A River Runs Through Fort Worth's Other New Downtown Plaza

Yesterday, Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, I was walking on a newly asphalted trail on the south bank of the Trinity River, when a short distance past the Paddock Viaduct, also known as the North Main Street Bridge, I came upon the flight of stairs you see to the left, rising from the banks of the Trinity River to one of the downtown Fort Worth Tarrant County College campuses.

Back when this particular campus was under construction, before it became one of Fort Worth's more infamous boondoggles, a controversy arose from someone named Ed Bass over something that was known as the Sunken Plaza.

If I remember right the Sunken Plaza sank as a result of the Bass interference.

So, I was a bit surprised when I reached the top of these stairs to find myself looking at what looked to me to be a very big plaza, situated between two big buildings which formed a sort of canyon, which I imagine provides good shade on a HOT day.

What follows is a look at the Tarrant County College downtown campus plaza from the top of the stairs til exiting the plaza at street level.

Above we are looking south from the north end of the plaza. Below we do a 180 and look north, with a view of the Trinity River flowing below.

A river-like water feature runs the length of the plaza, beginning at the south end with a waterfall falling from street level to the plaza.

The water in the water feature is shallow, with multiple cement "benches" in the water which look like they'd be a pleasant place to sit on a HOT day of summer, spring and fall. Below is another look at the TCC Plaza's river and its "bench" islands.

Below we are looking south at the aforementioned waterfall cascading down into the plaza.

Below we are at street level, looking down on the TCC Plaza waterfall and south end of the plaza.

After seeing what looked to me to be a very well designed plaza I can not help but wonder what this would have been like if the Sunken Plaza had been allowed to be built.

In addition to being surprised by the TCC Plaza I was also surprised by the size of the buildings that make up this college campus.

Surprised and confused.

It has been a few years, but the way I remember it the price tag for this college campus escalated to horrific heights, the project was behind schedule, what with it being a complex engineering task, building above the banks of a river.

And then the Army Corps of Engineers would not sign off on the plan to build a bridge across the Trinity with more campus buildings on the north side of the river.

At some point in time after Radio Shack found it could not afford its new corporate campus, located a short distance to the west of the then under construction new TCC campus, Tarrant County College decided to amp up the boondoggling by spending a few hundred million dollars more for some of the Radio Shack space to turn into its downtown campus.

With the original new campus turned into some sort of medical training facility.

Yesterday it looked to me that the original new downtown Fort Worth TCC campus is a completed structure. A very large completed structure.

Is this building being fully utilized? What is the current status of this particularly bad Fort Worth boondoggle?

I could not help but notice that I did not notice a single other person, anywhere, in the TCC Plaza zone yesterday.

But, Fort Worth's downtown did not have a lot of people on the streets yesterday, what with it being Black Friday, maybe the TCC plaza sees more activity on a school day....

I Did Not Get Lost In The Black Friday Crowd At Fort Worth's Sundance Square Plaza Today

I finally made it to the goofily named Sundance Square Plaza today for the first time since its Grand Opening hoopla a month or two ago.

From photos, previously seen, I thought I had a fairly good idea of what this plaza was going to look like.

That and last April I saw the space under construction, so I had an inkling as to the size of the space.

Well.

Did I like what I saw today? The answer to that question is YES.

Sundance Square Plaza is a HUGE improvement over the parking lots which previously occupied this piece of prime downtown Fort Worth real estate.

I have liked the Chisholm Trail mural, you see in the first photo, from the first I ever saw it. But, at that point in time the mural looked out over parking lots.

Now the mural looks out over a much more aesthetically pleasing view.

However.

I know today was Black Friday. Black Friday is a day when downtown Fort Worth is pretty much a ghost town during the day, coming alive Black Friday night, as we previously discussed, earlier today.

So, today, Sundance Square Plaza was not sporting much human activity.

But I can sure see where this space could come alive at night, particularly during the HOT days of spring, summer and fall.

Currently, due to the excesses of the holidays, the plaza is looking at bit cluttered.

