down, so early into the storm, into what he described as very dirty water. Emergency workers helped Geraldo get upright. He assured them he was okay.

I've been to Galveston once. Loved it. But I was surprised to see so many structures built out over the water. I assumed, even though some of them looked a bit rickety, that they were built to withstand a hurricane. As usual, I was wrong.

Even before Hurricane Ike has officially arrived in Galveston damage is already being done. The pier to the fishing pier/beer bar you see in the photo has already been wiped out. Or so it appeared from what I was being shown on FOX NEWS.

I thought the seawall was supposed to protect Galveston from a repeat of the hurricane disaster of 1900. Maybe it will. But it doesn't look good with water already surging over the wall. That's the Galveston seawall on the right.

To see photos from my one and only trip to Galveston and some of the other structures built out over the water and now in danger, go here.

Hurricane Ike 11:22 AM CDT Weather Service North Texas Update

It's 1pm. It's getting a bit cloudy and windy. I've no idea if it is Hurricane Ike related. That map on the left shows the latest National Weather Service prediction of the areas of Texas that Ike will be felt.

The red zone is the Hurricane Advisory zone, the yellow is Non-Participatory zone, whatever that means. Dark green is a Flood Warning zone, light green means a Flood Watch.

Dallas/Fort Worth is in the red Hurricane Advisory zone. I've never been in a Hurricane Advisory zone before, that I know of.

Here's the latest Hurricane Ike warning from the National Weather Service....

TROPICAL STORM WIND WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM SATURDAY TO 1 AM CDT SUNDAY UNTIL 5:45PM CDT

Hurricane Ike Local Statement... Corrected National Weather Service Fort Worth TX 1124 AM CDT Fri Sep 12 2008

Tropical Storm Wind Warning In Effect From 6 AM Saturday To 1 AM CDT Sunday...

... New Information...

Tropical Storm Wind Warning Issued For Areas Along And East Of A Bowie To Gatesville Line.

... Watches/Warnings...

A Flash Flood Watch Is In Effect Along And East Of Interstate 35 For Saturday And Sunday.

... Precautionary/Preparedness Actions...

Due To The Windy Conditions Expected... Light-Weight Objects Such As Trash Cans And Lawn Chairs Should Be Secured... As They Can Easily Become Projectiles In High Winds. Power Outages May Be Possible... So Have Flashlights... Batteries... A Full Tank Of Gas... Cash... Bottled Water And Non-Perishable Foods On Hand Just In Case.

... Winds...

Sustained Winds From 35 To 45 Mph With Gusts To 55 Mph Will Be Possible Saturday. ... Inland Flooding... Storm Total Amounts Will Range From 1 To 2 Inches Outside Of The Watch Area... With 2 To 4 Inches Possible Within The Flash Flood Watch.

Mount Rainier National Park

Yesterday I finally got around to webpaging my August 11 trip to Mount Rainier National Park where for the first time in my life, after many visits, I actually got to see The Mountain up close.

I'd blogged about this late last month after I got safely back here to Texas and had gotten around to making a video. That video and the blogging discusses my near death experience at Mount Rainier that day.

Go here to see yesterday's new webpage with new photos of Mount Rainier National Park.

Unlike here in Texas, when you are at Mount Rainier you don't have to worry about incoming hurricanes. You just need to concern yourself with possibly exploding volcanoes and know the Volcano Eruption Escape Routes. Make sure you don't escape to a saltwater beach. If a volcano erupts there could be an incoming Tsunami. If you are at a beach, make note of the Tsunami Escape Routes. You'll see the signs posted. Just like they are for the Volcano Eruption Escape Routes.

Friday Morning Hurricane Ike Update From Alma In Port Aransas

Hurricane Ike is expected to hit land by late today or early Saturday morning. We are expected to have heavy winds and rain here in the D/FW zone by around noon.

Meanwhile, this morning I got a fresh update from Alma down in Port Aransas on the Texas Gulf Coast, on her preparations to deal with the incoming storm surge.

Alma's email.....

Hey there friends....

I just woke up. I was watching Lettermen interview Jessica Simpson (I like her. I don't care for her singing, but I think she gets a bad rap) when they cut in with an update. They scared me pretty good with this storm surge talk. So, there I was in the middle of the night putting my XP desktop and PA in the car and rearranging the clothes already in there from doing laundry yesterday. It was hard to fall asleep as my brain wouldn't stop and part of me is in fear for my life and part of me is in denial. YOU try to sleep with that in your brain!

I didn't sleep well. This morning at 8am, I woke up. I feel like crap. Tired. Sick. I need caffiene. I walked outside to see who was gone. All my neighbors are still here, probably sleeping soundly. I called a Stripes store to see which, if any were open. Someone answered! I thought everyone would be closed and gone. She calmly explained to me (like I was retarded) that the storm is not hitting here. They will have some high tides and dinky tropical storm winds but we are OK. We get tropical storm winds with just a normal thunderstorm. And folks, we do. The thunderstorms here sound like the end of the world. I've been thru some on North Beach (on the north side of the Harbor Bridge where I usta live) where we got 14 inches of rain and I had to wade to my car in knee deep water after a "thunderstorm". I will be heading there to a Stripes to get a much needed Vanilla Frappacino (my big weakness and indulgence - and substitute for booze) so I can think and wake up and get on with my preparations.

I don't want to be sitting here alone with my boyz freaking out in fear as the storm howls and I breath in uncertainty whether this little shack will hold up or not. I wish I could be as cavalier as my neighbors, but I just cain't.

Things I'm taking -

Papers like my birth certificate
My songbooks
the PA
my XP desktop and printer
Data CDs with valuable information
My guitar
My boyz (I can't find Selena)
Clothes
The Cheese and Meat in my ice chest (I will add water and maybe a coupla Fraps, a coupla burritos))
My laptop
Dog Crate and the Sherpa for Papi Chulo (he'll probably be in my lap, he scares easy because he's so tiny)
My backpack (already has stuff like driver's license, my Disaster Card so I can get back into town)
A bit of dog food
And that's about it....

