Dallas/Fort Worth Traffic Nightmare Drive By The Infamous House Of Horrors

Today was the day of my almost regular monthly return to the Dallas/Fort Worth/Arlington Metro Mess.

Until today this monthly return habit had not seen any traffic woe that was too woeful.

All went well on the way into D/FW this morning. Traffic was stalled on I-35 south, but that did not impact my movement due to quickly exiting I-35 south after its juncture with 287 and that juncture  having a convenient exit only lane which leads to Western Center Boulevard, and no traffic problems.

Eventually I made my way to Hurst where I was scheduled to drop of an item, then continue south to Arlington. In Arlington I went to Chinatown, to Saigon Cho Market, then headed back north, stopping at the world's only Walmart which also serves as a shrine to football  and baseball, with multiple footballs and  baseballs stuck all over the Walmart structures.

This particular Walmart  is due north of the gigantic monument to futuristic spaceships, also known as the Dallas Cowboy Stadium, or AT & T Stadium, because that phone company paid a chunk of money to tackily stick its name on the stadium which the people of Arlington largely paid for, in more ways than one.

This Walmart is due west of the place where the Texas Rangers play baseball. I do not remember what that Ballpark is currently called. The name seems to change frequently. When I first saw this Ballpark and attended part of a baseball game there, watching the Seattle Mariners get beat by the Rangers, the Ballpark was called the Ballpark in Arlington. This seemed, to me, to be a good name. But that name did not stick.

The former Ballpark in Arlington is about to be replaced by a shiny new ballpark.  I hope this shiny new ballpark does not take its design aesthetic from the nearby football stadium.

Eventually I headed back north, to pick up something I'd left in Hurst, then headed to East Fort Worth to visit a bank, then to Haltom City to visit a building under construction. After a short stop at Winco in North Richland Hills it was time to aim my steering wheel back towards Wichita Falls.

And that is when the traffic woes took over. My usual problem free route is to go west on Western Center Boulevard, then take a right on the I-35 north frontage road, then soon painlessly enter 287 and sail free and easy back northwest to Wichita Falls.

But, today the entry to 287 was not working. This soon had me in a long line trying to take a left on to Tarrant Parkway, to head west to 287. Except that traffic was moving turtle slow due to the dud of a roundabout about a mile distant, where Harmon Road intersects with the entry to 287.

I escaped that nightmare by driving through a mall's parking lot, eventually getting to Harmon Road. I knew Harmon Road. When I moved to Texas it was to a little ranch on what was then Hicks Road, now named Bonds Ranch Road. Harmon Road intersects with Bonds Ranch Road.

Which would have worked great except for the fact that hundreds upon hundreds of vehicles were trying  to go the same route, trying to escape the previous traffic jam.

When I finally turned on to Bonds Ranch Road I saw the traffic was backed up all the way to 287. I was now in an area I was familiar with, so I knew the backroads. But, the backroad that I needed to take took me by that aforementioned little ranch I originally lived at when I moved to Texas. A location I long ago vowed to never return to, a place which those who experienced it now refer to as the House of Horrors.

So, I took a right right by the east pasture of the House of Horrors, eventually made my way to Avon-Haslet Road and then to 287 for a traffic jam free remainder of the drive home.

Before my next visit to D/FW I must figure out an alternative to that which I experienced today...

Does Something In The Water Stupify Too Many Fort Worth Voters?

Way back last year, on October 18, I blogged about what was supposedly the biggest election fraud investigation in Texas history.

One of the instances of alleged election fraud was the allegedly fraudulent re-election of TRWD Board Directors, Jim Lane and Marty Leonard, beneficiaries of a statistically impossible number of absentee ballots.

Jim Lane and Marty Leonard are what are known as insiders, part of the Fort Worth Political Machine which runs Fort Worth in what is known as the Fort Worth Way.

Fort Worth's Political Machine is not well known, unlike other town's political machines, such as the Chicago Political Machine, the corrupt shenanigans of which sort of ebbs and flows. I do not know if currently a Daley family member is in charge of the Chicago Machine.

One of the all time most famous political machines was known as Tammany Hall. Tammany Hall, in its heyday, controlled New York, both the city and the state.

Another famous political machine was the one run by Huey Long in Louisiana.

I do not know who is the head of the Fort Worth Political Machine.

Is it Kay Granger?

