OneDrive Memory Of Enchanted Rock & Ralph The Swimming Pig

Another Microsoft OneDrive Memory from this Day, which I actually remember, something which does not happen too often with these alleged photo memories.

It was a Winter day, easily could have been in February, during a time when I took myself on a solo roadtrip. 

First night I stayed in Waco, and mountain biked the trails in Waco's Cameron Park.

Second night I stayed in San Marcos, and had fun exploring Aquarena Springs, site of the clearest water I have ever seen, and an abandoned amusement park that one could walk through.

Back during its heyday a pig named Ralph, known as The Swimming Pig, put on a show in Spring Lake. One could watch the show from above the lake, or venture into a submarine viewing venue. 

When I visited one could still climb down into the submarine viewing venue to look deep into the crystal clear water.

Leaving San Marcos I found myself in what is known in Texas as Hill Country. This is where one finds Luckenbach, and many other sites of interest. Eventually I found myself at Enchanted Rock State Park, which is where the above photo was taken, at the top of the rock, using my long-gone Casio digital camera, which had a feature now known as taking a selfie.

Leaving Enchanted Rock I headed south, eventually spending the night in San Antonio, and seeing the Alamo for the first time. That and San Antonio's Riverwalk.

The next morning I got a phone call which caused me to hurry back to the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex as quick as possible.

Remembering that phone call, and all the other phone calls that day, is a memory I would have preferred not to have been reminded of today...

Thanks To The TRWD Fort Worth Is The Only Town In Texas Where You Can Jump In A River

What you see here arrived in my email a couple minutes ago. The person from whom I got this did not inform me as to from whence it came.

The subject line of the email simply said "More Blog Fod For You".

I asked from whence this came and just as I typed More Blog Fod For You a follow up text message informed this was on Facebook,  something to do with a response to a question asked in regards to a TRWD Adopt a Drain Facebook advertisement.

That TRWD entity sure is good at finding new ways to spend money on its advertising propaganda.

Anyway, apparently thanks to the Herculean efforts of the TRWD the Trinity River has magically gone from being a polluted mess of rolling brown sludge to being a pristine crystal clear section of urban river, the only one in the entire state of Texas where a community can jump in and enjoy the refreshing, clean water.

When did San Marcos secede from Texas? I must have missed that news. I rather like San Marcos. Beautiful town on the fringe of Texas Hill Country, a college town which reminds me of Bellingham in my old home zone of Washington.

I was real impressed with Aquarena Springs and the crystal clear San Marcos River which flows from the springs and scenically through the town of San Marcos at a constant 72 degrees.

San Marcos seemed to me to be a city, and thus urban. The locals, and oodles of out of town visitors who visit San Marcos, enjoy refreshing floats in the San Marcos River.

So, how can the TRWD parent of The Boondoggle, with that Boondoggle being the entity which has foisted the embarrassing Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats in the polluted brown waters of the Trinity River, claim that through their efforts they have created the only urban river section in Texas that a community can enjoy jumping in?

I tell you, the sheer raw hubris of these people never ceases  to amaze....

Pedaling By The Green Trinity River In Gateway Park While Thinking About Clear Texas Water & Apples & Cherries

In the picture my handlebars are on the Gateway Park FWMBA mountain bike trail, pointing to the Trinity River, which is currently an interesting jade shade of green.

I really don't think a jade shade of green is a good look for a river, even though it nicely color coordinates with the surrounding foliage.

I can't help but wonder what makes the Trinity River a jade shade of green.

I have seen rivers in Texas with really clear water. Like the San Marcos River that flows out of Aquarena Springs. I've seldom seen a springs with water as clear as that in Aquarena.

Texas State University San Marcos runs the Aquarena Center, which is a sort of combo education center/entertainment complex.

I've only been to San Marcos and the Aquarena Center once. At that point in time, adjacent to Aquarena Springs there was a Ghost Theme Park. As in an abandoned theme park. The rides were built on a hill that rises by Aquarena Springs.

After I finished pedaling a few miles in the Gateway Park shade I went to Town Talk.

Town Talk was a madhouse zoo today.

A place holder in the busy checkout line got cranky at me when I suggested she get out of my way so I could unload the stuff I wanted to buy. She made quite a fuss. It was sort of the checkout line version of Texans who don't understand the right of way concept when they are befuddled at a four way stop.

I got apples and cherries, both from Chelan in my old home state of Washington. The apples are Delicious. The cherries are Rainiers.

Town Talk was also selling big boxes of plums for only $5 today. This was way more plums than the bushel of plums I previously got from Town Talk. I was a bit overwhelmed with the previous over supply of plums so I passed on the Town Talk plums today.

Earlier today I agreed with Marie that Washington was more expensive than Texas. Steve A then pointed out that the annual A/C bill is a lot bigger in Arlington, Texas than in Arlington, Washington. I thought that this was amusing.

Not all is cheaper in Texas. Keeping cool is costly. Pretty much free of charge in Washington. Most of the time.

I Am Going Swimming While We Go Over 110 Sunday In North Texas

I am going to be floating in that blue thing in a few minutes. It was 85 this morning out on the patio, sipping hot coffee, watching the sun start to light up Sunday.

Yesterday was 100 degree day 15 in a row in North Texas.

Today is expected to be the HOTTEST day of the summer, so far. Meteorologists at the National Weather Service in Fort Worth have predicted the Heat Index could go above 110 degrees today.

Apparently the wind prediction for today is for pretty much Dead Calm, thus no wind chill factor to counter act the HEAT.

Two years ago today I was shivering in Tacoma, with the shivering provided by Mother Nature, not air-conditioning. I think I prefer my shivering to be provided by Mother Nature, instead of a machine.

At this moment in Seattle it is 67, heading to a high today of 89. In Western Washington very few people have air-conditioning. But, when it gets hot in Western Washington, unlike North Texas, you can go on a short drive and be up in the Cascade Mountains, where it is much cooler. You can fairly easily get yourself on a nice cooling glacier. Or you can easily go wading in the cool waters of Puget Sound.

There are no glaciers I can drive myself to in Texas. I can drive myself to cool water, though, like down in San Marcos.

I think I'll have to make do with the lukewarm water of my pool.

Thinking About Tubing The San Marcos River On Day 15 Over 100 In North Texas

As you can see I am out on my patio, drinking coffee, just as the sun starts to light up the place, with a lot of birds chirping their happiness over the return of the sun.

It is 83 this morning. Yesterday was the 14th day in a row over 100 degrees in North Texas. Today will be the 15th day in a row.

The National Weather Service has reneged on its prediction that we would get relief from the sizzle on Sunday. The NWS is now saying the earliest we might see less than 100 is Tuesday. And that forecast may change.

I took a virtual trip south of Austin, yesterday, to San Marcos. San Marcos may be my favorite town I've been to in Texas. The town sort of reminds me of a small version of Bellingham in Washington. The Edwards Aquifer leaks to the surface in the San Marcos area in several springs. One of which is Aquarena Springs, site of some of the clearest water I've ever seen.

All the San Marcos springs flow into the San Marcos River, which stay pretty much at a constant 78 degree all year, causing tropical-like vegetation at the river's edge. And excellent tubing.

I don't know where I may virtually go today. Maybe out to West Texas, to Pecos, with a side trip to Wink to see the Queen.

In the meantime, I am going swimming.