David, Theo & Ruby Refuse Visit To Fort Worth's Botanic Garden

A couple days ago I blogged that David, Theo & Ruby Won't Climb Or Swim In Any Fort Worth City Park.

In that blogging I made mention of the fact that Fort Worth, population over 800,000, has zero public swimming pools, while Tacoma, population a little over 200,000 has multiple public swimming pools.

Thinking about how some towns in America are modern, whilst other towns in America seem to be more what one might expect to see in a not so modern, advanced country, had me also wondering how some towns manage to have modern city parks, with running water, and no outhouses, whilst no running water and outhouses are the norm in Fort Worth's few city parks.

At some point whilst writing the blogging about Tacoma's pools I found Wikipedia has a long article about Tacoma's Point Defiance Park. In that article there is a section about the Formal Gardens in Point Defiance Park.

Point Defiance Park's Formal Gardens reminded me of Fort Worth's Botanic Garden, a location which I have long thought is the one and only thing about Fort Worth, other than the Stockyards, that is well done and tourist worthy.

So, yesterday I asked David, Theo and Ruby's mom, my little sister Michele, if at some point in time in the near future the kids might go to Point Defiance to take some photos of the park's gardens. I also asked if Tacoma charged an entry fee to the Point Defiance Park gardens.

A response arrived quickly, with photos taken over the years, when the kids were younger. Along with those photos the possibility was mentioned time might be found to take some new photos. That time was found and new photos arrived later in yesterday's afternoon. Those photos are what you are seeing first, followed by older photos when David, Theo and Ruby were younger.
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At the top you are seeing David, Theo and Ruby at the gate to enter the Rose Garden part of the Point Defiance Park Formal Gardens. There is no one charging a fee to enter. You just walk on in. In the next photo the kids are inside the Gardens, with the boys traversing a small pond whilst their sister watches.

The Japanese Garden is what you are seeing here. The Pagoda in the Japanese Garden is the location where David, Theo and Ruby's parental units got married. Can you find the kids in the above photo?

Recently those in charge of badly misgoverning Fort Worth decided to start charging an admission fee to gain admittance to the Botanic Garden. Doing this appalled me. Just like years prior when I was disgusted and appalled when Fort Worth began charging an admission fee to the Fort Worth Nature Preserve.

When that entry fee was imposed the preserve was not a heavily visited location. I have seen no followup investigating in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram as to what the attendance numbers are for the Nature Preserve, pre and post fee. How much money is raised. How much it costs to charge a fee, as in paying someone to collect it.

Another look at the Point Defiance Park Japanese Garden.

I have never returned to the Fort Worth Nature Preserve since an admission fee was charged. My personal protest. I probably have blogged about my disgust about this previously, but I do not remember doing so.

I remember being at the Prairie Dog Town part of the Fort Worth Nature Preserve and a family showed up, dad driving an old station wagon, six kids. I could tell they were not too prosperous. And that the kids were having themselves a mighty fine time. It was this family I thought of when I read Fort Worth was going to charge a fee to enter one of its parks.

I looked at the Fort Worth Nature Preserve website and saw it cost $5 for an adult to enter. A discount for seniors and kids. I do not know what $ figure has been arrived at to gain entry to the Fort Worth Botanic Garden.

Above is the last of the photos taken yesterday. What you are seeing here is the marina at the east end of Point Defiance Park. And the more interesting thing is the almost completed walkway which will connect Point Defiance Park to Point Ruston and the rest of the Tacoma waterfront. This will be a fun new addition to an already impressive development.

Point Ruston is a massive private development, well there may be some public help, what with it being the location of what at the time was the most expensive Superfund cleanup in EPA history. I do know that no local politician's unqualified son was hired to be the executive director of the Point Ruston development, hence this massive project is a growing, completed HUGE success.

Seeing this was one of the highlights of my last visit to the PNW, back in August of 2017. I blogged about my Point Ruston experience at the time in Point Ruston Ruby, Theo & David Surrey Survey Of Tacoma's New Waterfront Development.

Fort Worth's embarrassing Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision, which has boondoggled along for most of this century, has not reached the point, if it ever will, where ground pollution triggers an EPA Superfund cleanup. Though there has already been a chemical leak, or two, into the Trinity River, from ground work on the Boondoggle's imaginary island.

