Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup Pageant Hopefuls Decapitate & Skin Snakes

CNN.com has an interesting article about an event ending today out in Sweetwater, Texas.

That event being the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup.

CNN's article is titled "Pageant Hopefuls Decapitate & Skin Snakes at Rattlesnake Roundup."

In this article I learned some things I did not know about the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup.

For instance, as part of the Miss Snake Charmer pageant that starts off the Roundup on Thursday, each of the contestants  chops off a Diamondback Rattlesnake's head, holding the murdered snake up with one hand while giving a beauty queen wave with the other hand, as cameras flash.

And then the contestants rub their hands in the murdered snake's blood to memorialize the kill with a handprint on a wall.

I also did not know that visitor's to the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup could pay $10 to skin a Rattlesnake. And dip their hands in the blood to leave a memorial handprint.

The video that is at the top of the article is well worth viewing. There are several jaw dropping parts. Like a dad from, I think, Dallas, taking his kids to Sweetwater to hunt Rattlesnakes. In the video we see the kids catching snakes.

In the video you will also see the bloody handprints. Along with Miss Snake Charmer.

Below is my video of the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup. CNN's is much better than mine.

A Windy Visit With The Soldier In Arlington's Veterans Park

As you can see in the picture of the soldier standing guard at the Veterans Park Memorial in Arlington the blue sky of this morning became cloudy by noon.

And windy.

It is 3 in the afternoon now, with a brighter sky, heated to 72, with no return to total blue.

A possible Thunderstorm is scheduled for later today.

We are due for a Thunderstorm in these Thunderstorm prone parts.

Swimming went well this morning. The water has now warmed to a level where a long stay in the pool does not result in an hour of intense shivering.

I think I may be going for another swim. I am scheduled to go over to Miss Puerto Rico's at 4.

Daylight Savings Time Has Arrived In North Texas Making Me An Hour Late

Due to the government mandating that time be shifted an hour, I am up later than I would have preferred.

It is past 8, well after the arrival of the sun, this second Sunday of March.

As you can see, looking through the bars of my patio prison cell, it is a sunny Sunday in North Texas.

Sunny and 60 degrees.

Which means, even though I am running late, I'll be going swimming this morning.

I think around noon I will be heading to Veterans Park in Arlington and then on to the ALDI in Pantego. That is what I did last Sunday, and creature of habit that I be, I tend to repeat myself.

We Need To Thin Down The Population Of Rattlesnakes At Our Ranch

The Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup, in Sweetwater, Texas, is taking place this weekend.

Hundreds upon hundreds of rattlesnakes are executed over a 4 day period.

Some people object to these snake executions as being barbaric.

There is an official Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup website. But, for some reason, the webpage I made of my visit to the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup  usually Googles in the #1 spot.

Due to Googling in the #1 spot a lot of people come to the erroneous conclusion that I am somehow associated with the Roundup. I get asked all sorts of strange questions about rattlesnakes. Frequently from the U.K.

A couple hours ago I saw an incoming email with "Snake Resources" as the subject line. I figured this would be a Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup related question. Asking how much my rattles cost? Or do I sell rattlesnake meat? Or do I have hats made from rattlesnake skin? Or necklaces made from rattlesnake fangs?

Instead the "Snake Resources" email was of an entirely different sort.

Below is the message in the email...

We need to thin down the population of rattlesnakes at our ranch. Do you have any names of research companies or resources that would like hundreds of live rattlesnakes from Montana?  We have wranglers who can keep them alive for whoever wants them.  

Please contact me,
Linda / 406-581-8358

I've seen rattlesnakes in Eastern Washington, so I guess it shouldn't surprise me too much that there'd be rattlesnakes in Montana. In her email, Linda included 3 pictures of rattlesnakes on her ranch. That is one of them at the top.

Is there anyone out there who can help Linda with her rattlesnake problem?

Below is the YouTube video I made years ago of my one and only visit to the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup....

