You Know You Are Back In Fort Worth When....

On Wednesday I was in the Dallas/Fort Worth metro zone for the first time in a couple months.

The night before making the long trek to D/FW I wrote a blogging and set it to auto-publish at 10 Wednesday morning.

At some point in time after that someone with the extremely unique name of Anonymous posted a comment which struck me as amusing due to title of the article to which the comment had a link.

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Why Does Fort Worth Star-Telegram Not Recommend Rejecting Trinity River Vision's Bad Plan?":

You know you're from Fort Worth when...

______________________

Now, the reason I found the "You know you're from For Worth when...." title amusing is because when I was in Fort Worth I drove into Quanah Parker Park and saw what you see below.

When I saw the above I remarked, "Well, you know you're back in Fort Worth when you see an outhouse in a park". This particular Quanah Parker Park outhouse seems badly placed, even for the Fort Worth norm of badly placed outhouses.

I have been in Wichita Falls now for nearly six months. I have yet to see a single outhouse in a Wichita Falls Park. The Wichita Falls parks have modern facilities, including running water with drinking faucets. What a concept.

Quanah Parker Park does have one feature that most Fort Worth parks do not have. That being running water in the form of a drinking faucet.

After Walking Around Fort Worth's Fosdick Lake A Surprise Was Found On Randol Mill Road

I had myself a mighty fine jog around the neighborhood early this morning of the second day of 2016.

Around noon I headed west to Oakland Lake Park to walk around Fosdick Lake. Which would make that Fosdick Lake, looking cold, that you see here.

On the way to Fosdick Lake I was convinced to make an increasingly rare Town Talk visit, post the walk around the lake.

My route from Fosdick Lake to Town Talk today was via heading north on Oakland, then west on Randol Mill Road. When Randol Mill Road and the Chesapeake Energy wasteland came into view I was surprised by what my eyes were seeing.

New paved trail.

When I reached Randol Mill Road and took a left I quickly came upon another surprise. A big new parking lot, with picnic tables and access to the new paved trail.

I pulled into the new parking lot, parked and exited my vehicle to do some photo documenting.

You can see just a slice of the new paved trail at the edge of the parking lot.

Another view, looking west, again with a slice of the paved trail visible. But what is the structure made of big bricks? Let's look on the other side.

And what do we find? An enclosure for an outhouse, looking a lot like the outhouse enclosures located at America's Biggest Boondoggle's location called Panther Island Pavilion, where there is no island or pavilion, but there are some  mighty fine outhouses, along with a couple outdoor showers to wash off the dirty Trinity River water after one is done rockin' the river.

If I remember right, a few TRV Boondoggle quarterly updates ago mention was made of plans to expand the Trinity Trail east, to Quanah Parker Park. This new paved trail does that. This is a real good thing. If this is a product of America's Biggest Boondoggle it is the first thing I am aware of that The Boondoggle has done which I think it a good thing.

I also saw new paved trail leading out of Gateway Park, heading towards the new paved trail heading in from  the east. I assume the existing bridge across the Trinity River will become the bridge for the new paved trail. The bridge for the new road has made a lot of progress since I saw it during the Thanksgiving floods.

Looking at the rapid progress of the road and bridge and paved trail building I'm guessing by Spring this should be just about finished. At that point in time I will be able to park at the Quanah Parker Park parking lot and roll my bike wheels over paved, car-free trail all the way to downtown Fort Worth and beyond, or to the Fort Worth Stockyards.

Years ago, back when the River Legacy Park paved trail was extended almost all the way to 360 there was talk at the time of that paved trail being extended east to connect to the Dallas Trinity Trail. Methinks doing so would be a HUGE asset to the D/FW zone. If a paved trail connection were also made from Quanah Parker Park, east to River Legacy Park, one would be able to bike from Fort Worth to Dallas.

Who has not dreamed of doing such? Well, probably not many. But, with some amenities along the route, such as one finds along Seattle's Burke-Gilman Trail, paved Trinity Trails between Fort Worth and Dallas could become a popular attraction.

Witnessing The Miracle Of A Litter Free Flooding Trinity River Under A Bumbershoot

On the way to Town Talk I decided to park at Quanah Parker Park and take my Bumbershoot on a short walk in the rain.

