Visiting Haltom City's Elsie The Cow Where Dreams Come True

Yes, as you can clearly see via the photo documentation, today I found myself at that place "WHERE DREAMS COME TRUE".

Haltom City.

Well, at Fuel City in Haltom City.

At this location one finds a couple buffalo, a couple longhorn, and one beast which looks like a zebra losing its stripes.

Someone told me that the biggest of the longhorns was named Elsie the Cow as some sort of homage to Haltom City native, Elsie Hotpepper.

I find that a bit hard to believe. It would seem more likely one of the buffalo would be named after Elsie.

Then again, when I called out the name "Elsie" the big longhorned wonder you see above responded, lifting its horns in a proud photo posing stance which seems quite reminiscent of Elsie Hotpepper in one of her patented selfie posing modes.

There is talk lately of me moving out of Texas, heading west. I am conflicted. I enjoy my monthly returns to the DFW zone. Among other things I do in Texas...

Elsie Hotpepper Caught Shamelessly Taking Forbidden Sikes Lake Selfies

A couple days ago Elsie Hotpepper's appointment secretary made contact to arrange a meeting this weekend whilst the Hotpepper was in Wichita Falls for some Hi Jinks involving a Silver Dollar Saloon and a stage once performed on by Elvis.

After some negotiating it was arranged to meet Elsie Hotpepper at a bench on the Sikes Lake paved trail at the north end of the signature bridge at the west end of the lake.

Elsie Hotpepper agreed to come alone, without her entourage and that she would take no photos, no selfies, no nothing of the take a photo type thing.

The no photo clause was inserted due to previous incidents where Elsie Hotpepper took stealth photos, unbeknownst to those photographed, with those photos then showing up in various venues, such as Facebook, Twitter, Dallas Observer, Fox News, and other such spots.

So, today, whilst on that aforementioned Sikes Lake signature bridge, Elsie Hotpepper whipped out her phone and took a photo before prevention measures could be taken. When chastised for this breech of photo protocol Elsie claimed she was just taking a selife of herself with Sikes Lake in the background.

And then, a few minutes ago the photo Elsie took began to show up on various social media, where it was quickly clear Elsie had surreptitiously taken a forbidden photo, using her sunglassess as reflective mirror.

Dastardly.

And people still wonder why there are people who insist you just can not trust Elsie Hotpepper.

Warm Saturday Spring Lake Wichita Wheel Rolling Looking For Saloon Hopping Hotpepper

The first Saturday Spring day of 2018 brought temperatures ranging between 70 and 80 at my location way north of being deep in the heart of Texas.

Meanwhile I have had multiple reports from my old Washington home zone of people waking up this morning to look out their windows to see snow had rendered the landscape white.

With a clear blue sky and semi-balmy temperatures, and no chance of snow, I joined the throngs on the Wichita Falls Circle Trail today, rolling my wheels to Lake Wichita, across the dam, and then around Mount Wichita, which you see hovering above on the west side of the lake.

Today I found myself dodging multiple roller bladers and skateboarders. I do not recollect such previously happening on the Circle Trail. I had sort of figured those two means of fun conveyance had somehow never arrived at this location on the planet.

I have been getting reports Elsie Hotpepper is about to arrive in town. Tonight the Hotpepper is expected to be doing some of her patented saloon hopping, starting with the Iron Horse Saloon in downtown Wichita Falls. If I am understanding correctly libation fortification is needed by Elsie Hotpepper and her entourage prior to seeing some Hicks.

Are the Hicks Hotpepper relatives? I have no idea.

I have tentatively agreed to meet Elsie Hotpepper Sunday morning at a specific bench location located on one of the Wichita Falls urban lakes. Specific conditions have been agreed to for this meeting, including a zero tolerance of selfie photos...

Challenging Qualifications Of Granger Gang Boondogglers

Recently we blogged about Congresswoman Kay Granger's eldest son, J.D., being the worst project manager in history.

Regarding that blogging former Fort Worth City Councilman, Clyde Picht made the following comment about Kay's son...

