Please Help Fort Worth Weekly's Peter Gorman

Incoming from Elsie Hotpepper pointed me to the need to please help Peter Gorman.

Peter Gorman is an award winning journalist who wrote some of Fort Worth Weekly's more memorable pieces, such as Can of Worms, regarding the can of worms known as Haltom City.

Deep in the Peruvian jungle Peter Gorman found himself three staph infections which have turned into an ongoing battle.

A webpage in indiegogo.com titled Help Peter Gorman Please has been set up, along with a Facebook page title Help Peter Gorman Please.

The indiegogo.com article says in part....

Peter is a noted and award-winning journalist and adventurer - also a damn good friend, father, brother, guide and simply all-around one of the good guys, and there ain't many good guys left.

For nearly 30 years Peter has been working with Ayahuasca, and in Peru in the deep jungle -- he is a living legend.

Let's keep it that way

This recent trip the jungle sunk its teeth in really, seriously deep and Peter picked up three different staph infections - a flesh eating bacteria - that tore into him and threatened to eat his leg away below the knee. 

As I write this, his leg has been saved - however, he's not out of the woods yet.

Peter is still fighting the infection - battling against it going systemic - throughout his entire body. 

Peter writes: "(It's) ...been in the muscle for six weeks. Been on drip for six weeks. In Iquitos, in the jungle, in Iquitos and here at the hospital and now here at home. I'm about to have an IV as a matter of fact. I've already lost a lot of muscle. I'm trying to keep it from reaching the bone and going systemic."

Peter needs funds to help pay for medical costs - now.

Peter's long-time friend Alan Shoemaker writes:

"...he has already spent 80 grand... and the two skin grafts, IF the leg is saved, will cost around 15 grand... and the antibotics he needs now and everything else, nursing care at home for a month, etc... so yes, this will bankrupt him easily... We can help. Please."

Walking With My Sister & The Village Creek Natural Historical Area Indian Ghosts

Next Monday, September 2, is Labor Day.

There has been a Labor Day, or two, since I have been in Texas where I have had trouble finding myself an unoccupied picnic table on which I could barbecue my Labor Day barbecue.

The Labor  Days where I have had trouble finding a picnic table have been at various parks in the Lake Grapevine zone.

On Monday if I want to find myself a picnic table I now know of a place I can go to, close to my abode, with plenty of picnic tables, with very few people ever using them.

The plentiful picnic table place of which I speak is Arlington's Village Creek Natural Historical Area. Those are a few of the Village Creek NHA picnic tables you see above. As you can see, big fire pits are included.

An additional attraction to a Village Creek Natural Historical Area Labor Day picnic is you get to share the space with the Indian ghosts who haunt this particular place.

My sister who spends most of her time in Arizona walked with me and the Indian ghosts today. We walked for about an hour. My sister gave me an update on my mom's post knee surgery status, among other things.

With one of those other things being my sister planting in my mind the idea of flying up to Washington in October to help with a complex babysitting project. I have multiple reasons why it might be a good idea to fly up to Washington.

It has been over 5 years since I have done so.

Most of the painful residue of that fateful month during the summer of 2008 has dissipated, or faded to irrelevance.

Changing the subject from painful residue to something else.

This morning I looked in my refrigerator to be reminded that on Saturday I got a 5 pound bag of broccoli crowns at Town Talk. So, this morning, with an almost fall chill in the air, I decided to make broccoli cheese soup.

We are currently scheduled to have several days in a row over 100, starting tomorrow, so hot soup seemed like a real good idea. That and barbecued chicken.

Time for lunch now....

Today I Was Schooled In Green By Fort Worth Weekly

I did not get around to reading last week's Fort Worth Weekly until today, two days before this week's Fort Worth Weekly becomes readable.

Last week's Fort Worth Weekly has an article titled Schooled in Green which managed to surprise me.

Til an hour ago if you'd ask me if I knew anywhere in the world where the geo-thermal method of heating a space was being used I would have said there are geo-thermal heated greenhouses in Iceland.

So, imagine how surprised I was to learn that Tarrant County has several new schools which are geo-thermal heated and cooled.

Is this type thing happening all over America? And the world? I have no idea. What I do know is this sure seems to be a good method to heat and cool a school.

Biking Mallard Cove Park Finding A Giant Pipe Bed & Tires

By the time the noon time of the day arrived I felt as if I needed an additional endorphin boost to the one I got early this morning via swimming for an hour.