Continuing on we get to the older photos of Ruby, Theo and David in Point Defiance Park's gardens.

In answer to my question asking of a fee is charged to enter the Point Defiance Park Formal Gardens, my sister said "The only thing that costs at Point Defiance is the zoo/aquarium." Later amended to add that a fee is charged to rent a venue for an event, such as a wedding.

In the blogging from a couple days ago about Tacoma's pools in which I mentioned Point Defiance Park I also made mention of the fact that none of Fort Worth city parks were Wikipedia article worthy. However, this morning I did discover there is a short Wikipedia article about the Fort Worth Botanic Garden.

That article, in total, and please note the irony...

The Fort Worth Botanic Garden (109 acres) is a botanical garden located at 3220 Botanic Garden Boulevard, Fort Worth, Texas. The garden was established in 1934 and is the oldest botanic garden in Texas, with 2,501 species of native and exotic plants in its 21 specialty gardens. It is open daily. An admission fee is charged for the Conservatory and Japanese Garden; the other gardens are free. 

Someone needs to edit the Wikipedia article to add that soon the other gardens will no longer be free to visit.

Now, that is some Ruby and Theo garden cuteness above.

Among what gripes me about charging an admission fee to a city park property is someone opining that it makes sense, why those who actually use the park should be the ones paying for it. Well, simplistically that may make sense to someone simple. But, all the citizens of a town help the town raise money to pay for city services, such as parks.

Fort Worth takes a piece of every cent paid in sales tax. Then there's the various ways everyone pays property tax. Even if you are a renter you pay property tax, though not directly via property you own.

A well managed city, like Tacoma, Wichita Falls, and many others use funds raised via various methods to pay for city services which add to the city's livability. If one feels the need to take a break with the kids at a city park one should not have to feel like it's a trip to Six Flags, paying an admission fee.

In other words, in my humble opinion, a city's parks should be readily available to all of a town's citizens, no matter how much discretionary income they may have at their disposal.

I do not know by what magic Theo and Ruby are levitating in this area of the Point Defiance Park Formal Gardens.

Fort Worth already cheaps out on its few city parks, what with already minimal services, such as not providing running water and modern restroom facilities.

This scene looks a lot like one one might see in Fort Worth's Botanic Garden. I think Ruby, Theo and David are waving at us, but I am not sure about this.

Fort Worth, as represented by its elected officials and the town's newspaper, semi-regularly deludes itself that the town might somehow successfully attract a corporation to re-locate its headquarters to Fort Worth. Such as Amazon HQ2. Or like when Intel was looking for a place to build a big development.

Intel checked out Fort Worth. Fort Worth offered incentives. Intel instead chose to build its enormous new plant in Chandler, Arizona. If you have visited both Fort Worth and Chandler you have seen why Fort Worth would not be the chosen one.

Don't those who run Fort Worth so poorly, in what is known locally as the Fort Worth Way, realize how bad it looks to a business looking to locate in Fort Worth seeing the town's few city parks so lacking in basic amenities. And no public pools. And streets without sidewalks. And any park with any semblance of being a decent attraction charging a fee to enter.

Such things do not leave a good impression on a town's few tourists.

It's all way too perplexing. What I got out of thinking about all this is I am looking forward to my next visit to Tacoma...

Checking Out Wichita Falls Lucy Park Flood

Earlier today I mentioned I was going to be going to Lucy Park today to see if the Wichita River has flooded into the park.

And that if Lucy Park was flooded I would make my way to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area's west end, because I assumed if Lucy Park was flooded, then the east entry to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area would also be flooded.

Well.

Lucy Park was flooded beyond what I thought possible. A gate blocked access to Lucy Park, with the Wichita River flooded to a point just a few feet past the gate.

The paved trail you see above leads from the currently gated entry to the now flooded Circle Trail. To the right the Circle Trail underwater leads to the manmade Wichita Falls. Likely currently not falling any water.

A look deeper into flooded Lucy Park, looking in the direction of the swimming pool and log cabin. To the left would be the duck pond we visited last Sunday. I was unable to tell if the swimming pool, log cabin and duck pond are flooded.

