You are looking at the long skinny shadow of the ever more skinny shadow of the Tandy Hills Thin Man, today around noon.
I thought we were scheduled for clouds and rain today. Apparently I thought wrong.
The Tandy Hills were still being a bit tacky, mud-wise, so I cut the hiking a little short. I was not liking mud sticking to my shoes. That and my right foot pain was paining me. It is getting better though.
Earlier today I blogged about the BIG Box I got from my mom and dad this morning. It was full of oranges.
That blogging rose Nick Beef from the dead to make a comment.
I do not believe Nick Beef is actually buried next to Lee Harvey. I believe Nick Beef bought the plot as some sort of publicity stunt.
And now, on the day before 2011, Nick Beef is still doing the publicity stunt thing, commenting on my blog. I'm sure this will get Nick unprecedented publicity.
After I was done getting stuck in the Tandy Hills mud I headed to Town Talk. Not knowing if it was open. It was.
Even though I'd just gotten a shipment of citrus from Arizona, from my mom and dad, I got myself a big bag of Cuties for only a buck. Among other things.
I think MLK or MBK or both, may be right. My unfortunate weight gain might be traceable to Town Talk. I know having Town Talk in my life has amped up my access to a lot of different cheeses. And chips. Something I don't usually buy.
But.
For example, today, for 50 cents, Town Talk had All Natural Cheddar Tortilla Chips made with Cheddar Cheese, Quinoa, Soy, Flax, Sunflower, Sesame Seeds, Oat Fiber and Brown Rice. Made by some chip maker called Food Should Taste Good.
And I am sure it will. And be good for me. And not make me fat.
I will likely take a bag or two to my New Year's Eve Party. Due to start soon. See you there.
When I went to check the mailbox this morning I was surprised to find a BIG box. From my mom and dad. A very heavy box on which they spent a small fortune to mail. Whatever was inside was heavy and shifted around when I moved the box.
Jars of raspberry jam was my first thought. I figured, due to the weight and how I could tell it was small items rolling around, that no clothing items were inside.
My one longtime reader may remember that on Christmas I opened a box from my mom and dad to find some shirts and shorts that were a tad too small for me. When my mom asked if they fit I basically said I needed to go on a diet.
Which I am now on. I am making rapid progress towards being able to comfortably wear the shirts and shorts I got from mom and dad this Christmas.
So, a few minutes ago I opened the fresh, incoming BIG box. And what did I find...
Oranges, lemons, grapefruit and a shirt. Size Large. It fits. But not so much so that it will be baggy when I fit into the shirt and shorts that are currently not baggy.
This is my first Arizona citrus since mom and dad delivered a lot of lemons, oranges and grapefruit, almost two years ago, when they were here the first week of 2009.
Previous to that, I hauled Arizona citrus back to Texas myself, in April of 2006, direct from Phoenix, where my mom overloaded my carry on backpack with oranges. This created a very entertaining debacle when I went through security, losing my cell phone in the mayhem.
I know some of you reading this are thinking to yourself that I am awful lucky to have such a nice mom and dad.
You would be correct in thinking that. I am way luckier than you could possibly know.
As you can see, looking out the window, I am up way before the dawn of the last day of 2010.
The last day of 2010, in Texas, is already semi-warm, as in 62 degrees, according to my AccuWeather temperature measurer.
Apparently rain is on the schedule for today, with incoming freezing, starting the first day of the New Year.
I had myself some fun nightmaring last night. Including one where I watched two hoodlums breaking into my vehicle. I was helpless to stop them.
Soon after that I was riding my bike, fast, pedaling past Betty Jo Bouvier, who was in her yard, pulling weeds. I turned a corner and was at my house, which seemed to be my sister's house in Kent, sort of gone to seed. Parked beside my sister's house was my cousin Scott, in a Volkswagen bug.
I found this very disturbing. I've not seen cousin Scott since 2002. I was instantly perplexed, in my nightmare, as to why he was parked by my house, which really wasn't my house. And his presence was stopping me from heading back to Betty Jo Bouvier's to help her pull weeds.
The last I paid any attention to cousin Scott was a couple years ago, when he retired from the Seattle Times. He then took a cross-country trip in his Mustang convertible, going from the most northwesterly point in Lower 48 of America to the furthest distance to the southeast. Which meant cousin Scott started his trip at Cape Flattery on the Washington Olympic Peninsula, reaching his final goal at Key West, Florida. Visiting every one of his relatives along the way.
Except for me.
