A Happy Tandy Hills Earth Day With Fort Worth's Beatnik Loving Mayor

Fort Worth Mayor, Tom McCann signing
"National Beatnik Week" proclamation, 1960. (from LIFE magazine)

Or as the Tandy Hills Godfather, Don Young, put it today in an email's subject line:

Happy Triple bEarthday to Tandy Hills 2015.

According to Olive the Prairie Dog's parental unit, way back on this current day of April 22, in 1960, Fort Worth's beatnik-loving mayor, Tom McCann, and the Fort Worth City Council made the momentous decision to spend $138,250 for the 160 acre chunk of land now known as the Tandy Hills Natural Area.

As for the other parts of the triple part of today's bEarthday and the Tandy Hills.

Ten years after Fort Worth's beatnik-loving major decided to buy the Tandy Hills the first Earth Day took place on April 22, 1970.

And then, 40 years later, on April 22, 2010, the Friends of the Tandy Hills Natural Area began a partnership deal with the City of Fort Worth where the city joined in the efforts to protect and restore the Tandy Hills.

The most interesting, to me, part of today's Earth Day Tandy Hills information is the fact that, apparently, way back in the 1960s, Fort Worth had itself a progressive mayor who liked the precursors of hippies, that being beatniks.

How did Fort Worth go from having a progressive beatnik-loving mayor to the era of mayor entities like Kay Granger, Mike Moncrief and Betsy Price? Can you picture any of those three signing a "National Beatnik Week" proclamation?

Well, okay, to be totally fair, which I always am, I guess I can see Betsy Price signing such a proclamation. There is something about Mayor Betsy that makes me think she could easily have been an active hippie during the hippie era. It would not shock me to learn that Mayor Betsy was at Woodstock being a Grateful Dead groupie.

Then again, I am not at all sure the Grateful Dead were at Woodstock....

April 25 Historic Tandy Hills Prairie Fest Photo Op

Interesting incoming email from one of Olive the Prairie Dog's housemates, Don Young, about an opportunity to be in a photograph with a horde of North Texas fractivists at the 10th Anniversary Tandy Hills Prairie Fest, next month, on April 25.

The email in its entirety, plus I added Don Young's email address at the end, to help facilitate that RSVP request which is also at the end of the email...

Greetings north Texas Barnett Shale fractivists-

For the past few years I have dreamed of gathering all north Texas fracktivists together at one place and time for a group photo. But the tremendous growth of the movement since 2004 made the the possibility of that happening somewhat daunting.

But I like to dream big, so....with the 10th anniversary of Prairie Fest coming on April 25, the time is right. Are you in?

Why Prairie Fest? As some of you know, Prairie Fest began in 2006 as the first major public event / protest / festival / push-back to bring attention to threatened gas drilling at Tandy Hills Natural Area in Fort Worth. State Rep. Lon Burnam was the keynote speaker. The term, "fracktivist" didn't yet exist but the goal was the same. Keep drilling out of our neighborhoods and raise awareness of the impacts and dangers.

In 2004, a small group of concerned neighbors started the group, Friends of Tandy Hills. We were NIMBY's. After the first ever public protest against fracking and a few key reports by Jeff Prince in the Fort Worth Weekly, Friends of Tandy Hills morphed into FWCANDO (Fort Worth Citizens Against Neighborhood Drilling Operations) and our small group connected up with others in the Barnett, both urban AND rural. Next thing you know, a corp of international media was knocking on my door and a guy named Josh Fox was sleeping on my couch, taking notes about a little film project. A lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then.

With notable exceptions, victories in the Barnett have been few and far between but, ten years later, awareness has never been greater. Participation in push-back against drilling and fracking is at an all-time high. Organizations and individuals not on-board in 2006 are now leading the charge. Tandy Hills is well protected. Prairie Fest, a solar-powered event, has helped demonstrate the importance of connecting with and protecting the natural world. Friends of Tandy Hills have sponsored field trips for thousands of kids. The tide is turning.

Please join me at Prairie Fest on April 25 for a group photo to celebrate 10 years of fighting the fracking monster. It will be a rare opportunity to meet and make connections with fellow fractivists. A professional photographer will capture the moment. Exact time of photo will be announced soon. I'm making a list of participants so please, spread the word and....

RSVP email

Admiring The Chocolate Trinity River While Worrying About The Daily Don Young Attacks

That beautiful chocolate brown body of water you are looking at in the picture is the Trinity River flowing by Quanah Parker Park today.

Yesterday's storming did not drop a lot of rain, so the Trinity is not overflowing like it does when it goes into flood mode, covered with an astonishing volume of litter.

The Trinity River was on my mind earlier today when I saw that the dead TRIP website has been revived. More on that later. Maybe.

Regarding yesterday's tornado storms, Don Young sent out an amusing email sort of on that subject...

A few very nice people from around the country have emailed asking if I survived Tuesday's tornado attack around Fort Worth. Thankfully, the storm went around my home. Nothing but heavy rain struck my house. With roughly 25,000 gas wells in the vicinity and a rogue's gallery of corrupt officials and formerly legitimate organizations attacking me daily, a few tornadoes are no big deal. You haven't heard the last from FWCANDO.