Landslide has left a new comment on your post "J.D. Granger: Worst Project Manager In The History Of Ever...":

Shortly after the tier 4 law school graduate and assistant district attorney, JD Granger, was hired to mastermind the TRV Central City Project, Rich Conner wrote an editorial in the FW Business Press. Conner challenged the qualifications of Granger and wondering what TRWD's Jim Oliver apparently knew that no one else knew. Well yes, we all knew that JD was connected via mum to the federal treasury. Now we know more about Mr Creativity. He helped create a now defunct water board park, drive-in movie (status unknown), ice rink, and a Tim Love restaurant on the Trinity where JD probably gets a free feed bag.

After I decided to turn Clyde Picht's comment into another blogging I Googled for a Clyde Picht image for illustrative purposes.

Well.

Multiple image instances of Clyde Picht showing up on this very blog you are reading right now showed up, including the two images you see here, above and below.

America's Biggest Boondoggle has been boondoggling along for so long one forgets how many times and in how many ways the Boondoggle has been the subject of derision and discussion.

And still J.D. Granger keeps his job, after year after year after year of incompetent boondoggling, getting a big annual raise, along with multiple perks, currently with his annual salary almost $200,000.

Appalling.

I'm not sure, but I think the Clyde Picht when it squeals like a pig it's pork blurb you see above was the illustrative image in Fort Worth's Clyde Picht On America's Biggest Boondoggle.

Is there any chance Fort Worth's voters will do the right thing and boot Kay Granger from Congress? I suspect not. Fort Worth really does not have much experience with doing the right thing...

Biking To See The Elsie Hotpepper Homewood Hotel Saturday Penthouse Location

That is my bike you are looking here, looking at what my bike was looking at about an hour ago.

Location? The Sikes Lake Trail.

What are we looking at? The Hilton Homewood Suites building.

Why are we looking at this?

Well.

Earlier today a semi-reliable source informed us that on Saturday the Elsie Hotpepper entourage is expected to be taking up residence in the penthouse of the Homewood Suites, with a view overlooking beautiful Sikes Lake. I do not know if the Homewood Suites penthouse is high enough to afford a view north of the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Wichita Falls.

I also do not know why, of the dozens of hotel locations in Wichita Falls, Elsie Hotpepper chose to stay in the one closest to my abode. I do not know how Elsie Hotpepper could possibly know the location of my abode, since that information is classified on a need to know basis.

I am looking forward to trying to see Elsie Hotpepper on Saturday, if I make it back from Oklahoma in time....

No Mount Wichita Bike Ride Prior To Wichita Mountain Excursion

Finally, day two of this latest iteration of Spring brings a day warm enough to allow a comfortable bike ride attired minimally.

A lot of people were out and about today, biking, walking, jogging, blading and sitting on the Circle Trail, fishing on Lake Wichita, climbing Mount Wichita and dog chasing in the Lake Wichita Park dog park.

Looking at this picture you are probably thinking I am about to ride the bike to the summit of Mount Wichita.

Doing such a thing looks doable, but in reality, I don't think doing such is doable, unless one is some sort of stunt bike rider.

Saturday I am currently scheduled to go up to Oklahoma, to Medicine Lake and the Wichita Mountains, where mountain hiking, and, I think, mountain biking takes place.

But, earlier today I learned from Elsie Hotpepper that she expects to see me on Saturday. I do not know how I am going to resolve such a scheduling conflict. Elsie Hotpepper did not inform me as to what time she is expecting to make a Wichita Falls appearance. Perhaps this will occur after I am back south of the Red River.

On another perplexing note. This morning I got a confusing Facebook message that appeared to not be directly directed to me, with one person telling another person that this Facebook message to me should be enough of a contact to facilitate engaging in brainstorming to take down Kay.

Take down Kay?

Are we talking about the notorious Fort Worth congresswoman? I think it would certainly be to Fort Worth's benefit to replace Kay Granger with someone more attuned to listening and effectively doing, but I have no clue how to go about doing such a thing.

Facts, logic and common sense do not hold much sway where things are done the Fort Worth Way.

That sounds like a campaign slogan....

First Day Of Spring Chilly Biking Over Wichita Falls Urban Lake Via Sikes Signature Bridge

The previous couple days cold temperatures and strong winds, sometimes both at the same time, have made rolling my bike wheels to be not a fun thing to want to be doing.

And so I haven't. Til today.

It seems warmer days keep being predicted, but when those predicted warm days arrive a chill from the north holds the heat back.

