Aches & Pains & Cold Days In Texas

I was up early on this the 4th day of October, but I am late to my blogging habit due to Google's Blogger having a malfunction this morning with its new editor. So, I switched to the old editor, which seems to be working fine.

I hate it when 'new and improved' isn't.

I did not go swimming this morning because I decided this is a take it easy day, due to being a bit on the sore side, thanks, I think, to both a bike wreck and some new pool exercises the Scrabble Queen of Washington taught me.

I hate the aches and pains of being elderly. I think I may be experiencing the early signs of arthritis in my hands. It actually hurts to type. Gripping my bike's handlebars seems to be what's got my hands in hurt mode.

It got down to 50 last night. I read in the Seattle P-I this morning that the coldest La Nina in 50 years has formed near the equator. When this happens the Pacific sends real bad storms to the northwest, as in cold and wet with a lot of snow in the mountains.

I do not know how La Nina affects Texas. I suspect we are going to have a cold winter here, too, because even though fall is only a few days old, it is already being colder than I remember past falls being here.

It is time to take another dose of Ibuprofen.

Elsie Hotpepper Did Not Bite A Hot Pepper On The Tandy Hills Tonight

Elsie Hotpepper was seeming to be a tad down in the dumps this weekend. In dire need of being cheered up.

I thought maybe with Gar the Texan bailing on going to the State Fair of Texas with me, due to choosing to go battle annoying Germans in their Fatherland, instead, that maybe Elsie would enjoy going to the State Fair of Texas to maybe take her mind off her infernal aggravations.

I was wrong. Elsie Hotpepper did not respond in an affirmative manner to my suggestion that she needed to have herself some Deep-Fried Beer.

I then thought maybe a trip to the Tandy Hills Natural Area Sanatorium might be just what Elsie Hotpepper needed to get the heat back in her peppers. This suggestion was also met with a negative, even after I conjured up an artist's rendering of Elsie Hotpepper enjoying the salubrious sanatorium that is the Tandy Hills Natural Area.

It is now less than an hour before I enjoy my favorite TV show, that being The Amazing Race, so time has now run out on me being able to come up with anything to put the pepper back in Elsie Hotpepper.

I will try again tomorrow. To re-pepper Elsie Hotpepper, I mean. But, I will not be trying much else tomorrow. Because I am in total body sore ache mode. As in, I need a day of doing nothing so my aged aching body can recover from whatever it is I have done to it that has me feeling so sore.

Well, there was that semi-bike wreck earlier today. And the Scrabble Queen of Washington did teach me some new pool moves that I think may have strained a thing or two. I am sure in the long run all will be well, as will I.

A Sunday Mountain Bike Ride At River Legacy Park With A Minor Bike Wreck & Major Leakage

With my flat tire/bad tire pump debacle behind me, today I decided to try and mountain bike the River Legacy Park trails again.

All was going well. At first. I teetered successfully over the newly added teeter totter.

And then I came to the first steep drop. This down and up has had some serious eroding take place since I used to ride down and up it with no problems.

My method for dealing with this first dip is to go down the drop fast and then bounce up the other side, with the momentum pushing me up, while I pedal to add some oomph.

Well, today I hit a root rut. Hard. The bounce knocked the chain off the sprocket, which caused there to be no tension on the pedals, which caused me to lurch forward. The momentum got me to the top. Almost. As I jumped off the bike, without falling. Sustaining only a minor cut to my knee.

The chain was easily stuck back on the sprocket, with me back blissfully pedaling.

Until another calamity befell me. I began to leak like a sieve from my eyes, soon followed by more dripping from my nose. At first I thought this was some quick onslaught of a cold caught from a germy Washingtonian on Tuesday. Then I realized the dripping was likely due to biking in the relatively frigid temperature.

I decided if the dripping did not cease by the time I completed my first time around the trails, I'd cease with the biking. The dripping did not cease, so the biking did.

