Tuesday Night's Texas Storm

The last thing I blogged about yesterday was the incoming storm that had started rumbling in the west.

By the time the storm reached my location the hail was pea-sized, not golf ball-sized. Golf ball-sized hail I've only seen once, during the tornado storm that blew through downtown Fort Worth in 2000. Golf ball-sized hail hitting the roof of a house causes a deafening pounding noise.

I just remembered another golf ball-sized hail storm. I'd been at a Dude Ranch down by Glen Rose for a BBQ catered by Riscky's. I had a Texas native named Julene in my vehicle. Julene had had a car destroyed by the infamous hail storm in Fort Worth that occurred during Mayfest sometime in the early 1990s.

Leaving the Dude Ranch we could see we were heading into a storm. By the time we got to Interstate 35, heading north, we were in wind and rain, but the lightning was still north of us. Gradually we caught up. Just before we got to the junction of I-35 and I-20 all hell broke loose. I'd already slowed to about 10 mph and then the hail started hitting. Big golf ball-sized hail.

Julene reacted in panic and climbed over the seat to get away from the windshield that she was sure was about to shatter. When she reacted like that it reminded me of Jackie Kennedy climbing onto the back of the limousine in the Zapruder film of the JFK assassination.

The hail bombardment was over quickly. Julene climbed back into the front seat. And then explained the panic. That was the first I'd heard of the Mayfest Hail Storm.

Washington #1 For Bikes, Texas #36

For two years in a row a group called the League of American Bicyclists has had the state I lived in previous to Texas, that being Washington, as the #1 Most Bike Friendly State.

Last year Texas was the 30th Most Bike Friendly State. But, unfortunately, this year Texas became less Bike Friendly, falling 6 spots to #36.

According to the LAB's website, "a Bicycle Friendly State promotes cycling through legislation, policies, programs, and by creating new places to ride, educating motorists and cyclists, and encouraging people to bike for transportation and recreation."

I guess I can see how it is that Washington is more bike friendly than Texas. Just comparing Seattle to Fort Worth for instance. Seattle has these things called sidewalks running along side virtually every street in the town. Fort Worth has some sidewalks, usually narrower than your average Texan, and a lot of dirt paths. Seattle and the county in which the town is located, that being King County, has quite a well-developed complex of biking trails.

Fort Worth and the county in which it is located, that being Tarrant County, has some paved biking trails, most of which run along the Trinity River.

Recently Fort Worth's city government announced a 30 year plan to expand Fort Worth's biking trails. When I read that I wondered why in the world it would take 30 years.

Currently, as far as I know, there is no 30 year plan, here in Fort Worth, to build sidewalks on the city's streets that currently lack them. I'm pretty sure if the League of American Sidewalk Walkers had a list ranking American City's Sidewalk Friendliness that Fort Worth would rank near, or at, the bottom.

Texas Weather: Severe Thunderstorm Watch Tonight

The extreme weather may be my favorite thing about Texas. I love a good storm. But I'm not in the mood for one tonight. I've already had myself enough fun today. Which was our hottest day of the year, hitting 95.

WeatherBug went off with a National Weather Service Storm Watch warning about an hour ago. Apparently we can expect 2.5 inches in diameter hail with gusts up to 70 mph. I'll batten down the hatches.

Just got a live report from a local telling me lightning could be seen to the west, as in by downtown Fort Worth. Heading this way. I'm still seeing blue sky out my window, but I did step out on the balcony and looked west to a very angry, dark wall of clouds.

Below is the dire NWS warning....

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL 11:00PM CDT

Urgent - Immediate Broadcast Requested Severe Thunderstorm Watch Number 312 Nws Storm Prediction Center Norman OK 520 PM CDT Tue May 26 2009

The Nws Storm Prediction Center Has Issued A Severe Thunderstorm Watch For Portions Of

Small Part Of Southern Oklahoma Much Of North Central Texas

Effective This Tuesday Afternoon And Evening From 520 PM Until 1100 PM CDT.

Hail To 2.5 Inches In Diameter, Thunderstorm Wind Gusts To 70 Mph, And Dangerous Lightning Are Possible In These Areas.

The Severe Thunderstorm Watch Area Is Approximately Along And 80 Statute Miles East And West Of A Line From 15 Miles East Northeast Of Durant Oklahoma To 45 Miles East Southeast Of Brownwood Texas.

Preventing Prevention Magazine

I used to subscribe to a lot of magazines. Now I don't have a single magazine subscription. For a couple months I've been finding letters from Prevention magazine in my P.O. Box. I assumed they were junk mail, because, well they were junk mail, and tossed the letters in the trash.

Then today there was a letter in the P.O. Box that had no indication who it was from, just a return address of Westbury, NY.

I opened the letter to find a REQUEST FOR PAYMENT from something called the North Shore Agency, Inc. for a subscription to Prevention magazine that I never subscribed to.

The letter demanded $17.94 be paid immediately, claiming multiple billings had been sent for a magazine I don't think I've received. If one showed up at my P.O. Box I would have just thrown it away, deeming it to be junk mail, just like their bills.