These daily attacks on Don Young must cease at once. I saw Don Young's "natural" landscaping on Saturday.  I think the local moronic minions may be attacking Don Young's tall grass any day now, if they have not already done so.

Today Don Young also emailed his April Prairie Notes.

I'd link to the April Prairie Notes, but they aren't up yet on the Friends of the Tandy Hills Natural Area website.

What I can tell you about the April Prairie Notes is you need to go to the Star-Telegram's Spring Snapshots Photo Contest and vote for Don Young's 4 Tandy Hills pics. The Star-Telegram does not make it easy to vote for a pic.

I think yesterday's storming, with its lightning strikes and tornadoes, amped up the amount of negative ions ionizing the air of North Texas. I am breathing easy, as if I was back in Arizona. I have not touched any of my many nasal sprays since yesterday's storm blew past.

I know it won't last, but I am going to enjoy breathing free in Texas while I can.

A Perfect Day On The Tandy Hills With Don Young & The Prairie Fest All Over The Place

The hiking temperature on the Tandy Hills today was about as near perfect as I can recollect ever experiencing.

The last Saturday of February is a beautiful day in North Texas.

On this incredibly prefect day I was the only sign of life I saw today on the Tandy Hills.

I did not get gas today, but I called my mom anyway to talk on the drive to the Tandy Hills.

My mom and dad are looking forward to the incoming visit from Spencer Jack in a couple weeks.

I was still talking to my mom when I got to my parking spot on View Street. A lady in a van drove up next to me and rolled down her window indicating she wanted to ask me something.

I rolled down my window after which the lady asked me if I knew where Don Young's house was. I did happen to know where that particular abode was and told her where to find it.

My mom then asked me who Don Young was and why I knew where his house was. I had no idea how to explain who Don Young was or why I know where his house is, so I just told my mom that Don Young is in the news a lot here and everyone knows where he lives.

Except for that lady in the van who stopped to ask me where Don Young's house was.

Apparently Don Young is destined to show up all over the place with me today. As in a couple emails about the upcoming Prairie Fests. I shall copy the latest one below.........

We all have a place that inspires us to take a stand against Big Gas & Oil. 

That place can be as vast as the Upper Delaware River Basin that inspired Josh Fox or a humble home in the suburbs. For me that place was and is, Tandy Hills Natural Area, in Fort Worth, Texas. 

I'm requesting your help to keep Tandy Hills "like it was."

The main thing you need to know about Tandy Hills is that it's one of the last of the breed. The few remnants of native Texas prairie are akin to Unicorns: Beautiful, exceedingly rare and hunted to near extinction.

The 160 acres of Tandy Hills prairie were stalked by the gas industry just like the mythical Unicorn hunters of old. Keeping them at bay has been one of the few victories in the local gas war. But it takes constant surveillance, unwavering commitment and creative subversion to keep them out of Tandy Hills.

That's what Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area (FOTHNA) does, but in a non-threatening, positive way. FOTHNA helps people fall in love with the place so they will fight to protect it. Most importantly, we help educate the future guardians of the place.

Prairie Fest and Kids on the Prairie may look like benign activities but they are actually part of a subversive campaign to save some of Fort Worth by raising public awareness via wildflowers, music, art and environmental education.

Here's how it works:

---> Prairie Fest began in my front yard in 2006 as a direct attempt to keep gas drilling out of the park. Since then, the solar-powered festival has become one of the largest green festivals in north Texas, winning the Best Outdoor Cultural Event in Fort Worth in 2010 while demonstrating environmental stewardship to thousands of Texans. It even received an honor from the City of Fort Worth.

---> Kids on the Prairie is a partnership outreach program between Friends of Tandy Hills and the Fort Worth ISD. Funds raised at Prairie Fest pay for hundreds of public school kids to have a field day of learning at Tandy Hills. Most of these kids are low-income. They are led by a group of Master Naturalists recruited by FOTHNA.

As founder of FWCanDo, I have never asked you for money. Any service I provided over the years was done out of a sense of love and duty. As founder-director of Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area, I ask you to help us save some of Fort Worth in one of the two E-Z ways listed below. 

• Membership in Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area
• Sponsorship of Prairie Fest.  
• Friends of Tandy Hills website

Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation and is not directly affiliated with FWCanDo.

Don Young
FWCanDo
P.O. Box 470041
Fort Worth, TX 76147

Godfather Don Young Leads Three Generations Harvesting Christmas Trees From Fort Worth's Tandy Hills Nature Preserve

Several hours ago I got an email from an unknown, to me, emailer, asking me what I thought about the Godfather of the Tandy Hills, Don Young, cutting Christmas trees on the Tandy Hills.

Since I knew of no Christmas trees on the Tandy Hills I thought the emailer was just an anonymous trouble maker trying to make trouble.

