Getting Wrapped Up In Spider Webs At River Legacy Park In Arlington

You are looking at a fork in the mountain bike trail in River Legacy Park, today, a short time after noon.

I had not been to River Legacy in a long time. I don't think I've ever seen the trails in such good shape.

I managed to get a bit lost in one of the new "challenging" sections. The River Legacy mountain bike trails have become a bit of a maze, as the miles of trails have grown, with the most maze-like being the new "challenging section."

It took me about a half hour of going up and down steep little hills and going the wrong way at junctions, before I made my way back to the main trail. By then I was a super sweaty mess. Who had forgotten his water bottle.

I saw no animals of the mammal or reptile sort today. No armadillos, no snakes, no boars, not even a squirrel. I've never seen River Legacy critter free before.

But, I did see a lot of spiders. And a lot of the spiders had made webs across the trail. I've never seen so much spider webbing before. In some spots the spider webs made trees look white. I've not seen this out of control spider webbing phenomenon before.

What with absence of critters and the over population of spiders it causes me to wonder if the eco-system at River Legacy has gone awry.

Is Carter Avenue Saved? TxDOT Submits Notice Of Proposed Highway Right Of Way Natural Gas Pipeline Installation

This morning Fort Worth's Lone Ranger, Steve Doeung contacted his Band of Bloggers to inform the Band of Bloggers that TxDOT has moved ahead on its plan to allow Chesapeake Energy to run a non-odorized natural gas pipeline on a route that does not run under homes.

Steve Doeung has been battling the City of Fort Worth and Chesapeake Energy for a long time now, trying to save Carter Avenue from having a possibly explosive pipeline run under their homes.

The legitimacy of Steve Doeung's objection to this threatened violation of his security was recently validated by a fatal natural gas pipeline explosion last month down by Granbury.

Steve is of the opinion that it is time to celebrate. Below is Steve Doeung's message to the Band of Bloggers. And you....

Hey Band of Bloggers:

I'm sending you what I finally got from TxDOT.

I ran this alternative plan by a couple of different pros in two different states who know about the subject and they both said that it looks legit and show serious intention of constructing. One of the consultants, who is an industry insider, warned that with these companies "you never know if they will follow through on their commitment".

Please note that, its a large easement but only one 8-inch pipeline, which is 1/2 the size (and 1/3 the original size they wanted) of the pipelines that CTK wanted to place under front yards. It appears that an 8-inch pipeline is adequate. Or is this the largest/most risk that TxDOT is willing to allow in their right-of-way?

I'm not sure if this is the so called "final approval" announced by councilwoman Kathleen Hicks on 04/30/10 or not. In any event, her office had ignored my and a few other citizens' requests for more details about CTK's plan that had allegedly been submitted to TxDOT starting in 12/09. CTK's silence is also perplexing.

So, this is the ONLY detailed document (and verification that CTK actually submitted a design plan) that I am aware of that a citizen has seen. Of course, the Startlegram and other media outlets had no interest in pursuing such basic journalistic follow up details as this.

What would you think about my planning a community-wide event to celebrate this victory and to share this information with the public? It would be fun, inform the community (hopefully media will be forced to cover this denouement of the Carter Ave. saga---the scandal part is to come), and force CTK to follow through with this plan. Ideas?

Thanks again for the crucial roles that each of you have played in this battle. WE deserve a celebration, one which THEY apparently DO NOT want to see happen (thus the silence ?)

Steve Doeung

Another HOT Texas Thursday With Fuzzy's Tacos & No Peptomobile Taking Me To TCEQ Meeting

You can see looking out my computer room window that the sun is starting to shine a light on the darkness, this Thursday morning, with it already 83, without the sun providing HEAT.

Is today going to be the first day of summer to hit 100 in my zone of Texas?

I mentioned yesterday that I got attacked by a vicious biting bug on the Tandy Hills whilst doing some late in the Wednesday afternoon hiking. This morning the bug bite is very red and does not look good. But it is not sore, does not itch. I've not had a bug bite like this before.