Since I was sort of in the neighborhood, I went to the Pantego ALDI Food Market to get some food. Milk is only 99 cents a gallon. How are dairy farmers making any money if milk is going for 99 cents a gallon? It's very perplexing.

It's time for lunch now. Romaine salad with fish sticks and onion rings. I'm such a health food nut.

Big Tex At The State Fair Of Texas While Gar The Texan Defends Czechs By Fighting Germans At Munich's Octoberfest

You are looking at the backside of Big Tex at the State Fair of Texas. Big Tex is real big. And he talks. Big Tex has a real good Texas drawl.

But not as good a Texas drawl as Gar the Texan's Texas drawl when he is in fighting mad mode.

Gar the Texan has never been to the State Fair of Texas. He was going to go to it with me this year, but then he changed his mind and decided to go to Germany, for a month, and go to Octoberfest in Munich, instead of the State Fair of Texas in Dallas.

It seems rude to me to tell someone you are going to the State Fair of Texas with them and then go to Germany instead.

Speaking of being rude. Last weekend, Gar the Texan was at a Munich Octoberfest Beer Garten, sitting at a table with a bunch of guys from the Czech Republic, having himself a fine time, when the Czech guys left Gar the Texan guarding their seats, while they went to procure more beer. Then a group of German guys took the Czech seats despite Gar the Texan's profanity-laced protestations. Eventually the Gestapo showed up to advise Gar the Texan to cease with his profanity-laced protesting of this 2010 German occupation of Czech territory. When the Czech guys returned they quickly capitulated to the German Anschluss and left the Beer Garten. The Germans then suggested that Gar the Texan also leave their newly acquired territory and join the Czech exiles.

It seems Gar the Texan is finally coming to understand why I can't stand Germans. For the  most part.

Well, enough of international relations for the day.

Below is a video I made of my last visit to the State Fair of Texas. In the video you will hear Big Tex verbalizing his hope that you have yourself a real fine time at the State Fair of Texas....

A Chilly Texas October Sunday Morning

The sun is just starting to shine a light on the darkness, on this, the 3rd day of October. At 53, this morning, at around 7 we have not reached the predicted chilly low of 48. Yet.

I don't know what I did to cause it, but I am experiencing some extreme muscle pain this morning. My arms feel like I've been lifting bales of hay for hours. I do not recollect lifting any bales of hay or bales of hay equivalents.

I am totally devastated that Texas lost to Oklahoma yesterday in the Red River Rivalry in the Cotton Bowl during the State Fair of Texas.

Meanwhile in the Columbia River Rivalry Washington upset Southern California. I don't know where this game was played, but I am fairly certain it was not in the Rose Bowl during the Western Washington State Fair in Puyallup.

I am guessing the pool is going to be cooler than it was yesterday. I will find out in a few minutes.

Late To The Tandy Hills Due To Mom Call & Wrong About State Fair Of Texas Red River Rivalry Crowds

My mom made me late getting to the Tandy Hills Natural Area Sanatorium today for some much needed sanity enhancement.

Yesterday on my way to my aborted (due to a flat tire) bike ride at River Legacy Park I called my mom because I got gas on the way and I always call my mom when I get gas.

My mom did not answer when I called, instead I got my dad's poetic answering machine message. So, I left a message with my important gas and temperature information.

When my mom called this morning she told me she intended to call last night, but an unintended nap diverted that plan. Apparently the Phoenix zone is suffering from the same overheating that Southern California is suffering from. My mom seemed a bit envious when I told her tonight's low here in frigid North Texas is predicted to be 48.

My mom was being amusing today. Apparently, last week my Grand Nephew, Spencer Jack, called my brother, on his birthday, to wish his grandpa a happy birthday. Spencer Jack is 3. Spencer Jack asked my brother how old he was. My brother told him, then Spencer Jack told my brother he was an old man. My brother and my mother believe Spencer Jack's dad, my nephew, programmed Spencer Jack with the "old man" line. Or maybe Spencer Jack is a precocious kid. Precociousness sort of runs in the family.

