Warm Lucy Park Walk Over Water With Blackened Turkey Pot Pie Casserole

Warmth has returned to the outer world at my North Texas location.

Along with a mostly blue sky.

So, on this final day of the 2022 version of February, it was back to Lucy Park I went today, with minimalist outerwear of t-shirt and shorts, with last week's deep freeze a fading bad memory.

Being in Lucy Park would seem to indicate that that which you are looking at above is the crystal-clear water of the fast moving Wichita River, as viewed from the middle of the Lucy Park suspension bridge.

Totally change of subject.

I made turkey pot pie casserole this morning, before driving to Lucy Park. I thought I turned the oven off at the end of the pie's baking time. A half hour after that I returned to the kitchen to discover I had not turned the oven off, but instead had turned the temperature knob to high broil.

A half hour at high broil rendered the turkey pot pie casserole into being Cajun blackened turkey pot pie casserole. 

I was able to easily remove the black top, and that which had been under the broiled black top remained totally tasty.

I really need to work at being more detail oriented...

Us Dickie's Loving Trendsetters With Our Unique Fort Worth Fashion Style

 

That which you see above was the top story in this Sunday's, February 27 online edition of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

This is the goofiest delusional Star-Telegram headline since way back near the start of this century, when another Sunday edition of the Star-Telegram touted "TRINITY UPTOWN TO TURN FORT WORTH INTO VANCOUVER OF THE SOUTH",

20 years later Fort Worth is no closer to being the Vancouver of the South, than it was way back then.

Trinity Uptown morphed into being the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision, better known as America's Biggest, Dumbest Boondoggle.

Does Fort Worth have a fashion style is the question the Star-Telegram is asking today.

Well, first off, I must say it is this type delusional nonsense which I have long made fun of due to it being so absurd.

Fort Worth being the Vancouver of the South with a unique fashion style.

According to the Star-Telegram the Fort Worth fashion style somehow revolves around workwear from Dickie's. 

Dickie's is a clothes making company located in Fort Worth. Dickie's bought the naming rights to Fort Worth's multi-purpose facility, now known as Dickie's Arena.

Ironically, I have a Dickie's jacket just like the one the guy in the above photo is modeling. I had no clue I was being Fort Worth fashionable when wearing this jacket, which I did as recently as yesterday, whilst walking in the cold at Lucy Park in Wichita Falls.

Does this mean Wichita Falls has a unique fashion style too?

Icy Saturday Lucy Park Walk With Gas

On this final Saturday of the 2022 version of February my smiley face was able to get outdoors for the first time in a couple days of being icebound. 

There are still some slippery spots, but they are now navigable.

Russia had not yet invaded Ukraine when last I had exited my abode. So, today was the first chance to get gassed before the price goes way up.

On Thursday, that being the last day I saw the gas station I gassed at today, gas was $2.98 a gallon. Now, a few days later, it has only gone up a dime, to $3.08. 

This time of year, when the temperature hovers around freezing, I tend not to fill the tank. Today the tank got filled, figuring who knows what is coming next. Huge price hike. Or a disruption to the gas supply. Who knows?

Had a relatively fine time walking around Lucy Park after getting gassed. I did not expect there to be many people in the park today. I was wrong. There were multiple groups of disc golfers. And a couple joggers. And one guy finding pecans in the snow.

By tomorrow ice should no longer be an issue.

I hope...

Mysterious Arrival In My Mailbox Of COVID-19 Self-Test Kits

At some point in time, yesterday, between five and six, I tired of being snowbound.

So, I put on a few layers of outerwear and slid my way to the mailbox.

Opening the mailbox I saw a package was inside.

I was not expecting a package. I took the package out of the mailbox and saw that it was not from Amazon, which was my initial assumption, assuming I'd forgotten I'd ordered something.

Returning to indoor warm comfort I opened the package, which was packaged in several layers, with the final layer being bubble wrap.

Breaking through the bubble wrap I was surprised to find that which you see photo documented.

Two COVID-19 Self-Test At Home Antigen Rapid Test kits, with each kit containing two tests.