So, you can imagine my surprise when I logged in to Facebook, to chastise Tootsie Tonasket for poking me, to see Facebook postings from the Tandy Hills Natural Area Facebook page documenting, in more than one photo, the Don Young Gang removing a Christmas tree from the Tandy Hills, with the caption under one of the photos saying, "Three generations bringing home the Christmas tree to Young home."

Apparently the Tandy Hills Christmas trees are Junipers. Not exactly a highly prized specie of tree as far as Christmas trees go.

A minor brouhaha of comments has erupted following the Facebook revelation that the Tandy Hills is now a Christmas tree hunting ground.

Most of those commenting seem to be of the opinion that Don Young & his Gang are not Christmas tree poachers, but were instead doing some timely thinning of an invasive specie that is not native to the Texas prairie.

What I am wondering is how does one determine what is, or is not, native to the Texas prairie?

I've long had my eye on yucca roots and prickly pear cactus growing on the Tandy Hills. But I've been told they are native to the Texas prairie. And thus are not to be harvested.

I also would not mind harvesting some poles from the Tandy Hills bamboo thicket. I really don't believe bamboo is native to the Texas prairie.

Don Young's Haunted Halloween Tale Of The Engulfed Death Car Of Tandy Creek

The Tandy Creek Bed Engulfing A Death Car

Don Young has really outdone himself this Halloween. Two years ago Mr. Young terrified Tandy Hills aficionados with his gruesome tale of the Tandy Hills Witchey Tree.

This year, in a Prairie Notes Supplement, dated October 27, 2011, Don Young tells the tale of his encounters with "The Engulfed Death Car of Tandy Creek."

I have opined in the past that the Tandy Hills is the Twin Peaks of Texas.

Don Young's tale of his spooky Tandy Hills encounters with a Death Car is now the latest evidence supporting my belief that the Tandy Hills is the Twin Peaks of Texas.

And, apparently, haunted.

In Don Young's tale he references the various "wrecks" that are hidden on the Tandy Hills. I believe I have come across all of them, except for the Engulfed Death Car.

So, if you feel up to reading a frightful tale, go to the Tandy Hills Natural Area website and read "The Engulfed Death Car of Tandy Creek."

The Confederacy Of Dunces Wants To Know Why The Yard Waterers Of Tarrant County Are Wasting Water That Could Go To Gas Well Fracking

Lately the Confederacy of Dunces has been confounding me more than the norm. This current confounding may be heat related.

The constant HOT seems to make everything HOTTER.

Like the level of outrage generated by Chesapeake Energy running 3 big water pipes through Fort Worth's Trinity Park, in order to suck a few million gallons of water out of the Trinity River, so that chemicals and sand can be added to the water, so that Chesapeake can frack yet one more Chesapeake Energy Barnett Shale gas drilling site.

The local CBS TV Station, Channel 11, covered the Trinity Park Chesapeake operation, with the help of Fort Worth's Watch Dog, Don Young. You can watch that particular news report below.

In that news report the news reporter reported that of the estimated water usage of Tarrant County only 1% was used by the Gas Drillers, while Yard Watering used 50-60%.

Does this seem credible to you? It does not to me.

One fracked well uses up a lot of water. Millions of gallons of water over the course of multiple frackings.

I do not see a lot of yard watering going on. Yes, there is an occasional sprinkler. But, it appears to me that most people let their yards turn brown during this water starved time of the year.

I know Oakland Lake Park does not irrigate its big fields of grass. Most of the fields of Gateway Park turn brown. Veterans Park is brown except for the Xeriscape garden that shows you how to grow green, in Texas, with little water.

How many thousands of gas wells are now in Tarrant County? How much water has been used to frack those wells?

If, in Tarrant County, there were only a thousand wells using a million gallons of water, to do their fracking, that amounts to 1 billion gallons of water. If yard watering is using 50-60 times that amount, that would be 50-60 billion gallons of water.

Yard watering uses more water than other household uses? Like washing clothes, dishes, drinking, bathing, flushing?

This whole yard watering fuss seems like a phony bogeyman, to me, an amorphous imaginary thing used by propagandists to frighten dunces into behaving.

What Dunce in the Confederacy came up with this 1% figure for the amount of water the gas drillers are using?

Methinks that the gas drillers need to be told there is a moratorium on using the local water supply until the drought ends. Or better yet, run a water pipeline to the Gulf of Mexico and pump that water to Tarrant County. It'd have the benefit of already being salted.

As wise man once said...

"When gas drillers use water, it's permanently removed from the water (hydrologic) cycle.. There's a finite amount of water on planet Earth. Whenever you use it to frack, it has to be buried in the ground a million years."

-DY

This is all very perplexing. Why is common sense so lacking in this part of the planet?

Shivering On The Tandy Hills While The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Talks To Don Young About Barnett Shale Gas Drillers & The Tandy Hills

In the picture we are standing on top of Mount Tandy in the Tandy Hills Natural Area looking west at the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth.

It was in the 50s and windy. I was under dressed. I should have been in long pants with a long sleeved shirt. But I was not.

