Vancouver, British Columbia, The Fort Worth Of The North

This day just keeps getting better. I just got an email from a transplanted Fort Worth native now living in Vancouver, B.C. named Martha. Martha is an obviously very astute, articulate former Texan.

I think I've made mention, before, of Fort Worth's strange plan to build a little lake and some canals, called the Trinity River Vision. When this vision first came into view it was touted as a project that would turn Fort Worth into the Vancouver of the South.

The Vancouver of the South ridiculous propaganda was quickly dropped. I suppose because there were way too many people who had actually been to Vancouver, who knew there was not enough money on the planet to turn Fort Worth into the Vancouver of the South. You'd need large bodies of saltwater and towering mountains to turn Fort Worth into the Vancouver of the South. An impossible dream that has been scaled way back, with a price tag approaching 1 $billion.

You can build a new Dallas Cowboy stadium for that type of money.

That is an aerial view of Vancouver in the picture. If you really strain your imagination there is still no way you are going to be able to stretch if far enough to imagine Fort Worth looking like that.

And now the email from Martha with her last name removed...

Dear Sir:

My name is Martha, and I just came across your blog for the first time today. I was searching for 'things to do' in Fort Worth (over the Christmas holidays when everyone's in town), and found that there's a park with a lake I'd never heard of very near my parents' house. And since Oakland Park/Fosdic Lake has been the subject of many of your posts... ta-da! Google directed me to Durango Texas.

Mostly, this email is to let you know that I enjoyed reading your blog. FW was my childhood home, and I'd never lived more than 30 miles away from it until I went to Vancouver, BC, for graduate school a few years ago. Now, I know *you're* not happy living in North Texas, and I know that there are plenty of things to be unhappy *about* when living in North Texas, but when I was living in Vancouver, I found it quite impossible to describe what it was I loved or missed about my home-- particularly to Pacific NW natives who couldn't understand how the prairie was beautiful-- and your blog reminds me of the good and the bad and all the pain of displacement in a way that I find compelling and strangely heart-warming. All that to say, I felt just as damned living in BC as you do living in TX, and since we've both lived in both places... I feel a special bond. I hear/read what you're saying and I know what/where you're talking about and I feel more myself for it, so thank you.

Love,
Martha

Martha, just so you know, I know I may be a bit critical of things here in Fort Worth. And Texas. But, for the most part, I like it. But not nearly as much as I like Vancouver. That's one of my favorite towns. Always has been. It's only drawback is way too many Canadians live there.

Kieran The Scotsman Takes A Leap On The Grand Canyon Skywalk

Our modern world, with its constant state of instant inter-connectedness, is a wonder to behold.

A couple weeks ago I heard, via Twitter, from a pale Scotsman named Kieran McCrorie. I have so many incoming confusions I don't remember what it was Kieran tweeted at me. I know it somehow had something to do with his Quiver invention. That being a hiker's/biker's water bottle that somehow stays cool and is manufactured in Santa Barbara, California.

I learned about Santa Barbara being where Quiver is made after Kieran tweeted a question along the lines of wondering what there was to do in Santa Barbara. I think I suggested taking a day trip to Hollywood and Disneyland. I was assuming Kieran had not been to this part of America before.

I was wrong. Kieran tweeted to my tweet, I don't know if this is a re-tweet, or goes by some other tweet name, but Kieran told me that he'd been to the Los Angeles things to do, had run Las Vegas ragged. And had gone to the Grand Canyon. Spending a small fortune in the process.

What Kieran did not tell me was that he'd been on the Grand Canyon Skywalk, that being a new attraction built by the Hualapai Indian tribe. You walk out on a horseshoe shaped piece of glass, cantilevered out over the Grand Canyon, with about 4,000 feet of air between you, the glass and the canyon floor.

So, this morning, for purely selfish reasons, I twittered or tweeted, yet again, about the Grand Canyon Skywalk. With a link to my blogging about that subject.

Kieran read that tweet, which said "The Hualapai Indian tribe's Grand Canyon Skywalk loses favor with me due to not allowing visitor's cameras: http://bit.ly/CobTs."

(Note the little bit.ly link above. That is something you use with Twitter. Bit.ly shrinks down long URLs so that they don't use up too many of your allotted 140 Twitter characters)

Kieran then tweeted or re-tweeted, back at me, with a photo of himself, saying, "Far too expensive, but I wouldn't have caught this with my camera. Totally agree on skywalk. Everything seemed to cost, including the photos - but it ended up being worth it."

Kieran is referencing the photo of himself on the Grand Canyon Skywalk in the photo above, which happens to be, in my opinion, the best picture I have seen yet of that particular attraction.

Anyone reading this in Santa Barbara, Kieran will soon be in your zone and in need of entertainment.

Fort Worth's Corrupt Mayor Mike Moncrief's Re-Election Is A Sign Of The Apocalypse

I do not know how I missed this gem in Fort Worth Weekly's Best of 2009 issue about Fort Worth's notoriously corrupt mayor, Mike Moncrief.

I previously noticed and blogged about another Best of 2009 mention of Fort Worth's un-esteemed mayor, that being him being Fort Worth Weekly's pick as "The Politician Most Likely to Sell Grandma to the Highest Bidder."

But, I somehow missed the other Mayor Mike Moncrief Best of 2009 mention. That being "Sign of the Apocalypse."

The Reader's Choice was the Tarrant County College downtown campus boondoggle.

The Critic's Choice for "Sign of the Apocalypse" was Mayor Mike Moncrief's landslide re-election.