I will unplug eveything. Turn off the AC. Leave the TV. Tape shut all the rubbermaid containers filled with stuff. Shower and pack the bathroom stuff. Turn off all the lights. Put Gorilla tape along the lower half of the windows (OK..that's just to make me feel better). Our drains on Oleander drain to the Bay, so conversely, I think water will be pushed back up those drains as the path of least resistence to the sea and flood us that way - that's just my thinking. The "locals" are not leaving the Island. I feel like I'm overreacting but I'm scared. I told my sister I will be outa here by 2pm. I will try to take the Ferry if they are still going. It's the fastest way to the mainland. I feel the irritable bowel kicking in. My boys are blessedly calm and sleeping right now. They normally sleep when I am at work and this is when i am normally at work I haven't seen anything on TV yet and I'm glad. Sometimes I think they like to scare us. Why are the Island people so damn calm?

I will bring everything in from the outside and stack it on top of the containers. My porch will be bare bones. This is the porch with the heavenly seabreeze. I never did get to sit out there and chill with a beer.

I have been living here since 05-27-08. Almost 4 months. I drove by Sips and they are all boarded up. Oceans of Seafood is boarded up across the street. Sips is right on the Marina. Maybe 100 feet from water. I will drive down Beach Street right after my Frap and see where the sea is now. I promise I will not set a tire on wet sand.

Well, that's all I can think of at this time. I won't write again until I am on the mainland at my sister's. I have to unplug everything and pack up the modem, etc.

I feel very nervous and still can't quite believe this is happening tho I've been writing about it for a coupla days now.

More later cuz this ain't over.

love,
alma

Another Trinity River Vision Opinion

This morning's Fort Worth Star-Telegram letters to the editor had another letter that tells me I'm not alone in noticing something is a bit askew with how this project has come to be.

I now realize I'm not the only one who noticed that this started out solely as an economic development. A plan to build a little lake at the north end of downtown Fort Worth.

Funding became a problem.

So, a scheme was hatched to turn the Vision into a flood control project. The Army Corps of Engineers signed on. Fort Worth's U.S. Representative, Kay Granger, helped turn the Vision into a classic Pork Barrel project after her inexperienced son was hired to run the Vision. There were some complaints of nepotism.

Eventually the Vision added canals, a flood diversion channel and wetlands restoration. The price tag, as in the $ the rest of America will be paying to build this, has increased from the original Vision.

As for the flood control part that got the Army Corps of Engineers involved. They'd already been involved and you already paid for giant flood control levees, built to protect the same area as the Vision, after devastating floods 60 years ago. The levees have done their job all that time. But now the Vision will replace them with a diversion channel.

Below is the letter from Layla Caraway of Haltom City. Haltom City is a suburb of Fort Worth where killer flooding and home destruction has taken place several times in recent years. So far no Vision has occurred to fix those problems, which is currently an issue due to the expected heavy flooding from Hurricane Ike tomorrow. Meanwhile millions of your dollars are scheduled to be spent fixing a non-existent flooding problem.

Layla Caraway's letter.....

Fix real flooding problems, too

I attended the “public” signing ceremony of the Trinity River Vision project last Friday — notably the public was missing — and watched with great sadness as very powerful and wealthy individuals praised each other for getting this almost $600 million project going with “lightning speed.”

I can’t help but ask why we are allowing a few people to affect so many others people’s futures? What about the hundreds of residents in our county still displaced because of last year’s floods? Many experienced repeated flooding, rapid erosion and a tornado.

No solutions, no help, no money, just stress, rhetoric and red tape. How do you explain to them we cannot help you move on, rebuild, or start over when a few miles down the road we are going to move bridges and levees (that have so far protected us for 60 years)? Reroute the river and build a city right in the middle of it?

Have we not learned anything from experience? Man doesn’t control a river, no matter who you are or how much planning you do. Calling it a flood-control project doesn’t make it one. It just gets you federal dollars. And combining it with one to get it pushed through lacks integrity. How does this economic development project, later dubbed as flood control, take precedence over the projects that all are aware are dangerous ongoing issues?

We have creeks that are out of control, causing havoc in many cities, but instead we will focus on revitalizing the river. Yes, the river that connects to some of those very dangerous creeks. But I have been told no one upstream or downstream should be affected. Nor any wildlife harmed.

We can no longer afford to neglect the waterways in our cities. I don’t have any objections to bettering Fort Worth. It just seems if that much money is available, the same amount should be for true flood control projects and for the residents whose lives and properties are threatened when it rains — the public, those who will probably never set foot on anything built at Trinity Uptown.

— Layla Caraway, Haltom City

Keith Olbermann 9/11 Rant

Keith Olbermann is like the liberal TV version of Rush Limbaugh. Great ranting here. Some of the ranting rings sort of true to me. Some of it. Some of the ranting seems just a tad overwrought. Some of it.....

Disturbing Footwear Fashion

Hurricane Ike Update From Alma Down In Port Aransas

I got an update from Alma tonight. She has not evacuated. She is prepared for high tides. Her account of today is good. Alma is a singer and a writer. She's good at both. If you want to hear Alma sing, go here. If you want to read what Alma's writes, scroll down.

The first refugees arrived here in Fort Worth today. Sandbagging is going on in anticipation of a lot of water in about 2 days.

Below, Alma's message from tonight, from the Texas Gulf Coast, awaiting Hurricane Ike's landfall. Towards the end of her message Alma thanks those of you who kindly offered her a place to escape to.

Dear Everybody....