Betty Jo Bouvier  has not reminded me this week that I need to go visit my mom and dad in Arizona. My mom did the reminding for Betty Jo today. My dad has a rather significant birthday coming up in December. Maybe I will make it to Phoenix for that.

I heard from cd0103, she being my undercover local information source, that I was erroneous in my assumption that today the State Fair of Texas will be a people packed zoo due to the Red River Rivalry football game in the Cotton Bowl. Apparently people stay away from the fair today, assuming erroneously, just like me, that the fair would be way too overcrowded today.

I am going to make another attempt to find an open Fort Worth library this afternoon. And then try and find a bike pump.

Going To Dallas To The State Fair Of Texas For The Red Rivalry Texas/Oklahoma Cotton Bowl Football Game

It is only 27 degrees above freezing this morning in my zone of Texas, on this, the 2nd day of October.

I believe today is a day you don't want to be going to the State Fair of Texas, unless you enjoy huge crowds. Today the Red River Rivalry comes to Dallas.

The Red River is what you cross when you head north out of Texas in to Oklahoma.

Today in the Cotton Bowl the University of Texas plays a football game with the University of Oklahoma. Or maybe it's called Oklahoma University. This game is what is known as the Red River Rivalry.

Last year there were some transportation problems with DART trains not delivering football fans to the Cotton Bowl in a timely fashion. This year those DART problems are supposedly fixed.

Tomorrow the predicted low is 48. We are getting to the time of year when it is a test of mind over cold to go swimming in an increasingly cold pool. I'll see how that mind over cold thing is working for me in a few minutes.

The Small Town Of Fort Worth Can't Keep Its Library Open Unlike The Big City Of Burlington Washington

I took off from here around 5 to go to the East Regional Library, due to being out of reading material and to get this week's Fort Worth Weekly, where the Tandy Hill's Prairie Fest got picked as Best Outdoor Cultural Event of 2010 in FW Weekly's Best of 2010 issue.

My intention was to go to the library and then to the Tandy Hills.

But, I am always forgetting that I live in a poor, small town in the South now, where the library is not open on a day one would expect a library to be open, like Friday.

I grew up in the big city of Burlington, Washington. Burlington has a very good library. It is very new and very big. Burlington's population is a bit under 7,000. Burlington's library is only closed on Sunday.

Before I moved to Texas I lived in Burlington's big neighbor, Mount Vernon. Mount Vernon's population is a bit under 30,000. Mount Vernon also keeps its library open every day but Sunday.

I wonder if there is any connection between the significantly higher high school graduation rate and college graduation rate, in the state of Washington, compared to the state of Texas, and the availability of open libraries?

Anyway, with the library closed I was on the Tandy Hills earlier than I'd planned. As you can see, in the picture above, the Tandy River is still roaring over Tandy Falls, while the Trinity Falls outside Gateway Park has now become Dry Falls with a Giant Whirlpool.

The Tandy Hills Shrine II has been re-located, moved from the center of Tandy Highway, off to the side. This seems to be a good preservation move. Nothing has been added to the shrine since the baseball cap was added, commemorating the Texas Rangers inevitable appearance in the 2010 World Series.

I carried my Snake/Spider Web Whacking Stick, but saw no snakes. I did have to whack a lot of spider webs.

The Tandy Hills is being sort of out of control. All the rain and some sort of perfect storm of vegetation growing conditions has grass growing fast, flowers blooming, trails obscured and, apparently, spiders over-producing webs.

I rather like it.

The Pest Is Back Again, This Time Via LinkedIn

It has been well over 2 years now I've been trying to be rid of a noxious pest from the Pacific Northwest. It's like some sort of infection that I think I finally successfully cleared up.

And then it's back again.

A couple months ago I was sent a link to Facebook by which I learned The Pest was on Facebook telling people she was being stalked on the Internet.

 By me.