Fort Worth's Political Machine is a rather low rent version of the genre, so Kay Granger being its Godmother would seem likely. One piece of evidence pointing to Kay Granger as the Fort Worth Machine's Godmother is when Betsy Price was asked why she was running to be Fort Worth's Mayor, Betsy infamously replied, "Because Kay asked me to..."

Another piece of evidence pointing to Kay Granger being the Fort Worth Political Machine's boss is she was able to finagle getting her son, J.D., the job of running a Fort Worth public works project for which he had zero qualifications.

J.D. was given that job with the quid pro quo being J.D.'s mom would then finagle federal money to funnel to J.D.'s public works project, known as the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision, which, after many many years of J.D.'s inept mis-management, has evolved into being known as America's Biggest Boondoggle.

Currently stuck for well over a year trying to figure out how to build three simple bridges over dry land to connect Fort Worth's  mainland to an imaginary island.

The Fort Worth Political Machine came to mind today when I noticed a blog comment I had not noticed previously, and on which I had not hit the publish button til today. This comment was from someone with the odd lower case name of moncorpl....

moncorp1 has left a new comment on your post "Evidence Corrupt Tarrant County Political Machine Steals Elections":

Kelleher was no saint either. She was in the hip pocket of Marty Bennett of Dallas. 

Mary Kelleher is the former TRWD Board Director who beat the Fort Worth Political Machine, to become a TRWD Board Director two TRWD Board elections ago.

Mary Kelleher getting elected was a threatening anomaly the Fort Worth Political Machine could not let happen again, allowing some upstart to beat the Fort Worth Political Machine's chosen candidates.

And so, in the TRWD Board Election two years after Mary Kelleher's upset win, the Fort Worth Political Machine went into overdrive, spending a ridiculous amount of money spewing out a ridiculous volume of propaganda misinformation attacking the non Fort Worth Machine candidates, Craig Bickley and Miki Von Luckner, accusing the pair of upstarts of being  tools of an evil Dallas bogeyman who the Fort Worth Political Machine propagandized was trying to take control of Fort Worth's water.

Yes, I realize you reading this in other parts of America are thinking to yourself are Fort Worth voters actually this stupid that they would fall for such a ridiculous imaginary bogeyman ploy.

Well, the sad truth is they are that easily duped. That and not enough voters vote.

Or are allowed to vote in the TRWD Board Elections.

And the Fort Worth Political Machine will to go to absurdly extreme measures, in addition to propaganda lies, to insure their desired outcome, hence the biggest Election Fraud Investigation in Texas history, triggered by that aforementioned statistically impossible number of absentee ballots which re-elected Jim Lane and Marty Leonard.

Because Fort Worth is run by a corrupt Political Machine, in the ensuing two plus years since their bogus re-election there have been no demands that Jim Lane and Marty Leonard resign from their ill gotten TRWD board seats.

Because that is not the Fort Worth Way. That and until an intervening out of town political force intervenes, the Fort Worth Political Machine is in full corrupt control.

Back to that comment from moncorpl. Such a comment is indicative of the insidiousness of the Fort Worth Political Machine's manipulation of easily duped sheep. Moncorpl apparently bought into the propaganda that Mary Kelleher was a bad person, somehow under the control of that imaginary Dallas bogeyman out to steal Fort Worth's water, Monty Bennett.

Yes, moncorpl, it's Monty, not Marty. One would have thought the reams of propaganda spewed by the Fort Worth Political Machine would have correctly implanted Monty into moncorpl's memory.

In the most recent TRWD Board Election the Fort Worth Political Machine did not dare to use the same tactic which re-elected Jim Lane and Marty Leonard. In this most recent TRWD Board Election we saw a HUGE drop in the number of absentee ballots, yet there was still an inexplicable anomaly.

Moncorpl fell for the propaganda that Mary Kelleher was in Monty Bennett's hip pocket.

Mary Kelleher's campaign received, from Bennett, what amounted to a small pittance, compared to the thousands of dollars the Fort Worth Political Machine received from Dallas donors to pay for the propaganda which led to Mary Kelleher's defeat and the election of the Fort Worth Political Machine's candidates, Jack Stevens, James Hill and Leah King, giving the Fort Worth Machine total control of the TRWD Board.

I am always an optimist. I think the days of the Fort Worth Political Machine's corruption are near their end, that the Fort Worth Way will soon be going the way of Tammany Hall and Huey Long.

I am always an optimist. But I am also frequently disappointed....

