People Get Run Over & Die Because Of The Lack Of Sidewalks In Fort Worth

Continuing on with my popular series of bloggings devoted to Fort Worth's sad sidewalk situation.

Yesterday my most recent blogging about Fort Worth's sad sidewalk situation got an interesting comment from Dannyboy...

Dannyboy has left a new comment on your post "A Sidewalk Free Fort Worth Walk With Poor People":

The FW Weekly raised the sidewalk issue in 2007, pointing out that people get run over and die because of the lack of sidewalks in FW.

Dannyboy's comment included a link to the article Here, the Sidewalks End, in FW Weekly about the sidewalk issue.

The Here, the Sidewalks End article was written by Dan McGraw.

Dannyboy?

I have seen dangerous walking situations on Fort Worth streets, but til I read this article in FW Weekly I did not realize that people have been killed in Fort Worth due to the sidewalk shortage.

Reading the article I was a bit appalled to learn that Fort Worth city officials, including then mayor Mike Moncrief, have long known Fort Worth has a sidewalk shortage.

Six years ago this was a known problem.

And yet, schools are still being built in Fort Worth with no sidewalks for kids to walk to school on, like the new John T. White Elementary on John T. White Road in my neighborhood.

But, kids can walk well worn dirt paths to get to John T. White Elementary.

How quaint.

Dam Hopping With An Armadillo Wondering About The Sarcastic Jones Curse

In the picture you are looking west across one of the dams that help make the canals that make up Interlochen.

Interlochen is an Arlington neighborhood that one eventually walks to when one walks with the Indian Ghosts who haunt the Village Creek Natural Historical Area.

Today the amount of water spilling over the dam was low enough that I was able to walk across it to Interlochen.

I saw only one armadillo today, doing something I did not know an armadillo could do. As in run fast in a sort of hopping motion.

Armadillos are so cute, today I was wondering if anyone has ever managed to turn an armadillo into a house pet. I suspect not.

Changing the subject from cute armadillos to my cute nephew, Spencer Jack.

This morning I got an email from Spencer Jack's dad which asked an interesting question.....

Thought you'd get a laugh to know that Spencer's kindergarten teacher told him that he is very "sarcastic." 

Is this a Jones curse?

I really don't think being sarcastic is any sort of curse.

Why would a teacher think it is okay to tell a 5 year old that he is "very sarcastic"? That seems wrong to me.

I was traumatized when I was a 7th grader when a teacher told me I was "obnoxiously precocious".

At that point in time I knew what "obnoxious" meant, but had no idea what "precocious" meant. So I found a dictionary and did not really understand the definition. My extremely delicate feelers were terribly hurt, with me assuming that being obnoxiously precocious was a really bad thing.

It was years until I realized that being an obnoxiously precocious 7th grader was a good thing to be.

I hope Spencer's dad is able to get Spencer to understand that being sarcastic is an admirable trait. And that his teacher was complimenting him....

Why Do We Not Know How Much The Trinity River Vision Boondoggles Have Already Cost Us?

No, that is not an artist's rendering of what Pond Granger may look like in Fort Worth if the Trinity River Vision ever clears up and becomes anything anyone can see.

The body of water you are looking at in the picture is Lake Washington, in Washington. A natural lake that is not the result of a public works boondoggle run amok.

That is the 520 Floating Bridge you see crossing the lake. And in the foreground is one of the pontoons for the new 520 Floating Bridge, a $4.1 billion project that is currently the most expensive public works project in Washington.

Unlike Fort Worth's Trinity River Vision, which seems to have no timeline projection for a completed project, the new 520 Floating Bridge is scheduled to be floating vehicles in just a couple years.

Also, unlike Fort Worth's Trinity River Vision, the 520 Floating Bridge Project is subject to public scrutiny.

For example, the scrutiny provided by Seattle's KOMO TV News. Below is part of an article from KOMO News online titled 520 Bridge mistakes have already cost taxpayers $100M, that I ask that you peruse and ask yourself if you can imagine ever reading such an article in the corrupt Fort Worth Star-Telegram?

FW Weekly? Maybe.

But the Star-Telegram? Not a chance.

SEATTLE -- Washington's Department of Transportation may be admitting its mistakes with the 520 Bridge but it's you, the taxpayers, who will wind up paying for those mistakes.

The KOMO 4 Problem Solvers sued the state, and won, to get information about how much those mistakes will cost us. After digging into the public records, we've discovered the total is already well over $100 million.

"Clearly, this is beginning to spiral out of control," said Washington Policy Center's Vice President Paul Guppy, an organization that advocates for taxpayers on issues of public policy.

