J.D. Granger's Trinity River Vision Happy Hour Tubing Party Boondoggle Continuing Fun

You are looking at another photo taken by Joyce Marshall in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. There are now a lot of photos documenting last Thursday's bizarre Trinity River Vision Boondoggle J.D. Granger inspired Happy Hour Inner Tube Float down one of the most polluted rivers in America.

Judging from the comments to the article in the Star-Telegram, the locals seemed to be fairly universally repulsed by J.D. Granger's latest great idea.

One commenter lamented the wish that something cheaper be found for Kay Granger's boy to do.

It was Elsie Hotpepper who pointed me to the cornucopia of amusing and cogent comments, pointing me to them, because one commenter, Rude Dude, mentioned Durango Texas as being his information source for the Trinity Tubing.

I'll start with the comment from Rude Dude, then follow that with other comments about J.D. Granger's latest Boondoggle...

Someone named Agassifan had asked "So, how were these folks chosen?"

RudeDude then wrote:

They weren't chosen the float was open to anyone. They probably learned about it at J.D. Granger's Twitter or Facebook page. I read about it several weeks ago at Durango Texas. Fort Worth Weekly and FortWorthology may have also announced the float.

Jabbo wrote:

Anyone who has pushed the wasteful billion dollar Trinity Vision project (Granger & Son, Moncrief, the Tarrant Water District, etc.) should be put on an innertube and set out to sea!

localyokel wrote:

UGGHHH!!!! Between the alligator gar, the "brown trout", and God alone only knows what else, there is no way that anyone who valued their health would even think to get in the river. I've pulled CARS out of the river, BODIES out of the river, did a Trinity River Trash Bash and saw an old man with a net scooping used NEEDLES out of the water.

McNugget wrote:

Between the mammoth alligator gar, 2 headed snakes, gators, and dead bodies known to lurk below the foamy waters of the Trinity- No Thanks! Not to mention the fact that you will smell like a toilet boil for two days after.

anngws wrote:

There was documentary on recently about aligator gar - they focused on the Trinity River because it has such a huge population of that terrible fish. They can be deadly and grow to be very large - they have 2 rows of aligator teeth in a long thin snout. Who on Earth would swim in a river with those things? They can shred anything they bite into. Who would even promote such a thing?

TexasProud wrote: (quoting from the article in the Star-Telegram)

"With Budweiser swim trunks, a can of Natural Ice in his hand and a pack of Marlboros hanging around his neck in a waterproof container, the Fort Worth resident was ready to go."

This is why Fort Worth is Fort Worth, and not someplace with higher standards....it's the people....stupid.

astlobo wrote:

Great just what the Trinity needs, dirty Fort Worthians polluting the river even more.

McNugget wrote:

I thought these Trinity River people were only in charge of the big "flood control" project that we're all going to be financing. Now they're doing tubing and restaurants by the river. Maybe next they can come over and clean my house?

rickhatcher wrote:

you can't eat fish from the Trinity River what makes people want to put their bodies in that nasty thing. If they cleaned up the river it would help immensely. I am not sure it is safe for tubing anyhow. I don't think I would want to eat at any restaurant on the Trinity River because of the horrible smell.

sulla012 wrote:

I love tubing and I love Fort Worth it would take millions to get that river in tubing shape for the general public. I will choose to do the spring fed rivers of the Hill country and miss my chance to tube with "uncle dave". Maybe next year "uncle Dave". Nothing like a stagnant foul smelling river to go tube at on a lazy afternoon. Good idea wrong river.

jlwesty wrote:

Many tubing areas are not deep, over one's head. The Trinity is deep and there are no life saving stations. The Fire Dept takes too long in an emergency. They are more for recovery. Many city dwellers can not swim. As a child I remember many people being drowned yearly at family outings. The river is for flood water it is filled with limbs, trees and rocks. After a rain it foams like your washer because of chemicals in the run off. Once drowned bodies take days to find if they don't float naturally as they deteriorate. I would think authorities would tell you to boil the water if you were going to drink it. The rare boat race or tug of war that gets out of hand and leads to a sip probably would not kill you but inviting the world to come down and take a dip makes no sense just like the project. I wish we could have found something cheaper for Kay Granger's boy to do. It is a disgrace which will come to nothing.