This was my second bout of being cold today. This morning it was 47 when I went in the pool. The water was quite a bit warmer than the air. So, I ended up staying a long time in the pool.

Too long.

After I got out of the hot shower I had myself about an hour of extreme shivering before that sensation went away. It sort of feels good.

Speaking of the Tandy Hills. I got back from there to learn, via email, that the Tandy Hills was being discussed in today's issue of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in a 2 part article with the first part titled "Deep in the Heart of the Gas Drilling Controversy."

Part 2 of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article is titled "Natural gas fields have provided a fount of cash for Texas cities"

Part 2 focuses on what drilling in the Barnett Shale has done for and to North Texas. Fort Worth's #1 Watchdog, Don Young, provided input as to the bad stuff done by the drillers. That is Don Young in the photo, standing on the Tandy Hills, in a photo taken by Michael Henninger of the Post-Gazette.

Don Young's Tandy Hills Prairie Notes #48

Possumhaw berries are a bright spot on the Tandy Hills prairie.

I've not blogged Don Young's Prairie Notes in awhile. Please note the plea for help with the Prairie Fest. I figured the Prairie Notes & Prairie Fest Plea need to get as big an audience as possible. 

Prairie Notes #48

December 1, 2010

Springing Into Fall

1) Field Report

2) Prairie Fest: By hook or by crook 

3) Wildflower of the Moment

4) Ladies' Tresses Orchids

5) Critter Report

1) Field Report

A brief period of chilly weather on November 1st made it finally feel like Autumn at our little urban oasis. Multitudes of leaves finally fell but Spring-like temps soon returned. The number of blooming plants that normally mature in the Spring was amazing. Meanwhile, Possumhaw, Aromatic Sumac, Mexican Plum and a few others brightened up the subdued landscape with their Fall colors setting off the Autumn grass that continues to be the Main Event.

Eye-catching fall foliage of Mexican Plum.

It's the "hills" that make Tandy Hills so remarkable.
As Winter approaches, the hills are more noticeable.

2) Prairie Fest: By hook or by crook

The November 23rd edition of Fort Worth Weekly reported on the growing pains of Fort Worth Prairie Fest. You can read the report by Jeff Prince here. Volunteers are urgently needed. Our Number 1 need is for a Volunteer Coordinator to recruit, train and supervise event day volunteers. Please let us know ASAP if you will take this critical responsibility.  

Against all odds and by hook or by crook, Prairie Fest 6 will happen on April 23, 2011. Exhibitors and Sponsors, get ready. You will be hearing from The Best Outdoor Cultural Event in Tarrant County very soon. Watch a little video snapshot of the 2010 fest here.

3) Wildflower of the Moment

A single Purple Paintbrush in full bloom on November 7th? How rare can that be? It made a nice contrast with the Autumn leaves in the background.

Purple Paintbrush fooled by Mother Nature.

4) Ladies Tresses Orchids

The amazing and wonderfully aromatic Ladies Tresses Orchids of THNA have just finished blooming. Are they Nodding Ladies Tresses or Great Plains Ladies Tresses or both? Experts disagree. Either way, the similar-looking species are one of the many Fall pleasures at THNA worth celebrating. 

Trout Lily and Ladies Tresses expert, Jim Varnum, took a day-trip to THNA in November. He documented his trip in the November edition of Jim's This and That. Check it out here.

5) Critter Report

On the evening of November 28, I witnessed a Great Horned Owl with a 4'+ wingspan descend into the darkening twilight of Tandy Hills Natural Area. The thrill of seeing such a magnificent creature in its natural habitat reminded me once again of the wise words of poet, Mary Oliver:

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"

DY

A Tandy Tire Confession From A Fort Worth Endorphin Pusher

Yesterday I mentioned coming upon a round black object at an intersection of a couple Tandy Hills trails. It seemed as if it would take an awful lot of effort in these current trying HOT times to move such an object.

Last night Stenotrophomonas opined that the tire would make an ugly shrine and predicted the tire would gradually exit the Tandy Hills by migrating to View Street.

Today when I overheated on the hills I came to yesterday's location of the possible ugly shrine. It was gone. I figured Stenotrophomonas knows whereof he speaks.

But, later as I came to another intersection, after going up and down some hills, I came to the tire's new location, that being the next trail junction west of its yesterday location.

I thought it appeared the tire is slowly migrating to View Street, stopping for the night at each trail junction. The next junction is a very short distance from today's tire location, with the final junction a little further.

Today's HOT hiking was the HOTTEST yet. No wind. I got back here and jumped in the pool. That helped very little.

When I woke up the computer a short while ago I was surprised to see that at 3:25 Don Young confessed to being the tire migrater. He suggested I could feel free to carry it out if I needed an extra endorphin rush.

By the time I got to the tire today I was leaking so much liquid it was rushing in my nose causing the same sensation as breathing in water, accidentally, when swimming. Quite unpleasant.

