Last Tuesday Of September Atop Grassy Knoll Contemplating Perplexing

Approximately a tenth of a mile from my abode is the fishing pond you see here.

As you can see the weather predictor's predicted return of blue sky has arrived.

That blue sky is reflecting off the fish pond creating the illusion that the pond is a different  color than it actually is. As in recent deluges have colored the water a deep shade of muddy brown.

Have I mentioned previously brown is my favorite color? My new abode is colored in multiple shades of my favorite color, with the carpet almost matching the color of the fish pond's deep shade of muddy brown.

You can not tell it by looking at the above picture, but in that picture I am sitting in the gazebo which sits atop the grassy knoll which overlooks the fish pond.

This is a very peaceful location. Perfect for contemplating various perplexations which have been perplexing me, none of which did the contemplating bring about any resolution to that which is perplexing.

Suffice to say that which perplexes me is a subject I have mentioned being perplexed by previously.

Changing the subject from being perplexed to something that is not perplexing.

Tomorrow's regularly scheduled monthly return to the Dallas zone has been cancelled. A bid opening schedule conflict is the cause of the cancellation.

Among multiple other things I hoped to do in the Dallas zone, I was hoping to go to Arlington to the Saigon Cho Market to stock up on ginge. I go through a lot of ginger due to my ginger tea addiction. Ginger tea is known as a tonic to those of us of the Asian persuasion. Saigon Cho Market is also my source for Kimchee ingredients, but I am well stocked with those, so my Kimchee addiction is in not danger of withdrawal.

Did you know that in recent years South Korea suffered a national crisis due to a shortage of Napa Cabbage, which is a key Kimchee ingredient? Many South Koreans believe consuming Kimchee is the key to that country's robust productivity. Just Google "south korean napa cabbage crisis" and you will find multiple articles about this serious South Korean Kimchee crisis.

One of the things which was perplexing me today was what to have for lunch. That has now been resolved with the menu consisting of the aforementioned Kimchee, oven barbecued chicken, Yukon Gold spud salad and Jicama sticks.

Jicama sticks are another popular item with those of us of the Asian persuasion....

A Day After Getting Trashed Sikes Lake Is Now Litter Free

Twenty-fours ago I was at Sikes Lake at the location you see here with that location and much of the Sikes Lake shoreline sporting a lot of litter, brought by Saturday's storm.

I blogged about Sikes Lake getting trashed in Severe Storm Litters Sikes Lake With Space Odyssey Bridge Wedding.

And now that trash is gone.

Yet one more reason I have grown to like my new Texas location, compared to my previous Texas location, the lesser half of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, which may be the Litter Capital of America.

I have no idea who picked up all the litter. Or when it was picked up in the time frame between noon on Sunday and noon on Monday.

But, by whatever means and by whoever, good job, Wichita Falls....

Chilly Fall Has Fallen On Texas

The BIG BRRRR blew into town late Sunday afternoon.

By the time I made a screen cap from this morning's Wichita Falls Times News Record's weather page the outer world had heated up five degrees from its low of 60.

60 degrees is about 20 degrees colder than I cool my inner space via the cooling method known as air-conditioning.

So far I have resisted the temptation to reverse the air-conditioner into heat mode.

Yesterday I got a text message from my dad telling me mom was ready for a call. And so I called. The Phoenix zone is still in way too HOT mode. With hardly any rain in months.

Hardly any rain in months is quite a contrast with my location, where Saturday night around six inches downpoured in a short time frame causing bad flooding a short distance from my abode, basically turning Kemp Boulevard and the parking lots along Kemp Boulevard into a deep lake with vehicles stranded and some floating.

I suspect when I am out and about today I will be wearing long pants for the first time since I have been in Wichita Falls.

I do not remember any previous year when Fall has fallen as fast as Fall has fallen this year...

Severe Storm Litters Sikes Lake With Space Odyssey Bridge Wedding

A week or so ago I mentioned being at Sikes Lake and being questioned by a pretty Lady in Turquoise about reports of litter in and around Sikes Lake.

At that point in time I told the Lady in Turquoise I had never seen any litter in or around Sikes Lake.

The Sikes Lake litter issue came to be because photos had emerged showing litter littering Sikes Lake after a recent heavy rain.

Well, last night I weathered one of the worst storms I have ever weathered. Wichita Falls was pounded by heavy rain, bursts of wind and a long lasting thunderstorm, of which several claps boomed in my ear simultaneous with the lightning flash.

