Texas Swimming In The Dark With Nancy's Fried Pies In Oklahoma On Route 66

I was up way before the crack of dawn, again, this morning.

When I checked email I found one from Perkins telling me that the Nancy's Fried Pies Video was not working on my Eyes on Texas website.

What fresh hell is this I thought. It did not take me long to find out that Perkins was correct. Nancy's Fried Pies was not working, nor were several others. It did not take long to figure out the code had changed.

The process of getting new code over taxed my computer and brain several times, severely vexing me. By 5 am I had the videos all back working and had added two new ones to go along with the webpages I made yesterday, so now there is video about Grand Lake O' the Cherokees and Beavers Bend Resort Park & Broken Bow Lake that you can look at and be surprised at how scenic Oklahoma is in certain locations.

After all that video exhaustion I decided to go take a cover of darkness dip in the pool. It was pleasant. The rest of the morning was filled with more website stuff. Oh, and one extremely rude person said my sad sleepwalking episode sounded like a drunken stumble bum. I can not remember when last a remark filled me with such a high level of umbrage.

It's cloudy and not hot again today, only 86. By noon all my travails had my head hurting, so I went to Oakland Lake Park for a walk. The walking turned extra long because at the start of the walk I called Chris M.P. up in Washington, formerly of Oklahoma. A fellow Pacific Northwesterner, she abandoned me last summer, leaving me with hardly any long time acquaintances within a 1,000 mile radius.

I must remember to call Chris M.P. more often. I always enjoy talking to her. Chris is missing Oklahoma, I'm sure, below is a video of Ollie's Station Restaurant on Route 66. I don't remember if this is one of her favorite places or not...

Dallas Cop Car Chase Update With A New Cop Car Chase

This morning I looked online to see if more was known about yesterday's wild car chase in Dallas. I could find nothing. That seemed odd.

Then a few minutes ago I looked at the Dallas Morning News, online, and saw that there has been another Dallas cop car chase. This time involving a woman leading the police on a 90 minute chase through Dallas County.

This morning's chase started in Irving and ended in Dallas on Buckner Boulevard near White Rock Lake. At one point the woman was driving 100 mph, but slowed to 20 mph after her tires were popped by spikes. The woman is in custody, obviously, with no other details.

But, in this same article, about today's chase, there was information about yesterday's chase that ended in a crash at an intersection on Plano Road. The driver's name is Shane W. Michel. He was taken to Baylor University Medical Center where he is in critical condition as of this morning.

Michel has a record of arrests for drugs, resisting arrest and burglary. There was a warrant, active, for his arrest on a forgery charge.

Michel's dad, Bill Michel, told local TV that his son is bi-polar and that this was not his first police chase.

Jerry World Stadium Bust To Area Business

I've lost count of the number of comments I've gotten from ill-informed bozos telling me how wrong I am about some things I have said about the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium. As in there are actually people out there who think that Jerry Jones could not have taken people's homes unless they willingly sold them.

And then there are the ones who have told me that I have no idea what an economic boon this stadium will be to Arlington, sparking all sorts of development. Unlike what happened in Irving during the decades that the former Cowboy Stadium sat in a blighted area that did not seem to economically benefit from the stadium.

And then this morning there was a letter to the editor, in the online version of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, in which an Arlington business owner, operating near the new stadium, begs to differ with those who think the stadium has been and will be a great thing for Arlington.

Below is the letter....

Business bust

Having a business for more than 27 years in the Lincoln Square Shopping Center along Collins Street, we have seen ups and downs, but nothing compares to the desperation since the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium opened. Wal-Mart can’t conduct business during events; Arby’s is giving away sandwiches to attract attention. Buffalo Wild Wings has a poor soul stand on the corner in 103-degree weather in a Buffalo suit just to attract customers back into the area.

Longtime stores such as Laura’s Closet, Paper Capers, Mexican Inn and Shady Oaks were forced to close because of the lengthy construction and lack of traffic along Collins Street. A recent poll of our customers revealed that people are more repelled by the stadium than attracted. Stores such as ours, Petland, and new stores like 5 and Dine are struggling heavily under the Jerry’s Palace construction deal with the city of Arlington that has reduced our exposure and traffic by 50 percent.

I call for the city and Jerry’s World to provide the businesses along Collins Street south of Interstate 30 to be subsidized 1 percent of gate and concession sales. The city and Jerry Jones can take responsibility for the businesses that helped build the stadium and will continue to support it through our property tax dollars, only to have our throats cut and still have to pay for it.

Paul Thomas,
Arlington

Watching A Dallas Cop Car Chase During Lunch

I turned on the TV during lunch to check in on the news to see that the news on all the cable news channels was a car chase in my neighborhood of the world.

I've watched a few of these live police chases in the past. I remember one in the LA zone that ended sort of anti-climatically on a dirt road.

And then there was another Dallas one where the police had flattened the chasee's tires, but she kept on going. That one ended when the woman stopped on a freeway bridge over a lake in east Dallas. I remember thinking, where did she think she was running to? On a lake.

The chase I watched during lunch began with a routine cop stop that quickly spun out of control when narcotics were detected. One of the Dallas TV stations already had a copter in the air, heading to get video of a bunch of dead cows. The copter got diverted from the cows to the cops.

I've never seen one of these cop chases be so wild. The guy trying to escape careened off the freeway, throwing the cops momentarily off his trail. The bad guy zoomed through intersections, flipped U-Turns and finally came to a stoplight where he got past the stopped cars and then was hit on the driver's side by a fast moving truck.

The driver of the truck was not badly injured. His truck was though. The bad guy's car was smacked pretty bad, sort of bent out of shape. The cops had trouble getting inside the car, ended up breaking windows to get the doors open. After about 5 minutes emergency crews arrived and were setting up to help the bad guy when Shepard Smith and FOX News went to commercial.

I decided I'd seen enough and turned off the TV.

Update: As you can see in the photo, the suspect's car was heavily damaged in the crash. Authorities have yet to disclose the suspect's condition. He was brought to an area hospital. I don't know why news reports refer to the driver as a suspect. Is there any doubt he led a large number of police on a dangerous chase?

Update 2: The driver is in critical condition at Baylor University Medical Center. More Details Here.

YouTube video of the chase below....

Hiking To The Top Of A Fort Worth Mountain While Thinking About An Oklahoma Lake

That's the noontime view of the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth from high atop the summit of Tandy Mountain.

As you can see, we are under a cloud cover. We will not be feeling 100 degree heat today. The humidity has gone back up, so it felt hotter than the chilly 83 degrees.

I've been webpaging the Grand Lake o' the Cherokees, Beavers Bend and Broken Bow Lake up in Oklahoma today. Anyone been to any of these places and have any opinions they can share?