Leaving Lucy Park I headed west to the east access to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area, expecting the parking lot to likely be flooded.

I was wrong. The parking lot was not flooded, and the Circle Trail was not underwater for, maybe, a quarter mile, when I came to the location above, where the Circle Trail is underwater, a condition also known as flooded.

The above view looks across the flooded Circle Trail to the Wichita Bluff, where you can see a flood viewer standing on the bluff, who would have accessed the Wichita Bluff Nature Area from the far above the flooded river west parking lot.

Above, you are looking north at the Wichita River, the main channel of which is past the trees you see making the scenic shadows in the muddy water.

I have no idea if this flood is record breaking. I hope it has not damaged, or destroyed, the suspension bridge across the Wichita River. Or damaged the log cabin and duck pond. Or anything else. Like the Japanese Pagoda.

I am ready for warm air to return in the new year for some drying out action...

Santa Checking Holliday Creek Flood Before New Year's Eve Smoked Salmon

On this icy cold Sunday before the last day of 2018 I stepped outside for a minute to see if Holliday Creek was still running excess water due to last Wednesday's extreme downpours.

Yes, as you can see to the right of the extremely rare selfie of me, Holliday Creek is still running excess water.

Regarding that selfie.

As you can clearly see, I am still sporting part of my Santa Claus disguise.

Back to Wednesday's storm's aftermath.

Wichita County was declared a disaster area, following the storm, due to flood, wind, and loss of power, damage.

Near as I can tell this disaster area declaration has been a local county declaration, not the state of Texas declaring Wichita County a disaster area, or the federal government doing such.

I may be wrong about this, but I do know I've seen nothing of FEMA anywhere I have been.

In a few minutes I will exit my abode again, and this time use my mechanized motion device to drive to Lucy Park to see how high the Wichita River is, and if Lucy Park is flooded.

If Lucy Park is flooded I will continue on to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area where the Circle Trail from the western entry is high above the river, and thus no possibility of being flooded. If Lucy Park is flooded, the east entry to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area is likely also flooded.

Tomorrow my New Year's Eve Party begins promptly at 6 pm.

Smoked Sockeye Salmon from Anacortes will be the main protein on the buffet table. If you are planning on bringing anything to contribute to the buffet table please make sure it does not conflict, taste-wise, with Smoked Sockeye Salmon from Anacortes.

Thank you in advance for your consideration of this serious taste conflict issue...

David, Theo & Ruby Won't Climb Or Swim In Any Fort Worth City Park

Subject line this morning in incoming email from Tacoma...

No PNW pics today.

Which means no new photos of scenery of the Pacific Northwest today, featuring David, Theo and Ruby.

I recently opined that the PNW pics of David, Theo and Ruby were my new favorite thing. Except seeing such does make me a bit homesick.

So, this morning's Tacoma email did not have any photos of David, Theo and Ruby having outdoor fun, but it did include photos of David, Theo and Ruby having some indoor fun.

The explanatory text in the email explained that the kids had taken their parental units to a new Tacoma Metroparks facility, with a swimming pool, which is just part of a "giant new community center in an East Tacoma neighborhood which really needed it."

 A modern American town building a giant new community center in part of the town needing such put me in mind of another American town. More about that later in this blogging.

But first, I must point out that above that is Ruby climbing a climbing wall in this giant new community center. You can see Theo a bit higher on the wall than Ruby.

And in the above photo we see Theo and David and one of their friends up super high on the climbing wall. I have never climbed a climbing wall. Climbing walls have always looked a bit scary to me, even though one is tethered to a rope obviating the danger of falling.

And here we see the boys in something called the Vortex Pool. I am guessing due to the vortex word that the water in this pool must circulate creating a vortex whirlpool of some sort.

And here we see Ruby shooting out of a tube which apparently is part of a slide which looked weird to the parental units, but which the kids indicated was awesome.

And now back to that which I to alluded previously.

Tacoma is a modern American city. Rubes in less modern parts of America would refer to Tacoma dismissively as a liberal town, full of progressives and democrat socialist sorts.