About that particular election travesty, where only 6% of Fort Worth's registered voters voted and gave the insufferably corrupt mayor a landslide 70% victory, FW Weekly Critics said...

"Fort Worth voters elected this former senator as mayor in 2003. Since then, millions of dollars have gone unaccounted for at city hall but nobody got fired, the budget is in turmoil. Moncrief's gas drilling buddies are degrading the city's quality of life, and the mayor likes to bully and badger people who try to speak out at city council meetings. The apocalypse might almost be an improvement."

A Little Blue Sky Returns To Texas

The latest in the view from Miss Puerto Rico's balcony series. We have had the return of some blue sky in Texas. I had to look east towards Dallas to see some blue. I don't know how fleeting this reappearance of blue will be. Or if it will be a growing thing.

I do know that after days of cold, it has warmed up enough that I have re-ignited the A/C. And here I thought I was done with that nonsense for the year.

I can tell you that the blue sky is coinciding with my own burst of personal sunshine. As in today has been a good day. A real good day.

I have been up since 3. That's early, even for me.

Due to not wanting to, I did not go swimming this morning, even though I was back from the airport in plenty of time to do so. I seem to have slackened off on the exercise addiction. I'm quickly turned to jello-like flab. It should go away tomorrow if I decide I want to go swimming.

A Foggy Drive To D/FW Airport

That is the foggy dawn view from Miss Puerto Rico's balcony this morning. I don't like driving in fog. It was foggy this morning at 5 on the way to D/FW Airport to deliver Miss Puerto Rico to an airplane.

There were no incidents, this time, that required jail time. What a relief.

But, at 5 in the morning there were humongous semi-trucks pulling extra long trailers. For about 5 miles I was stuck in a convoy of them. It was like being in a Convoy Canyon. Not good to mix in with fog.

My hacked websites have now been de-hacked and infection free, near as I can tell. I have yet to learn what the injected unauthorized code was supposed to do. Or why this happened again.

I just chalk it up to just one more thing to deal with in this hell I am living in Texas.

A Comment From One Of Jerry Jones' Dallas Cowboy Stadium Eminent Domain Abuse Victims

This morning I got an interesting comment from Mad Mom about the above YouTube video. Mad Mom is one of victims of Jerry Jones, the Dallas Cowboys and the City of Arlington's abuse of eminent domain in order to take people's homes for the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium. It has been a long time, now, since all those homes and apartments were destroyed.

At the time, and I guess it still is, it was shocking to me that this took place. I empathized with how I'd feel if I was told I had to sell the house I'd built and lived in for decades.

To me it all seemed like using and abusing the law to commit a crime. That being the destructive of American citizen's homes without their consent.

I have gotten a lot of comments from clueless sorts who opine along the line that people had to agree to sell their property or Jerry Jones couldn't have bought it, indicating total ignorance of the concept of eminent domain.

Below is the comment from Mad Mom....

I lived in Arlington for years, born and raised. My childhood home was one of the ones that was destroyed by Jerrytown. I'm sorry but there is NO amount of money that makes it ok for someone to take your home and your land for a FOOTBALL Stadium. Those people could not replace their homes for what little they were given. And that "last holdout" was paid for 4 acres of land and 2 houses, not just one like most people, 1.5 mil isn't that much for that much acreage and houses.

Mad Mom

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.

Living In The Texas Rain Forest Of Fort Worth

That is the dismal Tuesday morning at 11 view from Miss Puerto Rico's balcony this rainy day in Fort Worth.

I can't remember the last sunny day we had here. This is being way too much like winter in the Pacific Northwest.

The Texas rain I've grown to expect comes down fast and hard and then is done with it, usually returning to clear skies. This slow motion all day long type rain is not normal for here. It's like being by the ocean without all the benefits.

Our currently earliest predicted respite is this coming Friday when supposedly it will be clear and hit the 70s.

I imagine all these cold, rainy days have wreaked havoc with attendance at this year's State Fair of Texas in Dallas. The Oprah Show was taped there yesterday in front of a large crowd. I've seen no pictures so I don't know if the crowd was covered with umbrellas.

I am seriously considering that it may be time to move back to the Northwest.

The Disconnected World Of Durango Jones In Texas

The following was written last night when I was lamenting my world without an Internet connection. This morning I am back at Miss Puerto Rico's and connected...

I am still without an Internet connection in my abode. This is like when the water is turned off or the power goes out. You don't realize how much you use something until it is gone. Two seconds ago I was trying to think of a word and thought I'll just Google it. Doesn't happen without an Internet connection.

I am cut off from email. I can't blog. I can't read a blog. I can't Tweet. I can't read Twitter. I can't read news. I can't Scrabble on Facebook. I can't check my Google Account.

I am so forlorn suffering through this hell I am living.

I don't even know how cold it is, or if some impending weather disaster is about to zap me, because my Internet connection is not working.

How did people ever live without an Internet connection?

The Sky Is Dark Deep In The Heart Of Fort Worth Texas

That is the dark noon view today at Fosdic Lake here in Fort Worth. Perfectly matching my mood.

I was dealing with website/hacking woes all morning, escaped for a bit and returned to find my internet connection not working.

So, I hauled my laptop over to Miss Puerto Rico's to continue trying to get this hell that I am living under control.

Usually I have 2 monitor screens to work with. Using this laptop keyboard, with only one screen, is not what I'm used to. Typing is in slow motion.

Not a good day in Durango World.