A Giant New Barnett Shale Gas Drilling Rig Hovers Over Veterans Park In Arlington

I had to go to Arlington today. Since I had to be in Arlington I thought I'd take a walk in Veterans Park.

I was a little rattled before I turned right, off Arkansas Lane, on to Spanish Trail to see a lot of police cars, fire trucks, emergency vehicles and an awful lot of flashing lights on Arkansas Lane. With a Road Closed Sign.

I took a picture but it did not do justice to the scene.

So, I was a little distracted when I turned off Spanish Trail, on to the Veterans Park parking lot. So, I did not notice what I could not help but notice a few minutes later when I was startled to suddenly see a giant gas drilling operation fill up the horizon.

The drilling rig looked as if it was coming right out of the apartment complex across Spanish Trail from Veterans Park. I felt compelled to check it out.

I walked to the back of the apartment complex, taking pictures. The drilling rig was being very noisy, much noisier than my nearby one was when it was at this stage. But, I never got this close to my nearby rig.

A tall sound barrier, well, I assume it's a sound barrier, surrounds the drilling pad.

After I got as close as I could get I was pretty much 100% certain this drilling operation was not 800 feet from the apartments. It appeared closer to 100 feet than 800.

As I walked back towards the road I overheard a nice lady in a VW Bug ask a fellow apartment dweller if he was liking all the noise.

So, I butted into the conversation. The nice lady and gentleman told me their apartments faced the drilling rig. She said she was having trouble sleeping, that her building shook from the drilling, that the constant noise went on non-stop all day and night. Both were quite unhappy with their new neighbor.

The nice lady was very perplexed as to what could be done. I told her there were a lot of people fighting against the gas drillers. The gentleman had worked in the oil industry, so he knew how that business worked. The nice lady did not like it when I told her it gets worse, that next comes the fracking, with noisy trucks bringing in chemical laden water and a lot of dust.

The gentleman then mentioned the benzene. I mentioned the town of DISH. The nice lady didn't know there was an awful lot of very upset people who's lives have been made miserable by the out of control gas drilling industry.

I asked if they knew how close the drilling operation was to their apartments. The gentleman told me it was 40 yards.

That is 120 feet. Are the distance rules different in Arlington from Fort Worth?

What I truly do not get is how is any business for any reason is allowed to disturb a neighborhood's peace and quiet 24 hours a day, non-stop? If a private citizen did such a thing they'd be made to stop.

I'm really not against the drilling into the Barnett Shale. What I'm against is the way it's being done, the unregulated nature of it, the natural gas industry's disdain for the public's pollution concerns. Drilling 120 feet from where dozens of people reside is wrong in so many ways.

And like the nice lady said to me, "How can they do this without letting you know? Without public meetings? Who do we complain too?

I had no answers, because the really sad thing is, the government in Texas, at whatever level, really does not seem to look out for its citizens like it should. It should be a scandal. But it's not. Why? I don't know. It perplexes me.

And I have no idea which of the gas drilling culprits is committing the Veterans Park Dirty Deed. The name is usually prominently featured on the rig. But this rig was Anonymous.

My Japanese Commenting Stalker

Is anyone else getting a strange blogging comment that looks like a bunch of gibberish code? I've been getting these for months now to my various blogs. Every once in awhile the comment will contain a few letters, like one of them today had an email address, that has shown these comments to be Japanese, as in the email address today was quietness@docomo.ne.jp.

This Japanese Annoyance is not the only blog commenting annoyance. Over and over again I get the same one trying to make me rich. The unwanted blog comments are pretty much like the spam I get in email, except for this thing from Japan.

Just like in email a lot of the spam blog comments are concerned with some of my personal performance issues, with a lot of offers of help in being a more pleasing partner by improving some of my apparent inadequacies.

I know some bloggers who do not have comment moderation turned on. Do they not get these spam type comments? Anyway, this Japan thing is very perplexing.

The Outhouses Of The Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex

I've decided I need to expand my documenting of Outhouses to urban zones of Texas beyond Arlington.

So, my popular series of bloggings of "The Outhouses of Arlington" is now "The Outhouses of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex."

My working hypothesis is that the Dallas/Fort Worth Metropolitan Area has the highest per capita number of Outhouses of any metropolitan area in the developed nations of the world.

The Outhouses you see in today's picture are located by Fort Woof in Gateway Park in Fort Worth. There is an even longer line of Outhouses in Gateway Park by the new soccer fields. I will photo document those at a later date. Is getting rid of the Outhouses part of the vision in the Trinity River Vision's upgrade of Gateway Park?

I have been to parks in the Dallas/Fort Worth area that have modern facilities. Cedar Hills State Park, for instance. No Outhouses. All the parks I've been in around Lake Joe Pool have modern facilities. So, I know it's not impossible to build a park with modern facilities here.