Sunday Fresh Air Wichita Falls Caribbean Bedrock Walk With Flintstones

On this mighty fine next to last Sunday of May I decided to imbibe in enjoying the freshly cleaned atmosphere which is hovering about at my location on the planet.

In the past couple days that aforementioned atmosphere  has been washed and blown clean of airborne pollutants, such as pollen.

With multiple strikes of lightning providing further cleanup via shocking the air with multiple zaps of negative ions.

To benefit from those negative ions I opted to head north to the Caribbean on my neighborhood Circle Trail. At the point where I took the above picture we are looking north across bedrock at a Flintstone car following a Weeks Park course on the east side of Holliday Creek.

I ambled along the Circle Trail til I got to Haiti, then headed west on Haiti til I got to Barbados, then headed back south to my abode.

I am now feeling fully benefited by the extreme dose of negative ions and super clean air.

I do not miss the air I used to breathe in what local savant, Don Young, years ago, nicknamed Dirty Town. I no longer suffer the allergy woes I suffered whilst breathing that dirty air in Dirty Town.

I am currently scheduled to return to the D/FW zone on Wednesday. Part of that return will be a short time in East Dirty Town, a short time I hope to make sure is short enough so as not to activate those currently dormant  allergies....

Saturday At Dry Lake Wichita Falls Not Catching Crappie Catfish

Rain in copious amounts fell on my location  the past couple days, in amounts so copious at times I was pretty much surrounded by a moat.

I figured what with all that copious rain Lake Wichita would be in full pool mode with water spilling over the Lake Wichita Dam spillway in amounts so copious that a virtual Niagara-like roaring falls would be seen and heard today.

I figured wrong.

The lake needs to raise another foot, or so, before it even gets close to trickling over the dam.

Copious amounts of rain apparently selectively downpoured during the recent storms, with some areas apparently avoiding getting drenched, hence the dry Lake Wichita Dam falls.

I sure like that copious word.

What with the respite from lightning strikes, and some areas getting way too wet, a lot of people were at Lake Wichita Dam on this fine Saturday in May, enjoying the near perfect temperature, and the outer world  being dry.

The  Lake Wichita floating fishing dock had a lot of fishermen and fisherwomen fishing today. Along with more fishers fishing from the shore.

It has been awhile since I have climbed  to the summit of Mount Wichita, that volcano looking mound you see on the opposite side of the lake. I did not see any mountain climbers climbing the mountain today. Usually from today's vantage point I do see mountain climbers. I suspect that those aforementioned copious amounts of rain must have targeted the area's only mountain, rendering it too muddy for climbing.

A closer look at the fishing line casters.  I have frequently seen people fishing at this location. I have never seen anyone catch a fish.

I have never been a fan of fishing. I have long been a fan of eating fish. But not the type fish which call Lake Wichita home. Fish like catfish. And crappie. Who would want to eat a fish called crappie?

Relative Arizona Check From Spencer Jack's Dad

Yesterday I mentioned my Favorite Nephew Jason took a Look At A Snowy Mountain On Way To Check Aging Arizona Relatives.

Today I got a report on Jason's aging Arizona relatives check...

Photo after your dad's daily morning physical therapy session. Not photographed, by choice, is your mother, who arrived via middle sister taxi. The taxi driver is also not pictured, as she is the photographer.

We left shortly after noon when your dad's pot roast lunch arrived, and your mother insisted he eat the food while it was hot.

I most likely will check back in again tomorrow to see the pair.

I have been informed that your younger sister is arriving this afternoon.

Overall, your Pa seems to be where he needs to be, and appears to be in excellent care.

_________________

A few minutes ago I blogged about a Call From Rabbi Linda. In that blogging I did not mention the first thing Rabbi Linda asked me about, before asking about today's storm, was to ask how my dad was doing. I told Rabbi Linda I'd received a photo documented  report from Jason, which I might get around to blogging about later.

Later is, apparently, now.

Call From Rabbi Linda Calmed Today's Texas Storm For A Few Minutes

Sometime near the noon time frame my phone rang with an incoming call from my favorite Rabbi, Miss Linda Ann.

Soon upon establishing our phone connection Rabbi Linda asked if the storm was being real bad.

How could Rabbi Linda know I am being pummeled by lightning strikes and balls of hail, I thought to myself, and then asked Rabbi Linda if our storm was on the news.

No, was the reply from Rabbi Linda, I read about it on your blog.

Oh.