The Pest told people she'd contacted the FBI and the FBI was coming to talk to her and look at her computer. On Facebook she had people advising her as to what she should do about her alleged Internet Stalker. Some of these people should have been able to remember The Pest is a pathological liar. And that blood is thicker than polluted water.

Now, this bizarre Internet Stalking lie came about 2 months after this person was caught by the Queen of Wink stalking various blogs and leaving an anonymous comment, slandering me, which the Queen of Wink was able to trace to The Pest, via The Pest's IP address. This turned very funny as The Pest further humiliated herself with more lies.

I don't quite understand the twists of a poisoned mind, but somehow The Pest getting caught being a pest morphed into accusing me of doing the same thing. Which is pretty funny, if it weren't so bizarre. I got an email from The Pest detailing her stalking charges, including claiming IP addresses had been tracked to my computer. The verbiage was off, which indicated The Pest really had no clue what an IP address is. This particular email was one of the more twisted, bizarre, insane things I've ever received.

So, why am I bringing this up now?

Well.

During the past 2 years The Pest has made numerous attempts to re-connect with me, between incidents of being upset with me for imagined bad things, like Internet Stalking or doing treacherous things to her computer, blog, Facebook and I forget what else.

When I first got on Facebook, the first "Friend" request, that I rejected, was from The Pest. Soon after I started doing Twitter I got a Twitter email telling me The Pest was following me on Twitter. (quickly blocked) At one point The Pest emailed me suggesting that we start up a long ago website we had sort of cooperated on.

And now I am getting emails from LinkedIn in which The Pest is inviting me to become part of her professional network at LinkedIn, with the subject line being "The Pest wants to stay in touch on LinkedIn" (real name changed to The Pest)

So, I guess we have gone from working with the FBI to stop my Internet Stalking to wanting me to become part of The Pest's professional network of dumpster divers.

Now, if The Pest really wants to un-pest herself she needs to start with apologizing, in a meaningful way, for all her bad behavior, lying and false accusations. Without any assumption of any responsibility for all the bad behavior I can't imagine why this particular pest is harboring delusions that sending me something like this LinkedIn request is going to generate anything other than what you are reading right now.

Suffering In Texas With A Flat Tire And Other Possible Ailments

That is my bike in pieces you are looking at. My therapist, Dr. L.C., insisted I take a break from being a webpage making machine.

I decided to take my doctor's advice and go pedal the mountain bike trail at River Legacy Park. I knew a bike teeter totter has been added since I last biked there.

I saw the bike teeter totter, clearly visible from the mountain bike parking lot. But I did not bike over it. Nor did I bike out of the mountain bike parking lot.

When I pulled my bike out of my vehicle it was quickly obvious that the front tire was totally flat. Flat front tires are easy to fix. Usually I have at least one spare tube. Today I had none.

So, the River Legacy Park Mountain Bike Trail Ride was aborted.

On my way back here I dropped in at my neighborhood Wal-Mart Supercenter to get a couple inner tubes. Among the tubes was a new one, that for $19.99 a tube, guaranteed the tube to be flat-proof. I've fallen for that before. But not this time.

When I got back here I quickly switched out the tubes. It was one of those goathead thorns that had killed my tube.

After getting the tire with the new tube back on the bike, my next calamity was my tire pump broke. The part of the pump that pushes in the valve, ceased pushing.

So, a new pump must be acquired before I am back in ride mode again.

I found out a few minutes ago that I likely will be quite sick soon. One of the Washingtonians, who I had lunch with on Tuesday, is now in American Falls, Idaho, deathly sick. On Tuesday there were 2 hugging instances, once upon arrival, once upon departure. There was also some fairly close talking in the restaurant.

My throat is already a little sore. But that may be from the green tea I'm drinking right now.

I can not remember the last time I've been sick with anything, so I am way past due. I don't know what happened to me on Tuesday that caused me to drop my usual aversion to germ-spreading unnecessary hugging.