Tacoma has multiple incredibly well done parks, including one of the biggest in the world, that being Point Defiance Park. There is a Wikipedia article about Point Defiance Park.

There is no park in Fort Worth with a Wikipedia article about it. Fort Worth has a population over 800,000 and is sadly lacking in parks and park amenities. Tacoma's population is a little over 200,000. You could fit all of Fort Worth's city parks into Tacoma's Point Defiance Park and still have a lot of land left over.

Yes, I know I am always being critical of Fort Worth. Well, I lived in the town for several years. It did not take long for multiple problems with the town to bother me. Such as the craptacular quality of Fort Worth's city parks. Each month I return to Fort Worth, and DFW, and am freshly reminded that Fort Worth is not a modern American town.

For instance, there is Fort Worth's lack of public pools. Years ago Fort Worth closed its few public pools, due to supposed budget woes.

How does a modern American town like Tacoma have multiple public pools, such as the one photo documented above, or the outdoor wave pool I had fun with David, Theo and Ruby in back in August of 2017? I blogged about this in Riding Tacoma Waves With David, Theo & Ruby. When I visit Arizona, same thing, towns with multiple public pools, some of the waterpark sort.

What do these towns know about operating like a modern American town that Fort Worth can't seem to learn?

It is not like Fort Worth does not have some nearby examples of modern American towns. A short drive to the northeast, to the suburb of Hurst, and you will find Chisholm Park. With the Chisholm Aquatic Center, which is a waterpark of the sort I see in Arizona, and Tacoma, and Wichita Falls.

Yes, the little Texas town of Wichita Falls is more of a modern American town than Fort Worth. Wichita Falls has public swimming pools, such as the one in Lucy Park. And then there is the city owned Castaway Park, which is a full size waterpark, open during the warm time of the year.

And unlike Fort Worth, the Wichita Falls city parks, and there are a lot of them, have no outhouses, but do have modern restroom facilities, and running water of the wash your hands and drinking fountain sorts.

So, I see something like this new pool complex in Tacoma, and having just been in Fort Worth yesterday, eye witnessing that town's incredibly inept urban planning, and you have the reason I feel compelled to verbalize my disdain, a disdain I would never verbalize if it were not for the town's tendency to be delusional, as represented in the town's sad excuse for a newspaper, and the utterings of many of the town's officials, hence the desire to point out, over and over again, that this emperor really has no clothes, and really needs to come to grips with that embarrassing reality and do something about it...

Flooding Return To Wichita Falls Freshly Appalled By Bad DFW Urban Planning

I headed southeast to the D/FW zone around eight this morning, via a northern route which does not give me a good look at Holliday Creek.

Returning to Wichita Falls this afternoon via a route which takes me directly over Holliday Creek I saw more water running rapid in that creek than I had ever seen previously.

I guess it takes a day or two for the downpours to drain their way into Holliday Creek and then on to the Wichita River.

So, after putting items in need of refrigeration in the refrigerator I got back in my motorized conveyance device and drove to Lake Wichita to see the water spilling over the Lake Wichita Dam spillway.

I had not heard such a cacophony of water roaring since the last time I was at Snoqualmie Falls during a flood, back in my old home state of Washington, back at some point in time late in the last century.

Unlike Snoqualmie Falls the ground was not shaking from the force of the water. However, like Snoqualmie Falls, eventually I did get hit by some misting, though not at the drenching level one experiences at Snoqualmie Falls when it is in full fall mode.

The view you see above is from atop the dam, looking over the spillway at flooded Holliday Creek.

The Holliday Creek floodway seems well designed to move a lot of flood water without creating any problems.

Good urban planning, well, actually the lack of good urban planning, came to mind today as I entered Fort Worth via 287 and saw the mess of new houses crammed together in the area I moved to when first in Texas.

That first location in Texas was the Fort Worth suburb of Haslet, on a road then called Hicks. Later changed to Bonds Ranch Road when a housing development named Bonds Ranch came to be several miles to the west. I have never known why this caused a name change, which I found inconvenient, rendering my address wrong on checks and my driver's license.

At that point in time, at the start of this century, Haslet was a remote rural zone. This vexed me upon arrival. I had never lived out in the country before. It seemed a vexing distance just to get to a grocery store. And the puny skyline of downtown Fort Worth stuck up way in the distance to the south.