Well, I woke up around 5:30am yesterday, got ready and as I stepped out the door, I laid down my laptop and grabbed Selena and threw her inside so I wouldn't have to catch her later. I walked to work, opened the door and damn...didn't have my laptop. So, I practically ran back home when I realized I had laid it down by my front door and left it there. I'm so nervous, I just left it there! It was still there. Most of Port A was still asleep. I was already tired and exhausted with worry so I called a cab to run me back to work. I didn't want to be totally sweaty before my day even started. The taxi driver (now we know they are a different breed subject to having unorthodox beliefs) was convinced that the storm was not going to hit here. Me, not being so sure, tried to convince him it was at least a possibility. He mentioned the Weather Underground as saying we were being fed misinformation by the press (he called it lies). I dunno... I've been thru a few hurricanes as a kid and they were scary and unpredictable. He said Ed at Moby Dicks was having a Hurricane Party that night. I dunno...I know that's the typical Port A mindset, but I'm not that much a "local" yet. I'm still scared. I don't wanna party.

All day as my boss, Joanne and I baked, frosted, and sold giant cinnamon rolls at half price (she figured the electricity would go down and they would spoil so we may as well sell them half price) people came in to get breakfast and coffee. The poorer of us were worried. The rich basta... I mean-rich folks would come in almost giddy that this storm appeared to be headed right for us...no big deal they would laugh. They had insurance. In the meantime, people like me were quietly freaking out. My boss had just unpacked her antiques into her new home. I had a broken car, a $700 electric bill forcing me to move, 3 dogs I am responsible for, and was in denial I would lose all the crap I own. It's mostly crap, BUT IT'S MY CRAP!.

I was already so worried and exhausted. As I baked and frosted, and waited on customers, my boss was out delivering/donating the giant cinnamon rolls to the Police Dept, City Hall, the Chamber of Commere and later in the afternoon, we tried to take a bunch to the Ferry Boat workers, but we were turned away by their security guard who said it was against State policy to receive gifts (this I know is a lie...this is policy only for the Port A Ferry guys all because I gave a newspaper to one of them and they were reading it on the boat in the wee hours of the morning and Mr. Howard happened to see him and he didn't like it...there were no cars on the boat but he just didn't like it). Anyway, I was a bit miffed because these are some of the most unappreciated workers I have ever seen. They work 24/7 in EVERY kind of weather. Should a Hurricane hit, they cannot go home and are shipped to safety on the mainland until just after the storm passes. They then go back to work to bring across rescue and infrastructure personnel back into Mustang Island. I almost cry when I see the skin on the ones that work on the "Death Shift" (from about 2pm to 11pm..the hottest part of the day and then they have to deal with drunk tourists who pee - yes they do - and vomit on the boats - don't ever walk on those boats barefoot...). I will fire off an email to Austin TxDot when this is all over and go over Mr. Howard's head. He's an inconsiderate basta...I mean...person who can't seem to get a grip on their staffing problems so they work to death the reliable workers they call in to work inhumane overtime. These guys routinely work 12 hour days in every weather and most inhumanely, the hot, brutal Port A summer sun.

Since we figured the food would rot when the power went off (we know this because the power sometimes goes off for no apparent reason and during silly little rain storms), my boss gave me a price and I benefited from some cheese and meat. And okay a little Champagne...I don't even really drink and may just take those back....But they also go to ruin if they get too hot.

In the meantime, a new "friend" from the Oceans of Seafood offered to look at my car. I was elated as no one had offered to do so before. He came by and chatted earlier in the morning, had some coffee and picked up my key. After my boss left for the day, I washed all the baking pans and normal day's dishes and since I hadn't heard from him, went across the street to see if he had an ETA. What had happened was that his boss had enlisted him to go board up his house in Rockport and he wouldn't be able to help me apparantly. He simply left the key there for me pick up, but never explained anything. He doesn't have a cell phone they said.

The workers at Oceans of Seafood saw me with 2 bags of cheese and meat and concluded I stole it. I could tell from the look on the face of the little girl who works there that still views me with mistrust in her eyes.... I explained (even tho it's none of their business) that Joanne and I had come to an agreemnt on price and I bought those things. I am certain they will be eager to report me to her (she's getting this email and I know she knows what's up). That's okay....they should tell her if they suspect thievery, it's just not what's happening here. So, I bought $5 worth of prawns (I got 2 meals out of it) and called a cab.

After I put all that stuff on ice in my ice chest, I came home and slept. Depressed, tired, and frustrated, I was not able to go on without some sleep. I woke up and called my sister, Clara, who said they still didn't know where this thing would hit and that they could lend me her husband's car. Thank God! They brought it over from Corpus around 7pm as I was throwing away a whole lot of paperwork from the Newspaper job and just crap I hadn't gone over.

After they left and after I threw a whole bunch of stuff away, I just couldn't deal with it any more for the day. I heard my pal, Luis the congero (he plays the congas) playing with new acquaintance Mark at the Tarpon Ice House 2 doors down. They sounded great! I decided to take a break from the worry and angst and go tell them they sounded GREAT!

So, I walked over and OMG there were a bunch of people I knew just laughing, drinking beer, and grooving on the sounds. I was greeted by the barking of Hanna, the bar dog. It's how she greets all the customers there. She usta belong to one of the pirates but he drinks a bit and Hannah decided one day she preferred to belong to Paul and she's lived at the Tarpon Ice House ever since. My pal, Phyllis said I should sing and even tho I protested that I was in the middle of packing to evacuate, well, before I knew it, I had a guitar on my shoulder and was singing into the mic. So much for packing.

After I sang, Paul, the owner, was very nice and complimentary and said I should play there in about 2 weeks. I couldn't just leave after that and stayed and relaxed and drank 2 whole Shiner Bocks and laughed with Phyllis and my neighbor, Sara, and her boyfriend, Jack (it was his guitar I used) and grooved to the music and around midnight, staggered back 2 doors down and went to sleep. Yes, I staggered after 2 beers. I don't normally drink much of anything.

In the morning, the storm had veered and they were saying that it would hit just South of Galveston/Houston. So, my sister had decided to wait. I was very happy about that and found it to be good sound judgement. Sara was telling me that the last storm, they evacuated and after $500 later in hotel, gas, etc, no storm ever hit. I slept for a coupla more hours and got up and went to eat breakfast at Cancun Restaurant. I don't normally eat there. I prefer Taqueria San Juan because I think the food's better, but I was in a quiet mood and I end up visiting with the whole family, kids and all, whenever I go to San Juan and opted to go where I could just eat and be still and quiet. I got sick on their food. I knew I shoulda gone to San Juan...