Cousin Scott had an aversion to driving through much of Texas, so he sort of skirted this state via Oklahoma, only entering Texas somewhere near Paris, quickly escaping to Arkansas, and avoiding me. I was able to follow cousin Scott's progression back and forth across America via his Scott's on the Road blog.
So, tomorrow starts the New Year of 2011. I think it will be a very good year. I think that, pretty much, at the start of every New Year, demented optimist that I am.
I am hoping to go hiking on the Tandy Hills today. One last time in 2010. If the rain does not arrive too soon.
Earlier today, on my Washington Blog, I blogged about an amusing article in the Seattle P-I in which the article writer conjured up a personal ad for the City of Seattle based on the various lists, rankings and polls that had Seattle on them, to varying degrees of it being a good or bad thing.
Seattle's Personal Ad went like this...
"Even though I'm getting up there in years (I was born in 1869), I'd like to find a young companion. A college student, maybe. Don't let my age fool you; I've been told I'm pretty cool and fairly romantic. I've also been told I need to work on my personal appearance, but I'd rather read a book than pick out clothes. Our first date probably wouldn't be too extravagant, and we'd probably have to take the bus. (I'm not a good driver, and bad traffic only makes things worse.) We'd probably go for coffee, or maybe to the nation's best cocktail bar. Or maybe we'll just read a book. Did I mention I like to read? You should know I'm especially good with men and extremely gay-friendly."
Fort Worth's Personal Ad goes like this...
"Even though I have been around for parts of 3 centuries I am quite immature in many ways. I have a big brother who I have always been envious of. He sort of dominates me. I've always felt like no one notices me. However, I have been told I am very easy to live with. I don't like to read, am a bit overweight, oh, all right, I'll be honest. I'm fat. I'm not the prettiest thing to look at, a little rough around the edges. Let's just say my infrastructure could use some work. I don't require indoor plumbing. I don't mind outhouses. Did I already mention I don't like to read? I also do not like to exercise. I do like fried food, donuts, catfish and anything BBQed. I can take you out to the world's biggest honky tonk. I do have some self esteem issues. I have been known to give away favors in exchange for promises that are never delivered. I have had more holes drilled in me than any other place in America. I'm a very cheap date. Really easy to bribe. I'll do just about anything for you if you dangle the right amount of cash in front of me. Did I mention I don't like to read?"
You are looking at the twins, Theodore Ryan and Ruby Jean, born, I think, 2 weeks ago. In the Washington town that goes by the name of Tacoma.
The Jones Twins look awfully tiny to me.
The twins were sent to me, in Texas, via email.
I have not been informed, currently, what exactly is my relationship to TR & RJ. I know I share no genetic connection. However, that just seems like a technicality. Having the same last name cements the relationship deal.
I'm sure that's how it works.
I remember the last time I held a baby in my arms. It was sometime in the spring of 2000, in Mount Vernon, Washington. I held the baby for about a half a minute when it threw up all over me. Those watching the baby throw up all over me found it amusing. I did not.
The last time I tried to change a baby diaper was sometime in 1981. I was baby sitting my nephew Jason. His diaper needed changing. These were old-fashioned diapers, not those new-fangled Pamper things.
I laid my nephew down on newspapers and removed the bad diaper. I got the horrendous mess cleaned up, but then could not figure out how to install the replacement diaper. I called one of my roommates, at work, and she came home and finished the job for me.
Later that night, after Jason's parental units had picked him up and returned home, I got a call from my now ex-sister-in-law asking me why Jason had newsprint all over his butt. Said in a very accusatory tone.
And now here is more trivia.
The roommate who helped me change the diaper, way back in 1981, moved to Ada, Oklahoma one month before I moved to Texas. A little over two years after that a mutual friend from Washington flew in to D/FW. I drove her up to Ada the next day. I so clearly recollect sitting outside, up in Oklahoma, and remarking to my two other Washington natives, something like "if 20 years ago I had told the two of you that in 20 years hence we would be sitting under a pine tree in Oklahoma sipping wine, would either of you have been able to conceive of a scenario where that could possibly make sense?'
You are with me looking down to the ground from about 30 feet in the air, looking through the bars of my patio prison cell.
No, I am not contemplating jumping.
What I was contemplating when this picture was taken was going jogging. And doing so in a novel, never before attempted way. As in go jogging right from my front door, rather than drive to a park to jog on trails.
I am now back from this experiment. On the plus side, it saved time to not drive anywhere. On the non-plus side, I like jogging in a park better than sidewalks with cars in close proximity.
And my chronic aching right foot woe came back, which contributed to the jogging not being what I'd call a huge success.