The Haslet side of Hicks Road was out of the Fort Worth zone of madness. Fort Worth was on the south side of Hicks Road. Back when I lived there the Fort Worth side of Hicks Road was made up of ranches with big acreage. As far as one could see one saw fields of green, with that aforementioned pitiful Fort Worth skyline way in the distance.

And now, not that many years later, that which was open ranch land may now be the world's best example of bad, maybe non-existent, urban planning.

Before permitting the construction of what appears to be thousands of homes the roads were not upgraded, not added to. Drainage was not installed to facilitate the moving of water which now had nowhere to drain into the ground, due to the ground being covered with homes and driveways and side streets.

Ever since I have been going regularly to Arizona, to the Phoenix zone, I return freshly appalled at the bad urban planning of Fort Worth, and well, other towns in the D/FW Metroplex.

Like today, I turned from Western Center Boulevard, south on to the Denton Highway, also known as, I think, 377, in Haltom City.

For over a year now, every time I make this turn onto that Haltom City road, Arizona Avenue, Alma School Road, Dobson Road, and other roads in Arizona come to mind. Those roads in Arizona are multi-laned roads, like that road in Haltom City.

But the Arizona roads are landscaped, with wide sidewalks on both sides of the road. A landscaped median. Aesthetically pleasing lighting and signage. The roads newly paved, no potholes, no big cracks, no weeds, no feeling like one has suddenly exited America to a third world country.

That lack of good road lighting really vexed me on December 17 when I drove the Haltom City section of the Denton Highway after dark. The road poorly lit, poorly marked. Dangerous.

But, it is the bad urban planning in Fort Worth that is really appalling, and I would think may rise to the level of some sort of criminal irresponsibility. What with people drowning in Fort Worth flash floods due to un-mitigated construction messing up Mother Nature and causing flooding, sometimes in flash mode, with deadly results.

Anyway, it seems so odd how some locations in Texas seem to be modern American towns, with urban planning of the sort one associates with a modern American town. Wichita Falls falls into that modern American town category, or so it seems, in many ways, while Fort Worth is a Texas location that does not quite keep up with that modern American town concept, in so many ways.

For example, I have never seen an outhouse in a Wichita Falls city park. Are there any Fort Worth city parks which do not have at least one outhouse?

This outhouse measurement is just one example of what I mean by that modern American town concept. Modern American towns do not have outhouses in their city parks. This is sort of an easy fix, and a easy indicator of a town's level of development. Or so it would seem, and one very glaring example of very bad urban planning...

Nephew Theo Takes Over Washington Governor Seat

This morning's email brought some new photos from my old home state of Washington.

Apparently yesterday David, Theo and Ruby took their parental units to Olympia, where their mother, my little sister, Michele, helps the state investigate complaints about judges and prosecutors.

I have long wondered if Texas has someone doing similar investigating.

I suspect not.

Because of what I have seen of Texas judges, in person, the state dire needs someone doing such.

Starting with any judge stupid enough to have any sort of Tea Party association.

Regarding the photo above, can you find David, Theo and Ruby looking at you with the Washington State Capitol building behind them?

Washington's current governor, Jay Inslee, temporarily gave up his governor's seat so Theo could sit on it.

After seeing what it felt like to sit like a governor Theo determined that it was time to go to a beach so he could drive his new truck.

And so it was to north of downtown Olympia Theo directed his driver, to Priest Point Park on the Budd Inlet of Puget Sound.

In the above photo documentation Theo has remotely driven his truck to water's edge. Is his truck waterproof? I don't know.

Is Fort Worth's Panther Island One Of The Best Islands In America?

I saw this this morning on CNN online and thought to myself two things.

First off, I thought that looks like the San Juan Islands in my old zone of Washington CNN is using for article headline illustrative purposes.

Second off, I wondered if Fort Worth's imaginary Panther Island is on CNN's list of The best islands in America.

I jest, sarcastically.

No one in America outside the Fort Worth bubble of nonsense will ever think  Fort Worth's former industrial wasteland is an island, even if the cement lined ditch is ever dug under the three simple little bridges stuck in slow motion construction, with the imaginary island already called Panther Island by the boondogglers who have foisted the ridiculousness on the hapless town.