I had no idea there were big dams up in Oklahoma, as in Pocatello Dam that makes Grand Lake is the longest multiple arch dam in the world. It's almost a mile long. That is one long dam. And Grand Lake has 1,300 miles of shoreline. That is a lot of shoreline. I've seen the lakes in northeast Oklahoma and parts of Arkansas from the air and was surprised by how many there were. Now I want to check out Grand Lake on the ground.

Speaking of Oklahoma, yesterday on the History Channel I watched a documentary about the Dust Bowl. I had no idea it was so horrible. The dust and drought were bad enough, but then came the plague of locusts and then jackrabbits got out of control. The whole eco-system got out of whack. I didn't know that one of the dust storms reached as far as New York City. Or that the area affected included North Texas.

The dust here in Texas is one of the few things about Texas that I don't like. The west side of Washington is not dusty. Eastern Washington is much more Texas-like, dust-wise.

I forgot to mention, there is still some color on the prairie in the form of wildflowers. I saw several today whilst hiking the Tandy Hills Natural Area trails.

So, that's been my day so far this Monday in Texas, up early, in the pool for a long time, virtual trip up to a cool lake in Oklahoma and a colorful hike at noon.

Another Sleepwalking In Texas Incident

I had myself another sleepwalking incident. It's only when there is evidence evident in the morning, or an eye witness reporting, that I know I've been sleepwalking again.

Unlike the last known incident, last night's did not involve any bruise-causing fall.

About 2 in the morning I woke up and couldn't find my second pillow. I reached around on both sides of the bed. No pillow. I knew something was not right, but I ignored it and fell back asleep.

I woke up again about 5 and decided to get up. Turned on the light. The second pillow was no where to be seen.

I go to make coffee and then walk out to the patio to get my swimming suit. I slide open the patio door and there it was. My swimming suit and my pillow.

I don't think I went swimming. The exit door was locked. My previous leave the house sleepwalking incidents have always left the door unlocked.

It's a bit unsettling to know you've been up wandering around with your pillow in the middle of the night and have no memory of doing so, because I've no idea what else I may have done. Or where else I may have gone.

Below is a YouTube video of a sleepwalking dog....

HOT Texas Sunday Hiking River Legacy Park Looking For Alligators

It is another HOT Sunday in Texas. We have gone over 100 again. That makes 3 days in a row, I think, maybe 4. Methinks it is going to be one Long HOT Summer.

With my mountain bike currently on the disabled list, rendering wheeling not an option, I decided to go to River Legacy Park today and walk the mountain bike trail, specifically the section of trail where a woman was badly injured a month or so ago.

I was on the trail soon after the accident, saw all the emergency workers, heard voices in the woods trying to figure out how to get the injured party out of there. I later heard from the injured lady after she read my description of that day on my blog.

This section of trail, I think they call it South Pass, but I'm not sure, is one of two that opened in recent months that are marked RED, indicating the need for an expert skill level. The other new section is called Fun Town. I could see right at the entry to Fun Town that it would be no fun for me. But I did try to bike the South Pass Trail. I made it up and down 2 hills. And then when I saw the third one, I thought, no, ain't gonna do it. It was a struggle to push the bike back out of there.

Walking this section of trail today was hard. There were far more challenging parts, that I hiked today, that I did not get near, when I made my bike attempt. A couple times today I saw what the trail was doing and thought to myself they have got to be kidding. I can see how someone could get injured in there and why it would be hard to get them out. I was just carrying myself today and I had trouble making it down several of the slopes.

I took pictures, hoping my limited photo skills would do justice to the trails, showing how, well, adventurous they are. I don't believe I succeeded.

The above picture is where I gave up my one and only attempt at biking this. Since that aborted attempt a bypass around the treacherous trail to the right has been built. As I walked the bypass I was thinking to myself, I could bike this, maybe I'll try this again. I soon was to see that that will never happen. I now get why I hear so much screaming when I bike the South Pass bypass when I'm on this part of the trail.

The above picture does not come remotely close to showing what the trail is like. I am standing at the top of the hill. The trail down to that wood bridge at the bottom of the ravine is very steep, as in so steep I was not sure I would be able to get down it without falling. And then the uphill across the bride is also very steep. I thought to myself, this could easily be the spot where the injury occurred.

Once more the picture does not do justice to this fun little section of trail. A very steep uphill, then down, then up. Did I mention that it is very steep?

And then there was the swamp. For quite a distance the trail does its ups and downs along side a swamp covered with green swamp goo. With the cicadas in full summer swoon with their constant noise-making, along with the jungle vegetation and then this swamp, I felt like I was in Africa. This looked like the type of swamp an alligator might leap out of. Or a snake. The day that lady was injured I was talking to a guy who had come out of the South Pass Trail, asking me how the hell do you get back to the parking lot. He told me he'd seen a big snake on the South Pass Trail. I was hoping for an encounter with one today. I was being very vigilant. But, no snake. No armadillo. No wild boars. No bobcats. No alligators. No tarantulas.

I was a hot, wet mess by the time I got back to more sedate trail. I then made a bee-line for my vehicle.

Texas Hot Water Hot Air & Broken Bikes

In the picture you are going swimming with me early Sunday morning. The water was warmer than the air.

The overnight low was 80. It is not even 10 a.m. yet and it is already over 90. So, it'll be another scorcher in Texas this last Sunday of June.

Next Saturday is already the 4th of July. Towns in Texas put on the best parades I've ever seen, with two of them being 4th of July Parades. One of the biggest in Texas is the 4th of July Parade in Arlington. My favorite, that I've seen, is the Granbury 4th of July Parade.

I won't be going to any parade today, as far as I know. I still have not gotten around to getting my bike wheel fixed. I never think of it until I'm in the mood to do something aerobic and then remember my bike is disabled. Bike riding is easily doable when the temps are over 100.

It Is Saturday June 27 In Texas & 105 Degrees HOT

I experienced none of this last summer. I was suffering icicles in Tacoma when my zone of Texas had its 100 degree days of the year. So, this is being my first HOT time for a couple years. Last year it did not get HOT til after July 20. This year it's not even July and we're HOT.

By tomorrow the pool will be even less refreshing than it was this morning. When we get a week or two of being over 100 news items will appear advising people that it is impossible to cool down their pools with ice. Evidently, every year, a lot of people try that. Apparently the amount of ice needed to lower the temperature in a certain volume of water makes it physically impossible to lower it enough to make a significant difference.

On good thing to make note of on the weather gauge, the humidity is down so far we no longer have a Heat Index temperature that is higher than the actual temperature.

