Windy Walk To Lake Wichita With Whitecaps & Fish Tales

I had myself a might fine ultra windy power walk  today, leaning against the incoming gale from my abode to Lake Wichita via the Circle Trail.

I do not recollect seeing whitecaps on waves rolling on Lake Wichita on any previous visit to the lake.

The waves had the bridge to the floating dock swaying so much that the handrails were of use.

And the dock itself reminded me of being on Washington Ferry during a big tidal change.

The dock was rocking so much I asked the fishermen and woman if they needed seasick pills. Only one had something to say to that question, that being the fisherwoman, saying no, that the motion got relaxing after about an hour.

That is the aformentioned fisherwoman you see below.

The fisherwoman reminded me of my Grandma Vera. Grandma liked to fish. Often we'd go up to Lynden to visit Grandma to find a "Gone Fishing" note on the door. We knew Grandma's fishing holes on the Nooksack River, and eventually, usually, were able to find her.

The fisherwoman above is also a grandma. Said she been fishing ever since her granddaddy taught her. Charming lady. Told me all about her kids and grandkids and showed me the cool new fishing pole she'd ordered from TV.

The wind pushed me quickly back to my abode, eventually.

This evening I am expecting to see Elsie Hotpepper at a meeting in the D/FW zone. Trouble is a-brewing in the D/FW zone, with the Hotpepper at Ground Zero, as usual.....

Wichita Falls Wood Memorial Park Tornado Art & Cloud Gatlin Poetry

Yesterday, on my way to ALDI, I rolled my mechanized wheels where they had not been rolled before.

At some point in the rolling I realized I was at the south end of Sikes Lake, with a buffer of homes between Sikes Lake and the road on which I was driving.

As I neared Maplewood Street I came to a park,  which I thought odd, what with this park seeming to be adjacent to the trail around Sikes  Lake, which to me seems like a park, and should maybe be named Sikes Lake Park,

But, I digress.

Let's digress further and back up a few months. Well before I began my Texas exile I was aware that Wichita Falls had been hit by two notorious tornadoes, one in 1964, again in 1979. I clearly remember when the 1979 tornado was a big deal, news-wise, nationally.

A few weeks after my move to Wichita Falls I found myself curious as to where the infamous 1979 tornado hit in Wichita Falls. For some reason I thought it was in the downtown area, a thought reinforced when I explored the downtown Wichita Falls area and saw unusual numbers of vacant lots, some turned into large parking lots. As if at some point in time buildings stood on these empty spaces.

Well, imagine my surprise when I learned the infamous 1979 tornado did its damage a short distance north of my abode. After learning this I wondered if that was the reason for the large, block sized area, grassed and surrounded by fence, at the southwest corner of Taft and Midwestern Boulevards.

I wondered why there was no Texas Historical Marker in the area. I thought, maybe there was, but I just had not seen it. Texas seems to love to stick Historical Markers to mark things that often do not seem all that historic to me.

The F4 Tornado, known to locals as Terrible Tuesday, struck late in the afternoon of April 10, 1979. This was one of 30 some tornadoes which touched down in the Wichita Falls region.

42 people were killed, 1,800 were injured. 20,000 were left homeless. The tornado caused $400 million worth of damage, a record not surpassed until the equally infamous Moore-Oklahoma City tornado of May 3, 1999.

So, back to today.

The park I mentioned earlier is called WOOD MEMORIAL PARK.

What is memorialized in this park?

Well, if you guessed the 1979 Terrible Tuesday tornado, you guessed correctly.

Ever since I began walking around Sikes Lake, months ago, I have noticed the orange thing you see here. I thought it looked like some sort of playground thing, but at the time that made no sense, since I did not know there was a park there.

Today, up close, this looked like a tornado themed work of sculptural art.

In Wood Memorial Park, a short distance from Miller Street, on a grassy knoll overlooking Sikes Lake, there is a small memorial. That is what you see at the top. The memorial has plaques attached to all sides, imparting various bits of information. All of which is hard to read, because, like I said, this is one small memorial.

The side facing east has a list of all who died in the tornado.

On the side facing south there is the following poem....

