Happy Halloween From Disneyland With Goofy, Cade and Cambri June

I had my phone muted til a couple minutes ago. When I un-muted it I saw I had an incoming text message, with photo documentation, sent from a California town called Anaheim, and a specific location called Disneyland.

The text message...

"Took the grandkids to Disneyland for a few days. Too much fun!!!"

And the photo documentation is that which you see above.

Left to right, my absolutely favorite brother-in-law, Jack, standing next to his first wife, my second youngest sister, Jackie. 

Goofy is standing next to Jackie. We aren't related.

Then we have my one and only niece-in-law, Carissa, holding baby Cambri June, who can't be more than four months old. That would make that Carissa's first husband, my no longer little nephew, Christoper, holding his first born, Cade Christopher Weston.

Are there any Disneyland rides geared for little babies that are months from being able to walk? 

Seeing this has me realizing it has been almost 30 years since I have been to Disneyland. Christmas day, 1995. Stayed til closing time. Was so exhausted by the end of that day at Disneyland. 

Seeing a photo of little Cade is a tad startling. Cade looks just like his dad looked when he was a little kid. Cade's dad was such a fun little kid. The memories seem so recent, but they are decades old.

I wonder if the reason the Westons are in the Los Angeles zone is because they thought they might be going to a World Series game.

I remember the last time the Mariners had a real good season it was in the 1990s. They played in the now long-gone Kingdome. I remember watching one of those games from the McDonald's luxury suite, high up in the Kingdome.

This memory came up recently, with me not able to remember how I got to the Kingdome that day. Was it my sister or my brother-in-law who guided me to the McDonald's suite? Had to have been one of them, or both.

Anyway, Happy Halloween, everyone!

Strong Wind Blows Me To Lucy Park For Chilly Nature Communing

At my Texas location on the planet the wind has been busy blowing hard the last two days, with gusts nearing 50 miles per hour.

I am just about 100% this particular wind gusting has nothing to do with that super powerful Melissa Hurricane which is wreaking havoc a few miles to the east and south of my location.

It was to Lucy Park I opted to venture for some nature communing and endorphin acquisition and dodging blowing debris.

As you can see via the photo documentation of the Lucy Park suspension bridge over the Wichita River, the leaves have only barely began to lose their green color. That green color may start rapidly departing after tonight, as the first freeze of the freezing season is predicted for the next couple nights.

The wind chill today had me out of shorts and in sweatpants and a long sleeve shirt for the first time in many months. Seems weird to go so rapidly from being in the 90s a couple days ago, to freezing tonight.

The route to Lucy Park takes me by MSU (Midwestern State University). I was shocked, shocked I tell you, to see the annual MSU Christmas display is already arriving. I forget the formal name of this HUGE installation. I think it is Burns something or other.

We have not even arrived at Halloween yet. Why is Christmas arriving so soon?

Nature Communing On Lake Wichita Dam Whilst Staying Off The Dam's Hazardous Spillway

With the weather forecast forecasting thunderstorms and heavy rain for this next to last Friday of the 2025 version of October, it was to Lake Wichita Dam I ventured for some salubrious outdoor nature communing and potential lightning strike dodging whilst totally exposed to such on the Circle Trail on top of the dam.

But, no lightning struck, or could be seen striking in any direction. And nary a drop of rain dripped whilst I was out and about, exposed to the elements.

In the photo above I am about to walk out on the Lake Wichita Boardwalk. This is an extremely nice addition to the lake, which was added a couple years ago.

And now we are at the end of the boardwalk, looking northwest at the Mount Wichita pseudo volcano, in the distance.

It has been a few years, I think pre-COVID, when last I trekked to the summit of Mount Wichita. The trek had seemed to have become a tad treacherous, so not wanting to twist an ankle, or worse, I terminated doing any local mountain climbing.

The bizarre sign you see above has been added since last I visited this location, where a spur off the Circle Trail leads to overlooking the Lake Wichita dam's spillway.

The bizarre sign says...

DANGER!
HAZARDOUS RECIRCULATING

CURRENTS BELOW THIS DAM

CAN TRAP AND DROWN A VICTIM

So, why would I say that this sign is a bit bizarre. Well. It has been years, maybe also not since pre-COVID, that I have seen Lake Wichita at a high enough level that water was spilling over the spillway.

There may have been a time or two in the past several years where enough rain fell to cause some water to spill over the spillway for a short period, but not long enough to drown the vegetation that has grown thick near the dam's spillway.

