Betty Jo Bouvier's Redneck Picture Of Gar The Texan & His Wife

This morning the Wild Woman of Woolley, Betty Jo Bouvier, sent me a bunch of amusing pictures, via email, with the subject line saying, "WHO SAYS REDNECKS DON'T HAVE COOL STUFF?"

Pictures with captions like "Redneck Horseshoes" showing a pair of rednecks using toilet seats for horseshoes.

Or "Redneck Guest Bedrooms" showing a pair of campers on pickups.

Stuff like that.

And then I got to the picture with the caption, "You might be a Redneck if you need fashion tips from your husband..."

This is the picture you're looking at.

I was shocked when I saw this picture and recognized Gar the Texan and his latest wife. She's German. She's put on a few pounds since I last saw her. Living in Texas will do that to you. I'm living proof of that fact.

On The Tandy Hills With A Membrum Virile Daisy & Tai Chi Qi Gong

A Self Anointed Botanist (SAB) hiked the Tandy Hills with me for awhile today.

Few wildflowers are yet coloring up the Texas Prairie. I did see one today that seems to have popped up since my last visit.

The SAB claims the name for this wildflower is a Membrum Virile Daisy.

On the way to the Tandy Hills today I took the freeway to Beach Street, due to needing to go to the bank. Bluebonnets have sprouted up along the freeway. A sure sign the annual Texas Wildflowers display is on its way, way later than the norm.

It is 3 weeks til the 2010 Prairie Fest. I learned from SAB, and just minutes ago had it confirmed, via email from the source, that a nurse, I'll call Dr. M. F., is going to be at the Prairie Fest at 3pm doing a demonstration of Tai Chi Qi Gong in celebration of World Tai Chi Qi Gong Day. Dr. M. F. will be giving a Free Class in Tai Chi Qi Gonging.

Don't ask me, I've no clue either. I do know that Dr. M. F. has traveled out of Texas to get training for this thing she is going to demonstrate and that she is something like a Black Belt. I was in an Asian Market in Arlington's Chinatown with Dr. M. F. once and she did some Tai Chi thing on me that involved me standing on one foot with my eyes closed, if I remember right.

I will be blogging more details about Dr. M. F.'s Prairie Fest Qi Gong demo and class when they become available to me. Why? Because I said I would.

Following Dozens Of Fort Worth Police To A Bad Scene On Randol Mill Road

As I was leaving Town Talk after Tandy Hills Hiking I was greeted with the sound of sirens and the sight of a lot of Fort Worth Police cars and emergency vehicles, turning off Beach Street, heading east on Randol Mill Road.

What fresh hell is this I wondered?

I didn't know if I should go home via a different route in case the Fort Worth Police were in Gestapo Stormtrooper mode, or go home via my usual Randol Mill Road route and catch the cops possibly doing something nefarious.

I took the Randol Mill option.

As I drove east I saw flashing lights on the other side of the skinny bridge that crosses the Trinity River. I got my camera out and armed.

I came to a stop so that I could take pictures. I only took two. One of the police seemed to be signalling for me to continue on. There were at least a dozen, likely more, police cars, plus several emergency vehicles. In addition to all the uniformed police there were maybe 20 emergency workers.

No one seemed to be in any hurry. There was a big, late model car, parked on a side road, about 150 feet off Randol Mill. That car seemed to be the focus of all the attention. But why? I had no idea.

I got back here, made lunch, then had to go deliver some paperwork to an entity I'll call Miss Stacy. As I got to Miss Stacy's office a Fort Worth Police Officer also arrived. I followed him in, asking him if he was here to arrest anyone. He said no. When I saw Miss Stacy I told her I'm being arrested. Then I handled her the paperwork and left.

A couple minutes later I came upon the Police Officer again and asked if he knew about all the police action on Randol Mill Road. Yeah, he said. Suicide. And that it was a very weird scene. That's all he said.

I Have Had My Last Chance With The U.S. 2010 Census Bureau

I thought it odd about a month ago when the U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration U.S. Census Bureau sent me a letter telling me they would soon be sending me another letter with the United States Census 2010 form to be filled out and returned.

About a week after I got the letter, telling me about a letter, that letter arrived.

About a week after getting the 2010 Census form I filled it out and mailed it.

I do not remember participating in a census before, not in 2000, not in 1990, not in 1980. Not ever. Did a Census taker knock on my door back during those previous decades?

So, I opened my mailbox this morning to find yet another letter from the U.S. Census Bureau. No, this one was not thanking me for sending in my Census info. It appeared to be a repeat of the one I'd already sent in.

Really inspires confidence in how well run this Census deal is.

The only questions asked on the Census are the names of who is residing in a domicile, their birthdates, their gender, the relationship of the domicile dwellers to the head of the domicile. And the domicile dweller's race or ethnic origin.

That last one, the race, ethnic origin questions, seemed, well, bizarre to me.

The Census asks in question 8, "Is Person of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin?"

Aren't Hispanic, Latino and Spanish all the same thing?

The answer choices are...