By morning I learned much of Wichita Falls had flooding issues during last night's storm. Streets under water. Cars under water.

When the sun arrived this morning I was surprised to see my pool was almost in over flow mode. That and it had turned from a crystal clear shade of blue to a swampy brownish green color.

Around noon I dodged drips and headed to Sikes Lake for a walk around and litter check.

As you can see above, the Sikes Lake litter, rumored to appear after a heavy rain, was in thick evidence. The line of litter also presented evidence of how high Sikes Lake rose during last night's flooding.

Continuing on I came to the part of Sikes Lakes which had been photographed with a lot of litter floating during the previous deluge event. This time there appears to be no litter floating in Sikes Lake. However the water rose high enough to cover the pavilion area with a layer mud, to the slippery consternation of the small flock of ducks you see below.

From a distance, to the right of the above muddy pavilion, I had noticed an odd assembly of people on the bridge I need to cross to return to my vehicular transport.

When I got closer the odd assembly began to appear to be some sort of ceremony. After taking the photo of the ducks in the mud I headed to the bridge. But, before I got there the soaring sounds of Also Sprach Zarathustra filled the air with a A Space Odyssey feel. As the music played the bride to be made her way to the center of the bridge, followed by a flower girl tossing rose petals.

I confirmed with the first person I came to that this was an actual wedding taking place. I was told the nuptials had to be moved to the bridge because of the currently muddy pavilion.

It took about ten minutes for the sacred ceremony to be completed, with me then able to make my transit across the bridge, congratulating the newlyweds as I passed by them.

If I remember right the only other wedding I have attended this century was Spencer Jack's dad's nuptials, back in April of 2006.

Judging from today's wedding, ten years later, the thing to do for adults at a wedding is to record the ceremony via ones phone or tablet, as you can see above. I found such to be just a bit bizarre.

In a couple days I make my monthly trek to the Dallas zone. I hope the weather cooperates...

Waking Up To Shocking Cascade Mall Burlington Washington Shooting Murders

Not long after I was vertical this morning I learned something bad had happened in my old home zone of Washington.

The initial info came from Spencer Jack's dad, my favorite nephew Jason, via a photo sent to my phone.

On the phone the text in the image is small, I could not make out what the text said til I downloaded the image.

By then I had already been going through my usual morning ritual of checking in on news, online.

I always check local news first. The Wichita Falls News Record made no mention of anything bad happening in Washington.

The next news source I check in on is the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, always hoping to read about the current status of that town's three little bridges being built over dry land to connect the Fort Worth mainland to an imaginary island, and other possible news, such as if J.D. Granger has been indicted yet, that type news.

Well, it was via the Star-Telegram I first learned there had been fatal shootings at a Washington mall. At that point in time I opened what Jason had sent me and learned the mall in question is the Cascade Mall, located in my old small hometown of Burlington, population around 9,000, swelling to thousands more, daily, due to the town being a regional shopping mecca.

Below is the blurb regarding the Washington shootings from the Star-Telegram front page.

Next I go to the Seattle Times, where I learn the death toll is now 5, and that the shooter is on the loose.

Next I go to Fox News online, where I see a photo of the alleged shooter, and learn it is 4 women and one man who were murdered.

Foxtards commenting object to the shooter being identified as Hispanic, Because many are sure he looks to be a Radical Islamic Terrorist.

Each of my morning news sources, except the Wichita Falls one and the Star-Telegram, had this news as being the top headline, including CNN, below.

I must say it was a bit unsettling this morning to see my old hometown being the victim of this type modern era nightmare.

And then it was on to Facebook, where the first thing I saw was this from one of my favorite old high school friend's first husband Martin, who lives near the Cascade Mall, with his current wife, Janice.

And finally, also on Facebook, a message from my cousin Scott, currently residing in Cannon Beach, Oregon, who often visited the old home zone in Burlington.

It has turned into a cliche to say this type thing is happening way too often. But, it sure is. Just a couple weeks ago it was helicopters overhead and sirens wailing in my current neighborhood after two girls were shot, one killed, by some fool acting on his demons.

I suspect Burlington and the Skagit Valley will be on edge until this shooting perpetrator is caught.

Spencer Jack is growing up in a totally different Skagit Valley than the one in which I grew up....

Avoiding Getting Goosed At Sikes Lake Thinking Thanksgiving Turkey Substitute

The forecast for this next to last Friday of September, the second day of Fall, was for a sky clear of clouds, with clouds arriving later tonight, possibly bringing thunderstorms tomorrow.