The last time I saw a flooding Trinity River from this location, years ago, the river had an amazing amount of litter, in a wide range of color and size, flowing by.

During this current flood event I have seen the Trinity River in several locations and have not seen much litter flowing by.

Does this indicate the chronic Texas littler problem has improved? Or has all the rain already flushed most of the litter to the Gulf of Mexico?

I just realized I do not know where the Trinity River enters the Gulf. I suspect  the beaches in that area, wherever it is, would make for some interesting beachcombing.

Today's Town Talk treasure hunting went well.

Organic Fuji Apples from a town in Washington called Wenatchee, Texas Ruby Red Grapefruit, Carrots, Cinnamon Rolls, 5 pounds of Gorgonzola and a gallon of Organic Milk, plus other stuff I am not remembering right now.

Finding No Indian Ghosts In Fort Worth's Quanah Parker Park Before Treasure Hunting At Town Talk

No, that is not one of my regular Saturday pre-Town Talk locations you are looking at on the left.

There is a good reason this location looks very similar to my favorite photo op in on Gateway Park's mountain bike trail, because the location we are looking at here is just a mile or two east of Gateway Park.

In other words, in the picture you are at the Quanah  Parker Park overlook looking over the Trinity River.

Due to recent deluging I opted out of rolling my wheels over what would likely be mud in Gateway Park. A quiet walk in Quanah Parker Park seemed to be just what the doctor prescribed.

I don't know if any Indian Ghosts haunt Quanah Parker Park. The location of this park, as far as I know, has nothing to do with being the site of a battle or a massacre.

Years ago I edited the Wikipedia article about Quanah Parker in the section about memorials to Quanah Parker. I added Quanah Parker Park in Fort Worth and Parker County in Texas. I later learned that Parker County is not named after Quanah, but is instead named after one of Quanah's uncles. I  do not know if that particular uncle is one of Quanah's mother, Cynthia Ann's, brothers.

Cynthia Ann was kidnapped by raiding Comanches and in a sort of Patty Hearst type deal of a different century, ended up joining the tribe, then marrying the Comanche chief, Peta Nocona, after which she birthed Quanah and Quanah's little sister, Prairie Flower. Eventually Cynthia Ann And Prairie Flower were captured by Americans and returned to what the Americans thought to be civilization. Both died soon thereafter, with Quanah never seeing his mom or little sister ever again.

I just checked the Quanah Parker Wikipedia article and am pleased to see someone fixed my Parker County mistake.

After enjoying the chilling fall-like temperature for a suitable duration I was off to Town Talk where I got a lot of fresh broccoli, onions, extra sharp cheese, corn tortillas, brown rice, celery, tomatoes and other stuff I am not remembering right now.

And right now I am off to have myself a salubrious lunch, part of which will be consisting of broccoli.

Celebrating Earth Day At Quanah Parker Park With A Green Trinity River & Plantains

For my Earth Day commune with nature I decided to burn some gas driving to Quanah Parker Park's parking lot to take a walk by the giant pecan trees while listening to the symphony of tweeting birds.

That greenish body of water you see in the picture is the Trinity River, looking west from a Quanah Parker Park overlook.

I am fairly certain the green tint to the river is not the result of any sort of Fort Worth Earth Day celebration where Mayor Betsy Price has dyed the river green in an emulating homage to her predecessor, goofy Mike Moncrief, and his attempt to dye the Trinity River purple with a cup of grape Kool-Aid.

As I took the picture of the Trinity River I looked down to see a lizard looking at me. Lizards are reptiles. So are snakes. Why do I find lizards to be cute and cuddly while snakes I find to be the opposite of cute and cuddly? It's a conundrum.

As part of my ongoing Earth Day celebration I am cooking Plantains for the first time. Miss Puerto Rico gave me a Puerto Rican cuisine cookbook the last time she returned from her home island. Most of the recipes in that cookbook involve frying in way too much corn oil.

I Googled for health friendly variations as to what to do with Plantains, which is what I am about to attempt.

But butter is involved. Wish me luck....

A Warm Walk In Fort Worth's Quanah Parker Park Before Finding Mango Coconut Yogurt

I parked at the Quanah Parker Park parking lot on my way to Town Talk today and had myself a mighty fine walk for the first time in a few days.

Since I was walking at Quanah Parker Park that would make the body of water you see in the picture the Trinity River.