And on a totally non HEAT related subject, when I logged in to write this blogging about it being 105, I saw that the previous blogging was number 1,500, which makes this one number 1,501. When I started doing this blogging thing I figured I'd last a month before I got bored with it. As I often am, I was wrong.

Texas Tarantula Terror With Hot Hiking & Texas License Plates

Like I said would happen, in a blogging earlier today, about 1` this afternoon, when it was only 102, I went to the Tandy Hills Natural Area. There was no breeze today. But as long as I keep moving the heat isn't too hot. But, if you stop walking for just the time it takes to take a picture, well, suddenly it goes to drenched in sweat mode.

I tried to take a picture of one of the remaining wildflowers, but every attempt turned out blurry. Why? I do not know. It perplexes me. I think it may be a heat related malady.

When I got back here I was mortified to learn that out in West Texas, in the metropolis of Wink, Jammin Mole had been Terrorized this morning by a Giant Tarantula. Homeland security eventually subdued the beast.

Back in my Tarantula free world, I hope, this morning I made a different sort of webpage on my Eyes on Texas website, one where I'm trying to be helpful. That often is not the case. This past week I've gotten 5 or 6 people asking me questions about Texas Personalized License Plates, and the "It's a Whole Other Country" one in particular.

Why do people think I'm the go to guy with such a question? The questions about rattlesnake skins and rattles, I sort of understand, due to the webpages about the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup. Or questions about next month's Parker County Peach Festival, those I understand. I understand why I'm getting the question, I mean, I don't understand why they think I'd have the answer.

As for Texas License Plates, I have no idea where these questions are coming from or what on my website would make anyone think I know anything about the subject. But helping people solve their problems is what I'm all about, so now I have the answers to the vexing Texas License Plate Questions.

Abrupt change of subject, returning to Jammin Mole and Wink. Earlier today I was surprised by an invitation from Jammin. Inviting myself, Gar the Texan and Mister Twister to Wink. This is what Ms. Mole had to say (she is commenting on a comment by Mister Twister regarding Wink in previous blogging you can read here)...

"Twister, if in fact you were expressing apathy for Wink, I'd leave it alone, BUT I'm sensing that you're actually expressing a sorta disdain for the place, making a prejudgment without having seen Wink in person. So, here it is...I'm cordially inviting you, Durango and Gar to come down to Wink in October for the Halloween Carnival and Spook House. It's only a seven hour drive and between the three of you, ya'll should be able to handle 2.5 hours of driving time each. If you like, I can even get you an Orbison T-shirt, but you'll have to supply your own shades."

Now, it's time for lunch.

Looking At Ads While Drinking Heavily & Stripping

A few days ago I think I mentioned I wised up regarding my search for the world's biggest of one specific subject.

This morning I was looking through this week's Fort Worth Weekly and saw an ad for the Mule Pub. In the ad there is a person who might have been a candidate for my search, if I were still searching.

The caption under the potential biggest candidate says, "Screw working out...drink instead!"

I know that has always been my philosophy. Lately I've been pretty much drinking all day long.

You have to in this heat. Since we've hit the 100 zone I've been taking 3 bottles of water with me when I go take a hike. All day long I'm wandering into the kitchen to get yet one more glass of water with ice cubes floating in it. It's not quite as bad as being in Death Valley when it's 124 where you pretty much have to be constantly sucking on liquid, but it's close to that. I think I'd be shocked if I figured out how many gallons I drink a day.

It's supposed to be around 100 by noon, so I'm thinking since it Saturday and I'm a creature of repetitive habit, I'll likely go do some heavy duty sweating and drinking on the Tandy Hills today. Due to issues previously discussed, I no longer make mention of my hiking attire.

Speaking of water, we've got a lot of Watering Holes here in my zone of Texas. Right in my neighborhood there is the Ozzie Rabbit Lodge. Ozzie Rabbit was Lee Harvey Oswald's nickname. Lee Harvey is buried near the Ozzie Rabbit Lodge. Apparently the Ozzie Rabbit Lodge is the east side's hippest watering hole.

The Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex also has a lot of restaurants, so many that they add up to being the world's highest number of restaurants per capita. Why is such information always stated as "per capita" I typed and wondered? I believe "capita" means head. Maybe it's Latin.

In the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex we are also very proud of having the world's highest number per capita of women working in the stripping industry. Over 4,000 are gainfully employed doing that hard job. There are a lot of strip clubs here. In Washington there were very few such establishments, and none as elaborate and big as those here.

In FW Weekly the listings for strip joints is coyly under the heading "Cabaret." The Fort Worth Gentleman's Club was this year's FW Weekly critic's choice as Best Strip Club 2008. You have to wear proper dress to enter this club. I have no idea what proper dress in Texas might be. The Gentleman's Club has a real good seafood buffet on Wednesdays. Not that I will admit to knowing this from personal experience.

Rick's Cabaret was FW Weekly's reader's choice for Best Strip Club and FW Weekly's critic's choice for Best Exotic Dancer (China) and Best Place to Nurse a Hangover in 2008.

Both Illusions and Main Stage make reference to sleeves being required, with Illusions insisting that sleeves are required after 6 p.m. Does this mean long sleeves? Is it tank tops they are trying to ban?

The Texas Cabaret gives us a better idea of what proper attire must be with their rule of "No cut-off shirts or cut-off pants." So, I'm thinking if you wear a nice pair of cargo pants shorts and a shirt you'll be properly attired. To play it totally safe I suppose one would wear regular pants, as in slacks, not jeans, and a long-sleeved shirt, buttoned to the max. I wonder if I still own such things? And why are they so picky about what men wear while the women have very little or nothing on? That's perplexing.

Today I Am 34 Years Old

Alma, the Songbird of the Texas Gulf Coast, is always sending me good, funny, upbeat stuff via email. Alma is the opposite of a toxic person. She is more like a daily happy tonic.

Some of this morning's messages bordered on the bizarre, with those bizarre ones, for the most part, emanating from Facebook world, that being a world who's charm has not quite revealed itself to me, yet. As in I don't quite get it.

Maybe it has something to do with it being something like 2 decades now I've been, in some way or the other, social networking via a computer.

And then there was a blog comment this morning that said I looked like a thuggish, gangster porn star. I'm not quite sure what that is, but I liked the sound of it. Then again the source of this compliment was someone with demonstrably bad taste in multiple areas, so I suppose I must consider the source and not be too thrilled at being described as a thuggish, gangster porn star.

Back to Alma. This morning she sent me a link to a website that calculates ones Virtual Age. I took the test and learned I am a virtual 34.5 year old with a life expectancy of 97.5. A 34.5 year old thuggish, gangster porn star.

Life is good. And now it's time to go swimming.