No, not of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin.
Yes, Mexican, Mexican Am., Chicano
Yes, Puerto Rican
Yes, Cuban
Yes, another Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin---Print origin, for example, Argentinean, Columbian, Dominican, Nicaraguan, Salvadoran, Spaniard and so on.

Then question 9 asks, "What is Person's race?
White
Black, African Am., or Negro
American Indian or Alaska Native---Print name of enrolled or principal tribe.
Asian Indian
Chinese
Filipino
Japanese
Korean
Vietnamese
Other Asian---Print race, for example, Hmong, Laotian, Thai, Pakistani, Cambodian, and so on.
Native Hawaiian
Guamanian or Charmorro
Samoan
Other Pacific Islander---Print race, for example, Fijian, Tongan, and so on.
Some other race---Print race.

The Census form gave no examples for "Some other race."

I did not realize til reading this Census form that there were so many different races.

I just opened the latest letter from the Census. So, it's not a mistake, as in an accidental second sending. This was sent on purpose.

A note inside says, in part, "A few weeks ago, the U.S. Census Bureau sent your household an official 2010 Census form. U.S. law requires you to respond."

"Return your form today. This is your last chance to respond by mail before a Census Bureau Representative contacts you."

Well, it's a good thing the government is flush with cash, so spending extra money sending out extra letters is no big deal.

Even though I've already returned the form, I fully expect to have a census worker knocking on my door.

Marilyn Einstein From Alma The Songbird Of The Texas Gulf Coast

Alma, the Songbird of the Texas Gulf Coast, currently headquartered in Port Aransas, soon to possibly be singing and playing her guitar on America's Got Talent, sends me, regularly, interesting emails. I long ago learned to open all incoming Alma email. Alma has a highly evolved sense of humor and a highly honed eye for what is interesting.

Like the picture you're looking at here. It looks like Albert Einstein, you know, the really famous, really smart guy who told President Roosevelt that it might behoove America to build an atom bomb.

Now, if you stand up and start backing away from your monitor, while keeping your eyes on Albert Einstein, you will see him gradually morph into another really famous, really smart, American icon, Marilyn Monroe.

I've no clue how this optical delusion works, but I thought it was cool and felt compelled to share.

Walking Around Fort Worth's Fosdic Lake With Tootsie Tonasket

It rained on my zone of Texas this morning for a short duration, but long enough that I figured mud may have returned, temporarily, to the Tandy Hills.

So, when the time came for me to escape to the outside, the place of escape was Oakland Lake Park to walk around Fosdic Lake.

Tootsie Tonasket walked with me. Tootsie is entertaining to talk and walk with. Tootsie does a real good job of laughing at me.

Tootsie lives in her own special world, sort of a combo situation comedy/reality show/cops & robbers soap opera.

Due to Tootsie living in her own special world, that being a world without calendars, Tootsie Tonasket did not know that yesterday was April 1, also known as April Fool's Day. So Tootsie was all worked up over my supposed move to Las Vegas.

A couple minutes after I said, "Tootsie, yesterday was April Fool's Day," she said, "Oh, it was a joke then?"

What type bird is that that I got a closeup of today? It just stood there, on the grass above the lake, ignoring the other birds, and not acting like I made it nervous.

The prediction was for stormy for today. That rain this morning must have been it. I can't remember the last really good Texas Thunderstorm, of the sort I'd grown sort of fond of.

Mr. Steve A commented on the previous blogging, about gas explosions, and me saying something about big dams, pointing me to a YouTube video of a deadly dam incident in Russia that I'd not heard of before....

Exploding Gas In Pennsylvania, Washington, Texas & Steve Doeung's Carter Avenue

Fort Worth's Carter Avenue and the absurdity of running a non-odorized, high pressure natural gas pipeline under occupied homes is fresh on my mind this morning, thanks to Texas Sharon and a gas explosion about 15 miles from where I used to live in Washington.

I don't know what the current status is of the Chesapeake Energy assault on innocent Americans trying live free and pursue happiness on Carter Avenue. I have learned not to believe anything I read about the ongoing Chesapeakegate scandals.

Texas Sharon has a link to a bizarre incident in Pennsylvania. Residents had been reporting foul odors for days to the officials who are supposed to check into foul odors coming from gas drilling operations. But no one bothered to check until the foul odors exploded. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has the whole disturbing story.

I read a story about an incident like the Pennsylvania gas explosion and think how can anyone here, in Texas, not think it unreasonable to stick a non-odorized, high pressure pipeline under homes?

Living here in Texas is the first time I've resided in an energy producing area, of the poke holes in the ground and extract sort. I have lived where humongous dams produce energy. Dams don't create the same problems as hole poking seems to.

I'd totally forgotten, til this morning, that I used to live very close to humongous energy producing facilities in the form of refineries that turn Alaskan crude, brought into Puget Sound in Supertankers, into gasoline and other petro products.

Early this morning, about 12:30am, something called a catalytic reformer naptha hydrotreater unit exploded with a concussive boom that was heard and felt a far distance away. The explosion set off a fire that burned for 2 hours.

The explosion was at the Anacortes Tesoro Refinery. Three workers were killed, four were critically injured.

I believe the Scrabble Queen of Washington's brother works at Tesoro. A lot of people who live in the Skagit Valley work at the refineries.