I am early in my Dallas/Fort Worth Outhouse research. So far it seems Arlington is Outhouse Central. Veterans Park in Arlington has one restroom with plumbing and no Outhouses. So far, near as I can tell, Veterans Park is the exception in Arlington.

Not having modern facilities is sort of unfriendly to visitors. Arlington seems to sort of be chronically unfriendly to visitors. Arlington is home to an illegal towing racketeering operation that targets visitors.

Ooops. I got off subject there. Back to Outhouses. Now, I have not been to all that many professional sports arenas. I'm curious to know, are there other NFL football stadiums that are surrounded by 100s of Outhouses like the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium in Arlington is?

Do the other NFL teams have custom made Outhouses with the team logo and name embossed on them, sprucing up their parking lots?

How much did all those specially made Dallas Cowboy Outhouses cost? How much does it cost to maintain them? How much would it cost to build permanent modern facilities? Am I the only one who finds it goofy to stick 100s of Outhouses around a $1.1 billion stadium on parking lots where you charge people $40 to park?

Fork In The Tandy Trail & Possible Trinity River Levee Repair At Gateway Park In Fort Worth

You're looking at a fork in the trail, today, hiking the Tandy Hills Natural Sanatorium Area. At this particular fork in the trail both choices go downhill.

Sort of a perfect metaphor for how I'm feeling right about now.

All color has pretty much left the Tandy Hills, also pretty much a metaphor for how I'm feeling right about now.

It is only 4 days til Winter arrives and the daylight hours start getting longer again.

I have only one more website to get moved from my old web host that was constantly getting my websites hacked. I have 10 days to get that done. It would have been done 2 months ago but the owner of the website is having trouble getting pertinent password records. It's very annoying.

The air today was very clear, it somehow made the hills seem, I don't know, more hilly. And I could see way into the distance. In Pacific Northwest terms, Mount Rainier would have been visible today. Sadly, no matter how clear it is here Texas, no matter where you look, in any direction, you are not going to see a mountain from my location.

After I was done rejuvenating myself on the Tandy Hills, I went to Town Talk. On the way there I saw something interesting going on on the Trinity River Levee by Gateway Park, where a gas driller had rutted up the levee with a water sucking pipeline operation.

I was in a hurry, so I did not take the time to walk up and see exactly what the piece of machinery was doing. I zoomed in as far as I could with my camera and took pictures. I am guessing the rutted area is being smoothed over, with grass seed sprinkled on the damaged area.

I'll check it out up close tomorrow.

The Dallas Cowboy Stadium & the Seattle Seahawk Stadium

I got an email from Seattle this morning, from Janice Taylor. Janice had been reading my webpage about the Dallas Cowboy Stadium Scandal where she came to a comment made by William G. in which William G., apparently, left out a few key facts.

Most of what Janice has to say resonates with my memory of how the new Seattle football stadium and baseball field came to be.

Except Janice makes one statement that even I, non baseball aficionado that I am, know to be wrong, that being where Janice claims that the Seattle Mariner's Safeco Field is too small to host a World Series. Well, a World Series goes back and forth between the ballparks of the teams in the World Series. If Seattle ever made it that far in the playoffs, their home games in the World Series would be played at Safeco Field.

Another thing, my reason for ever mentioning the Seattle sports palaces was to make the point that no one in Seattle lost their home due to the use of eminent domain, this in an area with way less open land than Texas, while in Texas, eminent domain was abused flagrantly, resulting in thousands of people being displaced, dozens of homes taken, a dozen, or so, apartment complexes taken and many businesses taken.

Anyway, below is the email from Janice...

You've prominently placed a comment from one William G. regarding the funding for stadiums in Seattle. Obviously, he was a supporter because he omitted a couple of key facts. First, the people of Seattle voted not once, but twice on the baseball stadium. Each time, the "no" vote prevailed. The second time, one week after the vote, our elected officials overturned the public's decision, saying we "didn't understand the source of funding." (I have letters from all I wrote using that same quote.) Democracy be damned.

As for the football stadium, it went to a state-wide vote because our governor, Gary Locke, knew the citizens of King County would never vote it through. (Gov. Locke reminded me of a 15-year-old groupie at a Motley Crew concert the way he cuddled up to Paul Allen to "Save Our Seahawks.") Only King County pays for it, though, and election results showed King County majority voted "no". The sports-only lotteries were terminated due of lack of sales. So the lottery money earmarked for education is now laundered to help pay for the stadium.

All totaled, Seattle spent over $1 billion in stadiums. Both are too small to host either a World Series or a Super Bowl. (But we sure got that argument when the pols were stumping.) And the first sell-out at Seahawks stadium was a soccer game. Today, I think Paul Allen realizes he picked the wrong "football" to support.

