Tandy Hills Brush Bash 3 Is A Successful Wrap

I can not remember the last time I worked as hard as I worked on Saturday.

This afternoon I got Don Young's report with all the specific stats about Saturday's Tandy Hills Brush Bash.....

The Third Annual Tandy Hills Brush Bash is a wrap. On a beautiful clear, blue-sky day, a dedicated army of volunteers wrangled a mountain of brush up the steep Tandy Hills to the waiting trucks that hauled it away for composting. City of FW Parks & Community Services Department staffers led by, Michelle Villafranca and Dale Taylor, had cut the brush the previous week and assisted in the Bash.

The Tandy Hills Brush Bash Army came from all over the Metroplex. There were Boy Scouts, Master Naturalists, neighborhood folks, high school kids, moms and dads, grandmas and grandpas, a few PhD.'s and CEO's from all walks of life and all dedicated to getting the job done. And we did.

Wide open prairie vistas have been restored. The landscape looks measurably different and the prairie is much healthier thanks to our hard work. Here's the stats:

60+ volunteers

40+ community service workers

10+ dogs

36 large truck-fulls of brush

24 dozen donuts*

5 gallons of coffee, tea and hot chocolate*

1,000's of megabytes of digital photos which can be viewed on the Tandy Hills Facebook page, flicker and on our website.

Thanks to all who participated. For everyone else, pictures can't tell the story adequately. Don't wait until Prairie Fest. Come on out to Tandy Hills today and enjoy the new views.

Don Young

* Many thanks to Green Mountain Energy for providing coffee and donuts.

The Return Of The Short Shadow Of The Tandy Hills Thin Man Thinking About Litter Chain Gangs

I was on the Tandy Hills shortly after noon today. The sun was fully exposed with no clouds impeding its brightness.

Which made for a very bright, very short shadow.

I saw some of the results of Saturday's Brush Bash today. Along the main trail from View Street the view to the west is now much more viewable.

On the way to the Tandy Hills I saw a highway crew on Interstate 30 picking up bags of litter.

Yesterday I mentioned seeing what I thought to be a Litter Chain Gang picking up litter on the other side of the freeway from where I saw litter being removed today.

I got a few comments and emails about the subject. The Envy of the Entire Universe thought these litter pickers might have been something called Super Clean 2011 Volunteers, cleaning up for the Super Bowl.

More than one person was of the opinion this was being done for the Super Bowl.

Trouble with that theory is the Super Bowl takes place about 2 weeks from now. That is plenty of time to freshly coat the sides of the freeway with litter. Texans are astonishingly adept at littering.

I am also fairly certain that those guys in green, that I saw on Sunday, were not part of any volunteer group. First off the bus that transported them to the location was the same type prison bus I've seen transport Litter Gangs to pick up litter along the Trinity River's banks.

And, yesterday there was more than one man acting like a guard, watching the Litter Gang slowly pick up litter.

Anonymous, if that is her or his real name, told me that inmates are used to pick up litter in Washington. I've never seen this happen. But, I do know one convicted Washington felon who would greatly benefit, exercise-wise, if she were made to spend weekends picking up litter.

On a totally different subject, yesterday, or the day before, Betty Jo Bouvier mentioned a goofy thing regarding her town of Sedro Woolley, that being that a Washington radio station was having a contest called "Are You Smarter Than Sedro Woolley?"

Naturally, some Sedro Woollians are taking umbrage. Meanwhile down in Portland, that's the biggest town in Oregon, Some Portlanders are taking a little umbrage at a TV show called Portlandia on some obscure cable channel called the Independent Film Channel.

You can read more about being smarter than Sedro Woolley and Portlandia on my Washington Blog, and watch an amusing video of Portlandia.

How come no one makes a funny comedy TV show using Fort Worth for material? It would seem this town would be a gold mine of comic material. Trinity River Vision, Moron Mayor Mike Moncrief, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Lancaster Avenue, the Stockyards, Shanty Towns, thousands of natural gas wells, the Stock Show, Sundance Square, TCU.

And all the other marvelous wonders that make Fort Worth the Envy of the Nation....

A Freezing Texas Monday Morning Thinking About Hiking With Jack LaLanne

Looking out my viewing portal it appears the 4th Monday of 2011 has dawned with a clear blue sky.

And we are back freezing again at 26 degrees.

I don't think I will be going swimming this morning, but I do believe I will be back on the Tandy Hills today.

It felt really good yesterday to be back hill hiking after many days of not doing so.