Currently the temperature at my location is predicted to reach into the realm of 90 degrees on Friday. I expect by the arrival of that day reality won't have me turning on the A/C for the first time this year.

Today, even though the temperature was only somewhere in the 50s, and a wind was blowing from the north, I managed to have myself a mighty fine bike ride, rolling my wheels north on the Circle Trail to Hamilton Park, then southwest to MSU, then to Sikes Lake, which is where you see my bike parked above.

Parked on one of the signature bridges which cross Sikes Lake, which is one of Wichita Falls urban lakes.

I learned via the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and the other propagandists for America's Biggest Boondoggle, that it's the thing to do to call a perfectly simple bridge a "signature" bridge. And any lake in your city limits an "urban" lake. So as not to confuse simpletons who might think a lake in your town was a "rural" lake.

In the picture above of my bike parked on that simple "signature" bridge, you can see my cell phone in its handy new holder. So convenient whilst one is rolling along and the phone makes its incoming call noise. I can easily see who I don't want to talk to. And the time. Convenient.

Today is the first day of Spring. This would seem to mean that reliable warm weather will soon arrive and this needing layers of outerwear to keep warm whilst outdoors will come to an end for a few months.

I hope...

Windy Look At The New Lake Wichita Spillway Mural

A long bike ride around Lake Wichita was planned for today in the noon time frame.

Yesterday's long bike ride in the noon time frame was cancelled due to rain.

Today's long bike ride in the noon time frame was not cancelled due to rain.

Today's long bike ride in the noon time frame was cancelled due to dangerously strong wind gusts blustering in from the northwest.

So, rather than bike to Lake Wichita I rolled my motorized transport to Lake Wichita, to the dam location on the lake. I'd been wanting to be at this location ever since I read that the painting of the dam spillway mural had been underway.

That is the aforementioned dam spillway mural you see below. Above you are turned around, looking the other direction from the dam spillway view, looking north at the Circle Trail on top of Lake Wichita Dam. In the distance you can see Mount Wichita sticking up like a little bump on the horizon.

I don't know if this is the finished product, or not. What I do know is these murals appearing all over Wichita Falls are a good thing, and this dam spillway mural is my favorite I've seen so far.

There is one perplexing visual element in the new mural. Can you spot it?

Maybe the above view of Lake Wichita, from the Lake Wichita floating dock perspective might clue you as to the perplexing visual element in the mural.

Give up?

Well, notice Mount Wichita in the above photo?

The one and only mountain to be seen, anywhere on the horizon.

But, the dam spillway mural shows what looks to be a range of mountains in the background. Maybe the mural artist was anticipating the range of mountains which may join Mount Wichita when, or if, Lake Wichita ever gets dredged as part of the Lake Wichita Revitalization Project.

Above we are looking the opposite direction from the looking at Mount Wichita view. Here we are looking south at the remains of the Lake Wichita Pavilion. There are plans afoot to possibly build some sort of new pavilion, as part of the Lake Wichita Revitalization Project, that being a project which seems to be in need of some revitalizing itself.

Below is a windy video I took whilst rocking and rolling on the above deck. Most of my pithy commentary is drowned out by the wind, but the video gives you a good panoramic view of Lake Wichita...

J.D. Granger: Worst Project Manager In The History Of Ever

J.D Granger's Liquid Brain Candy

Fort Worth's J.D. Granger problem has grown tiresome.

And perplexing.

How has something so absurd gone on so long with no intervention from any overseeing entity of some sort?

The Justice Department? The FBI?

Adults?

A recent blogging, well, from a few days ago, about yet one more instance of J.D. Granger exposing himself as a clueless moron who should not be in charge of anything requiring any level of cognitive competence, generated the following interesting comment from a frequent comment maker....

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "The Real Work Begins To Sink Panther Island & J.D. Granger...": 

A local eatery used to serve mother and son on a regular basis until one Sunday, the owner dared to express his opinion on the facts that the project was never put to a vote, and the abuse of the eminent domain process to acquire the land for the project. There was no constructive exchange of ideas or brain candy. The Granger team simply never returned. They seem to prefer the company of the less well informed and those who also have their snout in the trough. 