Flashing Stop Signs With Freshwater Seafood & A Blogging Moment Of Silence

I was observing a Blogging Silence in memory of Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson.

To find myself appalled to be getting emails and one phone call asking if I am all right.

Yes, I am all right. I got up at a reasonable time this morning. I went swimming after the sun had lightened up the place. And then the morning was consumed by website nonsense and doing a background criminal check for Tootsie Tonasket regarding yet one more boyfriend of dubious character.

It was well past noon before I got away from the computer. I decided to walk around Oakland Lake Park. There is a stop sign I always see on my way to Oakland Lake. It is solar-powered. You'll likely need to click on the picture to make it bigger to see them, but I can tell you there are flashing red lights around the perimeter of the sign. Why? I do not know. It's a 3 way stop. 2 of the 3 stop signs have the solar-powered flash lights. It's not a particularly busy or hazardous seeming intersection.

And then at Oakland Lake Park I saw yet another of the signs I've mentioned before, those ones that tell you that there is a fish consumption advisory for this body of water. I had not noticed, previously, that the sign directed me to a State of Texas website. To a website about seafood. Doesn't seafood come out of saltwater? Not a polluted landlocked lake?

So, I followed the sign's directive and visited the website to find no mention of freshwater fish. The verbiage mentions oysters, clams, mussels, scallops and crab. I am fairly certain none of those can be caught in Oakland Lake. I have no idea what "molluscan" is. Below are the words one reads when one goes to the website one is advised to go to....

The mission of the Seafood and Aquatic Life Group is to protect the consumer from disease or other health hazards transmissible by oysters, clams, mussels and scallops and crab meat produced in or imported into Texas. The Seafood and Aquatic Life Group also protects recreational fishers from disease or contaminants found in fish and other aquatic species caught in Texas' lakes, rivers, bays or nearshore state waters. We carry out this mission by classification of shellfish growing areas, certification of molluscan shellfish shippers and crab meat processors, and testing tissue samples from fish and seafood harvesting areas.

It is 99 right now, heading to a predicted high, this Friday, of 102. It was 95 with a Heat Index of 100 when I went walking at Oakland Lake. It did not feel particularly hot. A breeze blew, there are trees with some shade.

But, as I walked I realized in less than a month it will be a year since I flew up to Tacoma to spend a month feeling so cold, in so many ways. I realized today, as I walked comfortably in the heat, that by the time I flew up north last July 20 I was so used to being out in the extreme heat. I keep my A/C at around 80. And that feels cool. The temperature never got to 80 my entire time I was in Washington last summer. I remained cold the entire time I was up there.

I remember towards the end of my stay one of Washington's most obese residents, wearing a coat of at least 400 pounds of insulative blubber, called and asked how I was feeling. I said I was feeling cold. Because I was. That bloviated gasbag had the gall to tell me I had had plenty of time to acclimate, that I was not the only skinny person in Washington and that I only complained about being cold to get attention. Which was pretty much projection from a person who constantly engaged in attention getting behaviors. I said something like, "oh yes, I feel so good now, I'm getting attention because I'm cold." Geez, I'm glad I'm rid of that idiot.

Michael Jackson & Farrah Fawcett: A Pop King & Queen Gone

I turned on the TV during lunch to find myself quickly feeling sad to learn that Farrah had died. This was not too shocking to me. Farrah's condition was well known. I liked Farrah Fawcett a lot, going back even before her Charlie's Angels days, when I first saw her in the bizarre movie Myra Breckenridge.

And then in the last hour to first hear Michael Jackson had gone into cardiac arrest, then a coma, then when I click on a news website I see that the King of Pop is dead.

I'm sad about Farrah due to thinking she really was one extremely special woman who suffered a miserable last couple years. I'm feeling bad about Michael Jackson due to thinking what a sad life he lived. He had no one who could tell him no. No, Michael, you do not need to have your face altered, you look fine.

Sad day. Hopefully this bumps the governor of South Carolina off the TV screens.

Wink Delivers A Texas Christmas In June

Christmas was pretty bleak this year in Texas, not that I'm complaining. When it comes to Christmas, I'm pretty much Jewish. I've never been a fan of the holiday. Am always glad when it's over. I don't send anyone a Christmas card. I may get a card or two. I don't buy anyone a Christmas gift or mail anyone anything. I don't think anyone mailed me anything this past Christmas. I may be remembering wrong.

So, imagine my surprise upon going to the Post Office today and opening the P.O. Box to find a note telling me a box too big to stick in the box was awaiting me at the service counter.

There was no line, I walked up and handed the nice Post Office Mail Lady the note and she soon came back with a BIG BOX. The return address on the BIG BOX was Wink, Texas. Wink is the West Texas where Jammin Mole resides and Gar the Texan used to reside til he was asked to leave town. I think there were issues with his mullet style hair, what we in the Pacific Northwest call a Pocatello Doo, due to people in that isolated Idaho town having a fondness for the mullet style.

Anyway, I digress. So, I hauled the BIG BOX to my vehicle, got back here and with great struggle, in the 100 degree heat, managed to get it inside to air-conditioned comfort. I was so thrilled at the unexpected surprise BIG BOX that I decided I had to photo document this rare moment. The first picture, above, is the BIG BOX.

I studied the intricate wrapping and taping on the BIG BOX a long time to figure how best to open it. Eventually I decided on a course of action involving a knife. Soon after that I was lifting a variety of objects out of the BIG BOX. I arranged some of the objects to facilitate a photo.

In the BIG BOX there was a real cool Roy Orbison t-shirt, from last weekend's Roy Orbison Festival. There was a book. A cool little cowboys card. And I don't mean Dallas Cowboys, I mean little boy cowboys. And then there was a bird house in the BIG BOX. With the shape of Texas carved on one side. And a business card so I can arrange to have the Roy Orbison Museum opened for me next time I'm in Wink.

The above is on the bottom of the bird house, confirming that the BIG BOX came from Jammin Mole. I was pretty much 100% certain of that, but this confirmed it.

The Roy Orbison t-shirt was an X-Large. I was afraid it wouldn't fit. But as you can see, it fits. It's also really really long. Like a night shirt. If I was a pajama user this might be a nice substitute on a cold night. That's the Wink Birdhouse that I'm holding.

So, I've really been having myself one HOT BIG DAY in Texas. Up before 3 in the morning, swimming in the dark, virtually going to New Braunfels and the Schlitterbaun, hiking at the HOT Tandy Hills and getting a Christmas present in June from Wink.

I am so looking forward to tomorrow. I'll be looking at Austin. And hopefully wide awake sometime closer to the crack of dawn. See you then, or maybe sooner.

Other Natural Hikers At Tandy Hills Natural Area Today

Incoming from Don Young. I do not know if the event DY describes occurred before, after or during my noonish hike at the Tandy Hills Natural Area.