The Shadow Of The Tandy Hills Thin Man Takes A Hot Saturday Hike

It was well into the 70s when I hiked the Tandy Hills today. Very pleasant with a minimalist need for outerwear.

The burned log I found laying atop the Tandy Escarpment yesterday was gone today. All that remained was a blackened spot on the Escarpment and ash. Where did the log go?

Yet one more Tandy Hills Mystery to add to the Bamboo Teepee and randomly placed rusted vehicles.

I've got the windows open with absolute minimalist clothing and I am overheating.

I think it is time for the first turning on of the ceiling fan in 2011.

Okay, the fan is spinning. Let's see if it cools me off.

I heard from Mr. Galtex regarding me swiping a couple of his Seattle photos. I mentioned this in a blogging earlier today. He said someone ratted me out. I hate snitches.

Mr. Galtex told me it's raining. In Seattle. That is shocking news.

I need to go attend to some rattlesnakes now. The ceiling fan has done its job.

Mount Rainier Made A Rare March Appearance For The Viewing Pleasure Of The Fort Worth Galtex's

I think I've already mentioned that a pair of downtown Fort Worth residents, the Galtex's, are up in Seattle enjoying the rain.

Yesterday the Galtex's took an elevator ride in Seattle's tallest building, the Columbia Center, to the Sky View observation deck.

The clouds parted, giving the Galtex's a rare March look at The Mountain known as Rainier.

In downtown Fort Worth, no matter how high you are, you can see no mountains.

Mr. Galtex has a blog called Glimpses on which he documents the Galtex Travel Adventures. Currently Mr. Galtex is documenting their Seattle visit.

I like Mr. Galtex's blog profile description of himself, "I am retired and do pretty much what I damn well please." I have no idea why Mr. Galtex uses a pseudonym on his blog, calling himself Mike Wegner.

A couple paragraphs I liked from Mr. Galtex's "Gone Seattle-ing" blogging....

We spent our first afternoon as we always spend our first afternoon in a new place, walking around the neighborhood. My first impressions are all good: we are in the middle of downtown, and within three or four blocks we've found a Belgian waffle shop, a gelateria, several Thai restaurants, three supermarkets, twelvety-seven coffee shops, and more fresh seafood than I could eat in a lifetime. People actually live here.

The train from SeaTac airport to downtown costs only $2.50, and it took us to within a block of our hotel. Buses and trains converge in the downtown area in a large underground tunnel, making it very easy to transfer from one line to another. A public transportation system that is logically designed and efficiently run -- it's enough to make an old Texan like me weep with joy.

I have no idea what number twelvety-seven is. But it sounds like a lot.

You can find a link to Mr. Galtex's Seattle photos on his blogging about Seattle.

In the photo with the Space Needle in the background you are looking at the Alexander Calder sculpture, "The Eagle" in the Seattle Art Museum's Olympic Sculpture Park.

As you can also see, when the forecast is for clouds and rain in Seattle it does not mean for certain that is what is going to happen.

The Alexander Calder Eagle sculpture resided in downtown Fort Worth when I moved to Texas. It was displayed in front of the Fort Worth National Bank until 1999. I thought it was in front of the Bank One building, but Google tells me otherwise.

The Eagle was purchased by the Seattle Art Museum and spirited away in the middle of the night, to some local consternation, if  I remember right.

Please don't tell Mr. Galtex I swiped a couple of his photos from his Flickr account where it says the photos are copyrighted with all rights reserved.

Looking Out The Window At Yet One More Perfect Saturday In Texas Thinking About Mount Rainier

Looking out my favorite viewing portal on the world on this second Saturday of March of the year 2011 I can see it is yet one more blue sky morning in Texas.

It is 3 degrees above 50 out there, so I will be going swimming this morning.

I had disturbing nightmares last night. The only thing I can remember, besides the fact they were disturbing, is I found myself repetitively repeating "I'm sorry, I keep forgetting I am not in the secular world."

Changing subjects, not that there was much of a subject.