It was warm enough to do the jogging in shorts and t-shirt. I currently have my windows open, due to the fact that I did jog enough to get a bit overheated.
Windows open on December 30. I do not remember this being doable in my previous Decembers in Texas.
This morning I blogged on my Washington Blog about an amusing thing I read in the Seattle P-I. That being an article that used the various lists, rankings and polls on which Seattle appeared in 2010 to compile what a City of Seattle Personal Ad would be like.
This had me wondering if I had enough creative juice to conjure up what a City of Fort Worth Personal Ad would be like.
This might be difficult to conjure due to the fact that Fort Worth does not show up on all that many of those type lists. And the ones it does show up on are usually not all that flattering.
Or it is some bogus thing.
Like a D.C. lobbying group, naming Fort Worth as one of the Ten Most Livable Communities in America. Which had Fort Worth, without looking too closely at the validity of the 'award,' having a city-wide celebration to celebrate this tremendous honor, while other, more informed places, like Tacoma and Pierce County, politely said thank you and then ignored it. With no city-wide celebration.
I'll see if I can come up with a City of Fort Worth Personal Ad. Later today. If I have the energy.
The dawn of the last Thursday of 2010 looks like it might arrive with the sky clear of clouds, but I can not tell for sure at this point in time.
I can tell that the dawn of the last Thursday of 2010 has arrived warmly, as in just a couple degrees shy of 60.
In other words, no furnace running this morning.
Which pleases me, because I think it is the furnace running that somehow gets my eyes watering and makes looking at the computer screen a bit blurry until the eyes leaking situation gets under control.
The Scrabble Queen of Washington is heading to Long Beach today. That is one of my favorite locations on the Washington Pacific Coast. Apparently low tides will be turning the New Year's Day weekend into a razor clam digging opportunity.
Digging for razor clams, on a beach with thousands of other clam diggers is quite fun. In summer. I can't imagine doing this in winter. It seems like it would be very wet and cold.
The Scrabble Queen is bringing her iPad along so that she can continue beating me at Scrabble. I miss my Scrabble if I don't get a daily dose. It helps greatly with firing the synapses of parts of my brain that usually lay dormant.
The sun has risen quite a bit higher and I still can not tell if the sky is clear. I can see that it is glowing pink, as you can see in the latest picture, looking outside from one of my frost-free windows.
The conditions out there are such that we are under a wildfire alert in North Texas. The way it is glowing out there right now it looks like a wildfire is in the neighborhood.
Anyway, all I know for sure that lays ahead today for me is a bowl of chili from a big pot of the State Soup of Texas that I made last night.
I have seen a lot of fire hoses today. But that is not a fire hose that was laying on the ground in Veterans Park in Arlington today. Instead it is some sort of barrier made of hay-like material held in a hose shape by black mesh.
The "hose" leads to the Veterans Memorial, where, if you look close, you can see the flags are at half mast.
I wondered why, for a moment, and then remembered the rookie policewoman, Jillian Michelle Smith, only 24 years old, murdered Tuesday within 20 minutes of responding to a domestic violence call, where she was trying to protect an 11 year old kids from an armed man, who killed 2 others, in addition to the police officer, before fleeing.
The killer was later caught.
My phone rang as I neared Veterans Park. I had trouble getting the phone out of my pocket. By the time I was successful in that endeavor it had already gone to voice mail.
When I was securely parked I flipped open the phone to get the message. It was Elsie Hotpepper. A long, convoluted message about lies, betrayal and fraud. And then Elsie started singing some sort of jingle, like a parody of the Dr Pepper song. It was unsettling.
I called Elsie back, but I got her voice mail.
Then a few minutes ago Elsie Hotpepper called again. I successfully answered, because my phone was already out of my pants. Elsie sang her Elsie Hotpepper jingle again. It is quite catchy. And then she asked me a question. Or two.
And now let's change the subject to the weather. It is currently 70 degrees out there at 6 minutes before 5. I have my window open. I was overheated after talking to Elsie Hotpepper.
I got back here about 1, after going to Arlington to Veterans Park. And Pantego to ALDI. When I returned to my neighborhood my way to my domicile was blocked by a wreck. This has never happened before. It was an odd location for a 2 car collision.
Then, after lunch, I was peacefully minding my business, trying, desperately, to beat the Scrabble Queen of Washington at Scrabble, before moving on to more serious matters, when suddenly all hell broke loose with the noise from big trucks hitting loud brakes and more sirens. And lots of horns honking.