Regardless, below is what also went on at the Tandy Hills today......

Debora and Don Young led a prairie tour today at THNA for a group of 18 enthusiastic folks from around the Metroplex enrolled in a Permaculture class. The class was organized by Meadowbrook resident and Prairie Fest volunteer, Kirsten Huber, who helped kids make seed-balls at Prairie Fest.

The Permaculture Design Certification Course instructor is Illinois resident, Wayne Weiseman. Read more about Wayne and the course in the attached document.

This is the first time a Permaculture course has been offered in the Fort Worth area. The Permaculture ethic exemplifies the essence of what it means to "go green". We should all be grateful to Kirsten for her passion and vision that made this happen. Fort Worth and planet Earth are better off thanks to her effort.

Hot Tandy Hills Natural Area Hiking

I would think I would be a bit tired by now, having been up since sometime before 3 this morning. But I feel fine.

I made my virtual trip, as planned, this morning, to New Braunfels and Schlitterbahn Waterpark Resort. I found out later I also need to go to Austin. I thought I'd already done that, but I hadn't.

Then around noon, with the temperature approaching 100 it seemed like a good time for some heavy duty sweating, so I went to the Tandy Hills Natural Area. Again.

Yesterday. Or was it the day before, the light bulb finally came on and I realized I'd made a mistake by blogging so often about my search for the planet's most overly developed backside, which led to way too many people, from all over the world, coming to my blog for no good reason.

Well, another light bulb finally came on regarding bloggings in which I mention what clothes I am wearing or not wearing for a particular activity, like hiking the Tandy Hills Natural Area. Now, the ads that those bloggings generate are not as worthless as the ones generated by the search for the over-sized derriere, but still, I decided to cease at once mentioning certain keywords that brought me certain type blog visitors.

This should have dawned on me before, due to a lot of people come to this blog via searching for info about Austin's Hippie Hollow, it being a rather free-spirited location on Lake Travis. That one I don't mind so much, but when I see that this blog now Googles #1 when someone looks for info about a certain type of hiking, with Texas in the search string, well I don't want to be the #1 info source for that, even if it is just in Texas.

I really need to start thinking things through better before I create these little nuisances for myself.

Anyway, back to today's HOT hiking. I wanted to know how much water I lost today, so I weighed myself before I left. 176. I drank two 16 ounce bottles of water while hiking. When I got back here and weighed myself again, I was at 173. Which would seem to indicate I contributed 5 pounds of moisture to the humidity while hiking up and down hills today.

So, I'm glad I followed my physical therapist, Dr. L.C.'s advice today, and went hiking at my usual time, rather than yesterday's late afternoon jaunt which she felt wreaked havoc with my sleep pattern. I should learn to always follow doctor's orders...

Texas Skinnydipping In The Middle Of The Night With A Fort Worth Water Report

I think I may be going to have myself one ultra-hellacious day today. I woke up about half past 2. I was fairly certain I was not going to fall back asleep. So, at 3 a.m., I got up.

I checked email, read the news, saw the Scrabble Queen of Washington had played 3 words, so I played 3 words.

I got bored preparing for this morning's virtual trip to New Braunfels and Schlitterbahn, so a bit before 5 it seemed like a good time to go for a relaxing skinnydip.

The air temperature is 80 this morning. The pool was warmer than the air. Even though we are currently suffering with a Level Red Pollution Alert, I saw stars twinkling above me. That is not the moon behind me in the photo, it's a big round light.

On the way out of the pool I got the mail. There was one odd thing in the mail. A bi-lingual publication from Fort Worth. The 2008 Drinking Water Quality Report. In a city so pinched for money it has cut back library hours, this seemed an odd thing to waste money on. On page 2 under "A Message from the Water Director" there is a full color photo of the "Water Department Leadership Team." Why didn't they save a few bucks for the city by foregoing the color photo?

Also on page 2 of the "Water Report" it says "Mailing this report to our customers is a federal and state requirement. It also is posted on our website."

In all my years of drinking water in Washington I never received an annual "Water Report." Did this federal mandate come along after I moved to Texas? Or is this a mandate that only applies to places that get their water from sources that require extensive treatment?

I have long found it a bit disturbing that the drinking water here comes out of reservoirs that are also used for recreation, like boating and swimming. Where I lived in Washington, Mount Vernon, the drinking water came out of a reservoir that was totally closed off to human access by a chain link fence.

It's a puzzlement. I can see that so far today, I'm being all about water.

100 Degree Naked Tandy Hills Hiking In Deadly Air Pollution

In the photo you are looking at the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth, as filtered through a Level Red Air Pollution Alert, viewed from the western side of the Tandy Hills, near the I-30 freeway.

This afternoon I was feeling cooped up and cranky. I'd been to the Kemah Boardwalk, near Houston, virtually, this morning. After that I went north to Southlake, non-virtually.

The past two days I did get in my morning swim, but yesterday the 100 degree plus outdoor oven had me not feeling it, or wanting to feel it.

By early afternoon my physical therapist, Dr. L.C., was telling me, despite the warnings from the National Weather Service that the elderly should not go outside in this dangerous air, that she thought I had to, or my crankiness could turn ugly.

So, sometime after 4 in the afternoon, with Mother Nature heating it up to 101, I took off to the Tandy Hills Natural Area to be natural. I wore cooling mesh shorts, not my usual cargo shorts, because my intention was to try the Naked Hiking thing again. I knew there was absolutely no chance that there would be any other idiot in this 6 million person Metroplex, so deranged, as to be out hiking in killer temps in killer air, so there was no more chance of running into another human, whilst sans outerwear, than there is where I am right now.

I gotta tell you, I've decided there is something to this skinnyhiking thing. I ended up hiking for well over an hour. I did not overheat. The only time I broke out into rivers of sweat was when I stopped to get a drink or look at something.

Abrupt subject change.

We appear to be building to a possible storm. There has been one short burst of hail and some wind. High temperatures wreak havoc with stability, both weather-wise and mental-wise.

Tomorrow morning I think I'm heading to New Braunfels and a place called Schlitterbahn. That should be interesting. Jammin Mole has volunteered to do some of the driving and buy some gas. I told her that was not necessary.

See you tomorrow.

Lunch Spoiled By South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford

Last Thursday was the first I heard of the disappearance of South Carolina's governor, Mark Sanford. I'd turned on the Rush Limbaugh show, on WBAP, to find Mark Davis was subbing for the day. Rush Limbaugh can get on my nerves due to what he's ranting about, but I find him pretty funny. Mark Davis quickly gets on my nerves due to his overly affected speaking manner grating on my ears.