The numbers also surprise Eva Zemplenyi with the "No Tolls on I-90' group," 

"We feel that we have not been given the straight story," she said.

The new 520 bridge -- at a total anticipated cost of $4.1 billion dollars was already the most expensive public works project in the state. WSDOT gleefully pointed to cost-savings as contract bids came in low and federal grants saved other money. But most of those savings will never make it to taxpayers -- and you can blame it on the problems we first uncovered with the pontoons.

For months, a Problem Solver investigation has spotlighted problems with cracks and leaks in the massive floating concrete structures that will hold up the new bridge. But WSDOT refused to tell us how much repairing those pontoons will cost. Yesterday, out-going Secretary Paula Hammond reiterated the Agency's position, "we cannot and will not negotiate the financial settlement with the contractor in the media."

KOMO 4 News sued WSDOT for those documents and finally received them: Weekly Reports for all three current contracts involved in 520 construction. Two of them involve those troubled pontoons and are with prime contractor Kiewit.

As of last November: Projections for extra costs to build the pontoons in Aberdeen and to repair the pontoons out on Lake Washington hit a stunning $86.4 million dollars. 

When we added the projected extra costs for the 3rd contract with Eastside Corridor Construction which is connecting 520 to the eastside, as well as the extra costs the state's already agreed to pay it adds up to a shocking $153.8 million dollars. 

______________________________

So, really, why have we here in Fort Worth not read any investigative journalism in the Star-Telegram asking critical questions about the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle?

I know I'd like to know how much is being spent on the liquor supply in J.D. Granger's office.

How much has been spent on junkets?

How much did the bizarre Cowtown Wakepark cost the Trinity River Vision?

How much was spent on the Woodshed Smokehouse?

How much money has been spent on signage?

What is going on with the world's first drive-in theater in decades? Is that drive-in theater part of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle?

When is the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's re-make of Gateway Park going to take place?

When is the un-needed flood diversion channel scheduled to be completed?

How much money has been spent, so far, on the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle?

If the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle is such a vitally important flood control and economic development project why is the project progressing at such a snail's pace?

How are the victims of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's eminent domain abuse doing?

And why has the Fort Worth Star-Telegram not devoted any ink to investigating how it was that the unqualified J.D Granger, son of Fort Worth Congresswoman, Kay Granger, was given the job of being in charge of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle?

Taking A Break On A Tandy Hills Amphitheater Bench Before Hunting For A Trout Lily

Another weather perfect hiking day on the Tandy Hills on this last day of the 2nd month of 2013.

Today when I got to the newly installed benches that overlook the new cleared Tandy Hills Amphitheater I had myself a pleasant sit down for a bit.

I do not know if the Trout Lily Walkers will sit down on these new benches at some point during their walking this coming first Sunday of the 3rd month of 2013.

I got email yesterday about Sunday's Trout Lily Walk....

Tandy Hills Natural Area, aka., The Land that Time Forgot, is home to many rare and uncommon plant species. One of the most eagerly anticipated of them is the diminutive yet striking, Trout Lily (Erythronium albidum). Being one of the first wildflowers to bloom each year it is sometimes called, the harbinger of Spring.

Don Young Trout Lily Photo

The Vernal Equinox is March 20, but the harbinger of Spring has arrived at Tandy Hills. Their golden-throated white trumpets hang from curvy stems nestled inside mottled leaves that resemble speckled trout. They are scattered across the Tandy hills and hollers hiding in secret places.

It helps to have a field guide. We are lucky to have the best of the breed in, Jim Varnum, who will lead a Trout Lily Walk this Sunday, March 3, at Tandy Hills. The tour starts at 1 pm. Jim will regale you with amazing facts about TL's and help ID other plants along the way. Don't miss this brief window of opportunity. 

I don't know if I'll be going on the Trout Lily Walk on Sunday. It starts a bit later than my usual walk time. I suspect going on the Trout Lily Walk is the best chance I will have to actually see, for the first time, the elusive Trout Lily.

You May All Go To Hell Because I'm In Texas Celebrating Texas Independence Day

I swiped the quote, supposedly from Davy Crockett, from MBK, this morning on Facebook.

March 2, 1836, a day that lives in infamy, because it was on that day that the Texas Declaration of Independence formally declared the independence of the Republic of Texas from Mexico.

The Texas Declaration of Independence was adopted at the Convention of 1836 at Washington-on-the-Brazos on March 2, 1836.