However, by an hour before noon, the blue sky was already obliterated by gray clouds, for the most part.

With the temperature almost chilly, barely in the 80s,

I opted to roll myself to Sikes Lakes to do some goose walking prior to the possible arrival of sky drippage and lightning bolts.

The quacking population of Sikes Lakes seems to have grown of late. I was thinking such critters are supposed to fly south for the winter, but I guess the South is where these birds already are.

The Sikes Lakes geese are extremely territorial. I have been chased a time or two, but never successfully goosed. I was goosed once by a mad goose in a raspberry field in Washington.

Once you have experienced the pain of a goosing you do not want to repeat the experience.

When one of the Sikes Lake flocks decides to move to a new feeding location, such as across the road from the lake, the geese make the trek single file, slowly waddling, impervious to the fact they are blocking the flow of traffic, and paying no attention to horns honking.

Methnks perhaps the Sikes Lake flock could use some thinning. I have known people who have a stuffed goose for Thanksgiving rather than the traditional turkey....

Linda & Maxwell Throw Me Back To A Last Century Thursday

A few minutes ago Miss Linda and Maxwell texted me with "At Glacier with Maxwell."

Included with the text was the photo you see here of Miss Linda and Maxwell in a Washington Rain Forest near Glacier.

Glacier is a small town one passes through on the way to Mount Baker. Now that you are making me think about it, Glacier is the last town one passes through on the way to Mount Baker.

Seeing this picture of Miss Linda and Maxwell threw me into Throwback Thursday mode.

On a Thursday way back in the last century, on the day of a significant birthday, was it 30, or 40? I don't remember. What I do remember is on that day a brutal hike took place a short distance east of Glacier, to the summit of Church Mountain.

The final ascent of the Church Mountain hike requires use of a thick wire cable, left behind from the long gone fire lookout station. The summit is a flat point, with a panoramic view north into Canada, east into the North Cascades, south to the South Cascades, where Mount Rainier is located and west to Vancouver Island and the Straits of Juan de Fuca.

I have photos of the Church Mountain hike, stored in a box, not scanned. It would require an extensive search party to locate those photos.

If I remember correctly, and I likely do, the last time I passed through Glacier was with my favorite nephews, Christopher and Jeremy, also known as CJ and JR. This would have been a year or two or maybe three before my exile in Texas began.

On that pass through Glacier we were on our way to the Mount Baker ski area, which in late summer becomes a major hiking destination, with trails which usually only get free of snow in August, or later.

Our destination that day was to hike up Tabletop Mountain. I do have photos scanned of that hike and have previously blogged them in a blogging from 2009 titled Going Back To Tabletop Mountain While In Texas.

One of my all time favorite photos was taken that day on Tabletop Mountain. I shall go see if I can find that photo...

That would be JR on the left, which would make that CJ on the right.

Behind JR and CJ is Mount Shuksan. CJ is looking to his left, at the Mount Baker volcano. Behind the nephews, if you look closely, you will see a row of what I have come to call Hoodoos.

Looking at these various mountain photos, I am freshly struck regarding the pitifulness of the fact that currently, in 2016, I am aboding in a flat land where I hike up a big pile of dirt, known locally as The Dirt Hill, which I call Mount Wichita, which really is a real sad excuse for a mountain.

One of my other dear ol' Washington friends, Maxine, recently completed her annual trek over the Cascades to Stehekin, eventually reaching the fabled Courtney Ranch, home to some of the best buffet feedings I have ever had.

This year's Maxine Stehekin Adventure Tale is the best ever. I must get around to blogging it on my Washington blog.

In the meantime I'm thinking it really is time for me to cease living in a vertically challenged location and return to one of the world's scenic wonderlands....

Escaping Republican Nonsense Walking With Lake Wichita Dam Ants

My head was hurting from an inane Facebook conversation with one of Tarrant County's leading Republican nonsense purveyors, whose last two retorts told me...

The Republican party nominated Trump to be on the ballot, yes. Most, though are only voting for him to stop Hillary, not because they really want him to be president.  I don't find objecting to Hillary to be particularly stupid, however, I agree that offering up Donald Trump as an alternative is.

Republican stupidity entered the conversation when I suggested something like most non-stupid people think Republicans are pretty stupid, most of the  time. These stupid remarks were in regards to Trump.