A Polluted Texas Monday Morning Moon Seen With ISO & Shitzu

We are looking out my bedroom window, early Monday morning, with this being the last Monday of August. It is 79 degrees out there, so I've got my windows open.

My camera has multiple settings that I spin a dial to change. Settings like 'Fireworks', 'Snow', 'Foliage', 'Portrait', 'Night Snapshot', 'Kids & Pets', 'Indoor', 'Sunset', 'Beach', 'Aquarium' and 'ISO'.

I had no idea what ISO meant. This morning I set the camera on ISO and took the picture out of my bedroom window. I think what ISO means is at that setting you can take a picture with little light and no flash will go off and you end up with a photo that fairly closely replicates what the darkness actually looks like.

I think I'll leave you for a moment and go out on the patio and see if this ISO thing can take a picture of the pollution halo that is currently surrounding the moon. I'll be right back.

Well, you can sort of see the haze around the moon. And you can also see that the sun is starting to light up the place. But not sufficiently bright to alert the birds that it is time to go into their morning tweeting routine.

I have yet to get to see and take a picture of the little Lhasa Apso doggy who found a home on Saturday. The lady who adopted the nice little doggy, we called Shitzu, because we thought he was a Shih Tzu breed of nice little doggy, already has 2 dogs. Little Schnauzers.

When I first met the lady who adopted Shitzu she only had 1 Schnauzer. I met the little Schnauzer when a Pit Bull was trying to eat it during a fire emergency. It was drama layered upon drama.

I see Shitzu's new mama a couple times a week, usually, out walking her doggies in my neighborhood. It will be interesting to see how she handles 3 dogs at once. And how Shitzu is adjusting to his adopted siblings.

Well, the birds have started making a racket. Which means it is time to go swimming.

Walking With Texas Indian Ghosts While Talking To Tootsie Tonasket

You are looking at the paved trail in Village Creek Natural Historic Area in Arlington, Texas. The picture was taken about an hour ago, a minute or two after I was untangled from the leash of a passing Doberman. You can see the Doberman and its humans in the distance in the picture if you look real hard.

My one longtime reader may remember me mentioning, yesterday, that Tootsie Tonasket had sent me a rather disturbing email detailing the latest chapter in Tootsie's ongoing roller coaster of a soap opera.

So, I called Tootsie Tonasket today while I walked and talked for an hour or so. I gave Tootsie excellent advice as to how to handle the latest Tootsie Travail. I'm sure my excellent advice will be totally ignored.

I tell you, the troubles that people find themselves accidentally getting into, make me grateful I pretty much live a trouble-free existence. As long as I stay out of Tacoma and its Vortex of Weirdness.

I think I broke my record in the pool this morning, time-wise. It was feeling so salubrious I did not want to get out. I was in the water very soon after the sun arrived, so I had musical bird tweeting helping create a soothing jungle atmosphere.

I was in Boerne, Texas, virtually, all morning. I'll be returning there again, virtually, this afternoon. Interesting town.

Time for lunch now. Burgers, with salad, oven-baked spud rounds and lemonade.

An Early Texas Sunday Morning Thinking About A Former Shih Tzu Former Homeless Puppy

We are looking out my bedroom window at the slightly moonlit early morning of the last Sunday in August.

It is way hotter than yesterday's morning temperature of 67. Right now, at a little past 6am, it is 78 out there.

The cute little formerly homeless doggy had a successful trip to the groomer and vet.

Miss Puerto was sure the little doggy was of the Shih Tzu breed. Yesterday the vet identified it as a Lhasa Apso doggy. And it is just a puppy, less than a year old.

Miss Puerto Rico is hoping I'll take a picture today of the newly spruced up Lhasa Apso. Apparently after his haircut he looks really tiny.

I think I need to close the windows. I am sort of overheating in here. Maybe it's the HOT coffee.

In Texas Celebrating A Rare Scrabble Win Against The Scrabble Queen Of Washington

Saturday night I had me a Scrabble Celebration due to the rare occasion of winning a Scrabble game against the Scrabble Queen of Washington.