And certainly not at a level to present any sort of danger to anyone foolish enough to climb out on the dam's spillway that was currently spilling water.

We are no past noon. And still not even a hint of anything stormy....

Sunny Semi-Chilly October Wednesday Sikes Lake Walk Around

The outer world temperature at my North Texas location dropped into the 40s, last night, as measured by the Fahrenheit method.  Thus, I found need of a thin blanket in the middle of the night.

The big chill has not cooled the running water which runs into my abode enough to make a cold shower need some hot water added.

An hour and a half before noon, on this next to last Wednesday of the 2025 version of October, the temperature had risen to 70 degrees, again as measured by that aforementioned Fahrenheit method.

Which made for a pleasant, sunny, semi-cool walk around Sikes Lake, which you see photo documented above, from the lake's rocky east shore, looking slightly southwest.

The next few days are predicted to be stormy, with the storms in the form of rain and thunderstorms.

And continued semi-chilly temperatures

Windy Shadow of The Lucy Park Thin Man Hiking Backwoods Jungle

 

It was to Lucy Park I ventured this next to last Monday of the 2025 version of October, for some extremely breezy nature communing, with wind gusts nearing 50 mph at times.

You can sort of see my shorts are being wind whipped, via the above photo documentation of the Shadow of the Lucy Park Thin Man.

For many months now I have not been able to hike the trail around the Lucy Park Backwoods Jungle, because the last time the Wichita River went into flood mode it left behind a big log jam on top of the trail, with extremely tall grass preventing walking around the log jam.

One does not make their way through extremely tall grass in a place where one has seen extremely big snakes.

Today, when I saw the tall grass had been mowed, I was optimistic the log jam had been removed. But, as you can see via the photo below, the log jam is still jamming the original Lucy Park Backwoods Jungle trail.

But, what you cannot see in the photo of the log jam is that a new trail has been blazed, around the log jam. 

So, for the first time in a long time I was able to hike the entire Lucy Park Backwoods Jungle. This pleased me greatly.

I can tell I acquired a lot of endorphins today....

Continuing Bad Beto Wichita Falls Times Record News Experience With NO KINGS Protest Info

This morning when I clicked on the link to the Wichita Falls Times Record News to do my regular morning click on the link to AccuWeather to see what Mother Nature has in store for me for the day, I also scanned through the news headlines.

I scanned through the news headlines because I wanted to see if this town's sad excuse for a newspaper had an article about yesterday's large turnout in Hamilton Park for the NO KINGS Protest.

Nope. Nary a word.

I cancelled my online subscription to this sad excuse for a newspaper months ago. At that point in time I took the comment opportunity to comment that among the many reasons I was cancelling, one of the primary reasons was that for months the list of Top Headlines one sees on the Times Record News home page is "Why did Beto O'Rourke speak in Wichita Falls?".

Back when my subscription was still active, enabling me to click on a headline link, doing so on the Why did Beto O'Rourke speak in Wichita Falls? link opened a page on which there was little information, including no answer to that extremely important question asking why Beto spoke in this town.

As you can see, via the screen cap of today's Times Record News, that vital Beto question is still being asked.

Particularly galling is that note, under the Top Headlines, inside a blue lined rectangle, saying, "We're always working to improve your experience. Let us know what you think."

I let them know what I thought about my experience months ago, but I am still waiting for my experience to be improved.

I never see the hard copy version of this town's sad excuse for a newspaper. Is it any better than the online version? Does the hard copy version repeat that Beto headline day after day after month after month, like the online version does?

I would hope not....

My Old Burlington Washington Hometown NO KING Protest Today

As more and more info comes in about today's NO KINGS Protests 2.0 it is looking like this is shaping up to be an historical event of the rare sort.

I do not remember protests, previously, world-wide, in support of America, in a time of America being in dire need of support.

I don't know if America has ever been at this level of dire support need before, of the current sort, except for, maybe, the Civil War, long ago.

The above image I screen capped from Facebook, moments ago. Today's scene in my old hometown of Burlington, Washington.

A small town. Only about 3,000 in population when I was a resident. Currently closer to 10,000. 

Burlingtonians turned out, on both sides of the town's biggest road, now known as Burlington Boulevard, previously known as Highway 99, before Interstate 5 arrived in the 1960s, a short distance to the west.