The Seattle Sonics basketball team then tried to bully its way into a new facility even though its home, Key Arena, had recently gone through a multi-million tax-payer dollar remodel. This time, all the politicians realized it would be political suicide to back a new stadium. One small city, Renton, toyed with the idea of hosting the stadium, but that idea died at the outcry of the residences.

So please do not hold Seattle up as any shining beacon on how sports arenas should be built. We citizens will be paying for decades. Hell, they'll probably demolish them for new before they are paid off, like our King Dome. I hope all the displaced citizens have found homes. The bigger issue is declaring eminent domain for private enterprise.

Janice Taylor
Seattle, Washington

The Fosdic Lake Dam Vision

You are looking at Fosdic Lake Dam, with trees growing out of it, in Oakland Lake Park in East Fort Worth in a picture taken yesterday.

As I walked across Fosdic Lake Dam yesterday I had a vision that I've decided to call The Fosdic Lake Vision.

Currently swimming and boating is forbidden in Fosdic Lake. And the fish you catch might be dangerous to eat.

The Fosdic Lake Vision fixes that. And other problems.

The City of Fort Worth is closing all its public swimming pools, but one. Leaving Fort Worth's kids with few swimming options. The Fort Worth official in charge of the pools suggested Fort Worth's kids could have their water fun at Arlington's Hurricane Harbor. Trouble is, there is no public transportation to take Fort Worth's kids to Arlington to pay $30 to get into Hurricane Harbor.

The Fort Worth city official's attitude struck me as very Marie Antoinette-ish of the "Let them eat cake" sort.

Currently Fort Worth is being subjected to a nearly $1 billion boondoggle called the Trinity River Vision. In this blurred vision Fort Worth gets an unneeded flood control diversion channel and a little lake. The vision used to include 3 fancy bridges and some canals, but those went away as the price climbed.

The Fosdic Lake Vision envisions draining Fosdic Lake, cleaning up the lake bed, installing filtration systems on the incoming Fosdic Lake water sources, installing aerating fountains in the lake, building sandy beaches around the lake, installing several docks on the lake and building restroom facilities.

I estimate Fosdic Lake could be turned into a safe, clean lake to swim and fish in for a small fraction of what the Trinity River Vision will cost. Plus, Fosdic Lake is already served by Fort Worth's public bus system. Kids from all over town could easily make their way to Fosdic Lake.

I don't think there should be a fee charged to swim in public Fosdic Lake. This is the sort of amenity most big cities provide their citizens, because it's the type thing that helps make a big city livable and its people happy and its kids out of trouble and having fun.

The other big city with which I am most familiar, Seattle, has several lakes where people can swim in for free. Like Green Lake, where you can swim, paddle a boat and fish. Fosdic Lake could be like a little version of Seattle's Green Lake.

I'm thinking just a fraction of the energy going into the cloudy Trinity River Vision could clearly make The Fosdic Lake Vision happen. And, like I said, for a fraction of the cost.

Fosdic Lake Dam Ducks In Fort Worth

It was another below freezing morning, here in the biggest fort in Texas, so true to my new thinking, as in no attempt to go swimming when the temperature is not above freezing, so no attempt was made.

But this new thinking means, if the forecast is correct, when I wake up this computer tomorrow morning I should be learning that it is not freezing. And so a-swimming I will go.

I was already out of here to do something constructive by the time my stir crazy mode usually kicks in. But the constructive thing involved nothing aerobic. Yikes! I typed erotic instead of aerobic. I have been catching all sorts of bad typos of late. Well, I hope I catch them. This was the worst, and ironically the typo was also true, as the constructive thing involved nothing aerobic or erotic.

So, about 3:30 this afternoon I took off to visit the ducks on Fosdic Lake in Oakland Lake Park. You can barely see the ducks on the log in the part of Fosdic Lake closest to you in the picture. In this view we are looking sort of northwest at Fosdic Lake and all its parasitic trees.

I'll go see if I got a good closeup picture of the ducks. They were acting sort of funny today. Like they were happy it was warmer, so they were celebrating by doing some odd log dancing.

It was like the ducks couldn't decide if they wanted to get in the water or not. I identified with their dilemma.

Only 5 more days til Winter arrives and 4 days after that it's JC's big birthday party, biggest birthday party in the world.

Chesapeake Energy Continues With Its Eminent Domain Attack On Fort Worth Citizen's Property

The Star Telegraph, that being the Fort Worth area blog that often prints news you can't seem to find in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, in a blogging today, says that Chesapeake Energy is still taking the one remaining Carter Avenue holdout to court, this coming Friday.

High pressure tactics were used by minions of Chesapeake Energy to convince Carter Avenue citizens to sign away their property rights so that Chesapeake Energy could install a pipeline running under their homes, carrying non-odorized natural gas.