Is this something that everyone is being mailed without initiating it via some request method? 

I do have one other possible explanation.

I suspect Linda Lou caused these Self Tests to be mailed to me.

Because a couple days ago Linda Lou told me she had acquired several COVID test kits, along with a supply of N95 masks.

I currently feel fine.

I shall wait til I don't feel fine, and then take one of these tests...
 

Day Two Of Wichita Falls Deep Freeze

Day two of being in the deep freeze. You are looking at the mid Thursday morning view from my kitchen window. A view which is about the same as yesterday's mid morning view from my kitchen window.

We are not scheduled to return to being warmed above freezing til tomorrow. And before that happens more snow is scheduled to arrive sometime this afternoon.

Yesterday, around five in the afternoon I had grown stir crazy from being snowbound. So, I layered on the layers and ventured out to the mailbox. I figured if it did not seem too slippery on the walk to the mailbox I'd see if my vehicle was also stable on the icy snow and able to take me to Walmart.

Well.

See that road in the photo. That is Taft Boulevard. About where you can not see the road anymore is where it intersects with Southwest Boulevard. During our last ice event I had trouble getting traction at that intersection. But not too much trouble.

Last night as I headed to the intersection the light was green. I thought I'd sail right through. And then the light turned red, with plenty of room for me to come to a stop. And so I did.

Whilst waiting for the light to return to green I tested to see if I had traction. I did not. The tires spun, without moving me.

I was able to back up, because the traction problem was caused by this intersection having a slight slope, allowing me to slide in reverse.

There were no cars behind me. I tried to go forward. Again I started to slide.

Soon there were cars behind me. I went through an entire light cycle from green back to red, blocking traffic.

I started to back up, again, the cars behind me saw what I was trying to do, and also backed up. This time I backed up far enough that going forward I had enough momentum to go forward.

Trouble then was the light had turned back to red.

But, vehicles heading west on Southwest saw what I was trying to do and stayed put while I was able to turn right to head west on Southwest. And then at the first turn around opportunity I turned around and headed east to Walmart, without further slipping of a serious nature.

No matter how stir crazy I get today I am not venturing out. Not even to the mailbox...

Wichita Falls Covered In Snow Again Chilled To One Degree Below Zero

I had hoped we were done with this until next winter, but the view above is what I saw when I looked out my kitchen window this Wednesday morning.

The weather forecasting gurus were wrong about yesterday's temperature, which had been predicted to potentially soar into the 80s.

But the Arctic Blast arrived instead, putting North Texas in a deep freeze a day earlier than expected.

As you can see via the below screen cap from the Wichita Falls Times News Record, it is real cold out there with the wind chill making 17 degrees feel like -1 degrees.

I won't be going walking at Lucy Park, Lake Wichita Park, Sikes Lake or the Wichita Bluff Nature Area today...

Warm Wichita Bluff Hiking With Record Breaking Hoodoo

Monday arrived warm, as promised by the weather gurus.

By the time I arrived at the west entry to the Wichita Bluffs Nature Area, an hour before noon, the outer world was heated into the mid 70s.

Google Fit, on my phone, calculated that during my walk on the bluffs I had 37 Move Minutes, covering a little over two miles.

I have no clue how accurate this Google Fit thing is, but it seems nice to get feedback of this sort, even though no clue as to the accuracy level.

The main Wichita Bluff's Hoodoo Cairn location was sporting the tallest Hoodoo I have yet seen in Wichita Falls. This erection must have sprung up after the gale force winds blew in over the weekend.

I walked til I reached the highest bluff elevation, where one first is able to look out to the east.

And so, in the above photo documentation, we are looking east, across the Wichita River, at the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Wichita Falls. 

I enjoyed doing the hill hiking today for the first time since I had an unfortunate slip on ice which left me battered and bruised. And sore.

Tomorrow the weather gurus predict another HOT day, followed by Wednesday's Arctic Blast blowing into town, with snow possible.