WOOD MEMORIAL PARK

At Maplewood and Miller Streets
A Memorial Plot Recalls,
Forty-Five Tornado Victims
Who Died in Wichita Falls

It was Chosen for Its Setting
Where the Storm had Vent Its Rage,
And Left the City's Name Impressed
Upon the History Page.

Dedicated to a Couple
Much Acclaimed for Doing Good.
As Pioneers, Philanthropists:
The Beloved Frank and Bea Wood.

And Should One Sapling Wither
Or by Nature be Defaced,
Another One of Stronger Build
Will Quickly Takes Its Place.

So that Future Generations 
Passing By May Stop and See...
Each Lovely Face Reflected
In the Beauty of a Tree

Mrs. R.E. Cloud Gatlin

I like that name, R. E. Cloud Gatlin. Was Mrs. Cloud Gatlin Native American? Or married to a Native American?

I wonder why Wood Memorial Park is not on the directional signage one finds all over Wichita Falls which helpfully directs people  to that which they are looking to find? There isn't even a sign pointing to Wood Memorial Park off heavily traveled Maplewood Street.

Wood Memorial Park has multiple picnic tables, and, as is the norm for Wichita Falls, unlike the Texas town I used to live in, modern restroom facilities.

Washington Wind Storm Reports From Linda & Jason Including Hillary & Batman

Yesterday afternoon, with yesterday being Friday, Little Miss Linda called me from my old home zone of Mount Vernon in the Windy State of Washington.

When I saw an incoming call from Little Miss Linda I figured she was calling to tell me about the Big Blow blowing in from the Pacific.

I figured correctly.

Yesterday's high wind and rain was a prelude to what is expected to happen today.

Forecasters have been comparing the potential of this current storm with the infamous Columbus Day Storm of 1962. That storm was one of the most powerful measured since the days of measuring storms began.

Anemometers, the wind speed detectors, were wiped out in northwestern Oregon and southwest Washington, the location of the strongest wind.

Wiped out before the wind reached maximum velocity.

While I was talking to Little Miss Linda the incoming call indicator indicated an incoming call from Little Miss Linda's neighbor, two blocks distant, with that neighbor being Spencer Jack's dad, my Favorite Nephew Jason.

I assumed Jason was also calling to tell me about the storm. I am technically challenged, phone-wise, so I don't know how to switch from one call to another without losing both. I figured Jason would leave a Voice Mail. But he didn't.

But, later in the day I received an email from Jason with the above photo and the only text telling me "Sent from my iPhone".

Via the photo I could tell Jason was in Seattle. I could tell this because through the wind and rain I could see the marquee of the Paramount Theater behind him. I knew Jason was planning to attend the Hillary Clinton Rally in Seattle. I am assuming this took place in the Paramount.

Above is a screen cap gleaned from the Seattle Times of Hillary's Seattle Rally. I do not see either Spencer Jack or Jason in the picture.

Even though Hillary was in the midst of a potentially historically powerful storm I hope she took some comfort in being in extremely friendly territory, a territory with way fewer Deplorables than my current location.

However, I do know some of the muy estupido ilk in Western Washington who are voting for the Orange Menace. I am embarrassed for them and have no understanding how we could have attended the same schools.

Then again, I do remember all those Washingtom Trumpettes, who I know, as being, well, not top tier students, maybe not even middle tier.

D Students for Donald.

That should be a slogan.

Another screen cap from the Seattle Times.

I do not know where in Puget Sound the above wave is crashing. The caption underneath the photo says "Spray flies over Beach Drive Southwest and douses storm watchers Friday". I do not know where Beach Drive Southwest is.

And then the below, seen yesterday via Skagit Breaking News, on Facebook. I thought this was mildly amusing.

Actually, Robin is asking Batman a perfectly sensible question. Umbrellas are of use in a normal Washington rain. However, to speak Washingtonian Robin should have asked if he should bring a Bumbershoot.

What Batman should have said to Robin, rather than abusing Robin with a slap, would be to tell Robin that Bumbershoots are of no use in hurricane level winds, Unless one is hoping to be able to hold on and be airborne....

TRV Boondoggle Transforms Imaginary Bypass Channel Into A True Promenade

A few minutes ago I heard from Elsie Hotpepper, via text message.

Part of that message made mention of the fact that the TRV was propagandizing about something which had someone usually not prone to such being profanely poetic.