I did not feel like driving very far, so I drove to the park closest to my abode, that being Mallard Cove Park, to pedal my bike.

I rolled a couple times around the paved trails and then exited the park to the wild zone.

The wild zone to the west of Mallard Cove Park sort of spooks me. As in, I get nervous that suddenly a scary human is going to pop out  from behind a tree.

Or be hiding somewhere, like when I looked inside the giant pipe you see above, I thought it might be someone's bedroom or a home for snakes.

As can see, there were no humans or snakes in the pipe.

This wild zone seems to be a bit of a dumping zone. Why would someone leave a giant piece of pipe laying in the woods?

Or the mattress with matching box spring you see below. The mattress appeared to be fairly new.

Maybe someone was camping at this location, hauled in a mattress for a comfortable night's sleep and then decided it was too much bother to haul the mattress back home. Or left it for the sleeping comfort of others.

And then there were the tires. What is it with Fort Worth and its multiple tire graveyards?

I saw the above tires from the same location I found the giant pipe, with that giant pipe laying about 20 feet from the cliff's edge. There are more than a dozen tires strewn on this particular Trinity River sandbar.

How do tires get to these type locations? Do tires float? Are tires recyclable?

All in all, I had myself a really fine time rolling around Mallard Cove Park, getting just the right amount of endorphins to have myself feeling real good.

The Tale Of Two Texas Historical Markers In Arlington's River Legacy Park

Way back in 2003, when the new section of trail opened on the north side of the Trinity River in River Legacy Park, two Texas historical markers were moved from their original locations near what they were historically marking, to a new location adjacent to the River Legacy Park paved trail.

At the bottom of the Bird's Fort Historical Marker a sign has been added which says...

THIS MARKER WAS RELOCATED TO RIVER LEGACY PARKS IN 2003. THE BIRD'S FORT SITE IS ABOUT 1-1/4 MILES NORTH-NORTHEAST OF THIS LOCATION.

I believe the location of Bird's Fort was long ago bulldozed by the Veridian development.

Way back in 2003 and for a few years after that, at the end of the River Legacy trail, at the 7 mile mark, one could leave River Legacy Park and explore a vast wasteland where off roaders had built all sorts of things, including one of the most Tarzan-like treehouses I have ever seen. Somewhere near this location were the remains of Bird's Fort, which I never found.

The info on the Bird's Fort Historical Marker is interesting.....

In an effort to attract settlers to the region and to provide protection from Indian raids, General Edward H. Tarrant of the Republic of Texas Militia authorized Jonathan Bird to establish a settlement and military post in the area. Bird's Fort, built near a crescent-shaped lake one mile east in 1841, was the first attempt at Anglo-American colonization in present Tarrant County. The settlers, from the Red River area, suffered from hunger and Indian problems and soon returned home or joined other settlements.

In August 1843 troops of the Jacob Snively Expedition disbanded at the abandoned fort, which consisted of a few log structures. Organized to capture Mexican gold wagons on the Santa Fe Trail in retaliation for raids on San Antonio, the outfit had been disarmed by United States forces.

About the same time, negotiations began at the fort between Republic of Texas officials General Tarrant and General George W. Terrell and the leaders of nine Indian tribes. The meetings ended on September 29, 1843, with the signing of the Bird's Fort Treaty. Terms of the agreement called for an end to existing conflicts  and the establishment of a line separating Indian lands from territory open for colonization.

Well, the Bird's Fort Treaty did not work out too well for the Indians. But, what treaty really ever did?

Due west of the Bird's Fort Historical Marker is the SLOAN-JOURNEY EXPEDITION OF 1838 Historical Marker. That Historical Marker is also interesting....

In the Spring of 1838, Captains Robert Sloan and Nathaniel T. Journey led a group of about 90 Northeast Texas frontiersmen on a punitive expedition against the Indians who had raided their homes in present day Fannin County. The trail led them to the vicinity of present day Euless and Arlington, where they attacked a small Indian village, killed several Indians and recovered a few horses. The Sloan-Journey Expedition is among the first known Anglo-American activities in what is now Tarrant County that helped to open North Texas to White Settlement.

White Settlement? Is that not a West Fort Worth suburb?