I suspect the plaza looks much nicer holiday clutter-free.

I can see how the water feature of the spouting fountains variety is going to be HUGE hit come the HOT times of the year.

That is the fountain water feature in the photo at the top, with a couple kids being a bit tenuous about walking out into the water zone. At one point the fountains did erupt, but not as spectacularly as what was portrayed in a photograph taken by the persnickety Mr. Galtex, which I feloniously purloined and used on this blog.

Maybe the fountains were operating at low pressure today.

My biggest surprise today came from another plaza which I had not previously seen  That previously unseen, by me, plaza, well, I give that plaza a total double thumbs up.

Impressive.

And big city plaza worthy of any big city.

Anywhere.

I don't think I can say that about Sundance Square Plaza.

I will blog photos of my favorite downtown Fort Worth plaza in a subsequent blogging.....

Having Fun Looking For Black Friday Shoppers Today In Downtown Fort Worth

Today, Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, the busiest shopping day of the year, I drove myself to downtown Fort Worth, well known to local propagandists as the most lively big city downtown in Texas, to check out Sundance Square Plaza for the first time and to enjoy the hustle and bustle of the throngs of shoppers flooding downtown Fort Worth.

Well.

The first picture is the aforementioned Sundance Square Plaza, at noon, on the busiest shopping day of the year.

As you can see, there are not many people in the plaza. Plenty of available seating.

Those of you reading this who have never been to downtown Fort Worth are probably thinking that all the people are busy shopping in downtown Fort Worth's stores.

Well, you would be wrong.

Downtown Fort Worth does not have any stores of the sort you might see in other big towns in America. Not a single department store. Not a one. No vertical malls. Not a one.

Not even a grocery store.

As you can see, via the photos, there is not a lot of life on the streets of the most lively town in Texas on this busiest shopping day of the year. Or vehicular traffic.

Below, looking south towards the location of Sundance Square Plaza there is so little street action that pigeons have taken up peaceful residence, sort of like panthers of long ago, napping in downtown Fort Worth, supposedly.

I got way too much material for one blogging today, which means there will be subsequent bloggings about that which I saw today in downtown Fort Worth, including what I thought of Sundance Square Plaza.

I have to say that this Black Friday visit to downtown Fort Worth was not nearly as lifeless as the first time I visited downtown on this particular day.

When I left downtown Fort Worth I headed west to West 7th to check out the new bridge. I really like the new bridge. It is way more impressive in person than via photos. Four lanes, plus sidewalks on the outside of the arches. I've never seen a bridge like this before.

I should have stopped and parked at Trinity Park and walked back to take pictures of the new bridge, but I was hungry and in need of lunch mode.

In case you who are not familiar with Fort Worth are sitting there worrying that the locals have no where to shop, what with their ghost town of a downtown, well, rest assured, there are plenty of places to shop in Fort Worth. West 7th is one of those location. Today West 7th was booming with Black Friday shoppers.

And tonight downtown Fort Worth will not be a ghost town because thousands will be there watching the Parade of Lights. Presented by Chesapeake Energy, according to signs I saw today.

I thought Chesapeake Energy had opted out of sponsoring this type thing, what with money woes and being sued by entities like Fort Worth.

Well, I am off to do myself some Black Friday shopping. Upon my return I have some more blogging to do.....

I Am No Cook But I Can Follow Turkey Thawing Directions

I saw the above on Facebook a couple minutes ago, via the Fort Worth Connie D.

I thought this to be amusing.

When I first saw the above, as I was quickly scrolling down the Facebook clutter, I did not at first realize what it was I was looking at.

And then I realized it was a relative of that which I recently shoved in my oven.

Happy Thanksgiving, again, one and all, particularly the two Connie D's....

And let us not forget to wish Elsie Hotpepper a special Happy Thanksgiving. Elsie Hotpepper this morning warmed the cockles of my heart by saying "I'm thankful I met you. :)".

I  do not recollect anyone ever saying, before, that they were thankful they met me.