It was a decisive victory, by dozens of points.

I think the Scrabble Queen of Washington lets me win every once in awhile just to boost my easily boosted spirits.

A couple weeks ago I read somewhere that Scrabble, the actual board game, not the Facebook version, has become a very trendy fad.

It seems like the actual board game version would be complicated, figuring out how to score the points. That would involve arithmetic. The arithmetic part of my brain went to sleep a long time ago.

I see in the morning email that the Scrabble Queen of Washington has invited me to play a new game of Scrabble. The usual pattern is she lets me win one. And then decisively defeats me to remind me why she is the Scrabble Queen of Washington.

While I'm a mere Pauper in Texas. I just realized I am not sure I know what a Pauper is.

Paying Homage To The Tandy Hills Shrine While Talking To My Mom, Worrying About Tootsie Tonasket & Thinking About The Tacoma Queen Of Chocolate

You are looking at the newly restored Tandy Hills Shrine on top of Mount Tandy. The oracle known as Stenotrophomonas prophesied that new balls would migrate their way to the shrine. As it was prophesied, so it has come to be.

Before I say anything else about anything else, I must tell you the nice homeless doggy I introduced you to has found a home. At this very moment he is getting a haircut. And then it's off to the Dog Doctor for a check-up and shots.

It is like the nice homeless doggy knew something good was happening. He'd been a bit skittish, we did not know how we'd get him in a dog carrier cage for transport to the Dog Fixers. Instead, the cage door was opened and the no longer homeless doggy walked right in. Liked he'd seen this before and knew it led to good things.

Enough of the dog. Back to me. On the way to the Tandy Hills I got gas, so, like I always do when I get gas, I called my mom. Mom was being chatty, so the chattiness continued after I arrived at the Tandy Hills. After my mom stopped being chatty I called Tootsie Tonasket, because Tootsie had emailed me regarding a rather urgent matter that she wanted to talk to me about. I got voice mail.

Tootsie just called back, but I'm blogging right now and not in the mood to talk about Tootsie's Travail.

I heard from the Chocolate Queen of Tacoma, this morning, that she's been reading my blogs.

Most complicated website I ever made was for the Chocolate Queen of Tacoma. The complicated one, that I made, has been replaced by a less complicated, but far better, version.

Next time I'm in Tacoma I'll be visiting the Chocolate Queen. There is a chance if I do that I might get to taste some exotic chocolate. Most chocolate I've ever consumed, occurred during a 10 day period in February of 2004, while I put chocolate products on Amazon for the Queen of Chocolate. I probably had more chocolate during that 10 day period than the entirety of my life up to that point.

When I flew up to Washington, in February of 2004, I weighed 206. When I returned to Texas, 10 days later, I weighed almost 220.

The 10 days of overeating were topped off with a 10 hour layover in Phoenix, where I had McDonald's All You Can Eat, twice, within an hour, once, when I landed, again when my sister landed. A few hours later it was off to Happy Hour at some place with cheap Happy Hour appetizers. After that I was stuffed, but then it was off to my first visit to an In-N-Out, where I learned why they are so highly regarded, by having two burgers.

After In-N-Out they took me back to the airport where I slowly waddled in, eventually barely able to secure a seatbelt around me. I was very happy there were very few on board. I had a whole section of the plane all to myself.

Even though we got down to only 35 degrees above freezing, last night, the sun has managed to heat us up again, to 93, so the A/C is back doing its cooling thing.

A Wind Chilling 67 This Last Saturday Of August In Texas

As you can see, sitting out on the patio with me, it is dark, very dark. Up this last Saturday of August way before the anticipated arrival of the sun.

67 at this point in time this morning. No Heat Index, even though the Humidity is at 68%. This morning, according to WeatherBug, we have a Wind Chill going on.

An Air Pollution Alert or Warning or Whatever it is called, was issued yesterday.

Yesterday morning, when I opened my windows, I thought the air smelled like bleach. This morning it is bleach-free, but something is causing an eye stinging nuisance.

Yesterday when I left Oakland Lake Park, heading towards Town Talk, heading north on Oakland Boulevard, as I crossed Interstate 30 I saw that the Barnett Shale drill pad, slightly north of the freeway, was being fracked, with a lot of trucks waiting to waste water in to the hole.