I will not be exposing myself to any vicious Tandy Hills bugs today. Instead of heading west, around noon, I'll be heading east, to Arlington, to get a vehicle license sticker, walk around Veterans Park and go to Arlington's Chinatown to get some Asian goodies, like Sweet Chili Sauce.

Tonight I may be going back to Arlington to Fuzzy's Tacos at 510 East Abram Street (very close to where I'm getting a license sticker today) at 6:00 for tacos and adult beverages before heading 3 blocks west to Arlington's City Hall to watch TCEQ squirm while hearing citizen input regarding TCEQ's ineptness in addressing the pollution problems plaguing the Dallas/Fort Worth zone.

Arlington's City Council Chambers is located at 101 West Abram Street. The meeting lasts from 7pm til 9pm.

I do not know if Elsie Hotpepper is going to the TCEQ meeting and Fuzzy's Tacos. I do know I won't be relying on the Elsie Peptomobile to transport me there, due to the Peptomobile's unreliability.

HOT Tandy Hills Hiking With A Bad Bug Bite & Being Thankful For Being Thoughtful

You are looking north on the newly refurbished, courtesy of the Fort Worth Water Department, Tandy Highway, deep in the Emerald Forest of the Tandy Hills, about 4, on this Wednesday, 3rd day of summer, afternoon.

When I hit the hills it was 99 degrees with a Heat Index of 103, not a lot of wind.

I got to the Tandy Hills at half past 3. I desperately needed an aerobic endorphin fix. I hill hiked for over an hour.

Today, whilst hiking in the HEAT, it occurred to me that it would be a real good thing if shaded sitting opportunities were randomly available in various locations in the Tandy Hills Natural Area Sanatorium.

During all the years of my Texas exile I don't recollect getting a single bug bite. In Washington no spring or summer passed without multiple mosquito bites. And mountain hiking in Washington required heavy doses of bug spray or you'd find yourself badly bug bitten.

Well, today I got a rare Texas bug bite. On the back of my right hand. I did not feel it when I got bit, but noticed it soon after I exited the hills. I can see where the bug's stinger poked a hole. Around the hole there is a quarter inch circle of redness. It seems to be getting redder and bigger. It does not itch or sting.

On a non bug bite related totally different subject. This morning I got an email from my Big Sister. She thanked me for being thoughtful. It made me feel good that she thanked me for being thoughtful. Thanking me for being thoughtful is the first nice thing I recollect my Big Sister saying to me for at least 4 years.

It is weird how a little thing, like being thanked for being thoughtful, can put me in a good mood.

If you don't hear from me in the morning, blog-wise, it likely means this bug bite was more serious than I think it is now...

Out In The Almost 100 Degree HEAT Getting A Seedless Texas Watermelon

98.1 at about 10 minutes til 3. Heat Index of 105. Yes, it is HOT.

I have been out in it very little today. Well, there was that hour in the pool this morning, but it was only in the 80s then.

I went north to Southlake around noon. Went to Sprouts Farmers Market. I don't think I'd been to Sprouts since ALDI opened.

I got myself a big locally grown seedless Texas watermelon at Sprouts.

After Sprouts I headed back south, down Precinct Line Road, to ALDI. Not very many customers at the Hurst ALDI. Is ALDI not catching on here? I like it. I wish one was closer to where I live.

By the time I left ALDI a nearby bank's temperature sign said it was 99. Those type signs seem frequently inaccurate.

To you who live in cooler climates I'll tell you one survival technique I've learned to use to work around the HEAT.

If it is almost 100 degrees it makes it a bit difficult to buy anything frozen or in need of refrigeration, if you are going to be making multiple stops with the vehicle's A/C not running.

To deal with this problem I have a big cooler. This works well. I make it back here with the frozen stuff still frozen and the cold stuff still cold.

Well, I am out of here in a bit. Heading to the Tandy Hills. That should be interesting. It is not being as windy as I wish it would be.