For those who do not know what TRV is, those initials stand for Trinity River Vision, also known as America's Biggest Boondoggle.

The full name of TRV has grown over the decades to TRCCUPIDV.

Or Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision.

Elsie Hotpepper's text message eventually lead me to something I did not know existed, or maybe I did not remember it existed.

A TRV Facebook page.

Click the link and you can experience the propaganda yourself.

Such as that which you see above, which was at the top of today's TRV Facebook page. A congratulations to some entity which had won an award for their work on the London Olympic Park.

The propaganda shows up in the line "They are also the team responsible for transforming our bypass into a true promenade".

What?

Where is this promenade? Prior to the transformation to being a true promenade was this imaginary promenade a false promenade?

Our bypass?

What bypass? All there is is one bridge stalled under construction where a ditch, I mean, bypass, may be dug at some point in the distant future.

And then there was this. A guy appearing to be welding during one of The Boondoggle's construction stalled V Piers. I thought this post on the TRV Facebook page was going to be about the stalled bridge construction. I thought wrong.

The post with the V Piers appearing in the background has nothing to do with The Boondoggle's bridges. It has to do with how to prepare a bid packet with a bang for The Boondoggle's projects. Here I was thinking the Panther Island Bid Opportunities would have something to do with soliciting bids to get those bridge design errors fixed and construction back underway.

And then there was the following doozy. I have blogged multiple times over the decades about The Boondoggle's signage at Gateway Park touting the wonders that would one day appear.

Next time I am in Fort Worth, which is currently scheduled to be in less than two weeks, maybe I will swing by Gateway Park to check on The Boondoggle's upgrade of its propaganda signage. For years this has been a bizarre spectacle to behold.....

Bertha Bores While Fort Worth Bores In A Different Way

This sort of falls into the dormant category of something I read in a west coast online news source which I would not expect to be reading in the online version of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Or the print version of the Star-Telegram.

This time it is, once again, something I read in the Seattle Times.

Well, the obvious thing is that well into the foreseeable future it is unlikely any sort of transit tunnel is going to be bored under Fort Worth's tiny downtown.

While in Seattle a boring lady named Bertha is now well over the halfway mark in tunneling under downtown Seattle, part of a multi-billion dollar project to replace the Seattle waterfront's Alaskan Way Viaduct.

Meanwhile in Fort Worth there is a slow motion public works project known as America's Biggest Boondoggle, or the Trinity River Uptown Central City Panther Island District Vision.

Part of the fuzzy Fort Worth vision is three simple little bridges being built over dry land to connect the Fort Worth mainland to an imaginary island.

Only one of those Fort Worth bridges has begun being constructed, with all three originally scheduled to take four years to build. Longer than many actual complex feats of engineering.

Now I'm getting to the difference between how a public works project is covered by local media in a modern American town and how it is covered in Fort Worth.

From the time Bertha began boring the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) has kept Bertha's progress updated on its website. The Seattle Times continually reports on Bertha's progress, or lack of progress, as does other Pacific Northwest media.

When Bertha ran into an unexpected steel pipe, injuring her, causing about a year repair delay, the ongoing status was reportedly regularly in the Seattle Times and other Washington news sources. WSDOT had and has a live camera giving real time video access to the repair operation and Bertha's progress once she began boring again.

Meanwhile, in Fort Worth, I believe the one and only bridge under construction remains stalled, due to design errors. As far as I know, despite this stall being for over half a year now, the Star-Telegram has not reported on The Boondoggle's latest boondoggle, that being the little bridge not currently being built, which was supposed to take four years to build.

I believe a live cam was installed by The Boondoggle around the time the Roundabout, near the stalled bridge, was being built, along with The Boondoggle's homage to trash cans art installation.

I recollect more than one person joking that what one sees via The Boondoggle's live cam does not seem to change from day to day. As in not much happens.

I suspect with the stalled bridge project maybe the live cam has been turned off.

Then again, no one associated with The Boondoggle has ever given the slightest indication they have any realization of how embarrassingly inept has been the execution of this supposedly vitally needed flood control and economic development project.

So vitally needed that this project is being executed in ultra slow motion, going for some sort of Guinness Book of Records for Longest Construction Project in History. The Boondoggle's boondoggle has already surpassed the construction of the Panama Canal, the Taj Mahal and, well you get the drift.