Google Takes Me Back To White Rock Lake In Dallas

Is everyone with a Google account getting these daily emails purporting to be photos of memories tied to a specific day, which usually make no sense?

At least today I do remember the location in the photos, which often is not the case.

The above are all photos of White Rock Lake in Dallas.

Earlier this century I frequently frequented White Rock Lake and the park which surrounds the lake.

This is an extremely popular location. A paved trail goes all around the lake. It reminded me of Green Lake in Seattle, with White Rock Lake being a bigger lake with a much longer trail around it.

I have roller bladed all the way around White Rock Lake, and Green Lake. White Rock Lake was a bit more challenging to roller blade than the flat trail surrounding Green Lake.

In the photos above I am not certain who that is in the upper right photo. It looks like one of the Goober Twins, but I can not tell if it is Wally or Big Ed.

A dam damming a creek is what creates White Rock Lake. When a lot of rain falls the lake spills over the dam's spillway with a rather spectacular waterfall.

It has been so long I wonder if I could find my way to White Rock Lake again. I think the last time I was there was when mom and dad made their final visit, back in January of 2009.

Go to the White Rock Lake webpage I made years ago and you'll see photos of the various scenes you see at White Rock Lake...

Sunday In Lake Wichita Park Discovering New Circle Trail With Bridges

On this next to last Sunday of the 2022 version of February, what with the temperature being almost summer-like, I decided to get my daily endorphin dose by doing some fast walking at Lake Wichita Park.

Arriving at the park's parking lot I saw the tide was out, and a strong wind was making waves and whitecaps.

I walked off the Circle Trail to trailblaze the open land around Mount Wichita. Eventually I came to the location where many months ago I came upon the start of construction of a new section of the Circle Trail.

Today I decided to take a closer look at the current state of the new section of Circle Trail, and soon found myself surprised by what I found.

A short distance from the current Circle Trail I came upon rebar ready for cement. And a slight distance further I saw new trail already cemented. I figured the already cemented section likely was not too long, and so continued on to walk on it.

Soon I was surprised to come upon two bridges on the new section of Circle Trail, crossing a pair of inlets off Lake Wichita.

Above we are at the end of the first bridge, with the second bridge ahead.

About a half mile after crossing those bridges I came to the current end of this new section of Circle Trail. And so, I turned around to head back to start.

In the above photo we are on that second bridge, heading back to cross that first bridge.

In the above location we are almost back to where we started walking on the new section of trail. That is Mount Wichita hovering over the horizon, along with hovering over the parking lot on which my vehicle is parked.

Fun walk today. Went further than my norm. Tomorrow we are scheduled to get heated to somewhere in the 80s. And then on Wednesday winter returns, with the temperature not going above freezing, with snow possible.

I am looking forward to the arrival of Spring in a little over a month from now...

Saturday Going To Library Takes Me To Lucy Park Finding Huge Green Blob

The morning of this next to last Saturday of the 2022 version of February I found myself in need of going to downtown Wichita Falls, to the library, to secure a fresh supply of reading material.

Since I was in the neighborhood, and sine warm air with zero wind had returned, I went from the library to Lucy Park. 

Instead of my usual walking on the paved trails, or the Lucy Park backwoods, today I opted for the cross country, off trail means of meandering about.

Doing such took me up close for the first time to one of the 'holes' that disc golfers try to throw their discs into. That is what you see photo documented above.

Continuing on I walked across a huge open space of brown grass, zero trails, and few trees.

In that huge open space I came up that big green blob of foliage which is somehow managing to remain green whilst all else is some shade of brown.

Soon after seeing the big green blob I came open a tree void of leaves, but sporting the round orangish-brown balls you see dangling like Christmas tree ornaments.

It has been nice, today, to have the temperature back in the 60s, after the past couple days of brutal cold blowing strong winds.

Incoming possible snow is in the forecast for the coming week...

Today I Did Not Get Shanghaied On The Way To Lucy Park

It was back to Lucy Park I went today on this next to last Friday of the 2022 version of February.

