Mount Rainier Appears On Day 2 In Tacoma

I am dead exhausted, having slept only an hour or two last night. I've had a busy day today, so tonight I am firing on about a half a cylinder. Whatever that means. Like I said, I'm exhausted.

Even so, tonight we had a BBQ outside. My sister made the tastiest burger I've ever had on the tastiest bun I've ever tasted.

After the BBQ I was asked if I wanted to come along to walk Blue & Max, the poodle pair who will be left in my dangerous care tomorrow, after I take their primary caregivers to the airport, departing for a week in the other Washington, with the initials D.C. at the end.

We drove to Owens Beach at Point Defiance. Point Defiance is a park in Tacoma. It is one of the largest urban parks in the world. As you can see in the photo, The Mountain, as in Mount Rainier, was out tonight. There were large throngs of people having fun at the beach, kayaking, picnicking, jogging, biking, weenie roasting, walking and in one case, an older gentleman appeared to steal a kiss from an older lady with a cane. I told her I hope she knew that man. She said she did.

I was out and about in Tacoma all day today, and again tonight. And just like my previous returns, after extended periods of exile in Texas, I am amazed at how many people appear to have had the air let out of them. I'm seeing so few fat people here. Washington is not doing its part in contributing to the National Strategic Fat Preserve. Or maybe Washington is doing its part in drawing down on the Fat Preserve and helping bring down food prices.

We drove the waterfront back after the poodle walk, lots of people at the waterfront restaurants, Mount Rainier hovering over them. The sun sets way later up north than down in Texas and it sets in very scenic way, what with all the water and mountains. It was perfect tonight. Even a ferry boat got in the view.

I hope Fort Worth succeeds with its Trinity River Vision so Fort Worth can be like Tacoma, with scenic waterfront property and a lot of deflated people using the Fort Worth waterfront. That'd be nice for Fort Worth....

Poodle Sitting in Tacoma

I have a complicated task here in Tacoma for several days, til reinforcements arrive. I will be the sole care provider for a pair of high maintenance poodles. It is only day one and I've already misplaced one, Blue, once. Max seems to need a bit less maintenance.

In the below video I'm playing with Max in the backyard when Blue goes missing. It did not take long for Blue to show up again.

I've Recovered From Fort Worth Level Orange Ozone

Last night, when I still was having a sore throat and coughing fits, I was starting to doubt that this 4 day problem was caused by the Level Orange Ozone woes that had befallen the D/FW Metro zone in recent days.

I figured if my sore throat and cough were caused by the pollution that this would clear up as soon as I got to clean air. Well, I landed in Washington, hours later I still had a sore throat. I coughed all through the night.

Then this morning I was outside in the brisk, pine-scented morning air. It felt like I was breathing in super air, like it'd been somehow treated and made the way air should be.

By mid-morning I realized my sore throat was going away. I haven't coughed in hours. I believe I am cured. If this woe was caused by D/FW pollution I can't help but wonder how it effects those not in as good as shape as myself. I know one allergy prone Puerto Rican who was laid low and puffed up by the Level Orange Fort Worth Ozone.

Tacoma, Lulu and Pick-Quick

I started off the day feeling exhausted from a bad bout of insomnia. The pine-scented air of Washington is having its predicted effect on my feelings of well-being.

Some time before noon Lulu dropped in. I then chauffeured us to one of my favorite joints, that being Pick-Quick in Fife. That's a little town between Tacoma and Seattle. Lulu bought me lunch. She's trying to fatten me up. She was also trying to buy me new pants today, saying mine don't fit anymore.

Quick-Pick makes really good burgers. I had their basic cheeseburger. It comes with real fresh tomato slices straight from a Washington farm, same with the onion. And then there was the fresh strawberry shake. Also made with fresh strawberries straight from a Washington farm. Unfortunately, for me, blackberries aren't quite ripe yet.

Quick-Pick and other burger joints in Tacoma and Seattle area towns are one of the reasons I was perplexed whilst in Fort Worth by the fuss made locally over what seemed to me to be a very pedestrian burger joint called Kincaids.

At Quick-Pick you can eat outside at their park-like area, with many picnic tables and multiple giant hanging baskets of flowers. Often with Mount Rainier as your background. But, not today, the mountain was not out due to a heavy layer of marine air. That is sort of a high fog, not quite clouds. This has now burned off and it's clear blue sky out there.

And no longer cold. I was very cold this morning. It is now 63 here in Tacoma coming up on 2pm. I see you've hit 100 this afternoon down in Fort Worth.

I'll try and get back to Quick-Pick the month I'm here and try and remember my camera. And hope the mountain is out.