Near as I can tell the gist of Prevention magazine is info to help you get or stay healthy. I'm already there. Why would I want this magazine. That and it's a Rodale Publication. I've long known to stay away from Rodale Publications.

The collection agency had a web address at www.prevention.com where I could pay my "bill." So, I went there hoping to find some place to complain. It was fairly easy to access my "account" to a subscription I did not subscribe to. I found a Customer Service email option.

So, I wrote the following...

"I did not subscribe to Prevention Magazine. I did not open any mail from Prevention until today when an envelope arrived that did not indicate who it was from. Inside was a dunning notice from a collection agency for a magazine I did not subscribe to. I don't think I have received any magazines. Had I found one in my PO Box I would have assumed it was junk mail and tossed it."

When I clicked to submit the message, the page would refresh, the message would still be there, with no feedback that the message had been sent. I hit the submit button at least 5 times.

Then I looked at my "account" again. I saw a "cancel subscription" option. If clicked that and then clicked "cancel subscription' figuring even though I did not subscribe maybe this would put an end to this nightmare. When I hit the submit button on the cancel option, that worked.

So, we'll see where this goes now. Likely it'll just get loonier and loonier, just like that whole Dallas Morning News Boondoggle.

Getting Naturally Friendly In Midlothian

This morning I found out I'm going to a Naturist Facility in Midlothian, with Yvonne, called Naturally Friends. Naturally Friends does not have a website, but a lot of similar facilities in Texas do have a website. I was surprised by the number of Naturist choices in the D/FW Metroplex zone within easy driving distance.

When I Googled for info about Naturally Friends I eventually found a map of the U.S. You click a state and a list of that state's Naturist Facilities pops up.

I lived in Mount Vernon, Washington. Mount Vernon was on the Washington list. Somehow it seemed I'd been down this same path of confusion before. I could not picture there being a Naturist Facility in Mount Vernon. So, I clicked on the website link to quickly realize I'd seen this before and that the actual Naturist Facility is not in Mount Vernon, but out at Lake McMurray, which is maybe 10 or 15 miles from Mount Vernon.

That's a picture of a waterfall at the Mount Vernon/Lake McMurray Naturist Facility. I used that photo for Miss Joely, who has never seen a waterfall in person. But will this summer.

I don't know when Miss Yvonne is taking me to Midlothian and Naturally Friends. Yvonne is fond of getting what she calls "nakey," but I've never gotten "nakey" with Yvonne with a bunch of strangers thrown into the mix. I'll try not to worry too much about it. I'm sure I'll survive.

Village Creek Grim Reaper With Snakes & The MuMu Lady

A long time ago I blogged about an encounter at Village Creek Natural Historic Area with an odd woman wearing a MuMu and walking with a strange gait while waving her arms and talking to herself.

I never saw her again. Til today. In the previous encounter I said "Hello, did you see the armadillos?" To which she said "No, did you see the strange bird?"

I said "No, I have seen no bird." She then asked if she could give me her "testimony." I politely declined, but she began it anyway. I listened for a little bit and then went on my way. A short time after that I came upon her again, sitting on a bench. She then told me the story of her encounter on that bench with a mountain lion. She'd been praying, looked up to see the mountain lion. She then loudly prayed SAVE ME JESUS! And the mountain lion walked away without eating her.

Now, what is really strange about that story is I believe it to be true. There had been many reports of a mountain lion sighting along the banks of the Trinity River. And there was one story of an encounter with an elderly lady at Village Creek. I believe that elderly lady was Miss MuMu.

During my bike ride, a couple days ago, at Village Creek, I had several bad encounters. Same thing today. A crew was trimming the jungle at the sides of the trail. One had a long scythe-like thing, you know that thing the Grim Reaper has with a big blade on the end of a stick. I thought the Grim Reaper guy saw me coming and was letting me pass, but right as I got to him he swung back the scythe-like thing, in my direction. I let out a yell and disaster was averted.

A short distance from the Grim Reaper encounter I had a snake encounter. I was biking real fast, maybe 20 mph, down an incline that leads to the second dam/bridge, when I nearly ran over a well-camouflaged snake. I hit the brakes and got out the camera. My only copperhead encounter in Texas took place in about this same location. That copperhead was a big snake who would not get off the trail. Another guy had spotted the snake and warned me to stop. I was roller blading. Eventually the snake got bored and slithered away.

I forgot to mention, that's Miss MuMu lady in the picture at the top. I came upon her a second time today as she was entering the part of the trail that goes through Interlochen. She must live in one of those cool houses on a canal. I was coming up behind her, I don't think she can see very well. There's a bench at the top of the slope that leads from the dam/bridge. She sort of crawled on to the bench, getting down on her knees in the down on all fours position. It was very un-ladylike.

I pedaled on, down the slope, then hit the brakes and turned around, thinking I gotta see if I can get a picture of this. I was far enough away that she would not have been able to tell I was snapping pics. I took the pics using the maximum optical and digital zoom.