Anyway, needing a break from nonsense I drove to the Lake Wichita Dam Spillway to have myself a breezy HOT walk with waves.

When I reached the top of the dam, and Mount Wichita came into view, I saw laying on the ground what appeared to be a pile of blankets. And then the blankets moved. Turns out the person you see at the lower right was laying on the blankets.

Why?

I have no idea. It's HOT, like I already mentioned. The guy did not appear to be in sunbathing mode, was in long pants, shirt and cap. A recipe for over heating.

And the ground in this area has a lot of ants marching to and fro, up and down, back and forth. Busy little ants scurrying all over. On the paved trail. On the grass. Everywhere.

Including, I would assume, crawling all over the guy laying on the grass....

Why Not Enter Wichita Bluff Nature Construction Area?

Soon after my move to Wichita Falls, last May, I visited the Texas Travel Information Center to get whatever Wichita Falls info was available.

Among that which I acquired that day was a map of Wichita Falls. That map showed all the Wichita Falls city parks.

Over the following weeks, one by one, I checked out the Wichita Falls city parks.

The last one I checked out was the Wichita Bluff Nature Area. I was more than a little surprised to arrive at the location to find a new parking lot, benches, signage, paved trail and a "DO NOT ENTER CONSTRUCTION AREA" warning blocking the way under the sign you see above.

At that point in time, on that first visit, the fence blocking entry was knocked down, so I walked over it to check out the construction area. Eventually I found a structure and some paved trails. I could see the planned route of the continuation of the Wichita Falls Circle Trail. I was pleased to see this involved some elevation gain, which is a rarity in Wichita Falls, except for Mount Wichita in Lake Wichita Park.

It appeared to me on that first visit to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area that construction was stalled. It did not take much Googling to find out that that was indeed the case. After submitting the lowest bid a Fort Worth contractor was awarded the project. When one accepts a low bid it is always a good idea to carefully check the reputation of the bid winner before awarding the contract.

Evidently the contractor was not checked out before it was too late, and funds had been paid, and work done, with that work having some quality issues. The contractor was fired. The firing happened prior to my move to Wichita Falls.

And now, today, I checked in on the Wichita Bluff Nature Area to find that no construction is taking place in the area one is warned to keep out of due to construction. The only thing I saw that had been constructed since my last visit was an improved keep out barrier.

Way back when I learned about the problems with the Fort Worth contractor that same information source said the city was moving quickly to find a replacement contractor and hoped to have the project completed, if I remember right, by fall of 2016.

Methinks the Wichita Bluff Nature Area will be a great addition to the Circle Trail and will provide a good hiking venue with some actual hill climbing.

I hope whatever is causing the delay gets resolved and that the project does not turn into a Fort Worth style boondoggle that drags one for years.

Litter Free Wichita Falls Walk Around Sikes Lake

Last Friday I blogged a Lady In Turquoise Talks Trash To Me At Sikes Lake after a lady in a turquoise dress asked me about litter floating in and around Sikes Lake.

The lady told me her question was prompted by a photo which showed up on social media with the photo alleging to show a lot of white blobs of litter floating on the area of Sikes Lake you see in this photo I took a few minutes ago.

The social media in question was Facebook, via the Wichita Falls Rants & Raves page.

The poster informed us that the white blobs in the lake were not the Sikes Lakes omnipresent ducks, or geese, that it was floating litter.

As you can see above, some of those aforementioned ducks are busy floating on this same section of the lake which was shown on Facebook.

I told the lady in turquoise I had never seen litter floating in that area of the lake. A barrier across the lake stops any litter floating in from the Sikes Lake creek source from floating to the area of the "lake" you see above.

I also told the lady in turquoise that one of the things I have come to appreciate about Wichita Falls is the fact that I see so little litter, particularly noticeable after having spent way too many years in what may be the Litter Capital of America, Fort Worth.

On the day I talked to the lady in turquoise I eventually did see some litter floating in Sikes Lake, at the far end of the lake, near where the creek flows in, carrying litter with it, after a downpour hours before.

As you can see below, the main body of water which makes up Sikes Lake appears to be litter free today.

A quartet of anglers were fishing at the south end of the lake today, three guys and a girl, all with poles in the water.

I do not know what type fish one might catch in Sikes Lake. I do know that big fish of some variety regularly jump out of the water trying to catch a fly, making a big splash up their return to the lake.

The geese were being particularly aggressive today. But I did not get goosed...