The formal signing had to be postponed a day after the conventioneers adopted the declaration so that errors in the declaration's text could be corrected.

I have not committed, yet, to going to any of the many Texas Independence Day celebrations. It is such a conundrum of choices.

A Sidewalk Free Fort Worth Walk With Poor People

Continuing with my very popular Sidewalks of Fort Worth series.

In the picture you are looking north at the well worn dirt path worn at the side of Bridgewood Drive in East Fort Worth.

There is no buffer between the well worn dirt path and Bridgewood Drive, so it is ever so slightly scary when a vehicle speeds by.

I have seen a mom with two kids in a stroller struggling to walk in this sidewalk-less location.

A couple weeks ago I blogged about my perplexation regarding the lack of a comprehensive public mass transit system in Tarrant County and the other counties that make up the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex in a blogging titled The Befuddling Mystery Of Tarrant County & Texas Public Transit.

Someone named Dannyboy commented on the befuddling mystery of Tarrant County & Texas public transit,  with part of that comment informing me that, "It is a fact of life in North Texas. Mass transit is considered something that poor people use, and consequently, the funding and improvement of such transportation plans are not seen as important in any way."

Today, when I walked on the dirt path alongside Bridgewood Drive it occurred to me that Fort Worth's sidewalk shortage may stem from the same attitude that causes mass transit in parts of Texas to be a bit behind the modern world as lived in other parts of America and the world.

So, is that the reason for the Fort Worth sidewalk shortage? That being that in Fort Worth sidewalks are considered something that only poor people use?

That only poor people have the need to walk?

Tandy Hill Hiking With Europeans Thinking Of Moving To The Tandy Campground

In the picture you are looking south, across the Tandy Escarpment, over which currently dry Tandy Falls falls into Lake Tandy when a sufficient amount of precipitation precipitates to cause the Tandy River to flow with enough water to fall over the precipice.

Currently the Tandy Hills are in dry mode, even though some rain did fall on this part of the planet in the past week.

Even though the temperature had not risen above the 50 degree mark and even though a strong wind blew, when I hiked the Tandy Hills today I did not get chilly.

I also did not get hot.

Which means today was a perfect hill hiking day in North Texas.

There was a vehicle parked at the summit of Mount Tandy when I arrived today. That does not happen too often.

I was about halfway down Mount Tandy when I came upon the hiker who belonged to the vehicle. A lady in rather good shape who spoke with a very strong European accent, of which flavor I could not tell, for sure. But I don't think she was a German because my usual visceral, anti-German revulsion did not kick in.

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I came upon what looked to me to be a campsite on the west side of the View Street Trail.

When I saw this campsite, previously, I think the resident was in residence, so, I quickly scrambled out of there.

Today I came upon the Tandy campsite again. Today I got much closer. The camp appeared to be abandoned. The resident left behind some items, including a pair of Levis hanging from a branch.

A couple times I have come upon what appeared to be a possible homeless person camp on the Tandy Hills.

The Fort Worth homeless shelter zone is not too far to the west of the Tandy Hills.

Whatever became of the big homeless campsite that was removed prior to the Super Bowl when the Super Bowl came to D/FW a couple years ago? Did that homeless campsite later sprout up again in the same location? Or elsewhere?

I wish more effort were put into providing decent quarters for homeless people, with a lot of help given to transitioning the homeless person back in to having a place to live.

Trying To Get A Grip On My Democratic Whining While Watching Turtle Evictions

As this last Monday morning of the 2nd month of 2013 faded into history, the temperature dropped from the balmy 50 something degrees that heated me when I went for a quick pool dip soon after the sun arrived.

The temperature predictors have predicted that the temperature in North Texas would drop today, eventually getting so cold, by tonight, that there is a slight chance that snow flakes may fall.

By the time I drove to Oakland Lake Park, to walk around Fosdick Lake, a strong wind was blowing, and the temperature had dropped into the low 40s.

And now, in the middle of the afternoon, despite the temperature predictors predicting the temperature would be plummeting, instead we have heated up to a relatively balmy 55.

Even though it was not all that hot, the Fosdick Lake turtles, today, were having themselves a real fine time basking in the sun, turning their backs to me and the wind.

As you can see via the above picture a big duck was talking to the turtles. I could not understand what was being quacked. But it sounded very serious.

Soon, whatever it was that the duck was telling the turtles, it had several of the turtles jumping into the water.

The duck then jumped up on the open space left by the evicted turtles. You can sort of tell by the reaction of the turtles, on the right of the duck, that they were not happy about this intrusion.

Changing the subject from Duck/Turtle Turf Wars to me being a whiner.