Such only illicit chuckles from those who know what an actual island is and have actually seen, and been on, an actual island. Sane Fort Worth natives worry this imaginary island boondoggle nonsense will turn Fort Worth into a National Joke. I fear that boat has already sailed, but not to Panther Island.

Of course the CNN article makes no mention of Fort Worth's imaginary Panther Island.

In the article's first paragraph the best island listers apologize to those well known islands which did not make the best island list...

So first, our deepest, breeziest apologies to Alcatraz, Manhattan, Molokai, Key West, Whidbey Island, Isle Royale, Gasparilla, Chincoteague, Jekyll, South Padre, northern Minnesota and dozens more escape-worthy island hubs from sea to great lake to gulf to bay to shining sea -- all of which will surely be featured in upcoming "best islands" travel sequels.

Yeah, I'm sure in a future CNN article about America's best islands, published sometime, I don't know, maybe in the next century, might include Fort Worth's Panther Island. That is, if global warming gets as bad as feared and the Gulf of Mexico grows inland far enough to create a real island inside the Fort Worth city limits.

That list CNN made of other escape worthy islands includes Whidbey Island.

When I lived in the neighborhood I probably visited Whidbey Island more than any other Washington island. Whidbey is accessed by a ferry from the west side of Puget Sound and another ferry from the Olympic Peninsula side of Puget Sound. And from the north via Deception Pass bridge. An actual signature bridge, a feat of engineering, built in about a year over swift moving, deep, tidal waters.

Unlike Fort Worth's pitiful little bridges which the town has been trying to build over dry land for over four years now, with the latest imaginary completion date at some point in 2020.

Read the The best islands in America article and the descriptions of the best islands in America, including the San Juan Islands, which were also in my neighborhood, but which I visited far less frequently than Whidbey Island. Read the CNN article's description of ORCAS ISLAND AND THE SAN JUANS and then picture a similar blurb in the future about Fort Worth's Panther Island to get yet one more sense of how absurd this Fort Worth island delusion is.

Or I can just copy the CNN article's ORCAS ISLAND AND THE SAN JUANS blurb for your reading pleasure...

ORCAS ISLAND AND THE SAN JUANS

Floating Near: Seattle
Famous For: Making visitors wish this was a one-way trip
Fun Times Ahead: Orcas Island Jazz Festival (August 30-September 2)

Over 170 named islands and hundreds more at low tide comprise Washington's San Juan archipelago. But, for now, a brief word on the three biggies -- all accessible by the Washington State Ferry system and hampered only by crappy car lines on summer weekends.

San Juan Island, the namesake and hub of this chain, is your best bet for shopping and paddling through killer whale country.

Lopez Island, the quietest and flattest, is a magnet for cyclists.

Orcas Island, the "Gem of the San Juans," is for wishing you could afford property here -- and for driving slowly and aimlessly with the windows down on hilly, empty, sun-dappled backroads with names like "Enchanted Forest" and "Dolphin Bay."

Then dipping through a quiet green valley dead-ending at some tiny harbor where an old man on a bicycle is walking his seven dogs along the road. Before driving up into Moran State Park and to the top of 2,409-foot Mt. Constitution for views of Mt. Rainier, British Columbia and everything in between on a clear day.

Then rolling past pottery shacks, sculpture gardens and back onto Main Street, Eastsound (a.k.a. "town") where the ferry boat awaits near those sigh-inducing realty office window posts.

David, Theo & Ruby Christmas Trolling Gasworks In Seattle

This morning after Christmas I woke up my computer and saw more Christmas incoming photos, sent last night, after I had called it a Christmas day and had gone into horizontal mode.

The email was from one of David, Theo and Ruby's maternal parental units, my little sister, Michele.

Subject line: Merry Xmas

Text in the email...

Despite your long absence from the PNW, I feel confident that you’ll know where we played on this Xmas afternoon without me captioning the photos.