Yesterday was so cold and windy I did not feel like layering on sufficient layerage to facilitate keeping warm.

So, I went to ALDI instead.

On the way to ALDI I got Shanghaied by a croaky voiced, semi-elderly great grandmother, with a penchant for telling long, complicated narrations, which are sort of like listening to an audio book, as read by Granny Clampett.

Eventually, after sitting in my vehicle parked on the ALDI parking lot, with the engine off, hence no heat, listening for almost an hour to what was yet one more chapter in a soap opera I've been listening to for what seem to be months, I finally had to tell the croaky voiced great grandmother that I had to terminate the tale and head into ALDI so as to put an end to my shivering.

Anyway, that photo above illustrates why I like going to Lucy Park for some fast walking. So many trails going so many directions.

I do not remember previously showing the Lucy Park attraction you see photo documented above. The Lucy Park Log Cabin. Available to be rented for a birthday party, or other event of the sort which a log cabin would be a useful venue.

I have seen the Lucy Park Log Cabin in event mode many times. Including today. Preparations were under way for something.

Due to little wind, the disc golfers were back disc golfing the Lucy Park disc golf course. And pecan pickers were back picking pecans off the ground.

The outer world chilled to around 23 degrees last night. Warmer air is scheduled to arrive tomorrow.

I'm ready to watch this winter disappear in the rear view mirror...

Windy Wednesday Walk In Lucy Park

Rain and thunderstorms are scheduled to arrive at some point on this next to last Wednesday of the 2022 version of February.

So, with a steady wind blowing around 20 miles per hour, with gusts gusting over 40 miles per hour, this morning I drove to Lucy Park for a windy commune with nature.

Due to the wind there were zero disc golfers tossing discs today. I don't remember when last I was at Lucy Park and saw no disc golfers.

There were a couple pecan pickers. I think the pecan pickers show up when it is windy thinking the wind will be knocking some new pecans to the ground.

The above photo documentation does not do justice to documenting how windy it was. A gust knocked my hat off, at one point.

I did not have too much trouble retrieving the blowing hat...

Cupid Valentine's Day Card From That Special Someone

Tootsie Tonasket, also known as Aunt Alice, sent me the sweet Valentine's Day card you see above.

Tootsie Aunt Alice enjoys the annual Cupid outing, getting in costume and shooting love arrows at the unsuspecting.

Happy Valentine's Day to one and all...

Warm Walking Lucy Park With No Knead Bread

That is the Side Shadow of the Lucy Park Thin Man you are seeing here.

The temperature returned to being pleasant on this 2022 version of Valentine's Day, and so it was to Lucy Park I drove to have a commune with nature and to acquire some endorphins via aerobic stimulation.

The shadow does not accurately reflect the fact that it was warm enough to be in shorts and a t-shirt.

Last week Linda Lou sent me a link to a YouTube video instructing how to make no knead bread.

Last night, before the Super Bowl, I mixed up a bowl of no knead bread and let it fester overnight.

This morning I baked the load of no knead bread and tested it for lunch today.

It was whole wheat and good. Really good. And easy to make. However, I have not often made anything with flour, or requiring sprinkling flour on a flat surface for dough rolling purposes.

So, I learned flour can turn into a bit of a white dust storm. I'll likely make no knead bread again. But, not today, and probably not tomorrow.

Continuing on from no knead bread to walking around Lucy Parik.

 With that clear blue sky and the brown grass, the above Lucy Park view looks warm.

And so it was...

No Cold Walking Past Local Crime Scene Tape

Too cold to go on a pleasant outdoor walk today. So, I went to ALDI and Walmart instead. Prior to leaving my abode, looking out the kitchen window, I saw police car lights flashing a short distance south, at the intersection of Southwest and Taft Boulevards.

I figured there had been a wreck, hence the multiple police cars.

An hour or two later I returned to my abode via the Southwest Boulevard route. That stops me at a stoplight for the turn left onto Taft. 

When I reached that location I was surprised to still see multiple police vehicles. And yellow crime scene tape strewn all around the perimeter of the property.