In cahoots with the City of Fort Worth's corrupt city government, with an ethically challenged, conflicts of interest laden, energy industry installed puppet mayor named Mike Moncrief, eminent domain was threatened to be used against those who resisted the Carter Avenue pipeline.

A few weeks ago, after a long time of saying there were no options for the pipeline except for Carter Avenue, Chesapeake Energy discovered the pipeline could be run in a different location, under no homes, along side Interstate 30.

So, why is Chesapeake Energy continuing with its eminent domain attack on this particular Carter Avenue American? I thought that battle was won with the good guys winning?

The Star Telegraph says the lone holdout asked for legal representation, you know, counsel like that afforded criminals. But, apparently there is no mechanism to provide legal counsel to someone who is a victim of a corrupt city government and an overbearing, rights and decency be damned company like Chesapeake Energy, run by a should be in jail thief named Aubrey McClendon.

Have the Oklahoma City Supersonics won any games this season? I've not paid any attention. Are the players and their families still being disgruntled over being yanked out of Seattle?

Someone famous, I think it's that guy who's birthday we'll be celebrating in about 8 days, supposedly said, "That which you do to the least among us, you do unto me."

Someone else once said something like, "Chesapeake Energy used eminent domain to take property in another county, and I said nothing, then Chesapeake Energy used eminent domain to take property in a city different than mine, and I said nothing, then Chesapeake Energy used eminent domain to take property in my city, and I still said nothing, and then Chesapeake Energy used eminent domain to take my property, and no one said anything and I wondered why?"

Well, it'd be a real good thing if a few thousand Americans decided to say something on Friday, down at the courthouse in downtown Fort Worth, at 100 E. Weatherford Street. Court proceedings begin at 8:30am in Judge Vince Sprinkle's courtroom.

The Mad Texas Grandma Gets New Info From Arlington Police Regarding The Dallas Cowboy Stadium Wal-Mart Parking Lot Grand Theft Of More Than 50 Autos

I have heard from the Mad Texas Grandmother regarding what she learned from the Arlington Police regarding the November 21 incident where more than 50 vehicles were illegally towed from the Dallas Cowboy Stadium Wal-Mart parking lot.

You may remember, the Wal-Mart co-manager, who called MTG, told her that Wal-Mart had no contractual relationship with A-AArlington Towing, that Wal-Mart did not ask for the vehicles to be towed, that A-AArlington Towing is owed by the City of Arlington.

So, what did our Mad Texas Grandma learn from the Arlington Police?

First off, the police spokesperson told MTG that the City of Arlington does not own A-AArlington Towing.

Second off, Wal-Mart has a contract with A-AArlington Towing.

Third off, the police spokesperson told MTG it was Wal-Mart who authorized the cars be towed.

Fourth off, the Arlington Police Department is aware the Wal-Mart towing warning signs are not Texas legal posted signs.

The night that the vehicles were being illegally towed, in other words, the night that over 50 acts of Grand Theft Auto took place, the Arlington Police were called by distraught victims. But, when the police arrived they simply stood by, said they could do nothing, while the vehicles were taken from a parking lot that, we now know, the police knew did not have Texas legal signs posted.

Energized By Carrot Sweet Potato Bacon Pea Soup I Hike The Tandy Hills

Today has been all mixed up from my usual tightly organized schedule. Freezing temperatures, along with wind, kept me from even considering my usual early morning, neither rain nor sleet nor dark of night shall stop me, swim.

And then, when the usual time came when I escape to the outdoors to do something aerobic, events conspired to prevent that from happening.

My Carrot Sweet Potato Bacon Pea Soup lunch was put off til almost 2.

After lunch I needed to go to the bank to do some depositing. The bank is right by the Tandy Hills Natural Sanatorium Area. Even though I hiked the Tandy Hills yesterday, in shorts and no shirt, in 70 degree plus temperatures, I thought I'd get myself all insulated in winter wear, including gloves, and brave the wind, as you can see in the picture.

The afternoon light makes the Tandy Hills look different than the noon light when the sun is high in the sky.

I got gas yesterday, but it was not convenient to call my mom. Usually the drive-through at the bank is a semi-long wait. So, I made my tardy mom gas call then. But no answer. There are way too many fun things in the Phoenix zone that keep them way too busy. My mom will likely call back this evening. I won't hear the phone ring. Mom will then leave a message that I won't notice til tomorrow morning. It's a vicious cycle.

The Scrabble Queen of Washington had gone missing for a few days, lost in Seattle doing Christmas shopping. I just got a Facebook message telling me she is home and has Scrabbled. This means I will be needing to do the most serious hard thinking I've done in a few days.

I'll likely get a headache.