The Trinity River was flowing so clear today I could see the river bottom as the water flowed slowly by. But, I saw no fish or any other living creature swimming in the temporarily clear water.

Today I was not the only person at Quanah Parker Parker enjoying the respite from our recent visitor from the frigid north.

Town Talk was back to its Saturday norm, number of shoppers-wise, from last Saturday's pre-Super Bowl frenzy.

The most interesting thing I found today at Town Talk was a case of mango-coconut yogurt. That flavor combo sounds good to me. I also got a case of strawberry Power yogurt. Power yogurt is real thick, Greek-like, loaded with protein, hence the power-ful name.

Since it is currently being relatively warm in the outer world I think I'll go over to Miss Puerto Rico's to attend to my cat-sitting duty and to sit outside enjoying Miss Puerto Rico's elevated view of the world.

A Visit To Quanah Parker Park Before Discovering At Town Talk That Super Bowl Sunday Is America's #1 Holiday

With today being the first Saturday of the second month of 2014 the one person who regularly reads my blog is likely thinking, in the picture, they are looking at the Tandy River in the Tandy Hills Natural Area, due to that area being the location of my regularly scheduled Saturday hikes, weather permitting.

Well, the one person who reads my blog would be wrong. On this first Saturday of the second month of 2014 I parked my motorized transport on the Quanah Parker Park parking lot, to go on a walk, prior to continuing on to Town Talk.

Being at Quanah Parker Park would make that green body of water the Trinity River, not the Tandy River.

The reason I opted not to hill hike today, even though the weather permitted that activity, was because today is the 6th Annual Tandy Hills Brush Bash. Due to the fact that I lacked the needed equipment to properly Brush Bash I could not bring myself to go to the Tandy Hills where I would likely have seen hundreds of people having themselves a mighty fine time bashing brush, whilst I was unable to, due to that aforementioned equipment lack.

At Town Talk today I learned that Super Bowl Sunday is America's favorite holiday. I came to that conclusion due to the fact that I'd never seen Town Talk busier. Not the Saturday before Christmas, not the Saturday before Thanksgiving, not the Saturday before the 4th of July.

Traffic trying to get onto the Town Talk parking lot was backed up both on Beach Street and whatever Randol Mill Road is called at that location. First Avenue, maybe?

When I finally made it on the parking lot there was not a parking spot to be found. People were parking off the parking lot, on the grass and any other open spot. Eventually someone pulled out so I was able to pull in.

Usually Town Talk has plenty of shopping carts. Today all were being used. Which worked out for the best because inside Town Talk it was one big shopping cart traffic jam. When I first walked in all checkout lines, but one, were open, with the lines lined up all the way to the back of the store.

With no shopping carts available I used one of those handheld basket deals. Which worked out fine because I only got three items. Two bags of tortilla chips, a big block of extra sharp cheese and a bag of tomatoes.

I lucked  out at checkout when that final checkout line opened right when I was right by it. Four Town Talk shoppers got in that line ahead of me, which that short line only causing about a ten minute wait. The Town Talk checkout checkers are the speediest I've ever seen, anywhere.

I asked the Town Talk checkout checker if this was the busiest she'd ever seen it. She said there'd only been one other time. Also Super Bowl weekend.

Some of the excessive number of Town Talkers may have been caused by people stocking up before tomorrow's possible blizzard blows in to town.

The temperature in the outer world has begun its predicted afternoon descent towards freezing. I was really liking the return to warm air and am not liking the idea of possible incoming snow.

The 2nd Saturday Of 2014 At Quanah Parker Park Before Town Talking

On the left you are looking west at the scenic Trinity River as it flows by Quanah Parker Park on this 2nd Saturday of 2014.

I parked on the Quanah Parker Park parking lot on my way to go treasure hunting at Town Talk to have myself a mighty fine walk in near perfect conditions, along with a lot of other people enjoying a mighty fine walk in near perfect conditions.

Currently the time is a few minutes past three. Before leaving for Quanah Parker Park I found out that today's Seattle Seahawks/New Orleans Saints football game starts in less than a half an hour. My DVR is set to record the game, thus allowing commercial and pointless blather fast forwarding ability when I get around to watching the latest edition of the Seattle Seahawks current Super Bowl quest, starting around 5.