So, I only listened long enough to hear Mark Davis go on about the mystery of the missing governor of South Carolina.

So, I got back here a bit after 1. It was Wednesday, so I'd been up north, in Southlake, and yes, as usual, I went to Sprouts Farmers Market. I got back here, made lunch, sat down, turned on the TV, hoping to see how Iran was doing.

Instead all the cable news stations were covering, what seems to be being characterized as, the Mark Sanford Scandal. He had somehow led people to believe he was off for some solitude, hiking the Appalachian Trail, when in reality he was down in Argentina, crying for 5 days with his Argentinian mistress, who is also married.

Apparently the affair has been going on for years, with Sanford and his wife working on the problem the past 5 months or so.

All the cable stations were either covering Sanford's news conference, or commenting on it. Evidently, recently, another Republican, this one a senator from Nevada, fessed up to an affair. Some of the commenting was along the line of what dire doom does this epidemic of cheating husbands do to the Republican party?

What bugs me is I don't care if some politician has an affair. Unless that affair somehow messes up with his job, or he is engaging in the affair by somehow abusing the power of his office. With all the serious stuff that should be focused on and debated, going on and on about some poor guy's stupid infidelity, is just wrong.

I was so annoyed it gave me a headache. I don't know if Sanford's affair indicates a character problem, like John Edward's tacky affair did. Edward's revealed himself to be a shallow, self-centered, insensitive bad man. His political career is over. I found myself liking this Sanford guy, listening to him confess to his bad boy behavior.

John F. Kennedy was a serial adulterer. He was all over the place, from Marilyn Monroe to Judith Exner, she being a mob boss girl friend. Now, I think JFK's behavior was not a good mark on his character, but did it have anything to do with how he did his job? I don't think so.

If the JFK era were like it is now and it became public fodder that he was busy boinking Marilyn Monroe, while Jackie was shopping in NYC, well, it'd be non-stop scandal blather on all the news stations, eventually the JFK/Marilyn Scandal would grow so HUGE that JFK would have been forced to resign to restore calm to the country.

Had that happened, JFK would not have been in Dallas that fateful day in November. Lee Harvey Oswald would not be buried in my neighborhood. And Marilyn Monroe would likely be alive today, having married Jack, after he and Jackie got divorced. I suspect even John Jr. would still be alive, due to his dad still being alive to advise him that he was too scatter-brained to be an airplane pilot.

Okay, I realize what I've just done with my circuitous stream of consciousness rambling. I've just made the case that airing all dirty linen is for the greater good in the bigger scheme of things. That really is not the conclusion I had intended to come to.

Revisiting Garfish In Texas Lakes

Someone named Julie sent me an email regarding a blogging I'd written about garfish encounters in Texas lakes. How Julie found my email address, I don't know. It must be on my blog somewhere. Why Julie didn't send her message as a blog comment, I also don't know.

The end of Julie's email had the following dire warning about her message...

This message may contain confidential and/or privileged information. This information is intended to be read only by the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, you are on notice that
any review, disclosure, copying, distribution or use of the contents of this message is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete or destroy any copy of this message.

Okay, one of my hobbies is being a scofflaw and a bad boy, so I'm gonna be a bad boy and copy Julie's nice message below. And below that a YouTube video of a garfish, so you non-Texans can see what we put up with when we go swimming in one of our garfish/water moccasin infested lakes. I put the link to the blogging to which Julie refers, in her message below....

Hello –

About a year ago, a coworker of mine (who was also exiled to Texas for a period of her life) told me about her first experience with a gar fish. She said it was so enormous it was hanging off the back of someone’s pickup truck. Thinking she was exaggerating, I looked up photos and was HORRIFIED that something like this exists! How is it that people aren’t talking about this fish all day long, every day? Shouldn’t it at least have a show dedicated to it on the Sci-Fi channel?

Anyway, I was revealing the existence of the gar fish to a friend and we came across your blog while looking at scary photos. A hilarious entry – thank you for helping me illustrate the horrors of Texas waters to my friend. (Though I have to say I did end up siding with the fish after watching the video - yikes.) I’m not much of a blog reader, but I am truly enjoying yours and will continue to check it out. Just thought I’d let you know, since you probably get nasty comments from weirdos all the time.

Thanks again, and keep writing!

Julie

Did Barnett Shale Drilling Lead To Burleson Woman's Fatal Accident?

On Tuesday, June 23, 2009, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that a Burleson woman, Megan Porter, 24, died at the scene of where her Chrysler Sebring ran head-on into a tractor trailer, about 5 miles south of Cleburne, on Farm Road 1434.

State troopers arrived at the wreck at 7:20 pm, Monday.

There was no mention made in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram regarding what the tractor trailer was hauling or why it was on a Farm Road.

Meanwhile, also on Tuesday, June 23, 2009, the Cleburne Times-Review reported that on Monday, the same day as the fatal wreck, Johnson County Commissioners voted to close County Road 426 to truck traffic. The closed section runs from County Road 317 to Farm-to Market Road 3136, in an area known as the Midway Community, where about 25 families live.

An area resident was quoted as saying, "We’re asking the commissioners to eliminate the gas-related water trucks from using the road as a cut through to the highway. It’s a danger to the residents; the road wasn’t built to handle that kind of traffic; and the damage is going to cause the county to spend more money to repair the road.”

Another area resident told the commissioners he had counted 36 trucks traveling the road from 7 - 8:30 a.m. Monday. The resident said, “Some were going the speed limit; some were not. I’ve been challenged by trucks several times. There’s no shoulder to speak of to pull off on.”

Another resident, living at the end of the road, said gas-well trucks use the road to access a well site and frequently back up onto his property to turn around.

There was no mention made in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram article regarding gas-well truck danger leading to Johnson County road closures.

And there was no mention made in the Cleburne Times-Review article on road closures regarding the fatal head on collision between a truck and a car in Johnson County.

Strange.

Gluteus Maximus Only Child Syndrome Ukrainians

Well. I have had me a day. In addition to our first one over the 100 mark, I've been extra HOT for other reasons.

One reason is the past couple days I finally wised up and realized I'd done a dumb dumb thing by blogging repeatedly about the search for the World's Biggest Gluteus Maximus. (I am not using the more common term I used before, the one that starts with a 'b' and ends with a 't'.)

When I wrote about that subject, repeatedly, after seeing the biggest one I'd ever seen, making it's way through Wal-Mart, little did I know that all over the world there are people searching for the world's biggest GM.

I thought it was all in good fun, me and my search, til that search, by all those people, all over the world, overwhelmed my blog. As in, at times 75% of the blog visitors are looking for that one thing. This would be fine with me. Except, understandably, the ads that that subject generates are pathetic. So, no more mention of the search for that particular ultra big thing, by me.