These Texas Historical Markers put me in mind of a Historical Marker I saw years ago, in Northern California, near Lava Beds National Monument. That particular Historical Marker marked the Captain Jack fiasco, where a band of Modoc Indians kept the American army at bay for a long enough time that the world got caught up in following the heroics of Captain Jack and his band of Modocs.

The "old" Historical Marker sort of puts Captain Jack in a bad light as a bad guy. But, when you visit the Lava Beds National Monument site of the actual siege, you get a more balanced historical perspective of the tragedy that happened at that location.

I wonder what a revisionist Texas Historical Marker might say about what is described in these two Texas Historical Markers in River Legacy Park?

Pedaling To The East End Of River Legacy Park Talking To My Dad

Today I pedaled the River Legacy Park paved trail to its eastern end for the first time in a long time.

In years past I pedaled to this point many times a month.

Way back in 2003, when this new section of trail opened, I recollect reading that the trail would soon be extended across Highway 360 to connect with the Dallas Trinity River trail.

I must have remembered wrong, because it has been a decade since I thought the trail would soon be extended.

Saturday and Sunday, on nicely temperatured days, always finds a lot of people having themselves a really fine time rolling their wheels in River Legacy Park.

Today I was passed by dozens of speed demons.

I passed a couple slow pokes.

I got gas on my way to River  Legacy. Like I often do when I get gas I called my mom and dad. I was calling my mom and dad today, even if I did not get gas.

I think it was on Monday I got a text message from my sister which said something like "Surgery went well. Mom doing fine." I knew my mom was have her knee operated on. When last I talked to my mom the exact date of the surgery was still unknown.

So, a few minutes after getting the text message I called my sister back. About 10 seconds into the call my phone exploded with its battery needs charging noise. When I got back to my abode an hour or two later, I plugged the phone into the charger and called my sister back. At that point in time she was with my mom. We talked for a few minutes.

I thought I was told that my mom would be released from the surgical center on Thursday. I guess I assumed being released meant going home.

Today, when I called, my dad answered. My dad usually only answers the phone on his birthday and Father's Day. And sometimes even then my mom screens the calls.

So, turns out on Thursday mom went from the surgical center to a rehab center where she is having a really fine time learning to walk.

I talked to my dad all the way from the gas station in Fort Worth to River Legacy Park in Arlington. Usually dad is not all that chatty.

Lost In Thought Today On The Gateway Park Mountain Bike Trail Almost Sent Me Cliff Diving

FWMBA (Fort Worth Mountain Bike Association) really needs to add a "CAUTION" sign a few feet before the location you see on the left on the Gateway Park mountain bike trail.

Right before one reaches this location one pedals up a steep, short incline. At the top of the incline one sees what one sees in the picture, that being a cliff dropping down to the Trinity River.

I was lost in thought today when I reached this location.

Even though I was lost I hit the brakes quick enough to avoid an unwanted swim with the fishes and turtles.

The outer world was heated to around 95 when I left my abode to drive to Gateway Park. The humidity had the heat index having it feel like the outer world was over 100 degrees.

And so it did. Feel over 100 degrees.

I had my wished for sauna steam  bath today. Followed by the rapid chilling provided by the Town Talk cooler.

I got myself a shopping cart full of stuff at Town Talk today. A big bag of Russet spuds from Twin Falls, Idaho. A 5 pound bag of broccoli crowns. Another 5 pound jar of pickled ginger. Cabbage, lettuce, yogurt, cheese, tortillas, ham and I forget what else.

I'd tell you what I was lost in thought about that had me almost doing some cliff diving, but it's a distressing tale of sadly perverse verbal abuse that may be too weird to share....

Driving To Arlington's Interlochen Canals With Tacoma's Connie D

No. That is not an artist's rendering of what one of the canals will look like if the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle ever becomes something someone can see.

What you are looking is not in Fort Worth. It is in Arlington.

The canal is one of many which make up the Interlochen neighborhood.

Interlochen is an award winning development, developed decades ago by developer Bob Findlay.

Interlochen being developed by Bob Findlay is why the paved trail I pedaled on to get to Interlochen is called the Bob Findlay Linear Park.

The paved trail that runs through the Village Creek Natural Historical Area exits the Historical Area to become the aforementioned Bob Findlay Linear Park paved trail.

The outer world was heated in to the 90 degree range when I drove myself to Arlington to roll my wheels.