The noise seemed to escalate and was quickly getting on my nerves. I called Miss Puerto Rico to ask if she knew what all the noise was about. Fire, she told me.
So, I grabbed my camera and exited. Not bothering to put on shoes. Because I didn't think I was going far. I was wrong.
When I got a view of the street I saw the line of fire trucks and emergency vehicles you see in the picture above. And then I saw smoke.
I walked towards the smoke, along with a lot of other people.
Dozens of Fort Worth's finest were on the scene, in full action mode. Some were already in the building. The fire hose was not yet spouting water, but foam had been sprayed. I saw flames flickering out of the building in two locations. Oddly, there was no smell of smoke in the air.
A fireman got on the roof and attacked it with a chain saw, so that water could get at the flames. Soon the flames were extinguished, but smoke continued to spew. Soon it was clear that the conflagration was under control.
This is the second time I've seen Fort Worth's finest up close, in action.
A couple years ago I was walking over to Miss Puerto Rico's when lightning struck a roof, quickly causing the building to catch fire.
I have never understood how the Fort Worth firemen were so quickly on the scene. I saw the lightning strike as I walked to Miss Puerto Rico's. I then called her to tell her that I think lightning struck one of the buildings. She had already gotten an emergency call. I walked towards the building. By the time I got there the firetrucks were already on the scene. And firemen were on the building.
I have never figured out how this was possible. Maybe they were already there on another call. Miss Puerto Rico has never gotten an explanation either.
I'll likely hear the details of today's fire later.
That is Mimi the Pit Bull, all gussied up and ready for church. Church is where Mimi needs to go, to pray for forgiveness for the sins of her owner, Steven Woods.
In October, just after Veterans Day, a minor scandal erupted in Fort Worth when it was made news that Mimi had been sentenced to death, on Veterans Day, for attacking an elderly neighbor.
Mimi was described as the therapy dog of a disabled Veteran, badly wounded in either Iraq or Afghanistan. I forget which.
A lawyer, Randy Turner, felt sorry for Steven Woods and Mimi's plight and offered his services, pro bono. The public responded to the sad tale, raising more than $17,000.
The story of the City of Fort Worth sentencing a War Vet's Therapy Dog to death, on Veterans Day, convicted on flimsy evidence, went national, giving Fort Worth yet one more black eye in Fort Worth's reputation with the rest of America.
Well. Apparently the City of Fort Worth has been unfairly besmirched in this particular incident.
WFAA, that is Channel 8, on your D/FW TV dial, reported Monday that there is no record with the Office of Veterans Affairs that Steven Woods served overseas. His only connection with the military is that he had served in the Arkansas National Guard.
Steven Woods' Attorney, Randy Turner, is now his former attorney.
Apparently Steven Woods has been cited on 3 previous occasions over attacks by his pack of dogs, including a 64 year old woman who was seriously injured by 4 pit bulls. On that particular attack, Steven Woods left his house to come to the rescue, kicking one of this dogs to stop the attack. In other incidents police had to pepper spray two of Woods' pit bulls. And in another incident, Woods got testy when a neighbor confronted Woods after Woods' pack of pit bulls was chasing children.
I don't know if there is any plan to return the thousands of dollars to the victims of this fraud, who good-heartedly came to the rescue of Mimi. And her undeserving owner.
I did not get around to looking out the window til after the sun arrived, this last Wednesday morning of 2010.
With 3 days to go before the arrival of the New Year we are only 3 degrees shy of 60 degrees this morning in my zone of Texas.
Something in the air has my eyes not functioning correctly this morning. Excessive moisture causing blinking and slight itching. What is in the air that is causing this. The problem abates as the morning progresses.
Snow is in the forecast for the Northwest. Nothing white is in the forecast for my location. We are scheduled to have a couple days of semi-warmth, with possible rain, followed by a temperature plummet by the New Year. With no chance of snow.
It really is true, when you have nothing else to talk about, you talk about the weather. At least that seems to be what I do.
We are looking at the Grand Canyon of Village Creek, in Village Creek Natural Historic Area, in Arlington, today around noon.
As you can see it is being a bit misty. A drizzly mist. It was being like a winter day on a Washington Pacific Coast beach. Without the sound of waves crashing or sea gulls making a racket.
I went jogging for a couple miles in the drizzle. I do not remember the last time I went jogging. The jogging seemed to go well. Which sort of surprised me.
Prior to jogging I ran into someone who talked to me for about 10 minutes. This person was constantly coughing while talking. He was on his way to work. At a hospital. So, I am assuming the cough was an allergy, not a cold.