I learned from Mr. Galtex this morning, via a blog comment he sent last night, that, despite the day after day of forecasted dire weather with rain, he and Mrs. Galtex saw The Mountain yesterday whilst high above Seattle in the Columbia Center.

"The Mountain" is Washington-speak meaning Mount Rainier.

I have not seen The Mountain in well over 2 years. On my birthday of 2008 I saw The Mountain up close for the first time, documented in the video below...

Admiring Tandy Hills Art Installations While Spotting A Wildfire & Thinking About West Coast Tsunami Damage

I think of all the art installations in the Tandy Hills Natural Area the Rusted Hulk of twisted metal you see in the picture may be my favorite.

The Rusted Hulk seems a more permanent art installation than the recently arrived Tandy Bamboo Teepee. Which still stands.

Near the Rusted Hulk art installation I was appalled to see that someone had drug a log on top of the Tandy Escarpment, above the currently dry Tandy Falls.

And lit the log on fire.

I took a picture of the burned log, but my photo skills did not do it justice.

Why would someone do this? Particularly when Fort Worth and its environs are under a Red Flag Warning. Which means conditions are ripe for wildfires. As I drove away from the Tandy Hills today I heard on the radio that I-287, near Rhome, was shut down due to a wild fire.

From part way down Mount Tandy, looking north, I saw the plume of white smoke you see in the picture. I've no idea if this is the Rhome wildfire.

It does not look like the smoke from previous wildfires that I've seen in Texas. They've all been a big wall of smoke.

Change of subject.

I am being a bit surprised that the tsunami from the Japan Quake has actually done damage on the West Coast. The recent bad quake in Chile brought similar West Coast tsunami warnings. But no damage was done.

The Japan Quake Tsunami has swept 5 out to sea in California and Oregon, with 4 making it back to shore and one still missing, he being a photographer taking pictures near the mouth of the Klamath River in Del Norte County, California.

Crescent City, California has again suffered tsunami damage.

17 people died on the West Coast due to the 1964 Alaska Quake tsunami, with 11 of the dead in Crescent City. Damage estimates in Crescent City are already in the millions. Other coastal towns, like Santa Cruz also sustained damage.

I have never seen a tsunami. But I have been caught by a rogue wave. This was one of the strangest experiences I've ever had. It was in the Ocean Shores area of the Pacific Coast of Washington, at the rock jetty that juts out into Grays Harbor.

The Ocean Shores zone has very wide sandy beaches. It was a Sunday. I was with my little sister, walking on the beach with a lot of other people. Suddenly it was apparent an incoming wave was way bigger than the norm. We were nowhere near the water's edge.

People who were at the water's edge began running away from the ocean. As the water kept coming I picked up my little sister and started running. The water caught up with us. I got up on a big piece of driftwood. The surging water knocked us off and pushed me forward, clinging to my little sister.

Eventually the power of the wave subsided, with insufficient water to drag us back out with it as it receded. Everyone on the beach made it out safely. I will never forget the image of an older lady wearing a big fur coat, totally drenched. And laughing. Like she was counting her blessings that she'd survived something quite phenomenal.

I do not recollect ever seeing scenes like those I've seen coming out of Japan today. Some of the tsunami images look like the tidal waves of tsunami legend.

The Japan Quake has had me on edge all day. Then again, that feeling may have been caused by staying in the pool way too long this morning, thus activating another severe case of the shivers.

It is currently 76 in my zone of Texas. No earthquakes. No chance of a tsunami.

Sarah Wonders What Was On The Top Half Of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram If Not The News Of Japan's Quake

Above is the 3 in the afternoon screencap from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Earlier today I blogged about the differences in how 3 of the online newspapers I look at every morning shared the news of the Japan Earthquake Disaster. With the Fort Worth Star-Telegram not giving much of an indication that this is a big story.

Sarah R then commented with a question....

Sarah R has left a new comment on your post "Japan's 8.9 Earthquake & Tsunami In Seattle, Fort Worth & Dallas": 

"So what was the top half of the Star-Telegram? I'm just wondering what made the cut as "big" news this morning in FtW."