_______________

PNW means Pacific Northwest, for those who do not know this. And it has not been all that long an absence from the PNW. I was in the PNW for a week during August of 2017. Of late it has become known I am losing memory of some place names. Such as not remembering where Chambers Bay is. Or that Shelter Bay is associated with La Conner, whilst Skyline is associated with Anacortes.

Continuing on with the David, Theo and Ruby Xmas photos....

At the top I am able to determine that David, Theo and Ruby are in Seattle, at Gasworks Park at the north end of Lake Union. You are looking south across Lake Union at the skyline of downtown Seattle, with the Amazon cluster of buildings being between the tall skyscrapers and the slightly shorter Amazon skyscrapers. That skinny thing sticking up on the right is the Space Needle. I do not know why it is looking so skinny.

In the second photo Ruby is running down one of the hills of Gasworks Park.

I do not know what the trio have in their hands in the above photo. But, I do know they are inside the restored ruins of the original Gasworks, which long ago were turned into a sort of playground.

I was last inside the Gasworks back in the early 1990s. That location was the end point for a marathon in which my Aunt Mike ran. Aunt Mike was my mom's now deceased little sister. On that day a hellacious rainstorm hit the PNW. A day later this resulted in the sinking of the I-90 Lake Washington floating bridge.

Continuing on we leave Gasworks and head over to the Independent State of Fremont, which declared its independence at some point in the last century. Fremont has a few relics of the old Soviet Union. Such as a Lenin statue, if I remember correctly. And a J/P. Patches statue. J.P. had nothing to do with the old Soviet Union. Fremont is very eclectic that way.

Above David, Ruby and Theo are climbing on the Fremont Troll. The Fremont Troll lives under the Aurora Bridge.

I did not know, til I saw photo documentation of Theo doing so, that one could climb to the top of the Fremont Troll. When the Fremont Troll first appeared it had a Volkswagen bug under its thumb. I do not know if that is still the case.

The Fremont Troll is so infamous there is a Fremont Troll Wikipedia article.

Well, it looks like the twins and David had themselves a mighty fine Christmas....

Christmas With Spencer Jack & Henry

Well, Christmas morning started with some photos of Spencer Jack's cousin, Henry, watching TV, among other activities suitable for a boy about to turn three months old tomorrow.

Around noon more photos from Washington showed up.

And now, a few minutes ago, I checked email and saw that Spencer Jack and Henry's grandma, my favorite ex-sister-in-law, Cindy, sent me some more Christmas photos.

Including the cute one you see here of Spencer Jack holding his cousin, Henry.

Seems like only yesterday Spencer Jack was Henry's size.

Around 5 this afternoon I got a text from Spencer Jack and Henry's aunt Jackie telling me that their great grandma, my mom, had been returned to her abode in Sun Lakes.

Jackie and her first husband, Jack, had taken mom for a Christmas drive which got as far as the Maricopa Ak-Chin Casino where mom was transported to one of the casino's restaurants for a Christmas snack.

Mom said the casino was packed with Christmas celebrators. I did not think this was a Christmas option, going to a casino. And then I remembered all the Christmases I used to escape, I mean, miss, by going to Reno, back when Reno was a fun town at Christmas.

I suspect this will be my last incoming Christmas photo documentation of the day. But you never know...

Melancholy Merry Christmas From Lynden

This Christmas afternoon photos arrived via my phone which lead me to think Spencer Jack took his dad up to Lynden today. Or Spencer Jack's dad took himself to Lynden, to Lynden's Monumenta Cemetery.

First Jason sent me one photo showing a cluster of headstones. But, I could not make them out clearly, via the phone. At that point in time I figured when I got the photos off the phone and on my computer I would be able to see clearly what I was seeing.

And then a couple minutes after Jason's first photo another one arrived, this time from Jason's dad, who is also my little brother. That is that photo you see above, slightly cropped.

My brother and I discussed this headstone when I was last in Arizona, in October. I did not know the process was completed and installed.

This feels like some sorta closure, to me. It bothered me and my siblings and Jason back on August 12, 2017, when we left dad in what was then an unmarked grave.

In October my brother had about a dozen epitaph choices he had come up with. I did not know which one was the final decision, til I saw the result today. I did know that none of the more, well, humorous choices were going to be chosen.

It's a Melancholy Merry Christmas...