But, hypochondriac that I be, I am having that slight burning sensation on my face that is somewhat like what I remember a cold is like in the very early stages. However, it is too soon since my exposure to the cougher for this to be a cold. It is more likely an aftershock from going jogging for a couple miles in a cold drizzle.
There is a mirror above a bend in the Village Creek Trail. I assume it is there so you can see if a snake, of any form, is lurking around the corner. That's would be me, in the picture, taking a break from the jogging to take a picture. In case you can not tell, and were wondering, the white part of my lower extremity is long johns sticking out from my cargo shorts. I was looking very layered and stylish.
We are supposedly supposed to be getting some heavy rain soon, with some possible Thunderstorm action. I would prefer a return to clear blue sky and temperatures in the 70s or low 80s. But that is currently not in the program.
The sun had not yet arrived when I stepped outside to look at the view through the bars of my patio prison cell at the dark morning of the last Tuesday of 2010.
The sun is now dawning on a day currently heated to 11 degrees above freezing. It appears that we may be back under cloud cover. It is not quite bright enough to tell for sure.
This morning I found an annoying blog comment, from an entity calling itself "Best of Blogs Fort Worth."
The comment said, "Love this! I've included it on a site I've created, which is a compilation of some of the best blogs in the city." With the blog's URL added.
This does not seem kosher to me. Particularly since the only thing I saw on this blog that had anything to do with Fort Worth was its title, its blog description and the blog post it stole from me. The rest of the blog posts seemed to do with various storage options, you know, those places where you rent a space to store your junk.
Change of subject. This is going to be a physical exertion-lite day. Due to being a bit sore in a place or two, I assume from overdoing it in a place or two.
From my point of view the article did not quite get to the real reason behind why many thought the Streetcar plan was yet one more Fort Worth Boondoggle in the making. And just did not make sense.
From the article this one paragraph bugged me...
"Fort Worth’s historical attitude of giving little value to mass transit was probably a factor in the decision as well. Funding for the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (The T) has also been on the low side compared to other cities, and the accepted view has always been that it’s mostly poor people who ride the bus — another reason the system gets little respect. Thus, better mass transit options have always been considered pretty much off the political radar screen."
Mostly poor people ride the bus? Why is that? And why is that the Fort Worth attitude towards bus riding? I've actually had someone tell me this in person when I opined that I thought riding the Fort Worth buses was fun, due to their theme park like wild ride aspect.
Now, the only other big city bus system that I have used is Seattle's. No one in Seattle would opine that only poor people use the bus.
In the picture above you are looking at the Pioneer Square station in the Seattle bus tunnel. Notice how many buses there are. This was on August 7, 2008. A Thursday, about 3 in the afternoon.
Seattle has a population a little over a half million. Fort Worth has a population over 700,000. Yet Seattle's downtown is way larger than Fort Worth's. There are several vertical malls, several department stores, grocery stores, theaters, two sports stadiums, museums, a symphony hall, Pike Place Market, all sorts of downtown attractions. And a lot of people from one end of downtown to the other, each and every day of the year.
Serving downtown Seattle, public transportation-wise, are surface buses, bus tunnel buses, light rail that runs through the bus tunnel, the SLUT streetcar and the Monorail. You can be at the Seattle Center (where the Space Needle is) hop on the Monorail to Westlake Center (an actual downtown square, unlike Fort Worth's Sundance Square, which is parking lots), take the escalator from the Monorail level to the bus tunnel level and hop on a bus, or train, to take you to the International District's sports stadiums, or stop at any of the other stations, along the way.
All this transit, except for the Monorail and the SLUT streetcar is free. You start paying once you exit downtown.
Is anyone familiar with Fort Worth getting the point I am making here?
I've only touched upon a few of the attractions in downtown Seattle that make public transportation a viable and necessary option. Another reason public transit in downtown Seattle is necessary and viable is because a lot of people live downtown.
Fort Worth's streetcar plan, from what I understood, was that the hope was, build it and the attractions, and people will come. That has worked in some other locales. Like Dallas, Vancouver, Portland and others. But, in Fort Worth, methinks the foundation is way too weak for that sort of dynamic to occur.
I don't believe the "T" currently has bus routes circulating through downtown Fort Worth. Unless you count Molly the Trolley. That fact is rather telling, streetcar need-wise.
What Fort Worth actually needs to do is figure out why there are no vertical malls downtown, no grocery stores, no department stores.
Figure out why Heritage Park is a boarded up eyesore.