I was surprised this morning to learn that Jack LaLanne is no longer with us. I thought he would live forever. But he died 4 years shy of making it to the century mark.

I'll get in some extra exercise today in Jack LaLanne's memory. And make an eggplant casserole.

I Am Currently Not A Fugitive From A Modern Day Texas Chain Gang

I think what we are looking at in the picture is the modern day version of a Texas Chain Gang.

I was driving east on Brentwood Stair Road and saw dozens of guys in green with green bags picking up litter.

Brentwood Stair runs along Interstate 30 on the south side of the freeway.

I stopped and took a quick picture through my windshield. The picture does not even remotely do justice to how odd this scene looked. I only got maybe a quarter of the Litter Gang in the picture.

I know these modern era Texas Chain Gangs are part of the punishment system for serious crimes like failing to pay a speeding ticket or other small time type crimes.

I have seen the Concentration Camp that is just slightly to the northeast of downtown Fort Worth, where these criminals go on the weekend and then get shipped out on buses to do tasks like litter pickup.

What I'm wondering is how much do these type operations cost this cash strapped town? Special uniforms, special bags, a bus to transport the criminals, the running of that Concentration Camp.

I do not recollect ever seeing this type activity when I lived in Washington. Is there a "weekend" prison surrounded by fence and concertina wire somewhere near downtown Seattle, where 100s of convicted criminals go to pay penance on the weekends? I don't ever recollect seeing a modern day Washington Chain Gang picking up litter by the freeway.

But, then, there is way way way less litter in the Evergreen State than you see in this Littering Lone Star State.

Sunday Hiking On The Tandy Hills With Dogs, Humans & Waterfalls

I parked on top of Mount Tandy today, not knowing if the Tandy Trails were hikable.

Upon arrival at the mountain top I saw a pair of hikers with a canine passing the Fort Worth Space Needle. This was to be the first of many human and canine Tandy Encounters today.

A short time later I came upon 3 guys who I thought, at first, were homeless people, possibly scouting out a new Shanty Town location. One of them asked where I was parked. I pointed back towards the road that leads to the Fort Worth Space Needle. The spokesman told me they'd hiked from "way over there," pointing towards View Street.

For some reason they wanted to get a look at the Fort Worth Space Needle and did not realize they could drive right up to it. This trio did not have the look of regular hikers.

A short time later I found myself facing a German Shepherd type dog, who was in a pack of two, with another dog of a brand not recognized by me. I don't think the dogs were rabid and they were not too menacing. I never did see a human to match with these dogs.

About a half hour after that dog encounter I was hearing the rushing water sounds of the Tandy River as it roars over Tandy Falls. I'd not seen water flowing over the falls in a long time.

As Tandy Falls came in to view, to the south of the falls I saw 3 more humans, with 3 dogs. These dogs were leashed. I did not have a close encounter with this particular human/dog combo, because they took a different path at the next junction.

This was my first successful Tandy Hills Hiking Day in a couple weeks.

As you can see in the view to the right, looking west at the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth, it is a gray, wintry day this Sunday in Texas.

Looking at that stunning skyline, I wonder if Fort Worth's Moron Mayor Moncrief thinks that skyline is yet one more reason Fort Worth is the Envy of the Nation?

This afternoon I am more than a little worried about Elsie Hotpepper. The last I heard from Elsie was yesterday, with a very cryptic message that really made no sense to me. All the message said was "I landed the eagle."

What can that possibly mean? I hope Elsie Hotpepper is not out somewhere shooting eagles. I'm fairly certain this is not legal to do.

The 4th Sunday Of 2011 In Texas Dawns 10 Degrees Above Freezing

Looking out my viewing window on this 4th Sunday of 2011 it does not looks as black and white as what my camera makes it look.

The sky is mostly blue, not white.

I have no clue as to what I'm going to do today. I do have a clue as to what I am not going to do today.

As in I am fairly certain I will not be going to church today.

I am just about 100% certain I will not be going on a bike ride today.

I am also about 100% certain I will not be leaving Texas today. Or tomorrow.

One thing I am about 100% certain I will be doing today is heading down to the pool in a few minutes.

Talk to you later. Maybe.

The Dawn Of The 4th Saturday Of 2011 In Cold Texas

Does it look cold looking out my viewing portal to the great outdoors this 4th Saturday of 2011?

It is only 4 degrees below freezing right now. Does this mean we are in a warming trend? I hope so.

Since the picture from my viewing portal was taken the sun has continued its illumination duty to a level where I can now clearly see the sky over my zone of North Texas is currently cloud free and a very nice shade of blue.

