Thinking About Swimming In Fort Worth's Fosdic Lake With Fosdic Orchids & Turtles

With the temperature slightly shy of 100, today around noon, I decided to take my daily constitutional by walking around Fosdic Lake in Oakland Lake Park.

I think walking around a body of water greatly mitigates the HEAT level. With the Real Feel Water Index making the temperature feel pleasantly in the mid 80s around Fosdic Lake

Fosdic Lake was surprisingly clear today. I thought it'd be a murky shade of green, due to the day after day HEAT.

The Fosdic water was so clear I could see submerged turtles.

Looking at Fosdic Lake again had me wondering why this small lake could not be turned into a recreational lake. With swimming.

Other parts of America have cleaned up bigger polluted lake than little Fosdic Lake.

I would guess it would be cheaper to turn Fosdic Lake into a swimming lake than it would be to do whatever needs to be done to re-open Fort Worth's currently closed public swimming pools.

Currently, it seems to me to be a crime against kids that Fort Worth has no public swimming pools.

On a more flowery note. A wildflower was blooming in Oakland Lake Park today. A very delicate purple wildflower.

I am dubbing this wildflower a Fosdic Orchid.

Chesapeake Energy Wants To Poke Another Hole In My Neighborhood

For several weeks I've been wondering what was going on on the old, long abandoned Super Wal-Mart parking lot I drive by almost every day.

It looked like a construction site was being prepared.

I was hoping for a Sprouts Farmers Market or an ALDI.

Yesterday I drove by the "construction" site and learned what is actually going on.

Chesapeake Energy wants to poke a hole in the ground in this location, making a lot of noise and generating a lot of dust. As you can see, in the background of the picture of the Chesapeake public hearing notification sign, this proposed drilling site is adjacent to an apartment complex.

Walking behind the Chesapeake Energy sign you can see that the proposed drilling location is across the street from some retail businesses. Like Albertsons and the Chinese Super Bowl Buffet.

Chesapeake Energy has not begun the drilling process and yet it is already trashing up the neighborhood. The chain link fence around the proposed drilling site juts out onto the sidewalk, creating walking hazards.

The chain link fence acts as a net, catching litter, stopping it from blowing into oblivion. Or the Trinity River.

I was told by the person who runs the affected apartment complex that one of its residents is collecting signatures on a petition asking that the permit be denied. I told the person who runs the affected apartment complex that I did not think anything could stop Chesapeake Energy from poking a hole anywhere it wanted to poke in Fort Worth.

Because that is just not the Fort Worth Way.

Happy Birthday To The Goober Twins From Another HOT Sunday In Texas

As you can see, looking out my primary viewing portal on the outdoor world, I am up early this next to last Sunday of July.

July 24 is the Goober Twin's birthday. Big Ed and Wally are at least 39 years old today. Maybe older.

Yesterday I saw disturbing evidence that something unwanted is moving into my neighborhood. Later this morning I will go get some photographic evidence of the incoming intruder.

This morning we are already heated to 83.7, heading to a scheduled high of 103. I do not know how many days in a row over 100 we've been burned with, currently, here in North Texas. Or how close we are to breaking the record for number of 100 degree days in a row.

The sun has now completed its daily morning illumination task. Which means it is now time to go swimming.

Getting HOT On The Windy Tandy Hills While Elsie Hotpepper Floats In Las Vegas

When I exited my vehicle on top of Mount Tandy today around noon I was pleased to be hit with a nice strong gust of cooling wind.

However, the wind was being real fickle. By the time I got to the location in the picture, that being Lost Sunglasses Ridge, I was not having myself my usual HOT time.

I cut the hiking slightly short and made a quick trip to the Town Talk cooler.

There was no new flooding in the Tandy Hills today.

I think I may be overdoing the swimming in the morning. It is easy to do.

Speaking of swimming. I'd not heard from Elsie Hotpepper for a couple days. And then my phone rang whilst I was in line at Town Talk. It was Elsie. She claimed to be calling from Las Vegas, from Mandalay Bay. Specifically from the Mandalay Bay's adult pool's lazy river.

