My Anonymous Oak Harbor Relative Has Me Thinking About Not Having A 2012 Family Reunion

Above are a few of my relatives, and me, at the Northwest Washington Fairgrounds in Lynden, Washington, a few miles south of the Canadian border, on July 27, 2002, attending the biggest family reunion in my relative American family history, celebrating 120 years of being in America, going back to the arrival in 1882, when my great-great grandpa, great-great-grandma, great grandpa, great grandma and great aunt landed in America after sailing in from Holland.

Me and my relatives are a very difficult to please type of people, so, upon landing in America, my ancestors kept heading west til they finally ran out of places to run to, which, luckily, turned out to be at the same time they found a place much to their liking, that reminded them of Holland, that being Whatcom County, in Washington.

That 2002 Family Reunion was a bit of a boondoggle fiasco which I sort of felt bad about for awhile, though the boondoggle fiasco parts were none of my doing.

I'd not remembered I'd blogged about this particular relative family boondoggle fiasco previously, in detail, til I got a blog comment this morning to a previous blogging, from one of my Anonymous relatives living in Oak Harbor, Washington.

The comment....

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "My Anonymous Oak Harbor Relative Bringing Back The Pain of July 27, 2002": 

Durango.... Are you going to reconstruct a 10 year reunion of the family reunion? Signed Anonymous in Oak Harbor. 

No, Anonymous in Oak Harbor, I am not going to reconstruct a 10 year reunion of the family reunion boondoggle fiasco.

Almost a decade after I flew up for that "event" I am unable to even remotely put myself in the frame of mind that caused me to help bring that about, let alone build the most complicated, biggest family history website on the Internet. I can only attribute this temporary insanity to Post 9/11 Trauma Syndrome.

Walking The Gateway Park Mountain Bike Trail Finding Tasty California Peaches

For my mid-day doctor prescribed daily constitutional today I went to Gateway Park to walk, not bike, the Gateway Park Mountain Bike Trail.

When you walk a trail that you've previously biked, it looks way different on two feet than two wheels, because when you are on two wheels you have to pay very close attention to the trail, lest you end up having a painful accident.

So, I was a bit surprised, whilst walking the trail, to see how close the trail is, at times, to the paved trail. I had no idea, except for locations where the MTB trail crosses the paved trail, that there were so many escape routes from the Gateway Park Mountain Bike Trail Roller Coaster.

Another thing I had not noticed, whilst quickly zipping by on two wheels, is the sign at the start of the trail which has a map which shows the convoluted twisting and turning, roller coaster maze nature of this trail.

Click on the picture to make it big. The Mountain Bike Trail is the black squiggly line on the map.

The trail begins on the far left, you'll see two lines, the upper black line is the start of the trail, the lower black line is the end. Follow the upper black line til you make it back to the lower black line and you'll get a clear idea of why this trail has twice left me disoriented, not knowing which direction I was going, and exhausted from the miles of ups and downs, twists and turns and dodging of obstacles, like cliff drops, root ruts and stumps.

Walking this trail, through the jungle canopy, at around 90 degrees, was very pleasant. Totally shaded, for the most part.

I only saw one reptile today, and that was not in Gateway Park, it was on my front door when I opened it to leave. A cute little lizard.

Since Gateway Park is almost next door to Town Talk I went to Town Talk where I got a case of peaches for only $4. California freestone peaches. 84 peaches when I got them home and counted. What am I going to do with 84 peaches?

Well, more accurately, what am I going to do with 80 peaches? 4 disappeared during the lunch process.

Very good peaches. Blindfolded I would have bet they came from Eastern Washington, because they actually taste like a peach, unlike other tasteless peaches I've had the misfortune to have misrepresented to me as peaches in the past.

I didn't go to the Parker County Peach Festival this past Saturday. I read no glowing reports about the tastiness of the Parker County peaches this year.

Anyone want some peaches? I deliver within a 4 block radius.

X-Case Manager Claims Loss Suffered As By Product Of Paradise Center Scandal Blog's Exposure

When I don't hear from the Good People at Paradise Center I know all is going well in their world.

When I was first made aware of the wrongdoing that led to the Paradise Center Scandal it took me a few days to grasp an understanding of the wrong that had been done.

My first blogging about the Paradise Center Scandal was on February 23, 2011, in a blogging titled The Paradise Center Scandal Has Me Mad As Hell At Fort Worth.