After breakfast, I decided to wash as many clothes as I could so that I could take as many clean clothes as I could when I evacuated. The Wash Board (the nicest washeteria I've ever seen...immaculate and the water is scalding HOT) was boarded up and closed. I rode the Ferry (the first time in about 2-3 weeks) and the Ferry workers told me the storm had slowed to 8 mph and they didn't know where it was going anymore. Great. So, I went into AP (Aransas Pass) but they were under mandatory evac and their washeteria was closed, too. I went to Ingleside and found my other washeteria open. I don't know how many loads of clothes I did, ate some fried chicken at the Good n Crisp, and came back. I had a nice chat with a TxDot Ferry Guy I hadn't talked to before, bought more ice for all that meat and cheese and the little bit of champagne in the ice chest and drove down Beach Street to check out the beach.

The water is already up to the dunes. I managed to carefully park for just a minute amongst all the surfers. The Gulf was wild, the waves were beautiful and furious. The day today was obscenely beautiful. Just like 911 seven years ago. That, too, was a beautiful day in Dallas. Clear bright blue skies. I was driving to my temp job at Doctor's Hospital on Forrest when an incredulous DJ told us of a report from the wire about a plane going into the World Trade Center. I got to work and by the time I got to my worktable (I was posting payments for Lab Corp - it was a terrible temp assignment, but when you're a temp, you go where they send you). I would sneak to the bathroom just so that I could sneak into the doctor's offices and watch their TV and their reports of the terrorist attack. It was eerie at home. I lived under one of the flight paths at Love Field. Those planes were a part of my life. They were just 1000 feet off the ground when they flew over my apartment so that it was plunged into shadow everytime a plane went over and that was about every 20 minutes. There were no planes flying over for some time. It was a quiet reassuraqnce that things were returning to a somewhat normal when flights returned to Love Field. But I digress....

So, I am home now. I am going over to my sister's tomorrow sometime. We are out of that "cone" of Hurricane trajectory for the time being but that could change. I will put everything on chairs so as to elavate it as best I can before I leave. They are projecting 4-6 foot seas here and that's taller than me so I am taking no chances. I will take what I can't part with (tho the locals here in Port A insist we have nothing to worry about and I will lose nothing, they say). Yea... we'll see.

So, we did not go to the Ranch in Blanco. If we did, we'd be heading right into the thing. I will pray for my sister in Houston as they look to be on the Southern end of the storm according to the latest projections. I don't worry that much about her because she has an unbelievably nice house made of brick and she lives about an hour inland. It should make landfall sometime between Friday night and Saturday morning. Port A is deserted. Everything is boarded up including my little "cottage". We are told we will get just tropical storm level winds. Hell, we see those during our thunderstorms.

On the way back from the beach, on Beach Street, all the restaurants are boarded up and closed except for the Beach and Station Street Grill. The Gaff, an un-air conditioned, pirate hang-out that's been here forever was busy with customers. The Stripes convenience store in front of my "cottage" was boarded up and closed, as was the IGA Grocery store. Luis sez it's all for real once the IGA boards up. I guess it's real.

So, I look forward to visiting with my sister and my adorable niece and nephew and riding this Ike out. My sister has a very nice house I feel totally safe in and I'm looking forward to the visit. And her delicious cooking. My sistah can cook I tell you! The traffic on the Ferry is light. Most boats have left the Port A marina. And the skies are so bright and clear and blue it's hard to believe there's such a storm out there.

So, that's the latest. We haven't dodged a bullet yet...

Many thanks to those who read my email posted in my long-time friend, Durango's blog. I so appreciate your offers of refuge. It does my soul such good to know there are caring people out there who would be so generous to someone they don't even know. You are good, kind people and you renewed my faith that people are basically good, especially when things get tough.

Me and Gomez, Viggo Mortensen (you can call him Viggo), and Papi Chulo (my boyz, the chihuahuas) are okay for now...we'll be headed for the mainland sometime tomorrow.

Thanks again! More later cuz it's not over.

love,
alma

National Weather Service Alert For North Texas For Hurricane Ike

3:56 CDT the National Weather Service issued a Hurricane Ike Alert for my zone, which I got via a croaking WeatherBug. Below is the Alert......

TROPICAL STORM WIND WATCH IN EFFECT FROM SATURDAY MORNING THROUGH SUNDAY MORNING

Hurricane Ike Intermediate Local Statement National Weather Service Fort Worth TX 356 PM CDT Thu Sep 11 2008

Tropical Storm Wind Watch In Effect From Saturday Morning Through Sunday Morning...

The National Weather Service In Fort Worth Has Issued A Tropical Storm Wind Watch For Central And Northern Parts Of North Texas.

... Areas Affected...

This Statement Recommends Actions To Be Taken By Persons Along And West Of A Bowie To Stephenville Line... Which Includes The Dallas Fort Worth Metro Area.

... Watches/Warnings...

A Flash Flood Watch Is In Effect For Areas Along And East Of A Bonham To Terrell To Cameron Line On Saturday And Sunday.

... Precautionary/Preparedness Actions...

An Inland Tropical Storm Watch Means Winds Of 39 To 73 Mph Are Expected Due To Ike On Saturday And Early Sunday.

Due To The Windy Conditions Expected... Light-Weight Objects Such As Trash Cans And Lawn Chairs Should Be Secured... As They Can Easily Become Projectiles In High Winds. Power Outages May Be Possible... So Have Flashlights... Batteries... A Full Tank Of Gas... Cash... Bottled Water And Non-Perishable Foods On Hand Just In Case.

... Winds...

As Ike Moves North Over East Texas... Sustained Winds From 35 To 45 Mph Will Occur For Several Hours... With Higher Gusts. Wind Gusts To In Excess Of 50 Mph Will Be Possible Along And West Of A Bowie To Stephenville Line... Including The Dallas Fort Worth Metro Area.