The Skagit Breaking Facebook post from which I screen capped the above photo was a video. The video was well done and showed how HUGE the turnout was in Burlington. I can share the Facebook post, on Facebook, but not copy the video to this blog post.

I wish today's NO KINGS Protest in Wichita Falls was as well done, and lively, as I am seeing elsewhere in America, and all over the world....

No Kings At Nephew Jason's Anacortes Washington Fidalgo Drive-In

 Just arrived, email from my Favorite Nephew, Jason, subject "No Kings at Fidalgo Drive-In".

Email included a video, which required enabling something called a Google Drive, or some such thing.

I then made the above screen cap from the video.

There was a lot of horn honking in the video, unlike the no horns honking at the Wichita Falls No Kings Protest I briefly attended a couple hours ago. Set in a park, not on a street.

The Fidalgo Drive-In is in Anacortes, with the main drag, the road which the Fidalgo Drive-In is on, called Commerical Avenue, if I am remembering correctly.

A great location for a protest march, unlike having such in a park.

I've also now seen a video of the No Kings Protest in my other favorite Texas town, Fort Worth. It  was/is HUGE.

From what I have seen most of these protests have been in protest march mode. not stationary, like the one in the town I am in.

Including the HUGE protest marches I've seen photo documented in other countries.

The No Kings Protest 2.0 appears to be historically HUGE, world-wide. Being optimistic, and likely naive, maybe this will be the turning point which heads us back to America being normal again, rather than seeming to be run by lunatics from an insane asylum.

Wichita Falls Hamilton Park Rainy No Kings Protest 2.0

By the time I arrived at Hamilton Park for the No Kings Protest the HUGE Hamilton Park parking lot was full.

I did not bring an umbrella with me, as the rain had ceased raining by the time I left my abode. But, rain had again begun raining by the time I reached Hamilton Park.

Not wanting to get rain soaked my No Kings Protest consisted of a couple drive-bys, snapping photos through my window. With the result being I was only able to photo document a little of the protesting crowd.

I do not know why No Kings Protest 2.0 was switched to Hamilton Park from the No Kings Protest 1.0, which took place in downtown Wichita Falls. 

That protest, last July, saw a lot of protesting action in the form of people driving by, honking their horns. Such drive-by horn honking protest action is not possible at the Hamilton Park location.

My arrival was early in today's 2-hour protest time. With the crowd already noticeably, significantly larger than the July downtown protest crowd.

Had the inclement weather not kept some protestors from protesting, I don't know where they would have parked had they opted to brave the rain and occasional lightning strikes.

Wichita Falls Thunderstorming For No Kings Protest 2.0

An hour, or so, after daybreak broke on this third Saturday morning of the 2025 version of October, a violent thunderstorm arrived, along with heavy rain and wind gusts, as you can see via the photo documentation of the view from my kitchen window.

Well, you can sort of see the heavy rain, but not the wind gusts.

When daybreak did break this morning, I looked out my bedroom window and saw extremely dark clouds, with lightning strikes, in the distance. So distant I heard no thunder, at that point in time.

The menacing looking dark clouds were to the south, over the next county in that direction, known as Archer County.

Yesterday I saw no weather forecasts forecasting any storm action.

It is an hour and a half til the start of the Wichita Falls version of No Kings Protest 2.0. 

The weather forecast is currently now forecasting storm action during the protest time frame.

The Wichita Falls version of No Kings Protest 1.0, took place in downtown Wichita Falls and featured a surprising, to me, large crowd. Along with a lot of people driving by showing support via horn honking.

Today's Wichita Falls No Kings Protest 2.0 is taking place less than a mile north of my home location.

In Hamilton Park.

Hamilton Park is accessed via Hamilton Boulevard.

Hamiliton Boulevard is one of the roads in the Wichita Falls area I have long referred to as the Beverly Hill of Wichita Falls. Due to so many giant mansions with massive yards.

I'm thinking my participation in No Kings Protest 2.0 is now weather dependent. I rather enjoyed the previous No Kings Protest, back in July. Today's is predicted to be larger.

We shall see....

Microsoft Remembering Linda Lou In Arizona Stroganoffing South Mountain

Today's Microsoft OneDrive Memories from this Day are a rare instance where my memory indicates the memory could have happened on this October day of a year gone by.

The year would be 2018.

Seven years ago.

During the time frame of the years 2017 through 2019 I found myself flying and driving to Arizona multiple times.

One of those times was in October of 2018, staying a month in an Airbnb in Sun Lakes, Arizona.