I suspect it will be tomorrow morning via reading the local newspaper online that I will learn what happened. A robbery gone bad? A shooting? Something else?

Oh, and it is my little sister's birthday today.

Happy Birthday, Jackie!

UPDATE: After hitting the publish post button I went to the Wichita Falls Times New Record. Turns out I did not have to wait til Sunday morning to find out what happened...

Not Too Painful Walk Around Sikes Lake With No Goose Attacks

Tomorrow it will be a week since I had myself a bruising crash to the icy snow covered ground on the MSU campus. 

Yesterday it was painful walking the backwoods zone of Lucy Park.

I was going to take a break from doing anything strenuous whilst vertical, but by mid-morning I was feeling cooped up and in need of fresh air.

So, it was to Sikes Lake I drove to take a leisurely walk around the lake. It was less painful than yesterday's walk.

What you are looking at above is part of the dam which backs up incoming creek water, causing Sikes Lake to be a lake. As you can see, a fence keeps walkers from falling into the dam spillway abyss. 

The geese were well behaved today. None chased me, unlike the previous Sikes Lake visit.

The geese appeared to be enjoying the warmth. There were no goose flotillas in the lake.

All the geese were in sitting mode, no waddling, no honking, just sitting, like the birds in Hitchcock's The Birds, acting all peaceful before going into attack mode...

Bruising Lucy Park Walk With Tyrannosaurus Rex

It was back to Lucy Park I took my aching self this morning for a semi-fast waddle through the Lucy Park backwoods.

It was way back last Saturday I slipped and fell on hard ice. I saw no bruising in the aching area til this morning.

I would take a photo of the bruise for photo documentation purposes, except the bruise is in an area where my shy modesty prohibits me from sharing it.

It is on the left side of my upper hip zone where the bruise is located. But it is the opposite side, the side that did not hit the ground, that hurts bad whilst walking. 

I've always known falling is hard on the elderly. Now I have first hand experience confirming that fact.

By the time I got back to where I started I sat on a bench for a moment or two, looking at the Lucy Park dinosaur bones from a side I had not looked at before.

It was from this view, above, I realized, for the first time, that this is a partially exposed dinosaur fossil. 

Tail, midsection and head.

Looks like a Tyrannosaurus Rex to me.

I think I will take a break from walking, hiking, biking and roller blading til the bruising abates...

Warm Walking With New Mountain Bike Gloves Making German Burritos

These shoes are made for walking, and walking they are going to do, and if you get in their way, they'll walk all over you.

This morning these shoes walked all over Lucy Park, including crossing the Lucy Park suspension bridge over the Wichita River, where my shoes stopped so I could take a photo, photo documenting we are back enjoying sunny warm weather.

Shorts and t-shirt temperatures and, unlike yesterday, not at all chilly due to wind.

Gel padded mountain bike gloves arrived from Amazon in today's mail. So, now I can resume mountain biking if the mood to roll wheels strikes me. 

A few weeks ago I noticed one of my mountain bike gloves was missing. No amount of searching turned up the missing glove. I figured if I ordered a new pair that would cause the missing glove to show up.

So far that missing glove remains missing.

I used my new found burrito rolling skills creatively for lunch. I boiled some bratwurst, squirted mustard all over a tortilla, put the bratwurst on the tortilla, with sharp cheese and sauerkraut. Then rolled them up like a burrito. In the oven for 10 minutes and out came a tasty German-themed burrito.

Tomorrow the Instant Pot is making wonton soup. Don't be late for lunch or it will likely be all gone...

Tuesday At Sikes Lake With Hoodoos, Joggers, Walkers, Waddlers & Mad Geese

With the ice and snow almost completely gone, except where snow plows piled it into lingering mountains of snow, I had myself a slip free fast walk around Sikes Lake on this 2nd Tuesday of the 2022 version of February.

I was in shorts and t-shirt mode for the walk around the lake. A strong wind made for a chill which made for extra fast walking in order to warm up.

The deep freeze appears to have sprouted some new Hoodoo Cairns at Sikes Lake, such as the balancing acts you see above, and below.