These High Winds May Result In Power Outages And Damage To Some Structures And Outdoor Property. ... Inland Flooding... Storm Total Rainfall Amounts From 2 To 4 Inches... With Isolated Higher Totals Will Be Possible East Of A Bonham To Kaufman To Cameron Line On Saturday And Sunday.

Anne Kilkenny Letter About Sarah Palin

A pair of my favorite corespondents are heading to Texas to maybe see me. They call themselves Chippys. The also call themselves LuluRedstar and Lauri Evans. They are an amusing pair. Very smart and witty. And they have a blog. From them I learned I want to try a Jalapeno Margarita.

This afternoon Lauri sent me a link to a very interesting letter written by a Wasilla, Alaska resident named Anne Kilkenny. Each time I type Kilkenny I think South Park.

Below is an excerpt from the end of the letter. Go here to read the whole thing.

WHY AM I WRITING THIS?

First, I have long believed in the importance of being an informed voter. I am a voter registrar. For 10 years I put on student voting programs in the schools. If you google my name (Anne Kilkenny + Alaska), you will find references to my participation in local government, education, and PTA/parent organizations.

Secondly, I've always operated in the belief that "Bad things happen when good people stay silent". Few people know as much as I do because few have gone to as many City Council meetings.

Third, I am just a housewife. I don't have a job she can bump me out of. I don't belong to any organization that she can hurt. But, I am no fool; she is immensely popular here, and it is likely that this will cost me somehow in the future: that’s life.

Fourth, she has hated me since back in 1996, when I was one of the 100 or so people who rallied to support the City Librarian against Sarah's attempt at censorship.

Fifth, I looked around and realized that everybody else was afraid to say anything because they were somehow vulnerable.

Anne Kilkenny August 31, 2008

9/11 2008

I know I'm not the first person today to think it's amazing it's been 7 years since that shocking morning in 2001. Who would have thought on that day that 7 years later we'd be bogged down in Iraq and Afghanistan? The Bush presidency had barely begun on that day. And now it is almost over.

That shocking day began for me with a phone call, telling me a plane had hit the World Trade Center. Since the caller was in Dallas at the time, I thought he was referencing the Dallas World Trade Center, which is not all that far from Love Field.

When I turned on the TV I was shocked to see it was the New York City World Trade Towers, just as the second plane struck the second tower.

As soon as I realized how bad this was I began waking people up on the west coast. I didn't tell them what had happened, just that they needed to turn on their TVs. I remember calling my little sister back and saying I didn't think she should go into work that morning. She worked, at the time, in one of Seattle's tallest towers.

About a month after 9/11 a friend from up north, Nancy, came down here. When I picked her up at D/FW I asked if she was hungry. She was. So we went to the Fort Worth Stockyards to find Mexican food. It was deserted. It took awhile, post 9/11, for places like the Stockyards to get back to normal.

A couple weeks after Nancy was here my mom and dad showed up for a week long visit. The Stockyards had picked up by then. Go here and the first photo is my mom watching my dad take a picture of the Fort Worth Herd. I thought I had a picture there of my dad with barbecue sauce all over while eating ribs at Riscky's BBQ. That must be somewhere else. I have too many webpages to keep track of.

While mom and dad were here my mom called my sister who now lives in Phoenix, but then lived in Washington. My nephew, Jeremy answered. He was home alone and scared. The war in Afghanistan had begun. It was his first exposure to such a thing where he was old enough to know it's serious. Jeremy must have been 13 or 14 at the time.

I got back here in Fort Worth a few days before 9/11. I'd driven myself up to Seattle the month before. Best roadtrip ever. Thousands of miles alone with no one to bug me about being hungry or needing a restroom. On the way north gas was $1.17 in Amarillo. When I returned a month later it was $1.39. When I moved to Texas in 1998, OH GOOD GAWD, it's been 10 years, gas was $.77 a gallon in Amarillo. 77 cents!

Houston. We've Got A Problem. Hurricane Ike Heading Your Way.

Watching the news at lunch it would appear that Alma's Port Aransas will be spared the worst of Hurricane Ike. I've not heard from Alma today, but I'm sure she evacuated last night, via ferry, as she'd planned.

The latest guess has Ike heading towards the Galveston/Houston zone. Once Ike makes landfall they are predicting he's going to take a turn east. I guess this will spare the Dallas/Fort Worth zone from much Ike action. I don't know about that for sure.

It should be an interesting weekend.

Meanwhile the freeways heading out of Houston are packed with cars moving slowly. You'd think they were already here. The freeway that runs by my abode, I-820, has been jammed all day heading north. Why? I don't know. I'm almost 100% certain though that it is not Ike-related.

Chesapeake Energy Sued Over Noise in Fort Worth

That wall you see by the Chesapeake Energy drilling rig is near where I live. I think its purpose is to block noise.

A short distance from this wall there is a gated community called Riverbend Estates.

Jim Ashford is suing Chesapeake Energy due to the noise Chesapeake compressors make. The compressors are at another site, on the north side of the Trinity River from Riverbend Estates.

Ashford complained to the city for 2 years to no avail. And then sued. His suit contends the compressors are a nuisance under Texas common law. He seeks restitution for damages for mental anguish and the loss of enjoyment of his home.

Ashford filed 5 police reports between February and May of 2007. Officers responding to the complaints reported they could hear the compressors from Ashford's house. Two of the cops wanted Chesapeake cited for violating the city's general noise ordinance. But a further investigation, or more likely, interference from above, determined the sound did not amount to a criminal offense.

Arlington Sued Over Dallas Cowboy Stadium Land Steal

Four Arlington landowners got their day in the 2nd Court of Appeals in Fort Worth on Wednesday, arguing that Arlington acted unconstitutionally when it obtained their land through eminent domain for the new Cowboy stadium.

One of the attorneys also argued that the city's lease with the Dallas Cowboys was illegal.