Seattle has a park similar to Heritage Park. It also had some problems. I believe a murder was committed in Seattle's Freeway Park. Freeway Park has water features, like Heritage Park did. When Seattle's Freeway Park became a problem Seattle did not put cyclone fence around it and turn off the water features. Seattle fixed the problem.
To my eyes, Fort Worth tends not to actually address its problems. Instead it pretends the problems aren't problems. How long is that embarrassing courthouse annex going to stand? It's been years now since I read it was coming down, with the historic courthouse to be restored to its original glory.
To sum up, in my opinion, Fort Worth needs to figure out why its downtown does not have attractions that attract crowds of people day after day. And necessities (like grocery stores) that would make it a place people want to live. Fort Worth needs to figure out why, on the busiest shopping day of the year, the day after Thanksgiving, downtown Fort Worth is a ghost town.
The year that downtown Fort Worth is not a ghost town on the busiest shopping day of the year is the year Fort Worth is actually ready to worry about building transit systems like streetcars.
Watch the video below I made of my Seattle visit of August 7, 2008. I was at Art in the Park in Pioneer Square (yet one more of Seattle's actual town squares). I walked to Westlake Center, then went into the bus tunnel. In the video you'll see one of Seattle's buses, on the surface, going by Westlake Center. In the bus tunnel you will see big, articulated buses, a lot of them, with a lot of people on board. You will notice that the bus I am on is standing room only. Picture the same scene in Fort Worth. You can't? Can you?
After the bus tunnel video I'll stick in one I made from the same day. Of Pike Place Market. On a summer Thursday afternoon. Make note of how big Pike Place is. In the video you see only a small fraction of the actual scope of the market. And note how many people are milling about. And how most of them look like they've had the air let out of them. You will see a big Texan or two, though.
Also, those who have heard me mention my disgust at how the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and downtown Fort Worth boosters touted Fort Worth's Santa Fe Rail Market as being modeled after Pike Place, well, the Pike Place video sort of shows you why I thought the local newspaper of record was not doing its job, and was pretty much spewing irresponsible propaganda....
And now a short walk through a small part of Pike Place Market...
That is the Muddy Shadow of the Tandy Hills Thin Man waving at you today around noon.
It was a relatively balmy 41 when I hit the hills. So, I only had to wear 2 longsleeve shirt layers, plus a hoodie sweatshirt and wool cap to keep warm. And gloves.
I figured the Tandy Hills would have dried out by today from Friday's rain. I figured wrong. So, I did not get all gungho on the hiking.
Due to the mud and my recurring problem with my right foot having some sort of injury that is taking too long to go away, I cut my hill time short.
I tried returning calls to Elsie Hotpepper and Tootsie Tonasket while I navigated the mud. Neither was taking calls.
Before I left for the Tandy Hills I was trying to make sense of a West Texas Facebook mystery involving a charlatan who apparently has left dozens of West Texas women in Hell Hath No Fury Like a Woman Scorned mode.
I've been down that road before. Unjustly, I might add. So I have some sympathy for the charlatan.
The Queen of Wink surprised me by indicating she is able to understand the tortured prose of Big Ed without a translator or subtitles. She is so smart it is annoying. She is so smart she'd never get taken in by a charlatan.
I also chatted with Carlotta Camano this morning. She is a witty one. Very hard for me to keep up.
And this morning for the first time I played Scrabble via I-Pad.
You're looking out the window at the frosty pre-dawn of the last Monday of 2010, from my current point of view in Texas.
December has zipped by, just like I opined it would weeks ago. Now there are only 2 more holidays to go in the holiday season and we will be done with this nonsense for 11 months, give or take a day.
New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.
This morning I was surprised to see that the DurangObesity blog I started a few months ago has suddenly gotten busy. It had sort of languished and I had sort of resigned myself to the semi-sad fact that I'd made another blog dud, like my Durango Roadtripping blog.
The sun has now completely lit up the place. I can now extinguish artificial light. And I can see that it is another blue sky day in Texas. A cold blue sky day, currently freezing at 29 degrees.
I'd like to say I'm going swimming now. But I won't.
You are looking out my frosty bedroom window, with me up after the sun, on this day after Christmas, last Sunday of 2010.
The current temperature out there, according to my computer AccuWeateher plug-in, is 23 degrees. That's Fahrenheit, not Celsius.
This explains why I had to find me an extra blanket in the middle of the night.
I had a night of tossing and turning.
I believe I was over-stimulated from watching Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf.
I think Elizabeth Taylor's Martha the Harpy was way too much like a good-looking version of a horrendously ugly Harpy, who I was harped at by in a similar manner, well over 2 years ago in that Pacific Northwest town well known for producing Harpies and Serial Killers, Tacoma.