When I stopped to take a picture of today's tire location, just reaching for the camera amps up the overheating. I wanted the tire to pose with the same face it used yesterday. This meant I had to flip it over to reveal its whitewall stripe. It took a couple tries to foot flip it over. I did not pick it up.

Now that I know that the Tandy Tire is not someone's Guerrilla Art project and is, instead, some sort of litter removal project, if I see the tire tomorrow I will try and roll it. If I am not overheated.

The Rain Has Stopped For Now In The Fort Worth Rain Forest

The rain has stopped. For now. The view from Miss Puerto Rico's balcony has brightened up from this morning's gloomy darkness.

Don Young commented on my gloomy state of forlorn-ness, saying I was depressing him and offering to loan me a water proof poncho so that I could do some water hiking on the Tandy Hills.

Apparently a 4-wheeler decided to do some damage to the prairie, despite all the signs warning wheeled devices and animals with hooves to keep out.

Don Young also commented that my forlorn state of woefulness finally matched the forlorn photo of me on my blog. I thought I was looking happy in that picture.

Don Young Fort Worth Weekly's Best Of 2009 Pick For Watchdog, Mayor Mikey Moncrief Politician Most Likely To Sell Grandma To Highest Bidder

I was looking for a photo of Don Young, he being Fort Worth and Tarrant County's #1 community activist, protector of the Tandy Hills Natural Area and fighter for cleaner Fort Worth air, but I could find no Don Young photo.

But there were plenty of photos of Alaska's congressmen named Don Young. Alaska's Don Young is not a citizen activist fighting big oil polluters. Alaska's Don Young is one of those corrupt politico types who activists fight.

Meanwhile, here in Fort Worth, dubbed "Dirty ol' Town" by our local Don Young, in it's annual Best Of issue, Fort Worth Weekly's Critics picked Don Young as the Best of 2009 Watchdog, saying...

The old phrase "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog" applies perfectly to community activist Don Young, a small guy with a lot of fight in him. Young has been looking over the shoulder of the gas drillers in Tarrant County since they first arrived, constantly letting news media and the public know what's going on. He's tireless in his efforts to protect Fort Worth from the negative aspects of urban drilling. The town could use more like him.

Meanwhile in the category Politician Most Likely to Sell Grandma to the Highest Bidder both the Reader's and Critic's Choice was Fort Worth's extremely corrupt Mayor Mike Moncrief, with the critics saying...

Let's face it, Mayor Mikey is the call on this one. Why not some city council member? Because Mayor Mike tells them what to do. Why not a Tarrant County politician? Because none of them wield the power that the mayor does. Nope, Mike's it. He's it because he is selling this city down the drain to gas developers. He's spent nearly his entire time in office courting big business and pushing big deals while letting the best things about Fort Worth waste away. Just imagine what he'd do with a grandma he didn't like.

Tandy Hills Natural Area Picked Best Place To Stand In North Texas

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, some time back, solicited for entries in a contest to pick the "Best Places to Stand in North Texas."

I've stood on all the Top 10 places to stand. I have stood at or by the Japanese Garden at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, the steps of the Amon Carter Museum, the Rusty sculpture at the Modern Museum, Cowboys Stadium, the Fort Worth Zoo, the Trinity Bridge on North Main, the Stockyards and the local lakes.

I've been to the Runner-up Editor's pick, that being Randol Mill Park. And I've stood on, looked at, hiked on and marveled at the Grand-prize winner, Tandy Hills Natural Area, submitted by Don Young.

The Star-Telegram heavily edited Don Young's essay, making the case why the Tandy Hills were the best place to stand in North Texas. I'll copy the entire essay below...

Tandy Hills Natural Area is a special place simply because it is still here.

Over 99.5% of all native prairie, in the USA, is gone - even more in the Metroplex. The parkland is adjacent to I-30 and surrounded by a neighborhood in the heart of Fort Worth, a place crawling with developers and gas drillers. For this oasis to have survived is more than remarkable, it’s a precious gift.

The 160-acre natural area is a living, postage stamp sized snapshot of what the entire region once looked like before settlers arrived. The number of wildflower and grass species that cover the hilly terrain at THNA is wildly more than anyplace else in north Texas, except maybe another prairie remnant.

In 1880 when the population was less than 1% of the current 700,000, people still remembered the natural beauty of the land they settled and nicknamed Fort Worth, "Queen City of the Prairie." Those days would soon end, taking with them the very thing that drew settlers here, namely, the blackland prairie and its rich cornucopia of life.

The good news is, we still have Tandy Hills. The Spring wildflowers are more breathtaking here than anyplace else in the Metroplex, attracting lovers, families and butterflies. In the Fall, tall native grasses sway mysteriously in the wind, inspiring poets, painters and philosophers. The sunsets and moonrises seen from the tops of the many hills are often jaw dropping. The sky above THNA is filled with birds and swarms of migrating, Monarch butterflies. If you're lucky, you can even catch a glimpse of a rabbit, fox, lizard, wild turkey, roadrunner or bobcat scampering across the landscape.

All this and its only 5 minutes from downtown Cowtown.
The price? Free.