One of the Cowboy's victims, Walter Herrington, said "You can't take my land for a private individual like Jerry Jones."

The landowners want the previous rulings overturned, hopefully forcing the city to re-negotiate the lease with the Cowboys and the land deals.

17 lawsuits were heard on Wednesday. 20 more cases are waiting to be heard.

Charlie Scott had 11 parcels of land taken from him. He said, "I want to see the little man treated fairly."

I don't think that is going to happen until somehow these lawsuits reach a jurisdiction outside of Texas, if that is possible.

Peeling the Barnett Shale Onion via FW Weekly, Plus Don Young Alert

Incoming alert from Don Young for those of us in the D/FW zone.

"Thursday night on WFAA-TV, Channel 8, reporter Brett Shipp delivers another hard hitting investigative report. This time covering the scandalous subject of injection wells and their polluting dangerous effects on the Texas environment."

Meanwhile this week's FW Weekly has an excellent article about the dangers of all this drilling going on for the first time in history in an urban zone, that being Fort Worth and surrounding areas.

The FW Weekly article is titled "Peeling the Barnett Shale Onion". The reporter is Peter Gorman.

Here's an excerpt....

When a natural gas pipeline blew outside the little Central Texas town of Stairtown on Aug. 28, fire officials more than 10 miles from the blast site said they could feel the explosion. And hair went up on thousands of necks in Fort Worth, more than 200 miles away.

“That was a 36-inch gas pipe that blew,” said Gary Hogan, a member of the Fort Worth Gas Drilling Task Force, which is trying to find ways to make Barnett Shale activity in Fort Worth safer for people and the environment. “We’ve got 36-inch gas pipes running all over the place under the city, and we’re going to have a lot more soon. I don’t want to think about what that would have meant if it had happened here.”

As it was, the explosion, in a rural area, hurt no one. But the same explosion, occurring in downtown Fort Worth, would have been devastating. So would any of the dozens of other gas well and pipeline explosions that have rocked Texas in the last year. It was just one more grim piece of the education that North Texans have been getting, lesson after troubling lesson, since those first drilling company reps showed up on local doorsteps a few years ago, waving money and contracts.

Go here to read the entire article...

Hurricane Ike Update From Alma and Port Aransas

Hey Durango....

I'm at work closing the store at noon. I'll be leaving here sometime during the night, tonight. A friend is looking at my car to see if we can start it, if we can't I will have to borrow my bro-in-law's car, but I will get off the Island no matter what. I'm hoping for a Northern landfall so we are spared the floods and winds. I'm hoping we have somewhere to return to. I don't want to wish it on anyone, but I just don't want it here. I'd write more but things here are quietly insane. Everyone's trying to be cool, but inside we are all freaking out. The lines to the Ferry are going to be terrible. There will be a mandatory evacuation for 8am tomorrow morning. Please pray for me....I plan to return here to live if it still exists. This is just a giant sandbar after all.

Love ya...thanks for being my friend.
alma

John McCain's First Wife Carol

That's Carol McCain in the photo. The survivor of a horrible car wreck. And a husband who dumped her almost immediately upon getting home from the Viet Nam War. To start womanizing, eventually ending up with a former rodeo queen, wealthy heiress named Cindy.

The ever memorable Ross Perot said this about John McCain...

“McCain is the classic opportunist. He’s always reaching for attention and glory. After he came home, Carol walked with a limp. So he threw her over for a poster girl with big money from Arizona. And the rest is history.”

In 1979 - while still married to Carol - he met Cindy at a cocktail party in Hawaii. Over the next six months he pursued Cindy, flying around the country to see her. Then he began to push to end his marriage. Some of McCain's acquaintances are less forgiving, however. They portray the politician as a self-centered womanizer who effectively abandoned his crippled wife to 'play the field'. They accuse him of finally settling on Cindy, a former rodeo beauty queen, for financial reasons.

When John McCain returned to America in 1973 to a fanfare of publicity and a handshake from Richard Nixon, he discovered his wife had been disfigured in a terrible car crash three years earlier. Her car had skidded on icy roads into a telegraph pole on Christmas Eve, 1969. Her pelvis and one arm were shattered by the impact and she suffered massive internal injuries.

When Carol was discharged from hospital after six months of life-saving surgery, the prognosis was bleak. In order to save her legs, surgeons had been forced to cut away huge sections of shattered bone, taking with it her tall, willowy figure. She was confined to a wheelchair and was forced to use a catheter. Today, she stands at just 5' 4" in and still walks awkwardly, with a pronounced limp. Her body is held together by screws and metal plates and , at 70, her face is worn by wrinkles that speak of decades of silent suffering.

Ross Perot paid for Carol McCain's medical bills all those years ago.

Ted Sampley, who fought with US Special Forces in Vietnam and is now a leading campaigner for veterans' rights, said: "I have been following John McCain's career for nearly 20 years. I know him personally. There is something wrong with this guy and let me tell you what it is -deceit. Then he came home and saw that Carol was not the beauty he left behind, he started running around on her almost right away. Everybody around him knew it. Eventually he met Cindy and she was young and beautiful and very wealthy. At that point McCain just dumped Carol for something he thought was better."

I guess I'm back voting for Obama. Even though I really really don't like Joe Biden.

State Fair of Texas & Red River Shootout

I'm constantly getting questions to my feedback@durangotexas.com email address that is all over my Eyes on Texas website. Some of them are amusing. Some of them I have no idea what they are talking about. And then some I do know the answer.

Like this one from yesterday regarding the upcoming State Fair of Texas and the football game that takes place in the Cotton Bowl during the fair, between Oklahoma and Texas called the Red River Shootout. Or sometimes the Red River Rivalry. The Red River is what your cross to get from Texas to Oklahoma, and vice versa.

"We are planning on attending the OU/Texas game, we are bringing our daughter who is 6 months old. I was wondering if I would be allowed to bring a backpack or diaper bag into the fair/game or if that would not be allowed? Also if we were to bring in a stroller, once we went into the game, would we have a place to put the stroller, or does the fair have a place to check the stroller for the game?"