As long as I am pedaling I stay cool due to that refreshing wind chill factor effect. But, stop pedaling and the sauna steam bath effect goes into effect.

I was in the pool before dawn cracked again this morning. I rather like swimming whilst the sun comes up. Soon we will be entering that time of the year where it becomes ever more cool to get in the pool.

I saw today that the kids are back in school. I had to slow to 25 because the slow down lights were flashing as I passed John T. White Elementary.

I had to slow down and get off the phone. The Tacoma Connie D had called me soon after I exited my abode. It is a $200 fine if you are caught talking on your cell phone when you drive by a school in Texas.

The Tacoma Connie D has the sweetest voice. If she were to move to Texas and learn to speak with a Texas accent her accent would be a real honey dripper.

The lunch gong just sounded. Talk to you later.....

Incoming From Texans For Government Transparency

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 22, 2013

LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST TRWD SEEKING ELECTIONS IN 2014

(Fort Worth, Texas) Today, a lawsuit was filed against the Tarrant Regional Water District by John Austin Basham, Darlia Lee Hobbs and Texans For Government Transparency over the TRWD’s interpretation of a new state law (HB 3900) which altered the district's election cycle to odd numbered years. The lawsuit charges the change in the water code unconstitutionally extend directors terms without holding an election. The TRWD’s action would essentially grant two sitting board members, Jim Lane and Marty Leonard, five year terms – exceeding the maximum allowed under the State Constitution.

The lawsuit is brought by Mr. Basham, a former candidate for the Tarrant Regional Water District's Board of Directors who fell 80 votes shy of taking office in 2013; Darlia Lee Hobbs, a grassroots activist for open and responsive government; and a non-profit, Texans for Government Transparency. The district has long been accused of utilizing secret meetings in violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act, abusing eminent domain authority and now, manipulating election laws to extend their terms without voters' consent.

“The Texas Constitution and Water Code, which governs TRWD, couldn't be more clear.” says John Spivey, Secretary of Texans For Government Transparency, “Water board members cannot have a term longer than four years. The law that was recently passed changing TRWD's election cycle to odd numbered years does not allow for a five year term – nor does it prohibit an election in 2014.” Spivey adds, “The new law does not and cannot change the Texas Constitution, which explicitly restricts the directors terms to four years.”

TFGT President John Basham says, “We simply want the TRWD to start complying with the laws of the State of Texas.” He went on to say, “Picking and choosing how long a term you will serve and when a voter can vote for you doesn’t even sound like something you would expect in America. If it weren’t really happening in front of me I wouldn’t believe it!”

At the TRWD Board Meeting on August 20, 2013, Mr. Basham asked Board President Vic Henderson if he intended to hold elections as required by law in 2014. Mr. Henderson refused to answer, although after the board meeting, he stated that they did not intend to hold elections in 2014 referring back to HB 3900 and advice from TRWD counsel Lee Christie. These concerned citizens are asking the court to require TRWD to hold elections in May of 2014 when the director’s terms expire by law.

An election in 2014 would place Marty Leonard's and Jim Lane's seats back on the ballot. Ms. Leonard and Mr. Lane have been on the board since 2006. The petition was filed in the 48th Judicial District in Tarrant County, Texas by lead attorney, Matthew Rinaldi of Miller, Egan, Molter & Nelson, LLP. Texans For Government Transparency is a 501(c)4 non-profit organization that was formed to promote openness and transparency in Texas state and local government affairs while advocating for citizens' rights of privacy and property rights.

This Afternoon I Googled Crazy After Being Assaulted By Deranged Demented Craziness

I Googled "crazy" and rather than the usual list of links, the definition to the left popped up.

The first line of the definition, that I read, was "mentally deranged as manifested in a wild or aggressive way."

Well, late this afternoon, seeing a whole lot of crazy became my entertainment.

The crazy first arrived in email. Then blog comments.

I forwarded the crazy emails to various sorts who knew of the crazy source.

The blog comments went to spam. I did not know of them til I got another crazy email informing me that the crazy one had been making blog comments.

I did not hit the publish button on any of the crazy comments, because, well, because of that crazy thing.

Myself and others with whom I shared today's crazy outbreak are all in agreement that though totally crazy the crazy person has good reason to be being a bit unhinged and lashing out like a deranged, unhinged crazy person.

And we all feel real sorry for her. But she really needs to get a grip, calm down and quit acting so crazy.