In a couple hours the Tandy Hills Brush Bash will be under way. I have a complication this morning that renders it impossible for me to bash brush. I may be able to do some afternoon brush bashing though.

I am not certain, as one can never be certain what Elsie Hotpepper is going to do, but I think the Hotpepper may be bashing brush today. Something to do with the lure of free donuts. I may have misrepresented the donuts as Krispy Kremes.

I skipped swimming yesterday. I never skip anything two days in a row.

Talk to you later.

A Fosdic Lake Gas Drilling Rig, Sinkhole Filling Operation & White Tree Buds

A Barnett Shale Natural Gas Drilling Rig hovered above Fosdic Lake in Oakland Lake Park today.

The hovering gas rig was the first interesting thing I saw when I drove in to East Fort Worth's best park today.

Or second or third best park in East Fort Worth. I forgot about Gateway Park. And the Tandy Hills Natural Area.

But both the Tandy Hills and Gateway Park are further west.

I have just decided that Oakland Boulevard is the arbitrary dividing line that is where East Fort Worth begins, which does make Oakland Lake Park the best park in East Fort Worth.

A week or so ago I found a sinkhole on the west side of Fosdic Lake. Within a couple days the growing Fosdic Sinkhole was surrounded by crime scene type tape to prevent anyone from sinking into the Fosdic Sinkhole.

Today I was surprised to see a crew filling the Fosdic Sinkhole.

What fortuitous timing, on my part, to happen to be in Oakland Lake Park right when this operation was underway.

Now, I am no Sinkhole Engineer, but, as a rank amateur, as far as the Science of Sinkholes goes, I think one should find out what is causing a sinkhole, rather than simply filling the hole with dirt. That just seems sort of common sensical.

It will be interesting to see if the Fosdic Sinkhole now reappears. I will try and closely monitor the sinking situation.

Today while I was walking around Fosdic Lake I noticed several trees have had white buds spring out on them.

The picture I took of the buds does not do justice to how cool and sort of otherworldly the white buds looked.

Even though we chilled to around 20 last night here in North Texas, apparently some trees are somehow getting the message that spring will soon be here and it is time to start sending out some new growth.

I hope further freezing does not nip this budding trend in the bud.

Saturday January 22 Is The First Tandy Hills Brush Bash Of 2011

Tomorrow Mother Nature will be providing some extreme air conditioning to the Tandy Hills to help facilitate a lot of brush bashing without causing the brush bashers to overheat on the 3rd Annual Tandy Hills Brush Bash.

Below is the latest Brush Bash Memo from the #1 Brush Basher, Don Young....

Greetings, Prairie Keepers, Nature Mystics and Grass Huggers-

Grab you gloves and jump into your boots. Saturday is our big day of the year to fulfill our stated mission at the Tandy Hills prairie, in situ. The weather forecast calls for blue sky and chilly temps, perfect conditions for brush-bashing. Wear layers. You'll shed them quickly. 

Green Mountain Energy is providing coffee and donuts for the volunteers. Hot tea and cocoa will also be available. Green Mountain will also donate $20. to Friends of Tandy Hills NA for every new account they sign up at Brush Bash. The only energy cleaner than Green Mountain is the kind you will burn bashing brush.

> > > BTW: You are welcome to take home any wood that has been cut. There is Ash, Mesquite, Hackberry and Eastern Red Cedar cut and ready for you. Bring your garden carts, wheel barrows and wagons. 

See you Saturday morning!

DY

20 Degrees In North Texas Thinking About It Being 50 Years Since JFK's Inauguration

That is one icy view looking out my viewing window this morning.

20 degrees.

A totally clear, blue sky and 20 degrees. I will not be going swimming this morning.

But, I will need to find something to do today that is aerobically stimulating because endorphin withdrawal is making me cranky and slightly headachy.

Being an addict is such a burden.

On a totally non-temperature related subject, today is the 50th Anniversary of John F. Kennedy's Inauguration. It seems like only yesterday JFK told America that the torch had been passed to a new generation, saying, among many other things, that "civility is not a sign of weakness," and the more remembered, "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."

Typing "JFK" caused me to think it's been a long time since we've had a President to whom we referred to by his initials. Methinks "LBJ" was the last one.

Switching from JFK and LBJ to a totally different subject.

For months now my various blogs have been inundated with increasingly weird, nonsensical comments. Strange gibberish things written as if by someone for whom English is a totally foreign language.

A mild example of what I'm talking about......

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Why would anyone go to the bother of making such a comment? And to what purpose? It is very perplexing.