And then there is Only Child Syndrome. I'd blogged a lot about that subject after being traumatized by one of the worst of the breed last summer in Tacoma. I got a lot of my info from the Wikipedia article about the subject, then put my own spin on it. I was appalled to soon see my Only Child Syndrome stuff Googling #1, ahead of Wikipedia, making me, in the eyes of those OCS sufferers looking for relief, the World's #1 Only Child Syndrome expert.

I was pleased today, when I Googled "Only Child Syndrome" to see that Wikipedia is back in the #1 spot. That might not last for long, with me blogging about the subject again. I'll keep it to a minimum. At least the OCS ads are good, so I don't mind this one, like I did the biggest gluteals one.

And then there is today's Ukrainian encounter. I had not looked at my webstats in awhile. I was led to do so today when I saw the new version of Google's Webmaster Tools, in which there was a long list of search strings that bring up my webstuff at a high position. I randomly knew of some that were #1, but I had no idea how many there were. This was new information. I was sort of pleased.

So then I went to look at my website stats. I had not done this in months. They generate a lot of info. Mostly useless to me. There is a section where I get a list of websites with external links to mine. This is always interesting. Sometimes I'll find someone hotlinking to one of my pictures. I then replace it with something embarrassing and see how long it takes them to discover it.

Today on the list of links from an external page there were about 30 like the following:

http://woxifedaqiiqadefixow.durangotexas.com/

Okay, that is my domain, with a lot of gibberish in front of it. This gibberish followed by a period is known as a sub-domain. When I clicked on that link it brought up my website, only via that sub-domain, that does not exist.

This freaked me out. I thought someone had hacked my website. The potential for disaster was huge. Or so I thought.

I went to my webhost and logged in to do a live chat. I hate live chats. With my webhost their live chat center is in the Ukraine. If I'm lucky I get someone who's English is not too fractured.

Today I got Evenka. Her English was not badly fractured. After a few confusions she understood the problem. She told me that any line of gibberish, pointing to a non-existent sub-domain will bring up the referenced URL. I made up one and she was right.

I asked who was doing this and why? Evenka told me it was not human, it was search bots doing their thing. She said I had nothing to worry about. I chose to believe her.

So, that's been my HOT day in Texas.

I gotta go now. I've got some Only Child Syndrome victims seeking advice who I must attend to.

Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex Hits 101 Level Red Polluton Watch

Well. As you can see, we have gone over the Century Mark for the first time this year, sometime before 3 pm getting to 101 with a Heat Index of 103.

As you can also see via the wind gauge, it is not being very breezy.

I went swimming early this morning. I felt no strong desire to go out walking at noon. I had to go to the Post Office and grocery store. That was enough hot walking.

A little after half past one this afternoon the National Weather Service lifted the Air Pollution Watch to Level Red. I don't remember it being Level Red before. In the warning below the NWS warns that those with breathing problems, asthma, children and the elderly, should stay indoors where there is air-conditioning.

Since I hit bingo on at least 2 of the vulnerable categories, I guess it was a good thing I didn't risk going hiking in this.

Air Quality Alert Message National Weather Service Fort Worth TX 137 PM CDT Tue Jun 23 2009

Air Pollution Watch - Level Red - For Dallas-Fort Worth.

The Texas Commission On Environmental Quality (tceq) Has Issued A Level Red Air Pollution Watch For The Dallas-Fort Worth Area For Wednesday, June 24, 2009.

Atmospheric Conditions Are Expected To Be Favorable For Producing High Levels Of Ozone Air Pollution In The Dallas-Fort Worth Area On Wednesday. Ozone Levels Could Reach The Level Red "unhealthy" Category.

Elevated Concentrations Of Ozone Can Act As A Lung Irritant. Individuals With Chronic Lung Disease, Such As Asthma And Emphysema, As Well As The Elderly And Young Children, Are Particularly Sensitive To Ozone And Should Attempt To Avoid Exposure. To Avoid Exposure, Minimize Exertion Outdoors During The Mid-Day To Early Evening Hours Or Stay Indoors In An Air- Conditioned Room During This Time.

Friday's Arlington American Idol Audition

I barely hit the publish button on a blogging where I mentioned the upcoming American Idol auditions at the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium. In Arlington. With American Idol's website info having the stadium in Dallas.

I hit the publish button and checked email to find incoming from Kay in Houston asking "How much will parking be this week for the American Idol auditions?"

Good question. Concert goers were charged $40 for the stadium opening George Strait concert. I suspect this will not be the case for the auditions. But what do I know?

Arlington's Convention & Visitors Bureau is mounting an email campaign to let American Idol auditioners know what a "bustling" city Arlington is.

A bustling city, which also happens to be the largest city in America with absolutely no public transit, no trains, no buses. Many are concerned that the Fox American Idol website info is leading contestants to erroneously believe they can stay in Dallas and commute to Arlington via public transit. Dallas has many miles of light rail, called DART, as in Dallas Area Rapid Transit, that go no where near Arlington.

Audition registrations start tomorrow at the stadium, continuing on Thursday, with the actual singing, in front of Simon Cowell, starting on Friday, continuing on, I assume through Saturday.

But, Saturday night the Jonas Brothers are filling up the new stadium. I assume Paula Abdul & Friends will be out of town by then. We can only hope.

Kay, if you're reading this, you can park at my place for free. I can drop you off at the stadium and come pick you up, after you get your ticket to Hollywood. Of course, a small transit fee will be involved. But it won't be $40.

Grapevine, Bonnie & Clyde & American Idol Auditions in Arlington

I have been all over Texas the past several days. It is starting to sort of exhaust me. This morning I did not go far, just up to Grapevine. Grapevine is a very nice little town. Grapevine is where Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is located.

A lot of things in this zone are not located in the place their name would indicate. Like this morning there are people in Arlington all in a huff because American Idol has been advertising auditions soon to take place in the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium. In Dallas. Where there are many attractions to visit.

Somehow the people in Arlington thought that since they helped pay for the stadium, that it was theirs to be associated with. The people of Arlington should have consulted with the people of Irving to learn how it actually works out when you build Dallas a new stadium for their football team.

Today, while visiting Grapevine, I learned that Bonnie & Clyde did a couple of their murders there, killing 2 young motorcycle cops, E.B. Wheeler and H.D. Murphy. I think the actual murders may have taken place in what is now Southlake. I believe there is a historical marker.

I don't know if I'm going to go anywhere else in Texas today. I need a break. Yesterday I went to Fredericksburg, in two places, here and here. That is too much Fredericksburg for one day.