I have no memory of a deadly explosion occurring at the Skagit refineries before. The refineries have been there for a very long time, as in as far back as my memory goes.

So, again, I really don't think it is unreasonable for Steve Doeung to not want a non-odorized, high pressure natural gas pipeline to run under his house.

What I do think is unreasonable is that the city government of the city Steve lives in, Fort Worth, is in cahoots with the gas drillers who are putting Steve, and others, in harm's way.

In a civilized city, this would be considered criminal behavior on a city's part. In Fort Worth it is just known as "The Fort Worth Way."

April 7 At Whole Foods Market Arlington Spend Money Save Prairie

On Wednesday, April 7, the Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area (FOTHNA) will be the recipient of a 5% Community Giving Day at the Arlington Whole Foods Market.

On that day FOTHNA will receive 5% of April 7's Arlington Whole Foods net sales.

FOTHNA volunteers will be on location, from 10am til 7pm, to share information about FOTHNA and to promote the April 24 Prairie Fest.

The Arlington Whole Foods Market is at 801 East Lamar Boulevard. Exit I-30 at Collins Street. You'll find Whole Foods a short distance north, at the intersection of Collins and Lamar.

The KFC Double Down Is Real! No Fooling On April Fool's Day

When this came into my email box this morning my initial reaction was YUK. Two slabs of Kentucky Fried Chicken making a sandwich with cheese and bacon.

I thought KFC was going a healthier route, what with their Grilled KFC and other less greasy options.

The email from KFC had links to Twitter and Facebook that also promoted this KFC Double Down Real Deal.

Also a link to the KFC website's Double Down page, complete with a countdown to when you can buy your first Double Down on April 12.

So, with "no fooling" in the KFC email's subject line it dawned on me that this was an April Fool's Day joke.

But, now, I don't know. It's a pretty elaborate joke, if it is.

From the KFC website, "The rumored KFC Double Down sandwich is REAL and it's coming April 12th! This one-of-a-kind sandwich features two thick and juicy boneless white meat chicken filets (Original Recipe® or Grilled), two pieces of bacon, two melted slices of Monterey Jack and pepper jack cheese and Colonel's Sauce. This product is so meaty, there’s no room for a bun!"

The Double Down comes in two versions – Original Recipe® or Grilled and the nutrition information is below.

Sandwich	Calories	Fat (g)	Sodium (mg)
KFC Original Recipe® Double Down	540	32	1380
KFC Grilled Double Down	460	23	1430

How can all that fried goodness be only 540 calories?

So? April Fool's Day Joke? I don't know.

I listened to Rush Limbaugh for a short while today, while driving, and caught the tail end of him saying, I think, that he does not do April Fool's Day Jokes anymore due to the disheartening number of people who don't realize that it is the 1st of April and that they are being pranked.

I don't often empathize with Mr. Limbaugh, but on this serious April Fool's Day Joke issue, he and I are in total agreeance.

I hope everyone is having a Happy April Fool's Day. My favorite holiday of the year...

Viva Durango Vegas Adios Durango Texas

If all goes according to plan I should be seeing the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas Nevada sign sometime on Monday.

That's right. I'm finally leaving Texas. The moving van is supposed to be here sometime this morning. Loading today, exiting tomorrow, heading west via I-20.

First stop will be in Wink, to pick up a Queen. Leaving Wink Saturday morning.

Then on to Phoenix to see my parental units. Leaving Phoenix Monday morning. Las Vegas about 6 hours later.

I have an apartment waiting for me. I rented it via a website. It's got a nice pool. Due to the past couple days being so HOT, this first day of April had my Texas pool water finally warm enough that I swam for over a half hour this morning. Maybe I will get one more Texas swim in, Friday morning.

Saturday, April 24, the Queen of Wink and I have an appointment at the Elvis Wedding Chapel. From Texas, Elsie Hotpepper and my former fiance, Miss Puerto Rico, plan to attend. My therapist, Dr. L.C., will not be in Vegas due to disapproving of these moves. What a sourpuss.

I'm assuming my mom and dad will be in Vegas on the 24th. This should please the Wild Woman of Woolley, formerly known as Miss CVB, now known as Betty Jo Bouvier. Most people insist I not use their real names on my blog, but the former Miss CVB, yesterday, told me she does not care to be known as Miss CVB and prefers I use her real name. I tell you, you just never know. So that makes only Elsie Hotpepper and Betty Jo who's real names I use. I don't know if Betty Jo Bouvier is going to be in Vegas on the 24th.

I got a call a couple days ago from that former friend of mine from Tacoma who traumatized me the last time I suffered through a month in that fair town. Lulu (not her real name) apologized, quite profusely, for her bad behavior while I was in Tacoma and since. She also told me she has lost over 500 pounds and can once more board a plane. So, Lulu will also be in Vegas on the 24th. That should be interesting.

Well, I've got a lot of work to get done today, including going on my last hike on the Tandy Hills, before leaving Texas.

This may be my last posting to my Durango Texas blog. My new blog will be Durango Vegas. Viva Durango Vegas. Adio Durango Texas.