Town Talk was extremely busy today, with long checkout lines. I find standing in the Town Talk checkout lines to be amusing, plus, though the line may look long, it moves quickly.

Today I got two bags of Fuji apples, grown in my old home zone of Washington, shipped from Yakima in Eastern Washington, to be precise. The most novel thing I got today was organic chorizo made from soy. In addition to the apples and chorizo I got a big bag of cole slaw fixin's in the form of already shredded cabbage and carrots. Also multi-grain tortillas and other stuff I am forgetting right now.

Today marks the 394th visit to Town Talk that I have made without running into Miss MLK or Miss MKB. Someday I expect this streak to end....

What Is The Meaning Of The Quanah Parker Park Martin Luther King Jr. Poster?

Last Wednesday in a blogging titled An Icy Walk At Quanah Parker Park Before Town Talking With Apple Cider & Monkey Food I mentioned that I came upon something odd whilst walking the Quanah Parker Park trail which I would blog about later.

And then I proceeded to forget about this odd thing I saw, til now, five days later.

The odd thing I saw laying on the ground was the poster you see laying on this blog.

The poster was about two by three feet in size, made of thick construction paper type material. Part of the message on the poster had been obliterated. By what means this obliteration occurred I do not know, or why the obliteration occurred, I also do not know.

What I do know is that I can clearly read words on the poster which say, "Martin Luther King Jr. helped the Color People get there Rights (indecipherable) advantage to do that..." After which only a few words, like "White" and "and" and "to" are legible.

So, what was the message on this poster intending to say? I have no idea.

The grammar is a bit lacking.

"Color People"? I assume the writer intended "Colored People."

But, who uses the term "Colored People" at our current time in history?

Was this a positive poster message about Americans getting "their" rights? Or did the obliterated part make obvious this was a negative message about Americans getting their rightful rights?

Very perplexing.

And why was this poster laying on the ground in a very remote location of Quanah Parker Park? How did it get there? And why did it get there?

Like I said, very perplexing.....

An Icy Walk At Quanah Parker Park Before Town Talking With Apple Cider & Monkey Food

Today I ventured west for the first time since the Great North Texas Ice Storm of 2013 made road travel perilous in my area of the planet.

I headed west hoping to make it to Town Talk, that being a place I'd not been to since the Saturday after Thanksgiving, and thus I had run out of my much needed yogurt supply.

On the way to Town Talk I parked at the Quanah Parker Park parking lot and had myself a mighty fine time enjoying a mostly ice-free nature walk.

However, as you can see, ice still blankets the ground in the Quanah Parker forest.

I came upon an odd thing along the trail today, which I will blog about later, maybe.

This morning I also had myself a mighty fine time inducing endorphins, aerobically, in the hot tub, with one quick dip in the cool pool.

My treasure hunting at Town Talk was successful. I got three cases of yogurt, some Italian cheese, the name of which I am not remembering right now, but to which I was drawn because it put me in mind of all the tasty stuff I've been having shared with me from Italy lately, via Mr. and Mrs. Galtex.

I also got 6 gallons of apple cider.  Last time I was at Town Talk I got two gallons of this cider, not knowing til I tasted it that it was the tastiest apple cider I'd ever tasted. So, today when I saw the Town Talk reader board reading "Apple Cider 6 Gallons for $5" I knew I was going to be coming home with a lot of apple cider.

I did not find any rabbit food today at Town Talk. But I did find some monkey food, in the form of bananas, 19 cents a pound.

I also got a bag of large whole wheat hamburger buns. Those will be put to use in a few minutes in the form of fish burgers.

The lunch gong is sounding.....

Visiting Quanah Parker Park's Monster Pecan Tree Before Doing Some Town Talking

What you are looking at on the left looks sort of like a Tree Monster, reaching out to grab me with its big arm limbs.

But, looks are often deceiving. That is not a Tree Monster, what it is a monster tree, of the pecan type, in Fort Worth's Quanah Parker Park.

This is a special pecan tree with a special designation as a Heritage Tree. I really don't know what that means, but I read in on the informational signage by the big tree.

My morning swim in the currently cool pool lasted less than a half hour, with only one hot tub warming retreat. Even though the air is cooler than the water in the pool, I decided to brave the chill, bundling myself up in long pants and a sweatshirt, to drive to the Quanah Parker Park parking lot, parked to have myself a very short walk before I decided I was not sufficiently attired in insulating outerwear, so I bailed on the walking and drove on to Town Talk.