I'd forgotten I'd made mention of today's hellacious storm this morning regarding Wichita Falls Rocking & Rolling With Icy Striking Lightning Booms.

When Rabbi Linda called today's storm was at its worst, up to that point. Bolts of lightning bolting near and far, left and right. Loud booms. Off and on downpours.

And then during the course of talking to my favorite Rabbi the storm seemed to abate, significantly ratcheting down, almost calm, but with the sky still dark and threatening.

But, I was not soon off the phone with Rabbi Linda when the storm amped up again with the return of lightning bolts and the heaviest downpour, so far, in this storm.

Coming up on the late afternoon part of the day the rain ceased, at least for awhile.  I decided to try and make my way through the flood to see if Holliday Creek was in raging torrent mode.

I sort of expected to hear the roaring of rapids. But when Holliday Creek came into view I could see it was moving more water than the norm, but nowhere near being in Colorado River rampaging through Grand Canyon mode.

In the photo above you are looking north at a menacing sky hovering above the aforementioned, less sedate than normal, Holliday Creek.

To the west I am currently seeing a dark wall of clouds. I suspect that wall will be bringing the next storm wave. So far, I have heard no tornado sirens...

Wichita Falls Rock & Roll With Icy Striking Lightning Booms

What you are looking at here is the stormy Friday May morning view north via one of my living room windows.

Yesterday, by the time the sun exited, Mother Nature started up with one of her light shows, along loud sound effects and water and ice displays.

She calmed down a bit after a few hours, and remained calm until the sun decided to return this morning.

And now lightning bolts are striking in any direction I look. One just flashed and momentarily blinded me, followed by an earthquake-like shaking roll of thunder.

The wind is whistling, pounding rain against the windows, along with what sounds like occasional small pellets of hail.

So far I have heard no tornado sirens.

I suspect I will not be venturing outside today, unless, maybe, via a quick dash to a vehicular interior under cover of an umbrella....

Look At A Snowy Mountain On Way To Check Aging Arizona Relatives

You are looking out a window here at something I do not see out of any of the windows I look out of at my current location.

The closest such thing to my current location is Mount Wichita, about 3 miles to my southwest.

So, what is this fluffy mound of white we are looking at here?

The text accompanying the photo is explanatory...

Attached photos taken this evening of a snowy Mount Rainier and Glen Canyon Dam with Lake Powell in the distance. I am currently in the Phoenix zone for a couple nights. Tomorrow's plans may include a welfare check on aging relatives who reside in Arizona year round.

The emailed photos are from Spencer Jack's dad, my favorite nephew, Jason.

The last time I saw Mount Rainier out of a window was way back in 2008, on July 20 and August 20 of that year, coming and going from the Puget Sound zone. Since my last look at Mount Rainier was in summer, it was not quite as white as Jason's view from yesterday.

If I remember right the last time I saw Lake Powell was in October of 1997. The last time I saw Glen Canyon Dam and the section of Lake Powell we see in Jason's photo was back in October of 1994, which was the first time I Houseboated on Lake Powell, from much further east, launching from Bullfrog Basin, floating as far west as Rainbow Bridge, before careening down the Moki Dugway on the way to the San Juan Inn in Mexican Hat and Monument Valley.

The aging Arizona relatives who live in Arizona year round, on whom Jason may do a welfare check, would be Spencer Jack's grandpa, who is also Jason's dad, and my brother, plus Spencer Jack's great grandma and grandpa, who also are Jason's grandma and grandpa and my mom and dad.

I assume Jason conveniently flew south from Bellingham International Airport. This airport has full sized commercial jets operated by entities such as Alaskan Airlines flying out of town. Bellingham is about 30 miles north of Mount Vernon.

Bellingham is a smaller town than the Texas town I currently live in. Bellingham is way closer to Vancouver, B.C. and Seattle, Washington than Wichita Falls is to Dallas/Fort Worth, Oklahoma City or Amarilla.

But, Wichita Falls does not have an International Airport with full sized commercial jets operated by entities like Alaskan Airlines. Not even Texas-based Southwest Airlines operates out of this town.

This town's lack of a real airport perplexes me. When I moved here such a primitive possibility did not occur to me. American Airlines is the only commercial airline way out of this town. And that is via an American Airlines off shoot called American Eagle, which flies you to D/FW International Airport, where you then get on an American Airlines plane to get to where you want to go.

I am eagerly awaiting Jason's report on the welfare check on his aging relatives...