That blogging caused a comment frenzy, with the Paradise Center Scandal suddenly seeming, to me, much worse, and more sinister than I had realized.

So, on March 12, 2011, I started the Paradise Center Scandal blog, with the first  blogging also titled The Paradise Center Scandal Has Me Mad As Hell At Fort Worth.

Soon, via comments made to the various postings on the Paradise Center Scandal blog, it became obvious that the corruption in MHMRTC (Mental Health Mental Retardation Tarrant County) was much worse than initially realized.

It was not long before the Paradise Center people began to bounce back. Soon they were in a new location and back in operation. They have since moved to another new location and opened the successful Camp Bowie Bingo operation.

Late last night I got a blog comment that sort of updates me as to the current status of the Paradise Center Scandal....

X-case manager has left a new comment on your post "When Are The Bloggerman & Catwoman Going To Camp Bingo?": 

Amen, anonymous. We dare you to go to this Camp Bowie Bingo with Catspaw dressed as our favorite superhero Batman.

BTW, you have no idea how much loss mhmrtc and their friends suffered as the byproduct of your blog's exposure. Melissa Gibbons is no longer making money off of the mentally ill. Nor is BRAVO Health after that scandal that Jim "Dr." McDermott orchestrated. The ruthless mental health consumers mhmrtc and mcdermott used as puppets are gone, most notably Tony "smile"/"the manager"/pool table expert and loopy Lynne who thought they could do what Theresa and Paradise Center (as if!). Of course, the people living with serious mental illness and our community suffered the greatest loss. Not McDermott and his bureaucratic pals given the public trust...and public money. 

Well, X-Case Manager, I really don't think I am going to be able to convince CatsPaw to go with me to Camp Bowie Bingo with CatsPaw dressed as Batman. CatsPaw is a very logical cat, I don't think I could convince her of the logic of CatsPaw becoming Batman. That and the Batmobile is in the shop for extensive repairs.

West Nile Virus Has Reached Epidemic Level In North Texas

I was aware that for several years now the West Nile Virus has been being delivered by the Culex species of mosquitoes to humans all over America.

I had no idea til this morning that the number of incidents of West Nile Virus cases in North Texas has now reached an epidemic level.

Dallas recorded the first West Nile Virus death of the year, in America, within the past week.

West Nile Virus comes in varying levels of seriousness, with the most serious being the neuro-invasive virus version, which attacks the body's nervous system.

When I was reading about this mosquito caused epidemic I thought to myself that I do not recollect having a single mosquito bite all my years in Texas.

So,  what do I see on my face upon my return from the pool this morning? Well, it looks like a mosquito bite.

I do not remember a spring, summer or fall, in Washington, where I did not get mosquito bites.

I remember my first year in Texas, being in a Home Depot, in March, appalled at an invasion of what we called waterbugs. These round bugs that were attracted to light and sort of killed themselves ramming into the light, leaving a pile of waterbug corpses on the ground.

The lady at Home Depot told me the bug situation gets much worse as we get closer to summer.

I was mortified. Thinking the Texas bug invasion was going to be much worse than the annual insect invasion in Washington.

Well, I was relieved that, except for a plague of locusts, the insects in Texas are not as annoying as those in Washington. Except for cockroaches. I never saw a cockroach til I moved to Texas. But, I find cockroaches to be the most entertaining insect I have ever met. And they don't bite.

In Washington, in the Puget Sound lowlands, you would get plagued by annoying horse flies, in addition to mosquitoes and other flying biters.

Til the first freeze of the coming winter you can not go hiking in the Cascade High Country without covering yourself with bug spray, lest you find yourself covered with biting deer flies, whose bite hurts real bad.

I just checked the insect bite I got on my face in the pool this morning. It seems to have faded. I don't think it was a mosquito bite from a West Nile Virus Culex species of mosquito.

The majority of people who get bit by a West Nile Virus carrying mosquito develop no symptoms. People over 50, with weak immune systems, and people like Gar the Texan, who are prone to attacks of the vapors, are at risk of developing the disease.

Biking With The Indian Ghosts Who Haunt Village Creek While Thinking About Chief Joesph

Today I am sort of copying my favorite Fort Worth blog, Hometown by Handlebar.

So, in the picture, those are my bike's handlebars, no where near my hometown, which is a couple thousand miles distant.

My handlebars are on the deck that overlooks the Blue Bayou in the Village Creek Natural Historical Area.