I made today's semi-rare Town Talk visit due to being out of yogurt and cheese. Of late Town Talk has been in low supply mode of both. But, today I got two cases of Chobani Greek Yogurt, one case mango, the other orange vanilla. My two favorite flavors. Plus I got two blocks of Tillamook extra sharp cheddar along with two blocks of extra sharp white cheddar.

So, I am well stocked with yogurt and cheese, so we  can all stop worrying about me starving....

Today I Ran Into Fowl Play In Quanah Parker Park While Unable To Prevent Theft By Removing My Property

On my way to Town Talk this 3rd Saturday of June, I parked in the Quanah Parker Park parking lot to have myself a leisurely stroll under a cloudy sky which was blocking direct solar ray heating.

Before I got to the Quanah Parker Park parking lot, barely past the entry to Quanah Parker Park, on the left road shoulder, there was a big, dead dog.

Really big.

The big dead dog looked like it might be a St. Bernard. It was bloated, looking as if it was asleep, with its big head resting on its paws. Turkey vultures scurried as I drove past.

I called 911 to report the scene of Fowl Play. (Get it? Turkey Vultures. Fowl.)

When I parked at the Quanah Parker Park parking lot I made note of a sign I'd not made note of previously. The sign, in part, said, "PREVENT THEFT - Remove All Property from Your Vehicle - REPORT SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY DIAL 911."

Which is why I dialed 911 to report the Fowl Play.

When I read I was advised to remove all property from my vehicle, I was very perplexed, as in, where was I supposed to put the stuff I removed from my vehicle? I saw no lockable temporary storage units near the Quanah Parker Park parking lot.

It would not be possible to carry, walking with me, all that is in my vehicle. Among the property I haul around in my vehicle is a bike, tire pump, roller blades, snow chains, tool chest, ice chest and a big bag of golf balls, in addition to stuff I am likely not remembering.

After I was done being perplexing by this sign, not knowing what I should do with the property in my vehicle, I decided to walk on the wild side and take a huge risk by going on a walk without taking all my stuff with me.

Soon my attention was diverted by the scene you see below.

Acres of one type of wildflower, the name of which I do not know, a short distance from the Quanah Parker Park parking lot. Maybe Fort Worth's leading horticulturist, CatsPaw, can identify this sort of bee-like looking bloom.

I had myself a very relaxing Quanah Parker Park walk. I think I may have overdone the mountain biking yesterday, and, maybe, the swimming this morning. Hence I was feeling a bit over-exercised by the time the noon time frame rolled around.

Town Talk was busier than the Saturday norm today. Today's treasure hunting resulted in 2 bags of Clementine Oranges, 6 Orange Peppers, 3 bags of Bagels, 2 cases of Noosa Yogurt, one Strawberry-Rhubarb, the other Raspberry and a lot of Chicken Legs, plus other stuff I'm not remembering right now.

A Quanah Parker Park Mantis & Snake Encounter With Wenatchee Cherries At Town Talk

Today, this last Saturday of May, I parked at the Quanah Parker Park parking lot to commune with nature before making my weekly treasure hunting trek to Town Talk.

Quanah Parker Park was blooming a lot of wildflowers today.

There were the ubiquitous Indian Blankets and others whose names I do not know, such as the pink tulip-like wildflower you see in the picture.

I briefly knew a woman once who had a Hello Kitty pink color fixation. I saw this wildflower pink patch and thought of that particular person.

Today whilst walking the Quanah Parker Park paved trail I had myself a snake encounter. The snake was a high speed slitherer, so I had no chance to get a picture before it disappeared.

My other wildlife encounter was with a Praying Mantis. Or is it Preying Mantis? Whatever the correct name these have to be the oddest insects in the world of insects. For some reason at the moment I spotted the Mantis I did not feel like disturbing it by taking a picture.  Maybe that reluctance was partly due to not wanting to get all that close to the thing whilst take a picture in macro mode. Or maybe I did not want to intrude upon its praying. Or preying.

At Town Talk today I found myself Tillamook white extra sharp cheddar cheese, some really good mangoes, acorn and hubbard squash, plums and cherries from this place in the state of Washington called Wenatchee.