I have been to Mandalay Bay. I do not remember a lazy river in the adult pool section. I do remember seeing the most toplessness to hit my eyes since I'd been at Vancouver's infamous Wreck Nude Beach, years before.

I told Elsie Hotpepper I'd need photo proof of her floating in the Mandalay Bay lazy river. So far that proof has not arrived.

Saturday Morning In Texas With The Weather Underground

I am up early the next to last Saturday of July, looking through the bars of my patio prison cell at the calm waters below me.

Currently the air out there is chilled to 81.4 degrees, heading to a scheduled high of 101.

Thanks to CatsPaw pointing me to something called The Weather Underground, I once again am temperature empowered.

I don't know if I am going to be braving the flooding waters of the Tandy Hills again today.

What I do know is the sun has arrived, doing its daily illumination duty, so I am going swimming now that I can see my way to the pool.

The Lawn Whisperer Says Don't Waste Water Flooding The Tandy Hills With Guerrilla Art

When I hit the Tandy Hills today, around noon, the temperature was 92.7. With a semi-strong wind blowing. Which had a nice semi-cooling effect.

Today I took the north junction option on the trail down Mount Tandy. This route takes me over Tandy Falls.

I was quite surprised today, in the midst of the Great North Texas Drought, to see more water roaring over Tandy Falls than I've ever seen before.

By the time I made it to where the Tandy Highway crosses the Tandy River the flood had somewhat subsided. I could see, by where the high water mark had been, that I would likely not have been able to make the crossing at that point in time when the flood was at its most perilous.

There have been full page ads in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram from the Lawn Whisperer, of late, advising locals not to over water their lawns. That same so-called "newspaper," this morning, had an article about the epidemic of broken water mains wasting water all over Fort Worth, at a leaking level greater than other Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex city's leak levels.

The Star-Telegram article indicated that the culprit behind the broken water pipe epidemic is the day after day HEAT wreaking havoc with the ground. No mention was made of the possibility that the epidemic of seismic testing might be a contributor to the broken pipe epidemic by also wreaking havoc with the ground.

Speaking of seismic testing. The seismic testing cables and equipment have now been removed from Mount Tandy. In their place a new piece of Tandy Hills Guerrilla Art has been installed.

I think I will call this work of Guerrilla Art "Tandy Tower."

If you look closely at the picture of "Tandy Tower" you can see part of the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth, peaking out above "Tandy Tower."

I wonder how many gallons of water were wasted today falling over Tandy Falls? It was a very high volume of water.

I wonder what the Lawn Whisperer would say about such waste? 

I wonder if all the water wasted on all the lawns in Fort Worth, during the entire lawn watering season, add up to what was lost over Tandy Falls today?

Very perplexing.

Fort Worth Man Litters 64,000 Pounds Of Toilet Paper In Idaho River

The past week Fort Worth has been being mentioned in the Pacific Northwest's TV News and Newspapers.

Due to a toilet paper accident.

A 24 year old man from Fort Worth, named Mahmoud Salameh, was hauling a load of toilet paper in Idaho, on U.S. Highway 12, along the Lochsa River, near the Montana border, slightly south of the Idaho panhandle, when he lost control on a tight turn.

The semi-trailer crashed through a guardrail and flipped over, spilling its load of 64,000 pounds of mega-rolls of toilet paper into the river.

An Idaho company, named Miles Towing, has been tasked with removing the giant toilet paper rolls from the river.

The Fort Worth driver survived the accident and was taken to Missoula's Community Medical Center. Salameh got a ticket for inattentive driving and for not purchasing a permit to haul a 53-foot trailer.

I do not know if this incident is the worst case ever of a Texan littering a non-Texas river.

Up Early Not Knowing The Temperature Thinking About Leaking Pipes & Murdering A Trinity River Alligator

As you can see via the headless shadow of the skinny dipping skinny man the skinny man is up way before the sun on this 22nd day of July.

The skinny dipping skinny man has no clue what the temperature is. All he knows is it felt very pleasant when he stepped outside.

Reading the Fort Worth Star-Telegram this morning I learned that water pipes are breaking all over Fort Worth, at a pace out pacing other North Texas towns.