Anyway, have I missed it somehow? Has anyone read anything in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram about the stalled bridge construction?

Other than the initial article which said construction should resume in about a month......

Tarrant County May Be Ground Zero For America's Largest Election Fraud Investigation

It has seemed sort of obvious something was not right about an election or two or three in Tarrant County. Vote totals that defy all logic and reason.

What is the end game of this type investigation? I have no idea.

Is there a do over with the races where the election was stolen? I have no idea.

Do the actual winners in those races simply replace the fraudulent winners? I have no idea.

Will criminal charges be brought? With trials, convictions and jail time? I have no idea.

We can only hope....

Today I Walked To Learn Jesus Rain Is Running For Nothing In Wichita Falls

For my prescribed Power Walk today I walked the Circle Trail north of my abode til nearly reaching Midwestern Boulevard.

Then exited the Circle Trail to head west through a couple apartment complexes, then circled back south through a Caribbean zone where all the streets are named after Caribbean islands.

Such as Grenada, which was the street on which I headed back east towards the Circle Trail.

Then I took Barbados til I got to Haiti.

All along the Power Walking today I was seeing a lot of political signs.

On Barbados I saw a sign which from a distance I thought a guy named Jesus Rain was running for something. As I got closer I saw that instead of Jesus Rain running for anything the sign was thanking Jesus for the Rain.

Does this sign date back to the end of the Wichita Falls drought over a year ago? Because lately Jesus has been raining down way too much rain on Wichita Falls, resulting in a lot of bad flooding.

Perhaps the sign should be amended to "THANKS JESUS FOR THE RAIN BUT YOU CAN LET UP NOW".

Haiti took me back to the Circle Trail to head south to my abode.

Walking the Caribbean neighborhood was pleasant. Lots of big trees shading me from the sun, which today was seeming almost HOT.

The Caribbean neighborhood has sidewalks.

Sidewalks were a rarity in my former Texas location, a town sadly lacking in many of the modern amenities one associates with modern American towns.

Like corruption free elections.....

Happy Indigenous People's Day From New York City & Spencer Jack On The Today Show

Text message from Spencer Jack's dad this morning when I woke up my phone....

Good morning. I don't know if you're a Today Show fan, but if you watch the first half hour, your Favorite Nephew Spencer Jack is standing right behind Lester Holt.

Well, I have not watched the Today Show for years. That would seem to indicate I am not a fan of the Today Show.  Well, I guess it sort of does indicate I am not a fan. I assume if I were a fan I would be watching the Today Show.

I am so out of touch with the Today Show that until I read this morning's text message from Spencer Jack's dad, I did not realize that Vice-President Debate moderator, Lester Holt, is on the Today Show.

The two Today Shows photos came via email, not via phone. The photos included no explanatory text.

But, I am assuming in the photo at the top Spencer Jack is at One Rockefeller Plaza, looking in on the Today Show set.

The second photo also appears to be at One Rockefeller Plaza, with the throng that looks through the window at the Today Show in progress.

Maybe I am a Today Show fan, without knowing it, what with knowing what I am looking at in these photos without being told what I am looking at.

Monday, October 10 would make this Indigenous People's Day in much of America. Columbus Day in less enlightened locations in America.

Spencer Jack's Big New York City Adventure Starts At Ground Zero

Earlier this second Sunday of October I blogged about a Mysterious Sunday Morning Ferry Boat Ride With Spencer Jack.

The mystery was I was not 100% certain I knew where Spencer Jack was taking his dad on a ferry boat ride.

I speculated the ferry boat was taking Spencer Jack and his dad to see the Statue of Liberty, which indicated they were in New York City.

Follow up emails confirmed my New York City speculation as correct.

The follow up emails were subject lined: FNSJ in NYC and Also FNSJ in NYC.

The first follow up email included eight photos. The second follow up email included one photo.

For blogging documentation purposes I selected four photos from the first email and the one and only one from the second.

First the explanatory text in the first email...

Your uncle speculations of Spencer Jack's Columbus Day weekend trip destination were spot on.

I thought the ugly orange paint on the exterior of the ferry may give a clue as to our location.