I just realized, typing that, that I have been Harpy-free for almost 2 and a half years.
Now that you are making me think about it, more accurately stated, I have not had direct, in person, Harpy interaction in almost 2 and a half years.
However, I have had some problems with the worst of the Tacoma Harpies, via the Internet, what that particular Harpy displaying her particularly disturbing mental problems and pathological lying, in astounding displays of demented hypocrisy and histrionic narcissistic neuroticness. That was actually slightly entertaining, because I was not having to deal with it in person.
Total change of subject, back to Christmas. So, yesterday morning I opened the package from my mom and dad. In it were a couple shirts, candy canes and a cargo shorts swimming suit.
The swimming suit was a medium. I don't think I've fit in something medium sized in decades. The shirts I could get on, but not freely move.
So, when I called my mom and dad yesterday, mom asked if the shirts and shorts fit.
Well, I'm thinking, oh oh, this is some sort of test, mom is seeing if I'll tell the truth about the small-sized shirts and shorts.
I told my mom that, well, uh, I've put on some weight since you last saw me.
My mom then asked how that happened, that I was so slender at that point in time. This was the first time I remember the word 'slender' being used to describe me.
I then said, well, I'm not so slender anymore.
My mom then told me that the shorts and shirt give me a reason to lose weight.
I told my mom that I'd already come to that conclusion.
I should take a picture of me in the mini-shorts and shirt.
We are back under a clear blue sky, this morning, in Texas, hence the need for sunglasses.
The shirt and shorts don't look as tightly fitting in the picture as they feel in person.
I have been told, more than once, that my clothes are mostly too baggy. Maybe snug-fitting is the way to go. Somehow, I doubt it.
You're looking at the Village Creek Rapids, around noon, Christmas, in Village Creek Natural Historic Area.
Village Creek was running a little extra water due to Friday's rain, but not enough to cause the park to be closed
A surprisingly large number of people were taking a break from Christmas in the park today.
I called my Mom and Dad when I started walking, even though I had not gotten gas. My Mom answered with a "Merry Christmas." Mom was being quite cheerful. We talked for around a half hour.
Talking for a half hour, outdoors, with the wind chill factor making it feel like 25, eventually made my phone holding left hand very cold. So, I had to say goodbye to my Mom.
I had intended to call my Mom and Dad and then call Elsie Hotpepper. When I flipped the phone open to call Mom and Dad I saw there was a voice mail from Elsie. Wishing me a Merry Christmas with a slight amount of Bah Humbug tossed in.
But, I did not call Elsie back due to the fact that I'd had my quota of phone talking in the cold for the day.
Looking out from the bars of my patio prison cell I can not quite tell for sure if the last Saturday of 2010, also known as Christmas is another cloudy Texas day, or not.
Cloudy or not, I'm sure I'll be having myself a very Merry Christmas, today.
My phone just made a noise and popped up with a text message.
I don't do that cell phone texting thing, as in I don't send text messages, but I have figured out how to read incoming ones.
This one was from the Queen of Wink. The message said "Merry Christmas."
Near as I can tell, despite Steve Doeung asking him to, Santa has not brought me a new bike. Perhaps Santa did not know where to put the new bike because I do not have a Christmas tree.
A year ago today I looked out my window to see a White Christmas. Right now, with the sun finally adding enough light, I can see that the only thing that appears semi-white is the sky with its covering of clouds.
I have no idea what lays ahead for me on this Christmas day, besides opening a box that arrived in the mail on Monday. And BBQing steak.
Merry Christmas to all and my one longtime blog reader.
That is Elizabeth Doeung and her dad, Steve, on Christmas Eve a year ago, surrounded by flags and snow on Fort Worth's infamous Carter Avenue.
Steve, with some help from Elizabeth, this morning, sent me the nicest Christmas card I've gotten this year.
So, I thought I'd share Steve's E-card, (for those reading this who are not so lucky as to be living in The Shale, the CHK to which Steve refers is Chesapeake Energy. TxDOT is Texas Department of Transportation)......
Dear Band of Bloggers,
You already know how I feel about you and what you mean to me. So you are the first to receive this clumsy attempt at an e-card (with some help from little Elizabeth, of course). Love you all for who you are, what you stand for, and what you do--that reflect the essence of this season and the best of what those flags represent.