A Barnett Shale Victim's Comment

Chesapeake Energy energetic propaganda campaign has many components, one being that they have people monitoring what's being said about them on the Internet. One of their shills then sends out rather off subject boilerplate comments that are actually rather amusing. Though that is not Chesapeake's intent.

In June I got a comment from a Chesapeake Energy shill. He/She said I had a slog of a blog. I took this as a compliment.

Today someone calling himself "shalevictim1" commented on the Chesapeake Slog of a Blog blogging.

Below is the comment.

"I live with the Barnett Shale every day and the only good thing is the money....while it lasts. Tomorrow morning I will again confront the pipeline crew that is cutting down trees on my land, when the lying landman said they would not. I have a lot of experience and if anyone wants to hear about it and know what they are in for then reply and I will unload. Keep in mind we have been run off of our home by gas lift compressor noise.....no not the temporary drill or frac noise...the perminent drone of the diesel gas lifter."

Sleepless In Tacoma

Yesterday whilst up in the air I drank a lot of Coke. As you, of course, know from reading every word in my Blog.

I'd been up since 5am Sunday morning. I'd gone on a long walk about noon. I'd flown for over 6 hours. When I landed in Washington it was 9:25pm Pacific Time. I'm usually in bed by that time Central Time.

By the time I got to Tacoma it was 10pm, midnight by my internal clock. When I got to my current location I unpacked and set up my computer.

I wasn't feeling sleepy, so I figured I'd take a sleeping pill (Unisom) and blog about my experience with Love Field and Southwest Airlines. I should have been sleepy. But I did drink all that Coke. And there are stimulants added to Coke. Well, a stimulant, as in caffeine.

Soon it was way past midnight. I wasn't sleepy, but I went to bed. I got cold, even though there were several blankets on top of me. I got up and found a thick comforter. This in the middle of summer. It's colder in here than I keep it with A/C in Texas.

Sometime past 3am I fell asleep for a bit. It is now 6am. I got up, turned on the coffee maker. Then I got chased by a pair of poodles. So, I went outside with them. And the air smelled like Christmas trees. I tell you, one of the many good things about living in Texas, is to be away from Washington for awhile and to return to be amazed at how good it smells, how sparkling clean it looks. And this summer, with no drought, it's very green.

I hope I can sleep tonight. In the meantime I'll be doing some poodle walking and some Lulu walking. And find a blackberry milkshake somewhere.

Southwest Airlines to Tacoma

Today's trip to Tacoma started off bad. But by the time I landed at Sea-Tac it was the best flight north yet.

Due to flying Southwest I had to fly out of Love Field in Dallas. Love Field sucks compared to the easy to use D/FW Airport. Parking was not easy. Going through security was the worst yet, with the conveyor built moving too much through the scanner, resulting in my laptop almost being knocked off.

I was wearing sandals and they made me take them off. So, I was barefoot during the chaos of trying to deal with my 4 trays of assorted cameras, computers, power supplies and stuff falling out of my backpack.

By the time I got my sandals back on I was a sweaty mess. I wanted water. The first water faucet was broken. I was really was starting to hate Love Field. I got to my gate, then took off to find water. I was successful.

Due to checking in online I was in Boarding Group A, Position 43. Southwest does not assign seats. I was able to get a window seat.

The first leg of this journey was to Albuquerque. We were barely in the air when drinks were mentioned. About a half hour later the waitress, I mean, stewardess, took my order. I was thirsty. I wanted Coke. Full sugar. About another half hour went by and finally the drink orders began to appear in the distance. I felt like I was in Hell's Kitchen.

By then I was getting cranky. A half hour prior to the Coke arriving 2 bags of peanuts were given to each of us. Salty peanuts. This did not help the thirst problem.

Finally, the Coke arrived at my section of the plane. In the littlest plastic cup I've seen, maybe 4 ounces.

I was really cranky by then. And then it began to turn around. A short time later the waitress asked if I needed anything else. Was there anyway I could have another Coke, I asked. Sure, you can. So, she brought me another.

By the time we landed in New Mexico I was back happy. Most of the people got off the plane. Then a head count was made. Then we could move to a new seat if we wanted. So, I moved to the front of the plane on the right side. This was a mistake.

The new people began to file in. No one had taken the seat next to me. Good thing. Then the announcer said everyone was on board. I like the extra room of an empty seat next to me. And then this guy and his kid could not find 2 seats next to each other. One of the waitresses asks if anyone would give up their seat. She offered free booze type drinks. Someone took the offer. And moved to the empty seat next to me.

She turned out to be interesting once she got liquored up on the wine they kept bringing her.

I was back thirsty again. We went through the same process again. This time it was Cheese Nips and peanuts a half hour before the Coke showed up. This time the second Coke showed up quickly. Then, a half hour to go to Seattle, she asked me again if I needed anything. Another Coke would be great, I said, my throat is sore. Which it was, due to breathing Level Orange Texas Ozone. She said she'd bring me a whole can. Which she did.