Eminent Domain, YouTube, Dallas Cowboy Stadium & Texas

When someone comments on this blog I get sent an email with that comment, with the option to publish or reject. When someone makes a comment to one of my YouTube videos I also get an email, but it is to an email address I seldom check.

So, I was surprised, yesterday, to see how many comments there have been to the video I made that showed some of what was destroyed to build the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium. The building of which I characterize as a scandal, due to the flagrant abuse of eminent domain to acquire the land for the stadium. An abuse so flagrant that a bill was introduced in the recent session of the Texas legislature to put an end to this type eminent domain abuse in Texas. I don't know if the bill made it into law. I doubt it.

One thing I've long made note of, regarding comments to the blog or YouTube, the more ignorant the person is, the more likely they will verbalize their ignorance in a hostile fashion. I've never understood how it is that someone who is ignorant is so oblivious about their ignorance that they are confident to advertise their ignorance in comment form. One would think if one was ignorant one would be a bit shy of verbalizing an opinion. Or, maybe part of being ignorant is being ignorant of being ignorant.

Of the YouTube comments the most ignorant was one where the commenter opined that what was done in Arlington is not a scandal because "nothing illegal happened. Jerry Jones bought the land, and built on it. All the people and business that were there would have had to agree and sell their property for him to build it. Who ever made this is kinda dumb?"

Whoever made this is kinda dumb? While this ignorant moron has no awareness that dozens of people did not willingly sell their land and homes, hence the scandal, with many of the cases still being argued in court.

Anyway, below are most of the YouTube comments, with the video that got them commenting below the comments.....

yikeroo3
Thank you for this. My family were among the Dallas Cowboy's and Jerry Jones victims. We were forced out of our home of over 25 years. I will never forgive or forget this. A stadium could have been built without doing this to people. There is plenty of open land in Arlington. The shame of this will forever stain the town of Arlington and the Dallas Cowboys with Jerry Jones answering to God, in the unlikely chance that that it is to heaven he is going when he dies.

Blu53
I assume by "Don't ever do this again," you mean don't ever abuse owners of private property again like what was done in Arlington. Well, Arlington is already shell-shocked enough by their growing national bad rep for their part in emiment domain abuse that Arlington is telling Jerry Jones they will not be party to more eminent domain use for his project. The power of the internet to enlighten and inform is amazing.

M2200
I'm as disgusted as you are about what was done in Arlington to get the Cowboys a new stadium. Don't these morons realize this isn't how this type thing is done in the rest of the country? Eminent domain exists so that the public can take private land for the public good. Like roads, hospitals and schools. Not for football stadiums. A person should be secure in their home and should be removed from their home for only the best of reasons.

robabyluv
And NO PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION!

blue99blue
Stadium name: Hickville
Welcome to Hickville.

Mikey78418
It's "inbred", you quasi-literate buffoon.

alanpetsche
I've lived in Arlington since 1966 and the apartments that were the vast majority of the buildings that were torn down were havens for criminals and crack dealers. That area of town was responsible for the highest total cost of police calls in all of Tarrant County. The last holdout homeowner received $1.5 million for her house. Everyone who lived or owned a business there got paid well. Scandal my ass.

IronMaidenBeast1982
Then try and get a loan to try and buy a ticket for a game, loser...

Mikey78418
Woah, lookit the internet tough guy! Bruce Dickinson's a fag.

IronMaidenBeast1982
..and you are still a tool!

Mikey78418
That may be true, but at least I'm not a pathetic internet tough guy.

IronMaidenBeast1982
How am I being an "internet tough guy", you douchebag?  Because I called you a loser, a tool, and a douchebag? That`s not being tough--that`s being honest!

turduckens4u
You meen built of the ruins of slums i think. Old run down, even though they were your homes. You have the right to protest and i feel for you but the new stadium will also bring millions worth of buisness and jobs to the state year round. I say make another.

PowrSurge
I lived in Arlington when it all went down. Jerry did get this built legally. But I have to side with the fellow who made this video. If he is such an idiot, why did 13 states immediately pass laws restricting the use of eminent domain? It should be used for public use, i.e., airport, freeway, etc., but not for a private entity.

trendsetter74
destroyed property my ass, they bought the land from ever person there so quit your bitching, this will bring a lot of extra revenue into arlington and in these times, more revenue and more jobs are a great thing.

theonetitty
this guy must have lived in one of the homes destroyed to build it. its not really a scandal cause nothing illegal happened? Jerry Jones bought the land, and built on it. all the people and businesses that were there would have had to agree and sell their property for him to build it. who ever made this is kinda dumb. sorry

69SoccerMVP69
Why the Hell did this guy make this video. Who cares what was destroyed to make this stadium. When this opens its going to be Bad Ass. I live in Dallas and this staduim is BEAST!!

allpeeps4me
ATTENTION all DALLAS fans!!!**!!! WITH THIS NEW STADIUM NEEDS TO COME NEW FANS!!!!! WE HAVE TO BE LOUDER, ALL WEAR THE SAME COLOR AND START CHANTS LIKE NO NFL STADIUMS HAVE EVER DONE... WE NEED A CRAZY FIGHT SONG THAT WE ALL SING AT THE TOP OF OUR LUNGS, WE NEED TO HAVE TOWELS AND FLAGS AND BANNERS..... WE NEED TO BE MORE LIKE COLLEGE FOOTBALL FANS AND HARDCORE EURO SOCCER FANS......if you are truly a fan of the ALMIGHTY COWBOYS OF DALLAS copypaste this on every COWBOYS video spread the word

blue99blue
Stadium name: Hickville
Welcome to Hickville.

blue99blue
Dallas is full of inbread hillbillies.

tscon55
aww boo hoo

TYX91101
The stadium is a major upgrade to the Arlington neighborhood. Combined with the Ballpark, Six Flags, and the hotels and restaurants on Lamar Blvd it forms a family friendly destination for year round recreation and sporting events. There's no shortage of real estate in Texas.

K80blogfan
L
O
L

copznrobbas
yay no more ranger's field fireworks blasting off right outside my window. city kickin us out had to be the greatest day off my life. mansfield is such a better city

thomasuras
you said 'However it is still sad that all those memories took place in a small run down neighborhood that no longer exist " yea its real said to see those run down neighborhoods in detroit that are still run down with out a new stadium , look up some of those videos

furrflys
wow thats wierd to watch. we were relocated due to the new cowboy stadium. we were some of the last to leave. it's very surreal to watch your nieghbor hood where you live be torn down around you. I'm not whining about it, we are now much better off for having moved. However it is still sad that all those memories took place in a small run down nieghborhood that no longer exists

phatmattcowboys
pussies stop compaining

SFFOOL76
tell u what, im gonna get enough money to build a poop factory where your house is.