It looks like CHK started to dig trenches for the 8-inch diameter gathering line along TxDOT's right-of-way last week. Apparently, TxDOT has determined that 8 inches of high pressure is the maximum risk they will allow in their wide easement along the freeway. However, my mayor and city government obviously saw no problem with one or more pipelines 2X the size and pressure (thus threat, danger, and damages) under front yards along a residential street. All that aside, this is better for them than the previous two years of very bad PR and no pipeline/million$ in profit.
I asked Santa to bring Durango a new bike, Elsie something to occupy her spare time, and Joely a less stressful new year...and a nice hunk :>) I have a gift for each of you but am waiting for the right opportunity to give it. I hope to do it before we move, not immediate but hopefully soon/when feasible.
Merry Christmas and holidays wishes to all our friends and neighbors--both near and far--from the exhausted but thankful survivors of the Barnett Shale "Alamo".
Thank you for helping us be the "miraculous" Victors after a two year long (and costly) battle. May the new year bring you health and happiness
May there be more Victors and less victims of the Exploiters of the Shale.
Rain began dropping around 11 this morning. Around noon I took off, out of here, heading to ALDI in Pantego.
A year ago, today, we were being pelted with frozen rain in the form of snowflakes, which piled up quickly.
I was reminded of what Christmas Eve was like last year when I opened a Christmas card from Steve Doeung and daughter Elizabeth, and saw both of them surrounded by a Winter Wonderland. With flags.
The view in the picture is heading south on Dottie Lynn Parkway in Arlington, about to take a left on to Division Street.
You might be thinking what sort of fool drives along in treacherous conditions taking pictures. Well, a short time after this picture was taken I was thinking the same thing.
Because, when I turned from Dottie Lynn Parkway on to Division my vehicle suddenly spun out of control. It just sort of slid sideways, rather than making the turn.
No. There was no ice on the road. It is not cold enough for ice to be on the road.
It has not rained in a long time. This can cause oily greasy spots that become like ice when covered with a lot of water. Like today.
When I was in ALDI the lady behind me in line was going on about how slippery it was. We then commiserated about our driving misery.
So far I have not seen nor heard any of the predicted Thunderstorm action. Maybe that is scheduled for later in the day.
I won't be going out in it again this Christmas Eve, unless someone somehow strongly motivates me to do so.
Looking out my bedroom window this morning you can see I got up about the same time the sun did, on this Christmas Eve morning, the next to last Friday of 2010.
I thought we were scheduled to get some Thunderstorm action last night. I heard nothing.
Looking at the ground outside it does appear some moisture may have fallen, but not enough to do any puddling. At least from my current view.
I do not know what lays ahead for me on this Christmas Eve day.
I think what I am going to do today is try and find the flow. And then go with it. I do know for sure that going with the flow will not lead me to an unheated swimming pool.
You can sort of tell from the picture that it is a cold, dreary winter day in the Fort known as Worth, this Christmas Eve Eve.
Birds of different feathers were flocked together in the cold water of Fosdic Lake, today, in Oakland Lake Park.
That group on the right managed to draw all the birds on the lake towards them, due to the tossing of bird food into the lake.
I assume this made for some very happy ducks with full gut ducks, because this group had several large bags of bird food.
The Fosdic Lake birds must be fed manually, due to signs around the lake warning that it is not safe to eat anything that grows in the lake.
I managed to be underdressed today. It was 46. But felt colder. I was minus my wool cap, had no gloves and only one shirt layer under my windbreaker. I can step outside and think I've got enough clothes on. Then get to my destination to quickly realize I was erroneous.
I must remember to stock extra clothes. And gloves. In my vehicle. I'm not much of a Boy Scout. Being prepared is not one of my traits.
I am up before the sun on the morning of Christmas Eve Eve, this next to last Thursday of 2010.
I've been long done with all my Christmas shopping, due to doing no Christmas shopping. I don't know why more people don't adopt my holiday traditions.
Just yesterday I went to my mailbox to discover two big boxes. One of the boxes was filled with Christmas Cookies, sent all the way from Seattle. I don't eat such things. Now, if it were a cheesecake in the box, there would have been a different outcome. Or if one of the cookie types were white chocolate macadamia nut.
I learned from the Scrabble Queen of Washington that North Texas is currently scheduled for some heavy duty storming on Christmas Eve. I did not know this, so I checked the weather forecast to learn that Thunderstorms are on the menu for tomorrow.
If I remember right, last year on Christmas Eve the snowstorm had already started that piled up a lot of inches by Christmas.
I don't know what I am up to today, except for being fairly certain that I am going to be shoving a big turkey in the oven. And likely going on a hike somewhere.