The drill pad site is surrounded by a tall wall, so you can't see what is going on in there. But, a strange haze of misty particulates was wafting airborne. Was it diesel exhaust from a truck? If so, why was nothing blowing airborne from all the water trucks outside the wall?

One of the things I like when I return to the Pacific Northwest is how good the air smells. I remember in July of 2001, when I drove solo back to Washington for my mom and dad's 50th, as I crossed Snoqualmie Pass on I-90 to Western Washington, past the summit the air began to smell like Christmas trees. That sensation continued for about a week, and then I no longer noticed it. When I lived in Washington I never noticed how good it smells.

The only thing I ever smell in Texas that smells good is the smoke wafting from a Texas barbecue. I will forever associate that good fragrance with Texas. That and the stench of oil.

Seeing Closed Libraries and New Sidewalks In Fort Worth

My intention had been to go to the Tandy Hills today, parking on top of Mount Tandy, to take a photo of the desecrating of the Mount Tandy Shrine, which I learned last night from Stenotrophomonas had had its golf balls stolen by a shrine desecrating vandal.

But, I was running late, and I remembered that the Fort Worth Water Boys had re-invaded the Tandy Hills, which if accessed from Mount Tandy I'd likely have an encounter where I would have had to negotiate my way around big trucks whilst breathing in noxious diesel fumes.

So, walking around Fosdic Lake in Oakland Lake Park became my destination.

On the way I went by the East Regional Library. Closed. When this library is open, usually every computer station has someone using it, plus others bringing in their laptops for Wi-Fi access. I don't know how one manages to afford a laptop, but not an Internet connection.

Judging from letters to the editor in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, citizens are starting to get cranky about the library scale backs. And pool closings.

While the City of Fort Worth has money for other things.

Like a few million to fix a clock tower, money to build a helicopter pad, money to buy inner tubes to give to people wanting to test their immune systems in the Trinity River.

And to build new stair/sidewalks, like the one you see in the photo above.

The new stair/sidewalk is in Oakland Lake Park. It is adjacent to a CCC, 30s era, constructed of rocks, picnic pavilion. Built, I assume with New Deal stimulus money.

Is current day stimulus money what is being spent on projects like Oakland Lake Park's new stair/sidewalk? Did Fort Worth get some stimulus money? Is that what is causing all the road projects? If there is stimulus money is there some prohibition against using it to keep a library open? Or a pool?

I find the new stair/sidewalk in Oakland Lake Park perplexing. If the old one presented a danger, could not that route have been blocked until funds were available, so the money could be spent on more urgent needs? There are 3 other easy routes to take you to the same location as the new stair/sidewalk.

I'd do some more curmudgeon whining, but I am hungry and lunch is ready.

J.D. Granger's Trinity River Vision Happy Hour Inner Tube Float Boondoggle On The Trinity River

On August 4 I blogged about J.D. Granger's bizarre plan to have a Trinity River Vision Boondoggle Happy Hour Float down the Trinity River in Fort Worth.

I opined that I thought it absurd to put people in water that has signs warning you not to eat fish you catch. And the water is dirty, really dirty. In addition to the dirtiness, there is a lot of litter, an amazingly lot of litter.

And critters, like turtles, who are willing to give chase, while snapping at you (I have had it happen), snakes, like water moccasin. And Alligator Gar, which are these bizarre "fish" that look like an eel/alligator mutation.

I have not seen an Alligator Gar in the Trinity River. I have seen one in Village Creek. I have not been back in a Texas lake since I saw an Alligator Gar and then talked to some girls on a dock on Lake Grapevine who told me one of their friends had stepped on an Alligator Gar the day before and had to be taken to the ER.

A year or two ago a fisherman caught a really big Alligator Gar in the Trinity in Dallas. I think it was 10 feet long. Or was that the length of the Alligator found last year in my neighborhood?

So, yesterday, Thursday, around 40 inner tubers joined J.D. Granger, with beer coolers in floats, for the Trinity River Vision Authority Boondoggle "Tubing Happy Hour."