If you have not yet read the Fort Worth Magazine interview with J.D. Granger in which he talks about how he ingests brain candy, as in ideas and input, from all the little people he talks to in bars, restaurants and whilst floating incognito on the Trinity River, you really need to read what Kay Granger's boy had to say about what he has so proudly done to Fort Worth via being the inept unqualified executive director project manager of what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle.

An interesting comment appeared on the Facebook post about working to sink Panther Island & J.D. Granger...

 "JD is literally, LITERALLY, the worst project manager in the history of ever".

There is no Wikipedia article about J.D. Granger. But there is a Wikipedia article about J.D.'s mother, Kay. That article does include a paragraph in which her son is referred to...

During her tenure, Granger has supported more than $50 million in earmarks to infrastructure projects in Fort Worth that benefited the Trinity River Vision Authority, an organization headed by her son.

Last month the Fort Worth Star-Telegram editorially opined it was time for straight talk about that which has become America's Biggest Boondoggle. That request for straight talk resulted in a few blog posts on the subject, starting with Panther Island Straight Talk Per Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Request.

Now for some more straight talk. This time specifically about the problem with the worst project manager ever, J.D. Granger.

The Tarrant Regional Water District is the public agency overseeing what is known as the Trinity River Vision Authority. Years ago the general manager of the TRWD, Jim Oliver, announced that an assistant Tarrant County district attorney, J.D. Granger, had been hired as the executive director of the Trinity River Vision Authority.

At the time, Jim Oliver said J.D. Granger was hired because "it was the right thing to do."

There is no record of anyone, such as a local newspaper, asking Jim Oliver why he thought hiring J.D. Granger for this job, for which he had zero qualifications or experience, was the right thing to do.

What with the TRWD being a public agency why were normal hiring processes not followed, processes where qualified candidates apply for a job for which they have been trained and in which they have had experience?

So, why was hiring someone like J.D. Granger the right thing to do?

People who have paid attention to this scandal know J.D. Granger was hired so as to motivate his mother, Congresswoman Kay Granger, to secure federal pork barrel earmark dollars to help pay for this public works project for which the public has never been allowed to vote.

Those federal dollars have slowly trickled into Fort Worth, hence the slow motion progress of what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle.

Why do the people of Fort Worth, and the town's only newspaper of record, turn a blind eye to outrageously corrupt nepotism, particularly when the beneficiary of that nepotism is so obviously not able to do the job for which he was hired, and for which he is so generously compensated, to the tune of almost $200,000 a year, plus an expense account and other perks?

Some of which is paid for with those taxpayer dollars you in more prosperous parts of America send to the federal government, which J.D.'s mother, Kay, then finagles to get sent back to Fort Worth.

Corruption such as this does not happen in more modern democratic towns in America. Can you imagine an entity like the Granger Gang operating in Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Portland, Boston, Seattle, Denver, Austin, or any of the other towns in America where something like the Trinity River Vision would not be allowed to happen, abusing eminent domain to steal property, spending taxpayer dollars on a project the taxpayers have not voted for.

In a modern American town any sort of public works project goes through a long process, and often multiple votes before the project proceeds. If a public works project in any non-corrupt town in America hired a local politician's inexperienced, unqualified son to manage the project, there would be an outcry of protest, demands that that politician's son be fired and that politician be replaced.

But, that is not the Fort Worth Way.

And, until that is no longer the Fort Worth Way Fort Worth will continue to be a backwards backwater, no matter how much lipstick local propagandists smear on the town...

Deception & Delusion Name Of Fort Worth Public Projects Game

Saturday, St. Patrick's Day, I saw that which you see here, in the Seattle Times.

An article the likes of which one would never see in the current iteration of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, that being the newspaper which ill serves Fort Worth as its only newspaper of record.

But, instead functions as a propaganda organ of the chamber of commerce sort, touting an imaginary "vision" of Fort Worth which rarely resembles reality.

Fort Worth is currently the host of America's Biggest Boondoggle, a poorly conceived, ineptly executed, inadequately funded public works project which the public has never been allowed to vote on, til this coming May, when voters will be asked to approve a quarter billion buck bond to try and rescue this moribund project which has been limping along for 16 years, about which its incompetent project manager, Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision Executive Director, J.D. Granger, recently shared the shocking news that the slow motion project is currently only one-third complete, thus rendering its completion target 32 years in the future, in the year 2050.