The above Hoodoo Cairns sprouted near the dam which blocks the flow of water and created the lake.

There were a lot of people enjoying the return to a pleasant temperature at Sikes Lake today. Several joggers, lots of walkers, a few waddlers.

I was chased by an aggressive goose today. I do not know what triggered the attempted attack. The monster was honking loudly and making that weird goose hissing noise whilst sticking out its tongue. I was able to quickly run away from the beast.

Tomorrow is scheduled to be warmer. Maybe it is time for my first bike ride of the new year...

Back To Lucy Park Finding Some Snow & Not Falling

That last time I went on a long walk was last Saturday. During that walk I slipped on icy snow and fell hard on hard cement. I thought I would end up with multiple bruises in multiple locations, but, that did not happen.

This morning Doctor McNutt diagnosed that pain from a fall such as this sometimes shows up a day or two later. I scoffed at the doctor's suggestion, and said I was pain free.

And then, an hour or two later I was doing my regular, usually pain-free yoga routine, to quickly find out I have a few sore hotspots.

I decided a walk would be extremely salubrious in my current painful condition. And so it was to Lucy Park I drove.

You can tell via the photo I took of myself that I am in pain. I can barely muster a slight gigglemug.

Lucy Park must have been plowed during the recent unpleasantness, as evidenced by multiple mountain-like piles of snow, such as you see above.

Little ice or snow remained on the paved trails. There are still patches of white in various locations. In a day or two there should be no remaining evidence that this unfortunate coating of white cold happened.

Now it is time for another dose of ibuprofen...

Sunday Snow In Rapid Retreat With Celery Soup

The sunny Sunday noonish view from my kitchen window.

The snow is quickly retreating. With any luck the retreat will be the last we see of snow and ice til next winter.

Even though the outer world is pleasantly temperatured today, with the snow mostly gone, I did not feel like any outdoor activity due to there being some lingering soreness from yesterday's slip on the ice.

So, this morning consisted of heavy duty soreness abating yoga, then making burritos and celery soup.

Two pounds of celery and still the celery soup did not taste like celery. Supposedly celery is now a superfood with all sorts of salubrious benefits. I'm in the mood for any sort of salubrious benefit.

Yesterday I watched a YouTube video showing how to fold a tortilla into a burrito. The demonstrator made it look so easy. The reality ended up being better burritos than I've made before, but not to the caliber of the demonstrator. I think I need bigger tortillas and to lighten up on the amount of filling.

Cross Country Snow Walking With MSU Hard Fall

With the temperature above freezing for the first time in a couple days, I thought it a good idea to venture out and see if I could acquire some endorphins via fast walking. So, I drove to nearby Sikes Lake and saw the paved trail was still covered with ice and snow.

So, that was a no go. 

I thought the MSU (Midwestern State University) campus might have ice and snow free sidewalks, so I ventured across the street from Sikes Lake and soon saw the campus did look somewhat walkable.

I parked at the north side of the campus in a parking lot mostly void of ice and snow. I walked west and soon came to the herd of Mavericks you see above, frolicking in the snow.

Leaving the Maverick herd I found myself walking on snow. Doing this seemed not slippery at all.

Until I took a fast fall on the way to the cracked Liberty Bell. The fall happened in an instant, with a hard butt and shoulder landing. There likely will be some bruising. I quickly got back vertical and made my way to that bell.

I have never learned why the MSU campus has a replica of the cracked Liberty Bell. This is the area where way back in December the MSU Fantasy of Lights was located. 

Continuing on I soon came to the MSU homage to bike riding. And the Hotter 'N Hell 100. 

From this location, back to my vehicle did not seem to present any slipping danger. But, I was ultra cautious nonetheless.

I am going to venture out into it again in a few hours, to go to ALDI, hoping the shelves are no longer bare, such as was the case last Tuesday, before the snow storm arrived...

Day Two Being Snowbound In Texas

The view from my kitchen window is a bit brighter than yester morning's cold gray view.