I didn't know the answer, for certain, to the stroller part of the question, but I did know the answer to the security question, as in it's like a minor version of going through airport security to get into the fair. You don't have to take your shoes off. Your backpack will be inspected. You may be wanded.

The State Fair of Texas runs from September 26 to October 19. I hear Gar the Texan will be bringing his latest wife to the fair this year. And once more below is my YouTube video of the State Fair of Texas

Unstoppable Woman

I'll be talking to an Unstoppable Woman named Dina Moor today. She's organizing an Unstoppable Women Conference to be held in Plano in November. Plano is a northern suburb of Dallas. Near where Southfork Ranch is where J.R. Ewing used to pretend to live, along with his Unstoppable Woman wife, Sue Ellen.

Laura Bush will be at the Unstoppable Women Conference, either in person or via video.

So, why am I talking to this Unstoppable Woman? Well, last year I made a website for her, so she could promote her books and other Unstoppable Women. Apparently I'm going to be adding new stuff to the website to promote the upcoming Unstoppable Women Conference. The details have been confusing via email, hence the in person Unstoppable Woman contact today.

I've known a few Unstoppable Women. I've also known a few I wish I could stop.

Hurricane Ike and Swimming in the Rain

This morning, early, I was swimming in the rain, swimming in the rain, what a beautiful feeling, swimming in the rain.

And it was cold. We only got in the 80s yesterday and 60s overnight, which cools down the pool water quickly. That and a lot of cold rain fell. That's the big rain barrel in the photo, looking through the trees and rain, this morning, before I went downstairs and got wet and cold in the early morning light.

More rain is likely to fall in the pool this weekend with Hurricane Ike now predicted to possibly dump up to 5 inches of rain in the Dallas/Fort Worth zone, along with up to 50mph winds. And possibly spawn tornadoes.

Evacuees from South Texas are likely going to start heading this way today and tomorrow. I hope Alma is okay and found a ride out of Port Aransas. Someone commented on the Alma Hurricane blogging of yesterday, offering Alma refuge in their condo in San Antonio.

Monkey Boy Injury

During my long long month in Tacoma of late, staying at my sister's, with a frequently grumpy Kristin and two hyper-active poodles, getting little sleep due to frequently falling out of my little army cot up in the HOT ZONE of their house that they call THE TROPICS, by Day 8, or was it 9, I found myself being called the, what seemed to me to be demeaning name, "House Monkey Boy".

This seemed borderline inappropriate to me, sort of politically incorrect, but these were elitist leftists calling me their House Monkey Boy, so I figured it was okay.

I'd be told, "Monkey Boy, pick up the dishes." "Monkey Boy, mow the lawn." "Monkey Boy. Go wash my car". "Monkey Boy. Vacuum all 3 floors and don't forget the stairs". "Monkey Boy. Move that cooler".

The moving the cooler Monkey Boy act occurred at Bay View State Park, up in the Skagit Valley. I was so stressed out by all the Monkey Boy orders that when I was ordered to move the cooler I banged my head 4 times on my biggest sister's ridiculously huge RV that gets .25 miles to the gallon. This left a big knot or two on my head.

The cooler-related Monkey Boy injuries were not the worst. I had some non-Monkey Boy injuries that occurred while helping a former acquaintance of mine move what appeared to me to be junk. That left me bruised and cut. In more ways than one. But I'm totally recovered from those injuries. I'm a fast healer.

I thought I left my string of Monkey Boy type injuries behind when I left Washington. But, a couple days ago I was a bit distracted while following a yapping latina, a door swung out, whacked me in the eye zone, knocked me off balance, which caused me to fall, leaving me with a seriously damaged eye, a bruise on my back and a bruise on my butt.

At the time this occurred I was tasked with a Monkey Boy type task, though here in Texas we are too polite to call anyone a Monkey Boy. But, sadly it is a Monkey Boy that I am and once more I'm recovering from a Monkey Boy injury.

In the meantime, I've had me a day. I've been up since around 2am. Why? Don't ask. Because I won't tell you. Suffice to say it was not a Monkey Boy related thing that woke me up so early.

And tomorrow I get to deal with an Unstoppable Woman in person. Yikes. That has bad thing written all over it.

A Russian Security Hole In My Website

Well, I heard from the Ukrainians regarding the problem I blogged about earlier today regarding Russian websites targeting my Eyes on Texas website.

After the scary Ukrainian response I called the U.S. phone line support and had no wait and quickly figured out the Ukrainian was feeding me misinformation.

Below is the technical support I got from Jenny the Ukrainian.....

I'm afraid there is a security hole in your web site that was used by hackers for sending spam through your site. The reason is that durangotexas.com/awstats/data/ folder has 777 permissions, it means that it is writable for anyone in the web. It is not secure to have permission for the folders set to 777 as it allows everybody to do everything to this file. Having files/folders with such permissions anyone can write to it. This means a security hole since everybody on the server can overwrite these files or can write, remove or overwrite files in the directories. You need to chmod your folder/files to permission mask 755 to prevent hacker's attacks in future. You can do it via Webshell or any standalone ftp client. 755 is a read permissions for owner, group and others; write permissions for owner ONLY; execute permissions for owner, group and others.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us at anytime, we are available 24/7.

Kind regards,
Jenny Danilenko
Technical Support

Hurricane Ike Heading Towards Alma in Port Aransas?

Incoming from Alma, way down in Port Aransas on the South Texas Gulf Coast, regarding the possible visit to her town by Hurricane Ike.

It's an interesting Alma account of the mood of the locals as they fear the worst and hope for a good outcome for all of the coast.

Wow....here we go again. Please remember we live here because it's a wonderful place to live. I moved here about 3 months ago and have not been happier. It's not problem free, but I love walking everywhere, the clean air (my allergies have all but disappeared) and the fact that I already know so many of the locals and feel like I could retire here. It feels like home to me. Maybe I lived here in a past life...who knows?