A Bumper Peach Year In Texas

A couple days ago I blogged about the upcoming, July 10, Parker County Peach Festival.

In that blogging I said I had not heard if this was being a good year for peaches, in Texas, or not.

Well, I have now learned that Texas extension agents and peach growers are predicting a record peach harvest, possibly the best since 1982.

Last year's freeze in late spring and hail damage ruined the peach crop.

This year's extra cold winter is just what the peach trees needed to get them being extra bountiful.

Peaches are grown in other counties in Texas besides Parker County. Hill County, for instance, where Jamey Vogel, who owns a peach orchard, says "We've got the makings of a tremendous crop."

Parker County extension agent, Jon Green, agrees with that sentiment, with Parker County also having a bumper peach year.

The best of the peach picking runs from June 15 through July 25. I've got myself a real strong hankering from some fresh peaches.

Another HOT Summer Wednesday In North Texas

You are looking at the Wednesday morning view from my computer room window. Of late each day's morning view is pretty much the same as the day before, except for yesterday, when I was up well before the sun was.

It is not yet 10 in the morning and it's already 88 with a Heat Index of 92, heading to a predicted high, again, of 100. Maybe today we'll hit the century mark. We didn't hit the predicted 100 yesterday.

Tomorrow we get some HEAT relief with the forecast high being only 98. With a cloud or two. Currently there is no chance of rain in the foreseeable future.

Last summer we stayed fairly green here in my zone of North Texas. We are currently only 2 days into summer and it is already browner than it got last summer. Grass has trouble staying green in the Texas heat.

I was pre-occupied til well into the afternoon yesterday. So, I did not get my endorphin hill hiking fix. That made 2 days in a row of withdrawal from aerobic stimulation.

Today I have to be in Hurst in the noon time frame. The earliest I could hit the hills today will be around 3. By then the air should be rather HOT. If there is no wind blowing, like the semi-dead calm of yesterday, I may bail on hill hiking for the 3rd day in a row.

I am already beginning to deteriorate from the lack of exercise. I may be mis-diagnosing my deterioration. I did spend almost an hour in the pool this morning.

Fort Worth & Seattle: A Tale Of Two City's City Councils

You are looking at the skyline of downtown Seattle. That body of water is not a town lake, it is Elliott Bay. Elliott Bay is part of Puget Sound. Puget Sound is part of the Pacific Ocean.

Those big white boats are called ferry boats. Because they ferry cars and people to various locations on Puget Sound.

Where the ferry boats dock is called the Seattle Waterfront. Hovering above the Seattle Waterfront is this thing called the Alaskan Way Viaduct, a double decker elevated highway, that is obsolete, dangerous, a noisy eyesore and about to be replaced by a deep bore tunnel.

For the deep bore tunnel to work a new Elliott Bay Seawall must be built. The sea wall holds back the sea, sort of like an underground dike.

Now, here in Fort Worth, we have a water control project known as the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle. Spending around a $1 billion to build a little lake, an unneeded flood control diversion channel, 3 bridges and, maybe, some canals.

The citizens of Fort Worth have not been allowed to vote on the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle.

Now, contrast that with the following taken from the Seattle P-I, regarding the replacement of the aforementioned Elliott Bay Seawall....

"The Seattle City Council could hold off until 2011 before asking voters to approve a bond measure or levy to finance construction of a new Elliott Bay Seawall, according to a briefing Monday.

Replacing the seawall is a large piece of the $841 million in projects the city has agreed to complete as part of the $4.2 billion plan to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct with a deep-bore tunnel.

Mayor Mike McGinn has proposed a 30-year $235 million bond measure, which he wants to send to voters in November.

According to a City Council staff report, the council could hold off on a decision for the bulk of seawall financing until 2011. Seawall construction is expected to start in 2013 and finish in 2015. A preferred design isn't expected to be chosen until 2011.

The council's special committee on the Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement also was presented Monday with two more potential financing packages for the seawall and other work related to the viaduct replacement. Altogether, the city must come up with $302 million in "unsecured funding," meaning the council must create new taxes to pay for it."