Then again, I do have a bad memory.

And I also am sitting here wondering what in the world "cockles" are. And what these "cockles" have to do with ones heart....

Happy Thanksgiving From Google, Me & My Stove Top Stuffing

Lately when I go to Google, Google has been doing some cutesy stuff where the Google logo usually resides.

Like a week or two or three ago it was a video game type deal in celebration of the first parachute jump. Or was it celebrating the first hot air balloon?

I don't remember.

And then there was a complicated video game Myst like deal celebrating something to do with a TV show I've never watched called Dr. Who. Well, I think it was Dr. Who. I am fairly certain "Who" was in the title.

And now today, it being Thanksgiving, the Google logo is replaced with a long animation involving all sorts of Thanksgiving related critters, like a turkey, raccoon, bear, fox and others, dancing along to banjo music, carrying Thanksgiving feast vittles, like pumpkins and corn, ending up at a picnic table, with the final scene turning to that which you see above, the "Happy Thanksgiving from Google" message.

I've got a turkey in the oven, slowly roasting, scheduled to be done by the scheduled arrival of this afternoon's Thanksgiving feasting. I made pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce last night. Cherry pie goes in the oven after the turkey gets evicted. The giblet boiling gravy prep is completed. Spuds are ready to go for their pre-mashing boiling.

I called my mom yesterday via my new Google phone. During the course of talking to my mom I was asked what I was cooking today. When the turkey subject came up my mom asked if I was stuffing it.

I said I was.

Mom then told me I should not do so, that it is now considered to be a dangerous thing to do, to stuff a turkey.

I then told mom that I recollected dozens up dozens of stuffed by mom turkeys with no one getting sick.

My mom then told me that that is true, but that her real reason for ceasing with the stuffing of the bird was that using a store bought stove top stuffing mix was so much easier. And was tasty. And so, I got myself some Betty Crocker Stove Top Turkey Stuffing.

I can already conclude that it was much easier getting the turkey ready to stuff in the oven without first stuffing it with stuffing.

But, I am a couple hours from trying this stove top stuffing method off having stuffing as part of my annual Thanksgiving buffet.

I hope y'all are fixin' to have yourself a mighty fine Thanksgiving.....

Spencer Jack Did Not Need To Fly To The Other Washington To Greet President Obama

This morning I saw photo documentation of Spencer Jack with his dad in Anaheim, at Disneyland. This afternoon Spencer Jack's dad sent me a video of Spencer Jack at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, also known as Sea-Tac, not too eagerly awaiting the arrival of Air Force One and President Obama.

It was a couple days ago Mr. President flew in to Seattle to look at Mount Rainier, among other things.

So, I am a little confused about the Spencer Jack travel timeline.

What I do know for sure is Spencer Jack's dad is continuing our family tradition of greeting the arrivals of incoming American Presidents, a tradition that dates back a half a century.

President Obama Did Not Visit Fort Worth This Weekend & Utter the Wow Word When He Saw Mount Tandy

A few days ago I mentioned to my mama that the Tacoma adventure poodles, Max, Blue and the newest poodle adventurer, Eddie, had not blogged in weeks, not since a temporary relocation to Chicago of the human adult figures in the poodle domicile.

Well, today Max, Blue and Eddie returned to their blogging duty, with many pictures, including the one above.

When I saw this photo I was a bit confused as to what I first thought to be an impossible view of downtown Seattle. Then I remembered the view from Fraser's window on Queen Anne Hill on the long gone NBC sitcom.

That view somehow makes the Space Needle look like the tallest structure in Seattle, which it is not. And also makes Mount Rainier appear closer than it actually appears from Queen Anne Hill. You'd need to go to Tacoma to see Mount Rainier looking that big.

President Obama put Mount Rainier in the news in the Pacific Northwest the past couple days due to the President being in Seattle, with the Mountain putting in an appearance, which had Obama pointing at it and saying "Wow!"

I wonder if President Obama were to visit Fort Worth if he would point to anything and say "Wow!"?