A few minutes ago I got a short amusing blog comment from someone named Anonymous...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "In Texas We Are In Great Danger From Terrorism, Severe Weather & Man-Made Disasters That Can Kill": 

get a grip you democrat whiner 

If Anonymous is referring to the party that opposes the Republicans, should not a capital "D" be used? I guess that lack of a Big D can be explained by Anonymous's apparent aversion to punctuation.

Why does Anonymous think I'm a Democrat, I can't help but wonder? I can understand thinking I'm a whiner. Whining is one of my favorite hobbies.

Dancing With Wolves While Thinking About Going To The Academy Awards

Since it is Sunday today, with this Sunday being the last Sunday of the 2nd month of 2013, I took my usual Sunday walk with the Indian Ghosts who haunt Arlington's Village Creek Natural Historical Area.

I was a little surprised to see that the trail obstruction that has been obstructing the Pioneer Trail is still obstructing. I think this obstructing has been going on for around 3 weeks.

Today, looking closer at the "stump" I wondered if this may have been the work of a tomahawk being wielded by one of the Indian Ghosts.

There were a lot of people walking with the Indian Ghosts today. And for the first time I saw one of the big fireplaces being used. What I assumed was a couple of dads with about 10 kids. Hamburgers were the item being barbecued.

Speaking of Indian Ghosts, I think Dances With Wolves was the last time I saw a movie prior to it winning the Academy Award for Best Picture. That was sometime back in the last century.

I used to look forward to the Academy Awards Show. Way back in the last century. Not so much anymore.

The Academy Awards is broadcast live, like the Super Bowl, or the State of the Union Address. With Los Angeles being on the west coast this had the show starting at 5:30, if I remember right, in my old time zone. In this time zone I am currently in, the Academy Awards starts 2 hours later and ends way past my bedtime.

I think the time change may have contributed to my diminished enjoyment of the Academy Awards.

I have been in Los Angeles a few times on the day of the Academy Awards Show.

Way back in the last century I drove my friend, Miss Chris's, Ford Pinto, to California. Along with me and Miss Chris, Miss Maxine and Big Ed were also crammed into the tiny Pinto.

We were camping at San Clemente State Park and on the day of the Academy Awards decided to see how close we could get. It was way easier than I figured it would be. Found a place to park then started off walking to wherever it was the show took place back then. Miss Chris and Miss Maxine got a bit shy, but Big Ed and I climbed over a cyclone fence and found seats in the stands where people sat to watch the incoming celebs.

Seems so bizarre to me, in this post 9/11 era, to remember how lax security was way back in the last century.

The only celebs I remember arriving were the Bridge's family, as in Jeff, Beau and dad Lloyd. I think we got there near the end of the arrivals.

Miss Chris and Miss Maxine got a bit cranky waiting on the other side of the street. Eventually we all made it back to the Pinto. It was now dark and I quickly got a little lost. Eventually I got re-oriented and found my way to Sunset Boulevard where Miss Maxine spotted a Mexican joint she wanted to go to. And so we did, but I remember very little about it.

Tonight's Academy Awards Show's host is Seth McFarlane, the creative genius behind the cartoon called Family Guy. If there was a place to place a bet, I think I'd bet on this not going well...

Exhausted Doing the Hokey Pokey With Fosdick Lake's Sitting Ducks

Fosdick Lake Fosduck Convention

In the picture you are looking at a large convention of sitting ducks convening on the northeastern shore of Fosdick Lake in Oakland Lake Park in Fort Worth, Texas, on this last Saturday of the 2nd month of 2013.

Saturday began with the air temperature being below freezing. This made the cool pool feel much warmer than the air when I did a quick, pre-hot tub, dip, early this morning.

I got up later than my norm, this morning. I was a bit exhausted from an unexpected bout, Friday night, of doing the Hokey Pokey with the Queen of Wink.

Exhausted from an unexpected bout of doing the Hokey Pokey and also from being asked to dance, with the request verbalized in a shockingly profane manner.

Changing the subject back to the Fosdick Lake Fosducks.

Usually the Fosducks put up quite a quacking fuss when I get close. Today, while there was some quacking, there was also a strange tweety noise I'd not heard coming from ducks before. I thought ducks could only quack, so I was surprised to learn there is more than quacking to their vocabulary.

After walking around Fosdick Lake, since it is Saturday, I went to Town Talk, where I got myself an awful lot of avocados. I suspect I will be making a humongous batch of guacamole later today, if I don't find myself sidetracked doing the Hokey Pokey again.