Wenatchee sounds more like an Indian name than Quanah Parker  does.

A HOT Hunt For The Missing Elsie Hotpepper At Quanah Parker Park

No, that is not the paved trail in Arlington's Village Creek Natural Historical Area you are looking at in the picture.

That fact is clearly obvious to an observant person, due to the well known fact that the Village Creek Natural Historical Area's paved trail does not have a center line.

However, the paved trail in Quanah Parker Park does have a center line.

Which might lead one to guess that today I parked at Quanah Parker Park to go on a borderline too HOT walk.

The one making that guess would be correct.

Elsie Hotpepper has gone missing for the first time in quite a while. I looked for the missing Hotpepper at Quanah Parker Park, but did not find her.

The last I heard from Elsie Hotpepper was on Monday, at which time Miss Hotpepper talked about islands. As in South Padre Island being a preferable island location to Galveston Island.

Changing the subject from Hotpepper back to the HOT weather.

Just like a week ago today, a BIG storm is predicted to arrive sometime after midnight at my location on the planet. Last week's BIG Storm piddled out at my location.

I am not liking the A/C running. Eventually I get used to this, if I am remembering correctly.

At 83 degrees my location is the HOTTEST of the temperatures I monitor hourly. My old home zone of Mount Vernon, in Washington, is a relatively chilly 55 degrees, while my mom and dad, nephews, sister and favorite brother-in-law, in Arizona, are only 14 degrees warmer than Mount Vernon, at 69 degrees.

Well, enough about temperatures, I must go continue my hunt for the missing Elsie Hotpepper now....

A Happy Birthday Call To My Dad While Dodging Pecans, Villy Valentin & Gar The Texan's Social Awkwardness

In the picture you are looking at the currently leafless renowned giant pecan tree that has some sort of state of Texas heritage status. This particular pecan tree is in Quanah Parker Park, a very short distance from my abode.

I took the picture of the Quanah Parker Park pecan tree and then called my dad to do the Happy Birthday thing.

On my phone, mom and dad's land line's I.D. is AZMAPA.

I expected PA to answer when I called AZMAPA, but MA answered, apparently screening my dad's Happy Birthday calls.

So, I had to relay my Happy Birthday wishes, to my dad, through my mom.

I got gas this morning, up in Hurst, so, since my mom answered, I felt obligated to tell my mom I got gas and how much it cost. $2.86. That is the cheapest gas has been in awhile in my zone.

Three of my mom and dad's grandchildren, David, Theo and Ruby, left Arizona a couple days before their grandpa's birthday. I asked how the visit with the grandkids went. I think my mom said it went fine. I'm not really remembering exactly what was said. I think I may have been dodging a falling pecan.

Changing the subject to something totally different.

Who is Villy Valentin? And why am I getting email telling me Villy has added me to a circle and has invited me to join Google+. What is a circle? What is Google+? I suppose I could Google Google+ and find out.

Changing the subject from one circle to another circle.

Long suffering Gar the Texan is stuck in a vicious circle of self-recrimination, the likes of which I feel totally inadequate to respond to, when it comes to saying anything even remotely helpful.

Apparently Gar the Texan's latest Gal Pal jumped all over his case due to getting fed up with his almost non-stop judgementalizing and over use of cliches while constantly talking about himself.

The Gal Pal getting on his case set off a bad case of Gar the Texan having one of his socially awkward episodes. I do not know the details, but I suspect he likely said things that were totally inappropriate whilst trying, desperately, to say something appropriate, and the effort just spun out of control.

On the plus side, Gar the Texan's latest Gal Pal speaks English, so the moments that spin out of control are not as frequent, or as scary, as it was with any of the Germanic Gal Pals that preceded  this current English speaking GP.

I've actually only witnessed, personally, maybe a dozen instances of Gar the Texan being socially awkward, with the worst example taking place in a Chili's bar. And then there was the bizarre argument about a river running through Shreveport.

I just remembered another incident, the memory of a painfully awkward, socially inept episode flooding back.

Gar the Texan smoking cigarettes in the now defunct Gators, trying to get a Southern Belle to say "Sugar Honey" over and over again, laughing hysterically every time she said the magic phrase. I was very uncomfortable and left soon thereafter....