Riding a bike for my mid-day constitutional is a lot less HOT than walking or hiking

Currently the outer world, according to my computer based temperature monitoring device, is being heated to 93 degrees, with the 45% humidity making the temperature really feel like 100.

Being in a HOT place makes me think about being in a cooler place. The Pacific Northwest is a much cooler place than the HOT place I am in right now.

I read on Facebook, this morning, that the Pacific Northwesterner known as Debbi Downer, is taking a long road trip from Pasco, in Eastern Washington, to Lake Wallowa, in Oregon. I think the distance from Pasco to Lake Wallowa is something like 70 miles. Debbi Downer characterized this as a long roadtrip vacation.

Lake Wallowa is at the heart of the land stolen from the Nez Perce Indians, an act of theft which led to one of the most epic battles of the Indian Wars, with multiple skirmishes, over a distance over 1,000 miles, as Chief Joesph attempted to lead his tribe to safety in Canada.

Chief Joesph and the Nez Perce were never allowed to return to the valley that was their home.

In the modern era area of Wallowa Lake there are many historical monuments making note of the history that took place in this location.

Chief Joesph died on September 21, 1904. According to his doctor, Chief Joesph died of a broken heart.

After he surrendered Chief Joesph made many attempts to right the wrong that had been done to his people. Chief Joesph traveled to Washington, D.C. three times, pleading his case to three presidents, Rutherford B. Hayes in 1879, William McKinley in 1897 and Theodore Roosevelt in 1903.

Chief Joesph spoke out repeatedly, in poetic language, about the injustice of American policy towards native people.

Chief Joesph was widely admired, even by his old adversaries, like General William Tecumseh Sherman.

Chief Joesph's most famous words were the speech he gave at the time of his surrender. They may be the most famous words ever uttered by a Native American...

"I am tired of fighting. Our chiefs are killed. Looking Glass is dead. Toohulhulsote is dead. The old men are all dead. It is the young men who say yes or no. He who led the young men is dead. It is cold and we have no blankets. The little children are freezing to death. My people, some of them, have run away to the hills and have no blankets, no food. No one knows where they are, perhaps freezing to death. I want to have time to look for my children and see how many I can find. Maybe I shall find them among the dead. Hear me, my chiefs. I am tired. My heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more, forever."

When Are The Bloggerman & Catwoman Going To Camp Bowie Bingo?

Almost every week since Camp Bowie Bingo opened for business I have had the good intention to make a visit.

A couple weeks ago the Camp Bowie Bingo Mistress, Miss Teresa, informed me I could visit Camp Bowie Bingo to check it out and take pictures without needing to play Bingo.

I have also had the good intention to visit the new location of the Paradise Center, but have not made it there.

This morning I saw a comment on the Paradise Center Scandal blog from X-Cowtowner chastising me and the Catwoman for not playing bingo.

This is what X-Cowtowner had to say.......

Say, Bloggerman. When are you and the Catwoman gonna go play bingo at that new Camp Bowie Bingo so you can take pictures and tell used readers living far away your impression of the venue?? You've always been really good about reporting what you had experienced. You've done plenty of reporting on the excesses, incompetencies, and corruption that are part and parcel to living in your area of Texas {and my place of birth}. How about a positive and uplifting report about these courageous Americans? 

I am fairly certain that the Catwoman X-Cowtowner refers to is CatsPaw.

I did make an attempt to go to Camp Bowie Bingo on its pre-Grand Opening practice night. But, I drove up and down Camp Bowie Boulevard unable to locate Camp Bowie Bingo. I understand there are now signs marking the location so easily confused people, such as myself, can find the place.

Camp Bowie Bingo has a website where you can find out when and where to go play bingo. Camp Bowie Bingo is also on Facebook, where you can find up to date Camp Bowie Bingo info.

Hiking The Warm Tandy Hills Thinking About Living In A Police State While Almost Stepping On A Giant Snake

The outer world was almost chilly when I did some hill hiking on the Tandy Hills today, starting my climbs around noon.

Even though the humidity was almost 90%, a pleasant breeze kept me from overheating, too much.

Much of what used to be green on the Tandy Hills is currently turning into various shades of brown. I particularly like the tall sticks of brown foliage you see in the picture. I don't remember what these looked like while they were still colorized.

Have I ever mentioned my two biggest concerns that concerned me when I moved to Texas?

Snakes and the HEAT.

Growing up in Washington I was never a big fan of summer. I did not like HOT weather. In Washington that meant  temperatures in the 70s. Low 80s was a heat wave.

