Perplexed By Memorial Day BBQs At Fort Worth Parks With No Running Water

Fosdick Flower Blooming Bright
On Memorial Day

I went to Oakland (Lake) Park to walk around Fosdick Lake today for my memorable Memorial Day aerobicizing.

There were a lot of people in Oakland Park today memorializing Memorial Day with picnicking barbecues.

So far today I have not memorialized Memorial Day with a picnic or a barbecue.

I did have some memorable meatloaf for lunch.

The Oakland Park Pavilion was packed today. With multiple barbecues spewing tasty smelling smoke.

The Oakland Park Pavilion has no running water. The restroom facility is an outhouse.

Have I mentioned before that I find it bizarre that in Texas it is considered perfectly okay to have picnic facilities in parks with absolutely no running water?

Or modern restroom facilities.

I can not think of a single park, with picnic tables, I have been to, anywhere in any west coast state, that does not have restroom facilities of the non-outhouse variety. And does not have running water in the form of a faucet.

Are the health codes for such things more stringent in other states?

Going To Grapevine's Gaylord Texan & Getting A New BBQ

That's my new gas BBQ grill sitting outside on the patio.

I have yet to use the new BBQ. I got it out of its box this morning. I hauled it in here last night, late, returning from a Christmas Party at Gaylord Texan.

Christmas at Gaylord Texan is quite a spectacle. If you don't want to go inside and experience all of Texas under one roof, things like the San Antonio Riverwalk, the Alamo, Palo Duro Canyon, and more, just driving the road into Gaylord Texan you'll go by some over the top, well done Christmas displays.

In fact, you can pretty much say that for all of Grapevine, as in the drive through the main part of the historic town is done up quite nicely. And you will see some mighty big Xmas balls sitting on the ground. Biggest Xmas balls I've ever seen.

At last night's Christmas Party the gift part was done via a method I have done before. Only previously I was required to bring a gift to add to the gift pile. When I have done this style of Xmas present exchanging, before, it was called the Greed Game. A person opens a gift, the next person can either take it or open another. On and on it goes.

This can be amusing.

Last night's method was called The Chinese Gift Exchange. This somehow seemed borderline politically incorrect to me. The gifts were not wrapped. When your turn came you either took something from someone or took something from under the tree that no one else had taken. After 3 iterations of taking something new you were stuck with your 3rd choice.

I picked the BBQ and no one took it from me. I have an intimidating scowl when I want to keep something. I'm assuming. Maybe no one else wanted a portable BBQ. And found the digital cameras, flat panel TVs, I-Pads and trip to Las Vegas more enticing. Those items were heavily exchanged. Among others.

So, my first Christmas Party of the season is out of the way. At the next one I know I will not be bringing home anything good, because it is a work party and only those who work at this particular place get to play in the gift part of the party.

I usually don't blog about anything I do between 6pm and 6am, but this morning I made an exception. Maybe because unlike most periods of time between 6pm 6am, this time I got myself a new BBQ. It is so rare I get something new....

A Bright Texas Saturday Morning Walking With My Neighborhood Lizards

This morning my right knee felt the need to go on a nice, easy walk. So, I decided to do something I've rarely done.

As in, take a walk around my neighborhood.

I saw some wildlife. One of which was a little Chihuahua. It was a cute Chihuahua. It looked like that Chihuahua who recently won an Ugliest Dog in the World Contest, in a total travesty.

A short time after seeing the cute Chihuahua I came upon an equally cute pair of lizards. The two lizards were about 3 feet apart, facing each other on the trunk of the tree you see in the picture.

I don't know if this was some sort of territorial facedown. Or a mating ritual. I watched the 2 lizards for about 5 minutes and then gave up waiting for something to happen.

I have seen more lizards of various sizes this year than all my previous years in Texas. Do lizards thrive on the increase in air pollution?

There is a slight plague of wild plum trees in my neighborhood. I have seen locals picking the plums. Apparently they make good jam. But, it seems most of the plums end up on the ground, making for some careful walking to avoid getting shoes stuck with sticky stuff.

It's noon. Time to make some lemonade, BBQ some burgers, mash some spuds and cut up some watermelon.

Saturday Morning Looking At Me From My Computer Room Window Swimming

You are looking at the Saturday morning zoomed view from my computer room window of me getting wet in the pool.

We are back with completely clear of clouds blue sky again, after Thursday's and Friday's thunderstorms.

I pooled for over an hour this morning. It's a pleasant way to start the day.

I'm wandering around taking pictures of a construction project this morning.

I'll be wandering around the Tandy Hills, today, late in the afternoon. That's my current plan. Subject to change.

BBQed burgers, garlic mashed spuds and watermelon is on the menu for lunch. Don't be late. The burgers will quickly be gone.

Are Memorial Day BBQs Contributing To The Texas Level Orange Air Pollution

Almost a year ago, in a 4th of July related event, the section of the Tandy Hills you're looking at here, burned. In olden times the prairie was renewed, regularly, by wildfires, keeping the prairie healthy and burning off bad stuff.

You can see how wildfires were a good thing, by looking at the change in this Tandy Hills location, compared to the unburned zone.

I did not overheat today. It was a pleasant experience. It helped that it was breezy and only in the mid-80s.

I won't be swimming tomorrow morning. My pool has had a major malfunction. Something was not done right when the pool was re-lined and now the filter is clogged. This may be a quick fix. Or not.

It being Memorial Day, in my immediate vicinity, the smoke from multiple BBQs is contributing, in a pleasant way, to the Level Orange Air Pollution.

Bone Daddy's House of Smoke

Who wants to go up to Grapevine for lunch today at Bone Daddy's House of Smoke? I've driven past Bone Daddy's twice in the past month. Judging just by the outside, Bone Daddy's looks to be an interesting restaurant. I like the theme-parkish look of Bone Daddy's.

Obviously Bone Daddy's is a BBQ joint. Ironically, I think I've only been in one BBQ joint since I've been in Texas, that being multiple times to Riscky's BBQ, both in the Fort Worth Stockyards and downtown. Oh, I forgot Up 'n Smoke in Keller. I guess it wasn't very memorable.

I have had BBQ up in Oklahoma, but that's not Texas BBQ. The OK one was called World Famous Bob's Barbecue. I don't know what made Bob's World Famous. It was in the little Okie town of Ada. All I remember about Bob's was the fries were cold.

Bone Daddy's House of Smoke has a good website. I've learned you can't judge a restaurant by its website, though a good website is a pretty good indicator of the quality of the restaurant. Zorro's Buffet has a real bad website, but Zorro's Buffet is real good.

I see if you Google for "zorros buffet fort worth" my bloggings about it now come in #1, several places ahead of Zorro's Buffet's website, which should tell Zorro's they need someone to fix their website. I'm available. I'd fix it for them for no money. Just give me an anytime pass to Zorro's and I'll make their website Google ahead of my blog.

In the meantime, I'll see you around noon at Bone Daddy's.

Yesterday's Rainy Tacoma BBQ

The photo is from last night's rainy BBQ. I somehow managed to burn the steaks. In the rain.

Lulu and her first husband came over. They ate their burned steak without too much complaining. My sister would not take her burnt steak off the steak platter.

The steaks got overly well done due to my attention being diverted by my pizza making. The pizza turned out well. Though a bit deconstructed.

The dinner party turned even more macabre when Lulu took a huge fancy to the popcorn cake my mom made for my sister. The popcorn cake has gummy bears and M & M's stuck in it. Among other things.

The other dessert item my mom also made. Angel food cake with some sorta cream cheese frosting. That was good and I understood Lulu finishing up that cake. But the popcorn cake? That thing is just disturbing.