Tandy Hills Natural Area was donated to the people of Fort Worth in 1960. 2010 is the 50th anniversary of this public parkland.

Keep it like it was.

Don Young
July 1, 2009

Fire & Rain & Bluebells @ Tandy Hills

I've been forgetting to blog this real good incoming from Don Young for a week now. Below is Don Young's latest Prairie Notes. In the notes I finally learn the name of an amazingly hardy wildflower that has been coloring up the Tandy Hills Natural Area (THNA) for weeks now, and is still going strong. I knew of the fire that scorched an area of the Natural Area, but I've not seen it myself. I'll check it out tomorrow.

Prairie Notes #32: July 17, 2009
Summer in the City

A prairie needs both fire and rain to stay healthy and vigorous. With a little human assistance, Tandy Hills received a little of both yesterday.

The fire, apparently, came from some kids goofing around with fireworks. The "rain" definitely came from a fire-hose wielded by an efficient Fort Worth Fire Department.

A medium sized grassy area west of the Main Trail and about 800' from the street was scorched down to bare soil and rock about 8:00 pm Thursday evening. My neighbor on View Street just happened to see the flames from her front yard and made a 911 call. (I only wish she had waited a little longer and we would have had a better burn.)

Friday morning, we found a customized bottle rocket near the burned area. It appears that some neighborhood kids are keeping alive the grand tradition of carelessly playing with fire. With their help, parts of THNA are thriving. There have been discussions about a controlled burn at THNA after more of the woody growth is removed, so keep your Brush Bash tools handy.

Speaking of grand traditions, as they have for thousands of years, Texas Bluebells (Eustoma exaltatum ssp. russellianum) are once again laughing in the face of drought and producing a gorgeous display of dreamy Summer blooms. You owe it to yourself to hike in for a look-see.

Another Summer bloomer is White Prairie Clover (Petalostemum multiflorum). Like Bluebells, it is one of the few plants that can take the heat and look good doing it. The grasses, on the other hand, need rain.

Come to the meadow, soon, and do a Rain Dance so the grasses at THNA will reach their potential and sway in chilly winds of Autumn.

DY

Surrender: Resistance is Futile

Over on FWCANDO Don Young wrote an interesting piece, advising Jim Ashford that resistance is futile, after Mr. Ashford objected to a few issues regarding the latest dirty dealings by Chesapeake Energy and Fort Worth's Ruling Junta. Go to FWCANDO to read what Jim Ashford said and the response to him.

---

Relax, Jim! Chill out, my friend.

We live in Age of Reason.

Ah, but I see you are skeptical? "Reason", like many other words, now have "new meanings" in Dirty Ol' Town. In this case, "Reason" means, whatever reason the gas drillers have is good enough for David, Susan and Sarah. Get it?

Call it, the "Pretend-Game"! It's fun for the whole family!

For example:

1) Protected Use, doesn't REALLY mean protection, it just means that gas drillers will have to pay for waivers or bribe city council to threaten public health and safety. No prob!

2) Free Money, REALLY means that hidden costs for health care, insurance, taxes, property marketability, etc. are shielded from you by the gas drillers and city. Until the bill comes due. It's kind of a, Don't ask. Don't tell, policy.

3) Clean Burning Natural Gas, isn't REALLY clean burning or natural when you factor in the production, processing and piping of it. Throw in disposal of the waste products and you begin to see more clearly.

4) Orderly Production of Minerals, is REALLY Sarah reminding you that "You are getting sleepy. VERRRY sleepy. Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain. Now close your eyes. This is not a zoning change. Repeat after me...

5) Barnett Shale Philanthropy, is REALLY extortion, bribery, graft and hush money dressed up for a night at the opera.

6) Parkland Conversion, REALLY means that gas drillers just have to call in an extra attorney to get what they want.

7) Green-space isn't REALLY a place to hike with your kids, get in touch with the natural world and see some wildlife, it's Prime Real Estate for a future pad-site, compressor station or pipeline.

8) City Attorney, Assistant City Attorney and City Planning Director, aren't REALLY working for the City (you and me). They work for "the current occupant" who works for Chesapeake, XTO, Devon, Quicksilver, Etc. Etc. ad nauseam.

9) The FW Star-Telegram isn't REALLY a Newspaper. It's a Barnett Shale drillers business partner. (Durango note: I've been saying the first sentence in #9 for years)

10) Texas Railroad Commission is REALLY an aptly named excuse for state regulation of oil/gas drilling. They "railroad" you until you're "out of commission." Their message is brought to you by Chesapeake, XTO, Devon, Quicksilver, et al.

Get with the program, man! Once you get the hang of it, it's FUN! Just like all the rapists say, "Relax and enjoy it!"

Click on this City of FW link for more "pretend" words. (See p.3):

Don Young
FWCanDo
P.O. Box 470041
Fort Worth, TX 76147

FWCANDO

"God bless Fort Worth, Texas. Help us save some of it."