I opened Sips Coffee & Wine at 7am today just like any other day. I had one weird, crappy customer first thing, so the mood set was not a good one.

He must be a local. The locals are um...different here. Mostly, you'll find they are rednecks, hippies, or pirates. There is a particular personality type that tends to move here. You have to be a little bit pirate to fit in. I mostly am old hippie and just a smidge pirate. But, I do love my old country music. Hank Williams and Patsy Cline rule.

St Jo's Island just on the other side of the Channel was in fact, a pirate cove and there is legend about a dagger buried with Jean Lafitte's treasure to guard it. Neither have been found. I believe many of those pirates' descendents have settled in Port Aransas and their families are the town founders. There is a Port Aransas accent I've noticed in the locals' men folk. It's a little bit Spanish, Texan, and something else I can't place. I've met some fo' real pirates and they talk with that "arrrrrr" sound you hear in cartoons and caricatures. I like them. They are true originals and have been nothing but nice to me. Make no mistake these people are survivors and no one wants to hear any whining. I'm a whiner.

Yet today, all the customers had the same question (as if I had an answer). "Well, what do you think it's gonna do?" We look at each other with worried faces and say, "well, it doesn't look good. All we can do is pray". It was the same everywhere I went today. I rode the local trolley car to the Post Office (remember my car died about 2 weeks ago) and the lady trolley driver asks me, "Well, what do you think it's gonna do?" I gave my standard answer.

After I mailed a payment, I walked down to the IGA Grocery Store in town, bought a few groceries and another pair of those $5 sandals they had on sale after the busy summer season and the woman at the register asks me...well I think you know what she asked. I gave my, by now, standard answer.

As for me, I am fixing to (that's pretty Texan of me to say) see what I can do to reserve a Uhaul or Budget moving truck, the little one. If that fails, maybe I can rent an SUV or some other kind of truck in case I have to evacuate. I have to bring my 3 chihuahuas, my music gear, my computers, clothes, and as much as I can load out of this little "cottage".

So, I am writing to ask each of you to please say a prayer for me, my dogs, and Selena the cat. We, here in Port A, are praying for it to go way south to some uninhabited part of the Gulf Coast. No one here wants to wish it on anybody else, so we are praying that it goes way south. If it hits north of us, rain (flooding) will not be so bad. If it goes far enuf South, the same results are expected. But it looks like it's headed straight for Rockport (a very cool, picturesque place to live just 10 miles from here) based on the latest maps. But as we know from all the recent storms, the damn thing could do many of a number of things. So, we are trying to stay positive as some of the town has already started boarding up buildings. The trolley lady has already made arrangements for her trailor to get moved to Corpus. Oceans of Seafood (the restaurant and fish market across the street from Sips) is having a Hurricane Seafood Sale. I may go get me some of that. There's a front headed here which could divert the storm. We just don't know.

So, I'd be grateful for any positive thoughts, prayers, chicken sacrifices, whatever you can do with your most powerful thoughts to help me and the boys and Selena.

Thanks in advance and I'll keep you posted on this latest misadventure.

Take care....
love,
alma

Yoga Keeps Me Young

This morning's Fort Worth Star-Telegram had an article about a 90 year old Yoga Master, Kantilal Talati, who has been doing yoga for decades, after he had a heart attack when he was 44.

When asked how old he is, he always says "18".

He's never sick, never gets a headache. And takes no medications.

I'm often asked why I look so much younger than my 39 years. I attribute my relative youthfulness also to decades of yoga. It keeps you limber. Yoga is really easy to do. You just have to keep at it til the postures become second nature. The head stand took me the longest to perfect. It's great for cerebral blood flow.

Now get out of that chair and go stretch yourself. Or quit sitting and stand on your head for awhile.

Stormy This Morning in Texas

That's the view this morning from Miss Puerto Rico's balcony, here in the East Fort Worth zone of North Texas. Which means there is likely no biking or hiking in this boy's future today.

Which is likely a good thing, since I've been up since the wee wee hours.

I just read that now that Ike is finishing up doing a lot of damage in Cuba he's heading towards Texas.

I don't think we'll get an evacuation order here. But Texas Governor Rick Perry is readying evacuations in 88 counties is the South Texas/Gulf Coast zone with 7,500 National Guard on standby. FEMA is waiting a day or two til they have a better idea as to Ike's path before beginning evacuations.

The Russians Are Attacking Me

For 3 or 4 months now I've been being vexed by Russians.

In my webstats for my Eyes on Texas website I get a list of external websites that link to mine. There are several dozen Russian websites supposedly linking to mine, currently showing either 38 or 39 hits from each Russian website. This number will go up as the month progresses, all at the same pace. If I go to one of the Russian website I see no link to mine.

I've asked the support people at my webhost for help. Unfortunately, and maybe ironically, the support center is in the Ukraine and the responses are usually gibberish. I'd think they were in cahoots with the Russians, but the Ukraine and Russia are currently not on the friendliest of terms.

In another weird, possibly related problem, my Google Webmaster Tools currently shows over 6,000 404 No Page Found Errors. This means websites are linking to pages on my website that do not exist. All of the links go to a sub-folder of the very AWSTATS webstat thing that shows me the long list of Russian websites.

And in a possible further irony, it was the aforementioned Ukrainians who installed the AWSTATS for me when their other webstats generator kept malfunctioning.

I hate stuff like this. It's very frustrating. And I don't know if it's hurting me or not. Below are some of the Russian websites with their mysterious links to me. Very vexing.

http://dancemates.ru/
http://equipmentbusinesses.info/
http://www.deciduoustrees.info/
http://cassations.ru/
http://fruitherbs.info/
http://www.wildberry.ru/
http://sciencelead.ru/
http://therapeutist.ru/
http://educationalprofessions.info/
http://www.littlelizard.info/
http://childadvice.ru/
http://antiallergia.info/
http://bestmeatmarket.net/
http://towngrow.ru/