Even though I did not like HOT weather in Western Washington, I did like to go to Eastern Washington (East of the Mountains, in Western Washington lingo) in summer.

Eastern Washington is sort of like North Texas, only more scenic with bigger rivers, fruit orchards and canyons. And it does not get as hot as North Texas.

I don't recollect ever being East of the Mountains with the temperature over 100. I do remember being East of the Mountains and having snake encounters.

That may be where my fear of snakes was amplified. One time whilst staying at Sun Lakes State Park my brother and I were out exploring when a park ranger came up and warned us we should go no further because there were a lot of rattlesnakes just ahead. I don't think til that moment we were aware of rattlesnakes being a possibility.

That is not a Sun Lakes State Park rattlesnake you are looking at in the picture.

That is a Tandy Hills snake that I almost stepped on today.

I'd just crossed dry Tandy Falls, heading south, lost in my thoughts about living in a Police State, when I almost stepped on that slithery monster. He (or she) was about 5 feet long. I took several pictures, was going to get around the monster by walking behind it, when suddenly the snake turned its head and started slithering towards its tail and then off the trail into the brush.

Snakes can move alarmingly fast.

I have no idea what brand of snake this guy was, except for knowing, for certain, it was not a rattlesnake.

With this incident I will likely be back in overreacting to sticks and roots mode again, til the memory of almost stepping on this big snake fades.

A Big Drop In Temperature Should Bring About Some Tandy Hill Hiking

As you can see via the graphic generated via my computer based temperature & weather monitoring device it is a bit chilly this Monday morning coming up on 11 o'clock.

There appear to be a collection of clouds providing some direct sun relief.

And there is some wind movement.

I suspect some hill hiking on the Tandy Hills is in the near future for me.

Speaking of hill hiking. Rosie the Rat Dog has updated her Alaska! blog for the first time in days. Rosie and her sisters have been staying in a Dog Spa whilst their humans have been hill hiking inside Denali National Park. Apparently Rosie's humans did a big no-no in camp and got a severe reprimand from a Park Ranger.

Speaking of reprimands, something unfortunate happened to me yesterday in Arlington. I am sorting out the facts before I go through the pain of blogging about it.

I did an hour in the cool pool this morning, staying on the OMG Diet that I did not know I was on til a couple days ago.

Walking The Boardwalk In Arlington's Veterans Park Worrying About Getting Too Skinny

I took a walk on the boardwalk at Veterans Park this morning on my way to Arlington's International District.

The maze of trails that is part of Veterans Park's Xeriscape Garden is heavily shaded and thus quite a bit cooler than being out from under shade, where the sun has direct contact, with no intervention.

The Xeriscape Garden shows locals how to landscape with plants that grow well in the Texas heat whilst requiring less water than plants that aren't as well suited for this harsh climate.

Speaking of this harsh climate, currently it is only 91 degrees, with the humidity making it feel like it is 101.

I found out a couple days ago that without knowing it I have been on the Six Weeks to OMG Get Skinnier Than All Your Friends Diet.

I wondered why I was getting so skinny with seemingly no concerted effort towards that end. Now that I know that the morning swimming, among other things, was making me skinny, I increased the amount of time I've been pooling in the morning.

I hope I don't get too skinny.

A Pleasant Saturday Tandy Hills Hike With My Arizona Sister Til My Mom Interrupted

It looks like the trail I am on on the Tandy Hills leads directly to the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth.

Looks are deceiving in this instance.

Even though it appears that wild prairie continues all the way to downtown Fort Worth, that really is not the case, for the most part.

Is there any other town in America, with a population over a half million, with such large chunks of undeveloped land so near its downtown?

My sister, who is usually in Arizona, rode with me to the Tandy Hills today and then went hill hiking with me til my mom interrupted. At that point my sister left me to enjoy the steam bath alone.

My sister is currently planning to leave Arizona on August 14 to go see our nephews, David and Theo and niece, Ruby Jean. However, my sister may move her flying date forward for two reasons. One is to escape the furnace blast HEAT of the Valley of the Sun. And the second one is that the twins, Theo and Ruby, are looking so darn cute she can't wait to see them.

I am sort of looking forward to seeing David, Theo and Ruby. It's been many years since I have gotten to use my highly evolved uncle skills on new nephews. And I have never ever gotten to use my highly evolved uncle skills on a niece.

And I can't remember the last time I provided piggy back service.