The Battle Of Carter Avenue: In Court Today In Fort Worth

Incoming Call For Action From Don Young:

What would you do if Chesapeake Energy tried to force you to sign a document that would allow a 16" (or larger) natural gas pipeline to be bored under your home or front yard?

A Tony Soprano kind of offer that you better not refuse?

Your property marketability would instantly disappear. The safety of your family would be greatly diminished. Your homeowners insurance might go way up or be canceled.

What if they sent heavy-handed reps to your workplace to get you to sign? Pretend, for a moment, that you are a low income person who may not have a firm grip on the English language. Is your job in jeopardy if you don't sign? This has happened to at least one Carter Avenue resident.

How would you feel if the City of Fort Worth aided and abetted Chesapeake to pave the way for such a pipeline? Reportedly, the city owns 4 lots on Carter Ave. and has signed the pipeline right of way agreements on those properties. Would that make you feel that it must be safe or the city would not have done so?

These are some of scenarios playing out on Carter Avenue in east Fort Worth. They come to a new head Friday morning, January 16, 2009.

Carter Avenue resident and homeowner, Steve Deoung, one of the last holdouts to signing, refuses to be intimidated by Chesapeake into signing an agreement that would threaten the safety of his and other neighborhood children and put the value of their homes at serious risk.

His court hearing tomorrow morning in Judge Vince Sprinkle's Tarrant County Court #3 will decide his motion to dismiss the case due to improper filings by Chesapeake.

Click here to go the court's webpage

Mr. Deoung is trying to buy time to keep this legalized crime from happening. He needs your help. Please show him your support by appearing at the hearing and/or sending a pledge of financial support.

Click to Email Steve

The children of Carter Avenue need to know you care.

What Is That We're Smokin' In Fort Worth?

(Click here to see video and photos of the Chesapeake Energy "fracking" of the Tandy Hills Meadowbrook Neighborhood Scott Avenue, so called Thomas Well Site)

New Information from Don Young that makes one wonder what is being added to the air we breathe here in Fort Worth and surrounding environs, courtesy of the Barnett Shale gas drillers and their "frack" process.

In case anyone needs a reminder, this is what a "frack job" looks like. These pics were taken in east Fort Worth in early January, 2009, near Riverside Drive and I-30. The smoke was so dense that, at times, it obscured driving on the interstate highway.

Tomorrow, January 12, Chesapeake Energy will frack the so-called Thomas well about 1/2 mile east of this location which is in the West Meadowbrook neighborhood.

Did the City of Fort Worth warn us that fracking might be dangerous to human and animal health? No.

Did the neighborhood association send out an alert? No.

Did the state highway department issue a warning or close the highway? No.

Did the Star-Telegram send out a notice or a reporter? No.

Did Chesapeake Energy warn us that fracking involves the use of over 50 toxic chemicals that can cause cancer, endocrine disruption, neurotoxicity, skin irritations, cardiac toxicity, kidney failure, reproductive disruption, respiratory distress and developmental toxicity? No. No. Hell No!

Just what the heck is in all that smoke and dust that will float over Fort Worth Monday morning??? What exactly will our children and pets and us be breathing when the clouds roll by? Where will the dust settle?

More importantly, where are the elected officials that have allowed this to happen in our community? Do they have fracking in their 'hoods?

For a list of the toxic chemicals used in gas well fracking and other info about the dangers of fracking, look here:

Hydraulic Fracturing: Drinking Water Protected? Think Again

Is "Fracking" Safe? Or a Toxic Spew?

What is in that "Fracking" fluid?

EPA to Citizens: Frack You

Frac Water Chemical Components

Don Young's December Tandy Hills Prairie Notes

REMINDER: Prairie Fest is April 25, 2009. Applications for Exhibitor space are now being accepted. Brave Combo is already lined up as our musical headliner.

Most of you have probably noticed the rather late and colorful autumn tree foliage in north central Texas. Ideal weather conditions are, apparently, responsible for this phenomenon.

One doesn't usually associate vibrant fall color and trees with tall grass prairies, but Tandy Hills Natural Area (THNA) is Unique with a capital "U". Experts have noted that, the range of elevations, soil types and other factors have conspired to make THNA an ecological rarity. They point out that THNA has more botanical diversity in the smallest amount of space than anywhere else in the state of Texas.

Right now, the Oaks, Cottonwoods, Elms and other trees that inhabit the drainages and lower elevations of THNA are at peak Fall color. (The photos were taken just before the recent frost.) The native but invasive Ash trees, now leafless, allow panoramic views of the towering bottomland hardwoods.

December is also a good time of year to appreciate the "Hill" part of Tandy Hills. Over the years, I have attempted, unsuccessfully, to express in words or capture in photographs the essential profundity of the hills. Their soft, grass-covered contours and (mostly) gentle slopes are elemental to THNA. I view them as the essence of the place even more so than the 500+ plant species they nurture. The most reverent sense of the timeworn phrase, "Mother Earth", comes to mind.