Meanwhile up northwest, in the Seattle zone, there is more than one newspaper of record holding public works projects to account, with the public weighing in in various ways, in meetings, voting, letters to the editor, referendums and just an over all democratic culture of citizen input one does not see in Fort Worth, hence the chronic boondoggle problem and a city where it takes a long time to get little done, and rarely done well.

During the same 16 years Fort Worth has been limping along with a myopic vision with little to show for the effort, except a failed wakeboard park, a drive-in movie theater, an ice rink open a few weeks of the year, an imaginary pavilion at an imaginary world class music venue (with outhouses) where locals are encouraged to float in the chronically polluted Trinity River.

Oh and a lot of promises. Such as four years ago a big bang began construction on three simple little bridges being built over dry land to connect the Fort Worth mainland to that imaginary island. Still not completed, with the Trinity River Vision Authority's near-sighted visionary, J.D. Granger, always touting imaginary progress just ahead.

Currently Granger is touting 2018 as the year one of those bridges may be almost completed, as the year when a relatively puny $55 million apartment complex may get under construction on the imaginary island, along with a few feet of the future river walk canal. And some other big things in the works which may be announced any day now. Or any year.

Pitiful.

During this same 16 year time frame, up in the Seattle zone multiple public works projects, massively bigger than the Trinity River Vision, have been completed or are well under way. The world's biggest floating bridge was floated during that time frame (over actual water), with a lot of roadwork along with the new bridge. Price tag, several billion. The world's biggest vehicle tunnel was bored under downtown Seattle, a project which did have some delays, but that tunnel was dug in less time than those three simple little Fort Worth bridges have been stuck teeter tottering over dry land becoming known as the town's Yeehaw Seesaws. Miles of light rail have been added to the Seattle area transit system, with many more miles under way. Last election voters approved a $55 billion dollar bond issue to build even more light rail.

This latest Seattle Times article about public works projects spinning out of control was provoked by Washington's governor proposing a bullet train be built running from Vancouver, B.C, through Seattle, and on to Portland.

Meanwhile in Fort Worth. Well, you get the picture. Ain't exactly one of America's boomtowns. I wonder why?

Well, let's just look at this Seattle Times editorial like opinion piece Deception and delusion: It’s the name of the game for public megaprojects and ask yourself why you never read any such thing in the Star-Telegram? And further ask yourself if maybe the lack of this type criticism is one of the reasons so much of what gets done in Fort Worth gets done in such a corrupt craptacular fashion?

No accountability.

In Fort Worth you can foist a public works project on the public, without a vote, Hire the town's congresswoman's unqualified son to muck up the project, in a classic case of corrupt nepotism, with that project turning into an embarrassing boondoggle, and the local newspaper bats nary an eye. Well, there was that recent weak call from the Star-Telegram for some straight talk about the Trinity River Vision debacle.

Just check out the first few paragraphs of this article and then go read the rest of it and ask yourself why your local Fort Worth newspaper of record never publishes anything even remotely as direct, honest and responsible about anything in Fort Worth, particularly that disaster which has become America's Biggest Boondoggle....

Seattle has a checkered history with transportation projects morphing into pricey boondoggles. On one day this past week there were two perfect illustrations why.

The first came in the form of a report in this newspaper that city officials last year lowballed the costs of a downtown Seattle streetcar. Nothing new there. Only this time, the costs were lowballed again even after city planners were told they were wrong.

“You aren’t changing anything in this operating plan,” a city transit chief rebuked another official, after it had been pointed out the new streetcars would cost 50 percent more to operate than either the public, or the City Council, had been told.

Fast forward and the streetcar line in question, along First Avenue, is under construction. So it’s too late to worry about a pesky 50 percent cost overrun! Mission accomplished.

This is a classic example of what university researchers have come to call “strategic misrepresentation” — or, as you amateurs might term it, “lying.” It is one of the two main reasons big public infrastructure projects are so often delivered late and way over budget.

Simply put, the political system first lowballs the costs and timelines in order to grease the projects for approval.

The second reason was on radiant display Friday afternoon up in Vancouver, B.C. Our governor, who I like to call Sunny Jay for his effusive and often contagious enthusiasms, was on full beam when it came to a proposal to build a bullet train from Vancouver to Portland.

Now go read the rest of this Deception and delusion: It’s the name of the game for public megaprojects article...