Running Sprints While Befuddled By The Welcome To Quanah Parker Park Sign's Verbiage

Earlier today I indicated I would be running sprints at Quanah Parker Park today for my daily endorphin inducing aerobic stimulation.

The sprinting went well. The temperature was in the high 60s at that point in time. It is 76 currently, a couple hours later.

Til today, I don't think I'd bothered to read the Welcome to Quanah Parker Park sign that one comes to soon upon walking from the Quanah Parker Park parking lot.

The sign says...

Quanah Parker Park has different habitats for you to enjoy and is home to many animals. Hike along the trails and learn a little about which animals live here. Enjoy the open prairie and watch butterflies and dragonflies flit from flower to flower. Delight in your surroundings as you see lizards race across your path. Walk in wonder through a maze of trees and listen to the serenade of the birds. Enjoy a day at Quanah Parker Park.

Who makes up this stuff? Open prairie? A maze of trees? Flowers? Dragonflies flitting? Lizards?

I have never seen a lizard in Quanah Parker Park. I'm not saying there are no lizards there, I"m just saying I've not seen one. I have seen a bobcat a couple times. There is no mention of bobcats on the sign. Quanah Parker Park may be the home to many animals, but somehow I've not seen many of them.

I like Quanah Parker Park because it is very close to my abode, as in the closest park, with trails, to where I live.

The open prairie reference on that sign is the oddest element. There is a large field of mowed grass and weeds, that is open. I don't think it's a prairie.

And where is the maze of trees? A maze of trees sounds sort of fun.

Picking Quanah Parker Park Pecans With A Big Pile Of Litter

Quanah Parker Park Pecans

The Big Chill is being a bit of an adjustment.

Today when I left my abode to head to Quanah Parker Park to pick pecans off the ground I was wearing long pants for the first time since I flew to Phoenix in March.

That is around 8 months of being in short pants. We have a very long short pants season in North Texas.

I made the mistake of combining long pants with a short sleeved t-shirt. I should have worn something with long sleeves.

50 degrees is half of  100 degrees. I am really bad at math, but I am almost 100% certain I made that calculation correctly. It was not all that long ago we were being naturally heated to 100 degrees or more. And now, a short time later, Mother Nature has provided us a natural refrigerator.

I filled myself a plastic bag with pecans today. That is a couple of the pecans I picked up you are looking at in the picture above. What do I do with these pecans now that I've got a bag full of them? I have no idea. But, I think, maybe, roasting them in the oven is what needs to happen. I shall later Google for the answer.

Right at this precise point in time I'm not in the mood for any more oven roasting, because I just broiled 8 poblano peppers that I got at Town Talk today.

Speaking of Town Talk. Today was the busiest I have ever seen Town Talk. Inside the store there were no bad traffic jams. But, outside the store, there were bad traffic jams, with more vehicles than parking spaces.

Changing the subject from Town Talk back to Quanah Parker Park.

The Quanah Parker Park Garbage Dump

I was appalled to see what some litter bug on steroids has dumped in a ravine on the north side of the entry road, with the ravine leading to the Trinity River, a short distance away.

Someone had to be rather brazen to dump all this junk, risking someone driving in or out of the park, at any second, catching them in the criminal act.

I don't know why this type disposal method is used so much in Texas. Recently a lesser dumping of junk occurred next to the road that leads to the top of Mount Tandy.

One thing I do know. Where I lived in Washington, that being the Skagit Valley, I knew where I could haul junk to. I think it was called a Transfer Station, but I'm not sure of that. Time has reduced my ability to remember some things.

Where I live in Texas I have not the slightest idea where I would haul junk if I needed to get rid of it. Perhaps this is why, in desperation, slobby people do bad deeds, like throw away their garbage in a Fort Worth public park.

A Cold October Saturday In Texas Thinking About Harvesting Pecans & Not Pulling A Ryan

The morning of the first Saturday of October is the coldest it has been in North Texas for a long, long time. 51 degrees with the wind causing it to feel like 43 degrees.

The water in the pool was warmer than the air, this morning, which made for some very refreshing swimming, particularly after I overheated on the Nautilus machine.

The weather change has brought the ozone level down to being "Good" and the pollen level  has gone from "Extreme" to "Moderate".