These hills are or have been home to a surprising variety of wildlife, considering the proximity to I-30 and downtown. I have personally seen Red Fox, Wild Turkey, Coyote, Wolf, Bobcat, Cottontail Rabbit, Great Horned Owl, Screech Owl, Coopers Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Turkey Buzzard, Roadrunner and many other bird species.

This past October, when Chesapeake Energy completely removed one of the nearby hills, it affected many of us like the death of a loved one. The thought that they also own 50 unblemished acres of the Tandy Hills greenbelt is especially difficult to accept. I'm keeping a wary eye on that hill.

I have a treasured memory from the late '70's of a Red Fox, its long tail fully fluffed, the setting sun catching the red highlights as he scampered up the same, lovely hill that Chesapeake recently obliterated. It is observations and memories such as these that can inspire one to activism.

Come to the meadow - FAST - and catch autumn's fading color wheel and see with your own eyes where the Red Fox once ran free and what words and photos cannot capture: the irreplaceable essence of Tandy "Hills" Natural Area.

DY

"Be as I am a reluctant enthusiast...a part time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic. Save the other half of yourselves and your lives for pleasure and adventure. It is not enough to fight for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it's still here."
~Ed Abbey

When Outrage Is Out To Lunch

Fort Worth's Foremost Activist, Don Young, is in the news again. This time in the Shreveport Times.

Don Young had this to say regarding the article and the controversy it covers....

Fort Worth has never been known a hot-bed of activism, but when the City of Fort Worth foolishly approved a High Impact drilling permit near Scott Avenue it was expected that area homeowners would be up in arms - that civil disobedience would take root - that the "tipping point" had been reached - that things might get ugly. Scott is a narrow street in an historic neighborhood next to an endangered prairie. This gas well pad-site would lead to the first UN-odorized gas pipeline in a neighborhood. Citizen outrage was a foregone conclusion.

Didn't happen. Why not?

Turns out, most had signed mineral leases with Chesapeake Energy and had cashed their "mailbox money" months before. They watched quietly from their front porches as giant Chesapeake trucks, assisted by the City of Fort Worth, rolled triumphantly down their street like Hitler's invading army.

C'est la vie.

Shreveport, Louisiana will likely be the next big city to allow urban drilling. People say that, the city and its residents will embrace drilling despite environmental and safety concerns. As we have learned in Fort Worth, money and false advertising blinds and deafens common sense on contact. Will Shreveportians gamble their future for mailbox money?

At least they've been warned. The message of common sense has been delivered by The Shreveport Times:

Fort Worth deals with shale environmental issues

FORT WORTH, Texas — Don Young, a Fort Worth resident, had a plan: He could park his van at the end of Scott Avenue. It's a public street, after all, and if enough neighbors joined him, they could legally block the trucks going to the natural gas drill site under construction.

But a funny thing happened. Almost no one came.

"You don't do it thinking you're going to win," Young said of his plan. "You do it to draw attention, to gauge reaction. I think I learned a lot from that too. I expected most of the people who live on the street to join me. But I discovered most of the people signed with Chesapeake (Energy Corporation) ... It was a bit of a letdown for me."

GO HERE TO READ THE REST OF THE SHREVEPORT TIMES ARTICLE

Come To The Tandy Hills: Prairie Notes From Don Young

Prairie Notes: October 26, 2008
Orchids & Earth-movers

My Indian Summer Sunday Morning God, I Hate Gas Drilling Hike turned out to be more than expected. While evil-doers ripped into ancient prairie soil within earshot, I contemplated the contrast between short sighted human greed vs. Mother Nature's long term, yet fragile, superiority. blah blah blah. It's too early in the morning for such thoughts. I needed a distraction.

Nodding Ladies' Tresses, to be precise. (Spiranthes cernua to be more precise.) Distraction accomplished.

One year after record rainfall resulted in tall-grass heaven at Tandy Hills Natural Area, a nagging drought has severely stunted the autumn grasses and wildflowers. Nevertheless, Tandy Hills has a knack for surprises.

Over the years I have observed that these sparsely scattered orchids prefer an east-facing, partially shaded slope. That describes exactly the conditions where I spotted about a dozen blooming plants. Their fragrance is almost enough to make one forget the diesel-powered injustice being committed a short distance away.

Walking back up the hill, my eyes caught a fleeting glimpse of (I think) a Cooper's Hawk arching overhead. (Tandy Hills is home to a pair of them.) I am always struck by the speed of these birds of prey. They move so fast I've yet to get a proper ID on them.

The new drill pad next door has the hawks (and me) on full alert. While I worry they feast on escaping rodents. That may be good for their short term needs, but I worry about the long run. Their habitat has been reduced by another five acres and more acreage loss is probable. The air up there is more toxic than before. The noise, dust, polluted water, etc. from drilling operations is bound to put their health and safety at risk. I guess the same can be said for us bipedal primates who haven't yet escaped.

But worry not. Today we have orchids. Don't miss them.

Come to the meadow and get distracted from whatever is bothering you.

DY

**************

DY's convinced me. I'm in the need for distracting, so I think it's off to the Tandy Hills again today, in search of an orchid.