But, the view is still cold. Currently only 15 degrees above zero.

I will be remaining snowbound again today. I think. 

We are supposed to go above freezing tomorrow. I hope the heat melts enough of the snow and ice to make being mobile, outside, to not be too treacherous.

So far the power has not had a single burp.

This morning my entertainment has mostly been provided by Winnie the Whiner, whining in Facebook Messenger about things not remotely whine worthy, when there are so many things to whine about which are actually whine worthy....

Snowbound Thursday In Freezing Texas

 Above is the view from my kitchen window around 8 in the morning on the first Thursday of the 2022 version of February.

We began icing up around noon yesterday. By late afternoon a coating of white coated the coating of ice. Even though it already looked to be treacherous driving conditions, I was seeing a lot of vehicular movement, with no slipping and sliding noted. 

So, I decided it might be fun to drive to Walmart. The closest Walmart is about a mile distant. I only slipped once. Above, you are looking at Taft Boulevard covered in white. A short distance south, Taft intersects with Southwest Boulevard. I had no trouble braking at the red light at Taft and Southwest. But, when the light turned green, my wheels did a bit of slipping and sliding before getting some traction.

That sliding had me a bit nervous because the route to Walmart includes two inclines. Not at all steep, but steep enough that ice and snow could make them slippery. 

But, the slipping at that first stop proved to be the only slipping and sliding I experienced during that short drive, both going and returning to my abode.

Walmart had a surprisingly large number of people braving the elements. The walk across the parking lot was slightly dicey, but I saw no one slip and fall. I did make note of the fact that this type weather greatly reduces the usual high number of plus-sized people I see waddling around Walmart.

Below is a screenshot from my phone, taken a few minutes ago.

I don't think I will be venturing out today. Or tomorrow, by the looks of the forecast. I wish I still had cross country skis. They'd be fun on the Circle Trail....

Pre-Deep Freeze ALDI & Walmart Swamped By Worried Hoarders

Pre the incoming weather apocalypse I went to Walmart and ALDI last night. I do not ever recollect seeing the Walmart parking lot almost totally full. Inside the store it was mayhem. Long checkout lines. Some areas bare of goods. I got one of the last three cartons of eggs.

And then I went across the street to ALDI, because I wanted oranges and some other stuff.

I entered ALDI to see what you see above. The produce area virtually totally wiped out. On the right of that lady entering the store is usually stacked with things like carrots, cucumbers spinach, cilantro, grapes, stuff like that. Little remained. On the left is where I would normally find oranges, lettuce, cabbage, apples, and other like things. 

Further down the aisle, on the right of the guy in green with a cane, is the bread section. Totally wiped out. At the end of the entry aisle you come to the meat section. Also totally wiped out.

And so it went throughout ALDI. When did this hoarding frenzy begin? I don't recollect this level of this type thing happening previously.

So far, at a little past 8, Wednesday morning, we are still above freezing.

By one degree.

Going below freezing, along with precipitation, in the form of sleet and snow, is scheduled to begin in a few hours.

I'm well stocked with food products. My only woe will come if the power goes out. And stays out for days...

Last Lucy Park Visit Before Incoming Winter Storm

This first day of the 2022 version of February is likely the last time, for awhile, that I will be going to Lucy Park for a salubrious nature walk. 

Or any other outdoor walking location.

A cold front blows in tomorrow, with ice and snow.

Today's walk was at a t-shirt and shorts temperature.

In the above photo we are looking south at the Wichita River from the backwoods location in Lucy Park.

The east exit point from the Lucy Park backwoods is at the location of the Lucy Park Pagoda.

I thought the pagoda looked particularly imposing, looking up at it from below the bluff on which it sits.

I still have not learned the why of this Pagoda in Lucy Park.

When I got back to my vehicle, at a few minutes past noon, I checked the weather on my phone and took a screenshot, which is what you see below.

It is unsettling how rapidly the Texas weather can change. I am hoping we get through this incoming storm without losing power, or it turning into an ice storm. 

I do not like ice storms....