I went back to the Star-Telegram so I could tell Sarah what was at the top of that lame newspaper's front page.

This is what I told Sarah...

Sarah R---It is coming up on 3 in the afternoon. Checked the Star-Telegram again, figuring by now they'd have moved the Japan Quake and Tsunami to the top.

Nope.

Instead, big headline "Chuck Greenberg resigns as Texas Rangers CEO." Above and to the right of that, "NFL mock draft" with a little blurb. To the left of that a "Spring forward" note. An ad for JC Penney. Then several little headlines with links to a story. Top of those is "North Texans with ties to Japan keeping close watch" and "TCC to begin voluntary buyouts for longtime workers." Stuff like that.

Then if you scroll down to the bottom half of the front page, the original blurb about the quake has been altered, with the headline now "Strong quake strikes central Japan, felt in Tokyo." Adding a couple links, one of which is "1 missing, 4 rescued as tsunami hits West Coast."

Below is a screencap from the 2:41 pm version of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The blurb about the Japan Quake is still on the bottom half of the front page. It now does make mention that the tsunami has hit the west coast. One man was washed out into the Pacific in Oregon. Crescent City, California was badly damaged, again, with no deaths, unlike when it was hit by the tsunami generated by the 1964 Alaska Earthquake.

Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief's Trinity River Vision Referendum Could Backfire

There was an article in this morning's Seattle P-I that caused me to think of Fort Worth's Trinity River Vision.

In Seattle there is currently a several billion dollar project underway to fix a section of state highway, a section known as the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

This section of road is elevated along the Seattle waterfront. The viaduct has been damaged by previous earthquakes and could easily collapse in a serious earthquake.

So, the plan is to take the viaduct down and replace it with a tunnel.

It took years for the state of Washington and city of Seattle to come up with a plan with sufficient support to implement it. Since this is a state highway project it has not been put to a vote of the people.

The current mayor of Seattle, Mike McGinn, ran for mayor opposing the tunnel. In Fort Worth when the lack of a public vote on the Trinity River Vision is criticized, some have actually opined that the public has elected officials in favor of the TRV and not elected officials opposed to the TRV.

Which is the same as having voted or not voted for the TRV project

If the Fort Worth Way were the Seattle Way I guess this would mean the tunnel project would be stopped, since the people elected a mayor who opposes it.

The article in the Seattle P-I, this morning, was a good example of the stark difference between how things are done in Fort Worth and how they are done in Seattle.

Keep in mind, the Alaskan Viaduct tunnel replacement is a state highway project. Not the sort of thing the public usually votes on. While the Trinity River Vision is a public works project of the sort that usually never goes forward unless the public has approved of it.

I'll copy the article from this morning's P-I below and replace the key Seattle words with Fort Worth words and then ask yourself if you think you'd ever read an article like this in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram...

Trinity River Vision Referendum Could Torpedo Moncrief

A coalition of groups, supported by the mayor and his allies, is trying to collect 16,000 signatures by the end of the month to put a Trinity River Vision referendum before voters in August. Moncrief says if Fort Worth were to approve the TRV referendum, he’ll stop opposing the Trinity River Vision.

“I’m not playing politics on this,” Moncrief told the Star-Telegram on Thursday. “I’m not terribly interested in being a mayor who said, ‘I told you so.’”

But “I told you so” is Moncrief’s best potential future argument about the Trinity River Vision, which he has made the signature issue of his time in office. Moncrief is taking on the entire political establishment with his strident opposition to the uptown project. He’s crosswise with the City Council, the Tarrant County executive, the governor, the unions (in Fort Worth?) and the business community. Trinity River Vision proponents seethe that Moncrief is trying, at the last moment, to gum up a process that has been going on for 10 years.

The mayor says the whole point is the public should have a say on this project – ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ Moncrief wants the people to have a voice. How ironic that the people’s voice – feared so much by his adversaries – could end up depriving Moncrief of his own.