Whilst I was in Arizona, that October, Miss Linda Lou, from Washington, flew down to stay with us in the Airnb for a few days.

During that time frame I had me a mighty fine time driving Linda Lou, Big Ed and my mom to a lot of fun Arizona locations, including South Mountain.

Which is where we were heading when I took the above photo of Linda Lou pointing at a cactus forest, with South Mountain in the background.

As early as way back in our grade school days, Linda Lou and I enjoyed having fun in a kitchen making something.

During Linda Lou's Arizona stay she and I had fun in my mom's kitchen, making Beef Stroganoff. It felt quite deja vu. The only controversy I recollect was some small dispute regarding how to handle fresh mushrooms.

It is seeming hard to believe that mushroom controversy was seven years ago. So much has happened since then. Some good, most not so good. 

Successful Wichita Falls Winco Foods Shopping On 2nd Grand Opening Day

Day two of the Wichita Falls Winco Grand Opening found open parking spaces, easy to park in, and, unlike yesterday, no long line waiting to enter the store.

Even though the parking lot appeared to be almost full, inside the store was not too crowded, as you can see via the photo documentation.

There were some congested areas, though.

I was able to get a dozen Winco bagels, grind some peanut butter, and get some other stuff.

Checkout was painless. No line, plenty of checkers.

The shoppers seemed to be having a mighty fine time. As did I. 

The free sushi sample was the first time I've had sushi in quite a while. I'd forgotten that Winco has a sushi station.

The new Wichita Falls Winco Foods is the biggest I have been in. Bigger than the ones I've been in in the Dallas/Fort Worth zone. Bigger than the ones I've been in in Arizona.

I won't miss going to Walmart, way too often...

Wichita Falls Winco Foods Grand Opening Surprise

For many months now, it seems, I have been looking forward to the opening of Winco Foods.

I learned to like Winco whilst living in the Dallas/Fort Worth zone. And on my many visits to Arizona. 

Winco makes my all-time favorite bagels. Among many other things I like.

Such as Winco's huge bulk foods section.

And Winco's grind it yourself peanut butter.

I knew Winco would have a huge impact on the Wichita Falls grocery store scene, due to prior to Winco, it has seemed to me, Wichita Falls has been ill served in the grocery store department.

So, I headed to today's Winco Grand Opening about a half hour after the official Grand Opening time of 9 this Monday morning of October 13.

I figured there would not be many people at the Winco Grand Opening, due to it seemed to me to be unlikely many locals knew anything about Winco. That and the awkward way one currently gets to Winco's parking lot, a one-way freeway frontage road, awaiting the completion of a second connecting road to the Winco parking lot.

As soon as I got on the frontage road I saw traffic was backed up, turning on to the road that connects to the Winco parking lot.

A solid line of vehicles.

Soon I realized the solid line of vehicles was looking for a place to park, with the line leaving was giving up on that search.

The photo I took at the top, as I slowly drove along, does little justice to the actual congestion level.

Eventually an even more surprising scene came into view.

That surprising scene was a long line of people queuing up to wait their turn to enter Winco. Was this a natural backup, due to the store being solidly packed? Or was there someone controlling entry to the store? 

 And here you see how long the line was of people waiting their turn to enter Winco.

Free samples, while they lasted, were mentioned in the Winco ad which arrived in my mailbox a few days ago.

If one did get inside the store I am assuming there would be long lines to sample anything free. Or to grind some peanuts. Or bag some bagels.

And, imagine the long wait to get to a checker or a self checkout station.

So, I opted to limit my today Winco Grand Opening experience to being a drive-by experience. 

Bagels and peanut butter can wait for another day...

Low Sunday Sikes Lake Tide Waiting For Winco To Open Tomorrow

This second Sunday of the 2025 version of October has Sikes Lake in what looks like low tide mode, with a large flock of ducks mucking about looking for something to eat.

Seems like the ducks should be flocking south for the coming winter. Or is this already their winter southern location?

The outer world is still being way too warm at my southern location. The high will hit the 90s again today, with no predicted temperature relief in the near predicted future.

The speed controlling chain on my bedroom ceiling fan broke last night, when I pulled on it to turn the fan on. So, I have nothing spinning overhead in my bedroom. The A/C seems to be sufficing, so far, making the lack of a ceiling fan bearable til repaired tomorrow.