Midnight Thunderstorm Followed By Texas Flintstones This Morning

Last night, at some point around the midnight time frame, bright flashes of light began to disturb my peaceful slumber.

Thinking the bright flashes of light might be an un-predicted thunderstorm I removed the earplugs which I use to block any annoying noises and soon heard booms of thunder rolling in from the distance.

Ironically I do not like unwanted annoying noises, yet I find the sounds of a storm to be soothing.

Soon I was soothed by thunder booming quite close to home, along with rain pounding my windows, with hail in the mix. And then the wind arrived.

I anticipated hearing the tornado sirens, but that sound did not join the cacophony.

I do not know how long last night's storm lasted. I must have passed out during the storm, hence not knowing how long it lasted. By morning a totally blue sky had arrived and the only reminder of last night's storm was puddles of water. That and my patio furniture was still wet when I sat outside to enjoy my morning coffee libation.

About 12 hours after the arrival of last night's storm I left my abode to inspect the damage and to see if Holliday Creek had been turned into a raging torrent.

Upon Holliday Creek coming into view I quickly saw the water was not moving in raging torrent mode. Looking to the east side of the Holliday Creek Gorge I saw that which you see above.

What looked to be vehicles of the Flintstone sort motoring on the expanse of green grass which extends for what seems to be miles on the side of Holliday Creek opposite the Wichita Falls Circle Trail. The Flintstone cars motor for a short distance and then the Fred and Barneys driving the Flintstone cars stop, get out of their cars, swing a stick, and then start driving again. It seems to be a primitive stone age type behavior to my modern era eyes.

Last night's wicked storm was not predicted. However severe storms are on the prediction menu for the next several days.  More often than not the predicted storms do not seem to arrive as predicted at my current location.

I suspect that will not be the case this time, so I am prepared to batten down the hatches on a moment's, or a  tornado siren's, notice....                    

Anonymous TRWD Voting Revelations Outside Fort Worth's Narrow Confines

A few days ago I mentioned being surprised to learn that I was among the few allowed to vote in a TRWD Board of Directors Election because I was a Stakeholding TRWD Founder.

I learned this via a Facebook posting where multiple people verbalized their puzzlement regarding being a Tarrant County voter, yet not allowed to vote in a Tarrant Regional Water District Board of Directors Election.

I blogged about this puzzlement which then had someone with the extremely common name of Anonymous making a perplexing comment....

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Apparently I Got To Vote Because I Am A Stakeholding TRWD Founder":

You write--; "It seems outrageous, and wrong, to me, that all the Texans affected by the TRWD are not included in who votes for the TRWD. Such as people who live in Haltom City..."

Here's a link to the most recent election for members to the TRWD board of directors. It lists 130 election precincts with early voting at 51 of them as well as voting by mail. On page 21 it lists polling location #32 in >>Haltom City.<< Other polling places far outside the confines of FW (Keller, Mansfield, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Euless, Watauga....even Westlake (Alliance Airport area).

Can you explain why these polling places exist if the people there are denied the right to vote? What am I missing? 

__________________

The link to which Anonymous refers goes to a long Full Legal Notice of Election PDF, signed off by ex-TRWD President, Vic W. Henderson and TRWD Secretary, Martha V. Leonard.

I had no idea that elected TRWD Board Director, Marty Leonard, was also a TRWD Secretary. No wonder she finagled with Jim Lane to secure thousands of bogus absentee ballots to ensure she kept her secretary job.

As for the question from Anonymous. I am assuming that this document Anon ymous cited is listing all the voting precincts in Tarrant County, as in all the voting precincts. I could not make it through all 21 pages but I did look closely at page 21, to which Anonymous referred. That page appears to be listing Early Voting locations for Tarrant County.

It has been a rather large big issue that the voters of Haltom City do not get to vote on who sits on the TRWD Board, with Haltom City voters annoyed at this exclusion because their town has seen dire consequences resulting from inept TRWD mismanagement of deadly Haltom City flood control issues.

Let's ask a question of two of Haltom City's most vocal critics of the TRWD's shenanigans, Elsie Hotpepper and Layla Caraway. Why did you ladies not know that all along you could have been voting in the TRWD Board Elections, even though you are registered to vote in Haltom City?

Let's ask former TRWD Board Director, Mary Kelleher, if she knew she could have done some campaigning for votes in Haltom City, Keller, Mansfield, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Euless, Watauga....and even the Westlake (Alliance Airport area)?