You are looking at a pair of the Trinity Tubers in the picture above. This picture was in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, taken by Joyce Marshall.

The picture at the top is not of the Trinity Tubers, it is a picture of tubers in a clean river.

J.D. is working on a couple more floating happy hours, saying "Based on the demand we saw for this event, there will probably be something next spring or summer."

40 people does not sound like a rousing demand for an event to me.

Apparently, on July 4, J.D. and his Vision Boondoggle provided 100 inner tubes for Fort Worth's 4th of July celebration.

Where these 4th of July inner tubes floated, I do not know, but J.D. says, ""People literally came in [and] cut off their kids' jeans so they could tube. We're ordering at least 300 tubes for next July because of the demand."

The executive director of the TRV Boondoggle is ordering up at least 300 inner tubes for next 4th of July? Who is paying for these tubes?

The comments to the article in the Star-Telegram are pretty funny and pretty much on point regarding the absurdity. Below are a few of the funnier comments....

panthercitylover wrote:

We were having a good time, but a 4-foot-long alligator gar punctured my tube and almost bit me! Scary! I'm never getting in the Trinity again.

sarcasticallystooopid wrote:

Haha! The only people who would do this are either (a)not from Fort Worth or (b)rednecks. I'll drive down south to do my tubing, thanks and I am a Fort Worth native. I'm wondering if these morons have seen pics of the river when it is low. It is flat out disgusting, 55 gallon chemical drums, tires, dead animals, etc. Watch out for Okie turds and dead bodies.

Oh and don't forget: Man drowns in Trinity; passing bicyclist rescues mom and daughter. Jul 5, 2010 FORT WORTH -- An East Texas man trying to rescue his 7-year-old daughter drowned Monday afternoon in the Trinity River.

But I'm sure it's real safe if your drinking beer and floating in an unstable rubber tube.

paulasmithy wrote:

When I saw the headline, I thought this would be an article about potatoes growing by the river. Not that those would be particularly safe, either.

txlawyer2 wrote:

There are no advisories against swimming because the agencies thought that went without saying. Next year the headline will be the same, except for replacing "tubers" with tumors.

xxViixen wrote:

Ew!!! Dont float the Trinity. Go float the Comal or Guadalupe River in Austin. Those were the best times of my life!

truefwtexan wrote:

Is this a big surprise? We have insane heat around here, and we have a grand total of one public pool open. When we had 5, they were overcrowded, and now they are just insane. No wonder people are willing to lounge in the disgusting water just to cool off. Wake up, Fort Worth! We're burning up here!

midcitiesyj wrote:

Hahahaha! The comments below pretty much sums it up. Eeeeewwww, nothing like floating in no current and 90 degree water.... And watch out for the 2 headed snakes. The Paluxy is a very good place to go, but nothing compares to the cold water and fast current of the Guadalupe.

ustfuninfw wrote:

Next they'll be hosting swim events at the waste water treatment plants.

Up Before The Sun In Chilly North Texas On The Last Friday Of August Thinking About Tubing The Trinity

It is the last Friday of August. Before dawn. I am feeling misbegotten this morning. There was a moon hanging overhead looking at me when I went out on my patio to drink some coffee.

I think there is a song, movie, book or play titled something like Moon for the Misbegotten. If I were not so illiterate I would know these things.

The sun has yet to arrive to heat up the place, so the temperature is still falling, but it has not fallen, yet, to the predicted low of 68. Currently it is a balmy 71. That is about 10 degrees cooler than I run the A/C, so I currently have my windows open for some natural cooling.

I like the natural cooling. Except. This morning there seems to be some sort of chemical smell in the air, sort of like bleach. I really do not think it can possibly be a good thing to have bleached air.

The noisy birds have started up their tweeting ritual that goes on every morning when they get all excited when the sun returns for yet one more day. I tweeted this morning, too, but I did my tweeting on Twitter.

I think I may forego swimming and hiking and get my daily dose of exercise by going inner tubing on the Trinity River. Apparently this formerly scary sounding activity is suddenly quite popular. More on this bizarre phenomenon later.

I changed my mind on foregoing the swimming. I am pool bound in about a minute.