What a contrast with the Fort Worth City Council, which spends its time debating things like giving handouts to corporate failures, like RadioShack. And other nonsense.

Up Before The Sun Thinking About Sundance Square Parking Lots

You are looking at the view from my computer room window a few minutes before the sun arrived to light up the sky and the ground beneath.

Even though the sun had not yet arrived it was already 81 degrees out there.

I think today we may make it over 100. 81 degrees before the sun arrives would seem to give the sun a head start on making it really HOT here today.

Yesterday was my weekly scheduled sabbatical from salubrious aerobic endorphin-inducing hiking. Endorphin withdrawal did not make me too grumpy yesterday. But, I need to hyper oxygenate my blood today or I fear bad things will start to happen.

Overnight Fort Worth's Sundance Square parking lots managed to spark controversy with someone named Doohickie suggesting that Steve A's rantings on the subject are paranoid. And Doohickie denies being either me or Tracy Gilmore. This confuses me greatly.

I didn't find Steve A's rantings particularly paranoid. But, I have to admit, I am not the most perceptive person on the planet.

Regardless of my level of perceptiveness, Sundance Square and its parking lots continue to be perplexing.

Fort Worth's Sundance Square Parking Lots

This afternoon I was reading Steve A's DFW Point to Point blogging, Sweet Homebound Tailwind. Steve A made mention of the collection of downtown Fort Worth parking lots known, collectively, by many, as Sundance Square.

I then commented on Steve A's blogging, verbalizing my appreciation that someone else noticed that there is no square in Sundance Square, with the closest thing to a square being the collection of parking lots.

Now, it is very unusual in a large city's downtown for land to be used for parking lots. Usually a downtown city's land finds much higher value uses. Than parking lots.

Within a very short time of me commenting on Steve A's blog I got an email from the Marketing Director of Sundance Square, Tracy Gilmour. Tracy Gilmour kindly tried to alleviate me of my Sundance Square ignorance by telling me that Sundance Square is 35 blocks of downtown Fort Worth, with a lot of buildings being restored to their former glory and awards being given for this effort.

Well, that's nice. But, the thing is, a lot of towns have an area they call their town square. It often goes by other names, like Seattle has Westlake Center. Westlake Center is a town square.

Fort Worth has no town square. The closest thing to a town square is the parking lots across from the Reata, the Bass Performance Hall, Flying Saucer Emporium and Barnes and Noble.

If you are going to put up signs pointing people to something called "Sundance Square" you really should have something that is a town square. Without such a thing one defaults to the only thing that resembles a square, that being the downtown Fort Worth parking lots.

Maybe downtown Fort Worth should actually turn one of the parking lots into a town square and call it Sundance Square and re-name the current development project, now known as Sundance Square, to something like Sundance Downtown Re-Development Project.

It's good marketing to accurately label things.

Below is the email from Tracy Gilmour, subject line, "I have seen you post about Sundance Square before."

I would really like to give you some correct information about Sundance Square. We own 35 blocks of downtown Fort Worth. The development is entirely privately owned, not subsidized in any way by the City of Fort Worth. It was named after Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. SSQ is a collection of both new and very old buildings. Much care has been taken in restoring the buildings back to the original such as the Knights of Pythias Hall at the corner of 3rd and Main. The Building which houses the Flying Saucer at 4th and Commerce is one of the oldest in Sundance.

On Main Street we are restoring the Jarvis building front back to as close as we can to an original front. This building is considered the oldest building on Main Street. We have over 50 buldings in Sundance so it’s much more than a collection of parking lots. We are proud of the awards we have one, especially the award of excellence we received earlier this year from the Urban Land Institute. I know you like to comment on all aspects of your experiences so maybe this will give you more to write about. If you will review the write ups on sundancesquaremanagement.com it will give you a very brief summary of each building.

Sundance Square encompasses property from 2nd to 5th streets and from Lamar to Elm that is an approximate boundary as our boundaries are made up of the buildings we own.