The Star-Telegram article said the HEAT is the cause of the water pipe breaks. Others, elsewhere, have claimed that some of the water pipe breaking is due to Barnett Shale seismic testing shaking the ground and people's nerves. No mention was made in the Star-Telegram article about seismic testing being a possible reason why Fort Worth is leaking way more than other Texas towns.

A Dallas lawyer, who used to be a Baptist minister, before he got the call of the law, had an arrest warrant issued for him on Wednesday due to the former preacher's murder of a couple of really big alligators that he found and killed on the Trinity River in Leon County about 145 miles southeast of Fort Worth.

The lawyer's name is Levi McCathern II. The arrest warrants were for the lawyer and his 3 guides. The lawyer's lawyer says McCathern will fight the charge, claiming McCathern performed a public service.

Was McCathern trying to do what little he could to make the Trinity River safe from gators for those Rockin' the River Trinity River Vision Boondoggle Happy Hour Inner Tube Floaters who bravely get in the Trinity River a couple times a month? On Thursdays.

I am going to go swimming now and try not to think about 13 foot long alligators in the pool.

Cut Off From The Temperature I Ponder All That Is Unnatural In My Favorite Natural Area

Most days I seem to find myself being fairly productive in various ways. Then there are other days, days that don't happen all that often, when I do not seem to be very productive.

This has been one of those very unproductive days. So far.

I had a long list of things I was going to do today. I've only done two things on the list.

And then this afternoon tragedy struck. I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but my number one interest is the temperature. I monitor the temperature more religiously than I monitor anything else.

Around 2 this afternoon my Flock browser informed me there was an update to the Forecastfox Weather Plug-in. I figured this must be some sort of necessary improvement, so I clicked to do the update.

About 5 seconds later the Forecastfox Weather Plug-in was generating a connection error message. I tried all sorts of things to fix it. Uninstall, re-install, delete the temporary Internet files.

Then I Googled "Forecastfox Weather connection error" to learn I was not the only person vexed by this problem.

Around 4 I needed to get some outdoor action. I had to check the temperature via a more primitive means than I have grown used to, to learn it was 100 degrees.

I decided to to go Village Creek Natural Historic Area. I was pleasantly surprised at how much more pleasant 100 degrees is in the late afternoon with long shady shadows and a good breeze blowing.

A few things have always perplexed me about the Village Creek Natural Area. It's the natural part. Like the picture above. That is a part of the natural area where the paved trail crosses under power lines, with a broad swatch cleared through the natural trees for the power lines. The broad swatch creates a sort of tree canyon effect. That really is not very natural.

And then there is all that pavement. Not very natural.

And the viewing platform that looks out over the dried up Village Creek Bayou. The deck is made from planks made out of recycled plastic bags.

Anyway, I miss looking at the lower right hand corner of my browser and seeing the temperature. I think I'm experiencing some sort of temperature information withdrawal.

Up Early On The 21st Day Of July Thinking About Swimming & Getting A Lethal Injection

The 21st morning of July is dawning with yet one more clear blue sky morning in North Texas.

The aquamarine colored pool is looking particularly inviting this morning. The only thing not all that inviting about the pool is it is starting to be not all that refreshing to take a dip in it, due to the fact that the temperature of the water is warmer than the morning air, which this morning is chilled to 82 degrees.

We are currently scheduled to reach a high of 101 today, with the Real Feel Heat Index feeling like 105.

I do not know if I will make it to any HOT hill hiking today. I have a doctor's appointment in Hurst at 10 this morning.

Speaking of getting an injection. We had an execution last night down in Huntsville. A guy named Mark Stroman was put permanently to sleep. This particular idiot went on a Dallas convenience store killing spree in retaliation for the 9/11 terrorist attacks, killing 2 and injuring 1. He thought he was targeting people of Middle Eastern descent, however the victims were all from South Asia.

The final Space Shuttle touched down yesterday. Atlantis made the final landing. It seems like only yesterday I watched the first Space Shuttle launch. And now it is 30 years later.

Time flies at a speed that is sort of depressing if you think about it.

I think I will go swimming now and try not to think about time flying.