The walk around Sikes Lake was pleasant today, not too hot, only in the low 80s. And breezy. There seems to be an increase of people enjoying the outer world now that it has become more pleasant, temperature-wise.

Tomorrow brings a big change in my regular routine of going grocery hunting at Walmart. Winco is having its Grand Opening tomorrow.

When I lived in the DFW zone I never grocery shopped at Walmart, even though it was nearby. I instead drove the few extra miles to Winco.

The Wichita Falls Winco is real close to ALDI, and way closer than the DFW Winco I used to drive to.

Losing Weight Walking Around Sunny Sikes Lake

On this second Friday of the 2025 version of October, I opted to use the trails around nearby Sikes Lake to get me some much-needed endorphins, which renders the above photo documentation to be the view looking southwest from the rocky shore of the east side of Sikes Lake.

When I looked northwest from this viewpoint I saw something which seemed a bit strange to be seeing in a bright blue sky an hour before noon.

The moon.

What looked to be a full moon was looking way too close.

I tried to take photos, but zooming in with the phone camera rendered the moon a blurry mess.

If I remember correctly, and sometimes I do, a week or two ago I made mention of the fact that I was in need of dropping about 20 pounds so I could fit into some outerwear I needed to be able to fit into so I could attend an upcoming event which requires not being casually attired.

So far, I have managed to drop around five pounds. I need to shrink to my 2008 size. That is a long time ago, 2008 is, that year being the last time I was attending an event which required not being casually attired.

I need to get a bike. I think it has been at least two years since my last bike was stolen...

No Fine Billing Notice From Wichita Falls Public Library

Yesterday's mail brought me something totally wackydoodle, totally fitting this wackydoodle era we seem to be trying to live through, as good-naturedly as we can manage to muster.

Last week I returned five books to the Wichita Falls Public Library.

Which is the entity from whom I received the aforementioned wackydoodle-ness.

The letter contained a 'Fine Billing Notice". 

But there was nothing "fine" about the notice.

Of the five books I returned, the library is claiming two of them were somehow damaged to a sum of $54.00

$34.00 for 23 1/2 Lies: Thrillers by James Patterson
$20.00 for Hanging Woman Creek by Louis L'Amour

I have checked out hundreds of books over the years of residing in Wichita Falls. Without ever, to my knowledge, inflicting any damage on any book.

But, somehow I supposedly managed to seriously damage two books, of five, recently returned.

Makes zero sense.

The only 'damage' I have noted in books I have checked out is sometimes previous borrowers have written something in the margins. Or made a mark, as if, maybe to make note of where they have ceased reading for the moment.

How can any agency of any sort send out any sort of "Fine Billing Notice" without making note of what the alleged damage consists of?

That and the fact that the mailed "Fine Billing Notice" makes no note of by what means one is expected to pay this fine. There is no return envelope, no info at all regarding the means by which one is supposed to pay this fine. Where to send it, to whom to send it. Nothing.

Is sending a billing notice of this sort even legal?

It'd be like getting a letter from the police informing that you are being fined $54.00 for two breaking the speed limit offenses. With no detailing of where or when these alleged speeding offenses allegedly happened.

I really do not want to turn this over to my lawyer. But, I clearly feel I am being seriously wronged here.

And that this is taking up my time to deal with this. Maybe I should send a bill to the library, charging my regular hourly rate. 

One thing for sure, methinks my days of being a patron of the Wichita Falls Public Library are over. It's time to find some new reading material sources....

Hike Along Wichita River Finding New Circle Trail Section Under Construction

The past couple visits to Lucy Park I have noticed what looked like work on extending the Circle Trail.

I wondered if this was the long-anticipated Circle Trail completion of the section between Lucy Park and where the Circle Trail heads into the Wichita Bluff Nature Area.

There has been no mention made of this project in this town's absolutely inept newspaper, the Wichita Falls Times Record News. A newspaper which for over six months has featured the repeating headline at the top of its home page asking the question "Why Did Beto O'Rourke Speak in Wichita Falls?" where clicking on that link brings you to a non-article which does not answer that extremely poignant question.

So, on this third day of October, I hiked from the east Wichita Bluff Nature Area Circle Trail parking lot and walked towards Lucy Park to see if the trail was being worked on.

Via the photo documentation at the top you can see that such is the case. All that is needed is for some cement to be added.

And then that will leave only one short section to fill in to make the Circle Trail an actual complete circle. That being the section which currently terminates shortly after leaving the west end of Lake Wichita Park.