I don't know where Max, Blue & Eddie were when the above photo was taken. I am almost 100% it was not one of them who took the picture.

The two smallest of the kids in the picture are my nephew Theo on the left, with niece Ruby on the right. That would make big brother nephew David in the middle.

If my calculations are correct, and they usually are not, because math is something which is challenging for me, but, I believe the twins, Theo & Ruby, are about to turn 3 years old. I believe David is 5. Maybe 6.

Time flies.

I believe the twins and David are going to be in Arizona next month for their birthday and to visit both sets of their grandparental units, along with others, but likely not me.

I am not currently scheduled to meet Theo, Ruby & David for another 15 years,  in 2028, which is the year of my next planned return to the Pacific Northwest.

Unless my plans change, which they have a tendency to do....

The Village Creek Blue Bayou Has Returned While My Turkey Continues To Thaw

As you can see via the photo documentation on the left, the return of rain to North Texas has brought about the return of Arlington's Village Creek Natural Historical Area's Blue Bayou.

I had myself a mighty breezy walk with the Indian Ghosts today.

Breezy and chilly.

The recent bout of below freezing iciness has abated, though the overnight temperature is still predicted to be below freezing for a few more days.

Yesterday I drove past the entry to the Village Creek Natural Historical Area's parking lot on my way to Veterans Park and saw the entry blocked by the closed due to flooding sign.

Today I did not see any sign of any flooding, as in none of any of the usual flood debris backed up against the Village Creek dam bridges.

Currently the outer world is being heated to 42 degrees at my location. This should help facilitate the thawing of the frozen turkey that is parked on my patio.

Apparently I Am In Texas With An Unattractive Midland Accent

In a blogging last Monday I asked Is The Texan Accent America's Most Attractive? because I'd just read scientific proof that the Texas accent is America's most attractive and is one of the reasons Texans date, mate and breed so prolifically.

I guess this attractive accent thing also explains how it is that Gar the Texan so easily transitions from one wife to the next.

Even though I have lived in Texas for over a decade I am forbidden by state law from referring to myself as a Texan.

Not being a legitimate Texan may be one of the reasons I have not been able to develop an authentic Texas accent and thus continue to be an epic fail in the date, mate and breed department.

Yesterday I came upon a test that tests What American Accent Do You Have?

I took the test and was not too shocked to learn I have something called a Midland Accent, which, apparently, means I have no discernible accent, which, again apparently, indicates I have a good voice for TV and radio.

It seems just a little odd to me that while this test tells me I have no accent, it also tells me I may be from Dallas.

That is just confusing.....

Getting Cold Getting A Cold While Walking Around Arlington's Veterans Park

No, that is not the Fosdick Fountain spraying water in Fosdick Lake in Oakland Lake Park in Fort Worth that you are looking at on the left.

What you are looking at is the Veterans Park Fountain in the Veterans Park Pond in Veterans Park in Arlington.

The weather prognosticators backed off of their dire icy alert by morning, due to the temperature not quite getting as far below freezing as predicted.

My computer based temperature monitoring device indicated the temperate was below freezing, at 31, when I woke up the computer this morning. But, I saw nothing frozen in the outer world, at my location, upon close perusal.

I walked around Veterans Park before noon. The time is now coming up on 2 in the afternoon of the last Monday of November of 2013, with the outer world now warmed to a still chilly 34.

My turkey hunt was not successful yesterday, but was today. And so the frozen bird is sitting outside, currently, thawing at an extremely slow rate.

Walking around Veterans Park today was more chilly than I thought it would be. I had on multiple layers of warmth inducing outer wear, including my favorite stereotypical Pacific Northwest long-sleeved flannel shirt.

I am currently having symptoms that seem like an incoming cold trying to make me sick. I do not remember the last time I was laid up by a cold.

Why does the illness that goes by the name "cold" go by that name? Is it because over time humanity has associated getting that illness with getting cold? Hence getting a cold?

Being befuddled is just one of the many incoming cold type symptoms I am currently experiencing....