The other regular Village Creek character was there today too. Log Man. He's an older guy who walks while swinging a thick stick, like a long log. It's a little unsettling when he's swinging that thing and you bike up on him from behind. I don't think he hears very well.

Italian Police Investigate Gar the Texan

I went for my usual crack of dawn swim and then while sitting here eating breakfast I saw that Gar the Texan had freshly blogged.

When Gar the Texan was in Italy a few weeks ago he told some amusing tales of drunken misadventures and troubling train rides.

Gar the Texan had to go back to Italy a few days ago. He is now safely back in Texas where he disturbed the Memorial Day peace and quiet.

While he was in Italy, this time, Gar the Texan came under police surveillance. Why, I do not know. Suspected of being a terrorist? He no longer has an odd hairstyle that could get police attention. He used to be a mullet head, which could probably land you in jail in fashion conscious Italy.

By his own admission that boy would likely not be married, at this point in time, had he not listened to my suggestion that he lose the mullet. Has Gar the Texan thanked me for this? I don't remember for sure...

Memorial Day Pizza

When my physical therapist, Dr. Layla, read on my blog that I was having pizza for Memorial Day she sent out an urgent query, wondering what had been done to Durango. Due to Dr. Layla's erroneous belief that pizza is not health food.

I beg to differ with the doctor. She is always telling me I get way too much exercise and that I eat way too many fruits and vegetables and other healthy stuff.

But, for Dr. Layla to assume the consumption of a pizza is a fall off the health food bandwagon, well, it just makes me question her credentials and wonder if she might not be just some sort of quack pretending to be a physical therapist.

My Memorial Day Pizza was a whole wheat pie. Covered with a tomato paste base. Tomatoes are rich in lypocene. There was a chopped up red pepper on the pizza, also rich in lypocene. BBQ chicken breast was the meat product on the pizza. Other vegetables included green pepper, onion, garlic, broccoli, spinach, green and black olives, fresh tomato (more lypocene) and mushrooms. On top of all that was a smattering of low fat Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.

Now, how can any legitimate doctor not see that this was one very healthy pizza? It perplexes me.

Memorial Day Moms, Humidity & Pizza

I've only got a few minutes before my Memorial Day pizza comes out of the oven. It is 84 and very humid here this afternoon. We had some rain overnight, hence the humidity. It seems sort of counter-intuitive to be baking a pizza in a 400 degree oven while you're running the A/C.

I was up before the crack of dawn again, which means that once again I went swimming as the sun came up. This seems to be a good way to start the day.

Due to the rain, the Tandy Hills would not have been hikeable today, most likely, so a walk around Oakland Lake Park substituted. A lot of people were there having their Memorial Day picnic.

I called my mom while I walked. Even though I didn't get gas. My one long time reader may remember that I call my mom whenever I get gas to tell her how much it cost. Yesterday I got email from my mom and dad telling me how much their Phoenix gas cost. I figured this was a hint that I'd not called with a gas call in awhile.

Yesterday I got two Facebook messages from long ago high school friends telling me they'd lost their moms and how it hard it was on both their dads. That was sort of odd to hear that from two people on the same day. I think that was what motivated me to make a non-gas related call to my mom on Memorial Day.

That's been my exciting Memorial Day. It started with an urgent cry for help from my Favorite Blogging Co-Conspirator. She finds the most interesting ways to mess things up. I find it quite enjoyable fixing them.

And now it's time for pizza.

Charlie Company Memorial in Fort Worth's Botanic Garden

Last Fall I walked all over Fort Worth's Botanic Garden looking at the Fall Foliage which was being particularly colorful. Tucked away, way off the beaten path, I came upon a lonely, neglected memorial.

It being Memorial Day I thought I'd tell the story of this Fort Worth Memorial to Charlie Company.

Way back in August of 1967 an 18 year old soldier named James David "Shorty" Haas sent a letter home from where he and his group of fellow U.S. soldiers were hunkered down deep in the steaming jungles of the Central Highlands of Vietnam.

The troops were war-weary, had suffered months of sleep deprivation and constant enemy fire. They were getting discouraged. The letter James Haas sent home asked for some sort of encouragement, some token of acknowledgment to raise the morale of his comrades.

Somehow the letter soon found its way to DeWitt McKinley, the mayor, at the time, of Fort Worth. He was touched by the simple humility of the hometown soldier caught in the throes of war, asking for nothing but a glimmer of hope.

The mayor and the people of Fort Worth responded. In September, Fort Worth's answer to the letter began to arrive in Vietnam. Duffle bags stuffed with cookies, cakes and letters of support arrived weekly. Among the many letters sent to the soldiers was one proclaiming that the City of Fort Worth had officially adopted the soldiers, formally known as Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry, 173rd Airborne Brigade.

For the soldiers, this flood of reassurance came at a particularly difficult time. One soldier later commented, "You have no idea how that compassion turned us around."

Thirty-four years later, on July 6, 2001, 21 surviving members of Charlie Company met in Fort Worth's Botanic Garden to again say "Thank You" to the people of Fort Worth. Sadly, among the missing, was James David "Shorty" Haas, who's letter had touched so many.