We did see Lady Liberty via a ferry, walked across the Brooklyn Bridge, Wall Street, Ground Zero, the Trinity Church and more.

Spencer seemed to be more fascinated with the complex NYC subway system and really intrigued with Macy's flagship store on 34th street's wooden escalators. Really intrigued.

We are off to a visit of Mr. Trump's house now.  I won't let him know of our plans to be at the Hillary rally this Friday back in the Emerald City.

________________________

At the top Spencer Jack and his dad are at Ground Zero. Spencer Jack was born about six years after the 9/11 horror. I wonder how his dad explains what they are looking at. When the I-5 Bridge between Burlington and Mount Vernon partly fell into the river, Spencer Jack refused to cross that type bridge til he got over the worry. After the murders in Burlington's Cascade Mall a couple weeks ago, Spencer Jack's dad thought Spencer would likely be going through a period of refusing to go in malls. So, what is Spencer Jack's reaction to being at the location of a mass murder of around three thousand people?

Next up the aforementioned Macy's wooden escalator steps which intrigued Spencer Jack.

Why would escalator steps be made of wood I can not help but wonder? That must be super hard wood.

And then Spencer Jack walked across the Brooklyn Bridge.

I have no idea what Spencer Jack is gawking at in amazement whilst on the Brooklyn Bridge. He has been on bridges high above water before.

It does not surprise me that Spencer Jack would like riding the New York City subway.

Spencer Jack's dad probably does not remember it, but when Jason was about Spencer Jack's age his favorite uncle took Jason and Spencer Jack's Uncle Joey, to Sea-Tac, to ride the subway that takes you out to a remote terminal. Back pre-9/11 security overkill, you could explore all over the airport without  going through any type of security check.

The text in the second email this afternoon said...

FNSJ and I are scheduled to appear on Today tomorrow am. Will keep you posted.

Seems like when Favorite Nephews Jason and Joey went to New York City, pre the arrival of Spencer Jack, earlier in this century, somehow something happened that had something to do with the Today Show. But, it has been a few years and I have forgotten the details.

I suspect I will be seeing more incoming photos of Spencer Jack's Big Adventure in New York City....

Unable To Launch Canoe While Suspended In Lucy Park Over Flooding Wichita River

For Power Walking purposes today I power steered my motorized transportation device to Lucy Park to walk fast on the paved trail that circles the park and is part of the Circle Trail which circles Wichita Falls.

As you can see, via the photo of the Lucy Park Suspension bridge, the bridge is currently suspended above the Wichita River flowing with a lot more water than what flows in low flow mode.

The man with his dog, which you see on the suspension bridge, was with his wife who wanted to have nothing to do with walking on that bridge as it swayed above the flooding river.

I did not walk by Wichita Falls, but I am sure the falls is still not falling due to the high water causing the falls to be in shut down mode due to what I have learned are mud clogging the pumps issues.

Near the Lucy Park Suspension Bridge there is a sign listing all the attributes one finds in the park, including a canoe launch. A person reading this sign, at the same time as me, asked where is this canoe launch of which the sign speaks, further saying he had never seen such a thing and that he had been all over the park.

I informed this person that as a long time Wichita Falls resident I could lead him to the canoe launch.

About a half mile later we came to the Lucy Park Canoe Launch, currently flooded and not in canoe launch mode, as you can see above.

Months ago, after I blogged about Lucy Park and verbalized wondering how this park came to be named such, an employee of the City of Wichita Falls contacted me and told me she was making a video for the city about Lucy Park. She explained how the park came to be and said there was plaque installed in the park with the short version of why Lucy Park is so named.

Til today I had never come across the Lucy Park plaque whilst walking around the park.

Turns out the Lucy Park plaque is on the north side of the Lucy Park Duck Pond. Today the Duck Pond was free of geese, so I had no getting goosed incidents on this visit.

The plaque tells us that...

THE CITY OF WICHITA FALLS GRATEFULLY ACKNOWLEDGES THE GENEROUS CONTRIBUTION OF LUCY PARK BY FRANCES ANN DICKINSON IN MEMORY OF HER MOTHER LUCY O'NEILL SAUNDERS FOR WHOM THE PARK IS NAMED.

Lucy O'Neill Saunders made a fortune in the oil business, making several lucrative strikes in several lucrative oil fields.