My breathing apparatus is feeling like it is functioning totally back to normal. The idea of being stuck inside an airplane, and having a sneezing fit, no longer is mortifying me.

I was a little worried that yesterday's jogging episode around Fosdick Lake might cause some soreness.

I had erroneously thought I'd jogged around 2 miles, then someone named Anonymous informed me that the paved trail around Fosdick Lake is only 1 mile.

I don't know if it was the same Anonymous person, or another one, but someone named Anonymous made another anonymous comment on the blogging about jogging. This comment confused me at first, but I think I figured it out...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Jogging Around Fosdick Lake With Grandma & The Fosducks": 

OK, so long as you're not pulling a Ryan on us. 

I had no clue what "pulling a Ryan" might be. Then I remembered that that lightly qualified guy that Mitt Romney picked as his running mate, Paul Ryan, has gotten some bad press for obviously fudging his time on some running event he ran in. I don't remember the details, but I suspect this must be that to which Anonymous is referring.

Changing the subject from Paul Ryan's fibbery back to the weather.

Rain is on the schedule for today. I do not know if copious amounts are predicted. What I do know is no rain has dampened my location, so far.

If the rain holds off I think I'll go pecan harvesting at Quanah Parker Park today, on my way to Town Talk. On Wednesday I saw a lot of pecans on the ground under the big pecan trees in Quanah Parker Park. It did not cross my mind to get myself some pecans til Steve A caused that idea to cross my mind.

In Quanah Parker Park Gazing Up At A Giant Pecan Tree

I was up early and in the cool pool when the sun began arriving this morning to do its daily illumination and heating duties.

I am liking the cooler pool water. Very refreshing.

When the time of the day arrived for my scheduled daily salubrious endorphin inducing aerobic stimulation I found myself running late for a date, so I opted to go for a brisk walk with the pecan trees that tower over Quanah Parker Park.

That is the biggest of the Quanah Parker Park pecan trees you are standing under in the picture.

This is the pecan tree that is some sort of specially designated historical heritage tree.

I do not know if Quanah Parker ever parked himself under this tree, or not. There must be some reason this particular park is named after the most famous Comanche chief.

Mysterious Disappearances At Quanah Parker Park

On my way to Town Talk today I parked in the Quanah Parker Park parking lot, for a short while, to facilitate checking out something I'd wondered about weeks ago, on July 30, to be precise.

In a blogging titled White Energy Pickups & Other Quanah Parker Park Puzzles I took a picture of an area where a thick layer of beauty bark had been laid down between two orange plastic fences.

There had been a Barnett Shale Natural Gas Trinity River water sucking operation going on that slowed up entering the park. But I could see no connection between the water sucking and the fenced off beauty bark.

Well, today, as you can see in the picture, all has been removed. Why was it temporarily there?

I did not stay long at Quanah Parker Park. I'm just not enjoying the outer world all that much lately. That and I have no idea where I might get hit by an anti-mosquito death cloud while out and about outdoors in Fort Worth.

I have not been swimming since Friday morning. You might intuit from that fact the fact that my pool is still in malfunction mode.

Why must swimming pools be such high maintenance operations?

I remember my first Texas swimming pool, up north of Fort Worth, in the hamlet of Haslet. At one point we got the pool chemicals messed up, resulting in the pool turning an unearthly shade of green.

A professional intervention was required.

I found it a bit disturbing how quickly the professional intervention, with the correct chemical mix, turned the pool from that unearthly shade of green to crystal clear blue water.

I am not much minding the unscheduled break from aerobic stimulation. I don't know what I did, but my elderly body's musculature feels like it feels after I subject it to a long hike up a mountain with thousands of feet of elevation gain.

Unfortunately, there are no mountains available within a reasonable distance of my current location that I could hike up and get real sore. Maybe I overdid it yesterday in the pool.

Changing the subject from Quanah Parker Park to Quanah Parker.

Recently, Hometown by Handlebar had a very interesting article about Quanah Parker titled “Deathly Perfume”: A “Noble Red Man Succumbs”

The article begins with...On December 19, 1885, Comanche Chief Quanah Parker and his father-in-law, Chief Yellow Bear, came to Fort Worth. Yellow Bear was father of Wec-Keah, Quanah Parker’s first wife. The two men had come to meet with Indian agent Lee Hall …

Click the link to read the rest of the story.