By then I was liking Southwest Airlines. I'm easy to make happy.

And then we flew the closest to Mount Rainier that I ever remember being. And I was on the wrong side of the plane. I did get a good view of the North Cascades, including the Mount Baker volcano, near where I used to live.

That's what you see in the above photo.

Max & Blue and Kristin and Michele were there to pick me up at Sea-Tac. It felt like natural air-conditioning outside. Now I'm in my current basement apartment and I'm sorta chilly. I can't remember the last time I was sorta chilly. It's a good thing.

Tacoma vs. Fort Worth

Tacoma is to Seattle sorta like Fort Worth is to Dallas. Tacoma's population is around 200,000, Seattle's a bit over a half million, both in a Metro area of about 3 million.

Fort Worth's population is over 700,000, Dallas over a million, both in a Metro zone approaching 6 million.

Fort Worth, with a population over 3 times bigger than Tacoma, is in the early talking about it stage of building some sort of rail transit. Tacoma already has such a thing. That's one of the Sound Transit trains in the photo, near Tacoma's museums, like the Glass Museum. Tacoma does not call its museum district their Cultural District, though, like Fort Worth does.

Also in the museum area is Tacoma's new $300 million convention center. Fort Worth spent a bit over $100 million updating their outdated, seldom used convention center and had to fund it in 3 stages. A new hotel was built across the Sound Transit rail line from Tacoma's convention center. Fort Worth had to give tax breaks to get a new hotel for their convention center.

It is free to ride Tacoma's Sound Transit. It runs from a transit hub similar to Fort Worth's downtown transit hub, only in Tacoma instead of the T Train running to Dallas you have the Sounder train running to Seattle and beyond. Fort Worth tried to have a market at its downtown transit hub. The delusional locals claimed it was modeled after Seattle's Pike Place and other successful markets. And that it was the first public market in Texas. It quickly failed. This was the first Fort Worth Boondoggle that I got to witness. It was called the Santa Fe Rail Market.

Tacoma's transit hub has a Santa Fe Rail Market type thing with some differences, the main one being that it is successful. And that it actually does sort of resemble a small version of Pike Place.

Well, in a couple hours I'll be going from the ridiculous to the sublime. I expect to have a fresh blackberry milkshake within the next 24 hours. That's the main thing I'm looking forward to.

Shreveport Gets Gas From Haynesville Shale

Apparently Shreveport is looking at Fort Worth for answers to how to handle all the little problems that crop up when you start drilling for gas in an urban zone.

The Shreveport area shale is called the Haynesville Shale. I assume Haynesville is a town. I guess I think it's a town due to that 'ville' at the end of the name. I've no idea why the shale underneath me is called Barnett.

I discovered today what seemed to me to be sort of odd verbiage used to describe these shale operations. I first read it in the Star-Telegram and assumed it was just more of their patented goofiness. But then I read it elsewhere.

Here are some examples...

"Where is the Haynesville Shale? It sprawls across northwest Louisiana, covering the Shreveport area. A small slice of Northwest Texas is also in play."

In play?

And then, "In March, Chesapeake and another company announced that it could rival or exceed North Texas' Barnett Shale, the nation's hottest play."

Hottest play?

Another example, "The Haynesville Shale natural gas play has Shreveport residents scrambling to learn the ins and outs of mineral rights."

This use of the word "play" must be oil country lingo with which I am not familiar.

Level Orange Ozone Making Me Sick

I don't know if we are at a Level Orange Ozone Alert again today, here in Texas. The air appears to be a bit clearer this morning.

The past 3 days I've developed a cough and sore throat. Yesterday I was over at my local Puerto Rican's and she told me I was having an allergic reaction to the Ozone. She's an amateur doctor in her spare time. She also suffers miserably from bad allergies which require potent meds.

Last night Miss Puerto Rico prescribed Eucalyptus Aroma Therapy for my sore throat and cough. This meant we sat and passed a bottle of Eucalyptus back and forth. This did not seem to have any salubrious effect for me. But the fumes made me tipsy.

Starting at approximately 6:25 pm, today, I should start getting some relief from this Level Orange Ozone threat, as I fly away from this polluted zone to a less polluted, I hope, zone.

Actually, if this trip to Washington is like my other 2 summers back up there, I will be remarking, for several days, how the air smells so good, like Christmas trees. And then I get used to it.

In about 13 and a half hours I will be picked up at Sea-Tac by a pair of poodles named Blue and Max. Tomorrow I hope I get to take them walking the Tacoma waterfront. Or somewhere. Actually just walking in their neighborhood is fun. Nice and hilly.