Bridge Contractor Admits Panther Island Project Bungled & Woefully Mismanaged

Last night an incoming blog comment brought some interesting news...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Grapple Fort Worth's Bizarre Bridge Battle Boondoggle...":

From the article: The contractor building three bridges as part of Fort Worth’s Panther Island development says the project has been bungled and "woefully mismanaged from the top."

Contractor Building 3 Bridges for Panther Island Project Says It's 'Woefully Mismanaged'

Bungled & woefully mismanaged is an exquisite combination that is all too typical for the Fort Worth Way. The Fort Worth Way is, frankly, not a gem in this regard. 

__________________

I recollect over a decade ago seeing myself being criticized in a Fort Worth publication for referring to the Trinity River Vision as a Boondoggle.

And now, years later, look where we are.

The Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision is known, far and wide, as America's Biggest Boondoggle.

And this Fort Worth Boondoggle, known far and wide, is not making anyone anywhere Green with Envy.

When will Fort Worth wake up and put an end to this embarrassing nightmare?

Will the end begin on May 4? Will the results of that day's election, with the re-election of Mary Kelleher and other like-minded reformers, put an end to the mismanagement of the Tarrant Regional Water District board?

Anyone paying any attention to the history of Fort Worth corruption so blatantly on display at the TRWD and its failed step-child, the Trinity River Vision, can't be optimistic that the election results will not once again be fraudulent.

What was the result of that biggest Texas investigation ever into election fraud?  You know, that investigation trumpeted as having investigators fanning out over Tarrant County gathering evidence.

Well, there was not any result. Nothing of significance happened other than one or two or three low level election workers got in some sort of trouble.

And two of the beneficiaries of all that election fraud, in that previous TRWD board election, Jim Lane and Fort Worth's favorite octogenarian, Marty Leonard, are running again. And the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has bizarrely endorsed one of them, Marty Leonard, for re-election.

Mary Kelleher, running for re-election to the TRWD board, via Facebook, had the following to say regarding the latest revelations about the Panther Island fiasco...


"And when I served on the Board of the Water District from 2013 to 2017 and voted against this project and voted against the use of eminent domain for this project, I was laughed at by my fellow Board members and Water District top administrators. Not so funny now! This project is worse than any of us ever imagined and we need new leadership on that Board. If you haven’t voted yet, please vote on May 4th and vote for me if you really want change."

Sunny Sunday Two-Headed Goose Sikes Lake Sighting

Thunderstorms thundered through my zone of North Texas, off and on, Saturday night til the sun arrived this last Sunday of the 2019 version of April.

Judging by the puddled pools of water which remained under the now sunny Sunday sky the rain fell in copious amounts last night.

Even so, I am glad I decided to brave the elemental remains to find myself having a mighty fine bike ride, north on the Circle Trail, then through the Wichita Falls version of Beverly Hills, to the MSU campus and then Sikes Lake where I saw that which you see above.

The rumored two-headed goose and its flock of baby geese, more properly referred to as goslings. Today's flock of goslings was much larger than previous sightings of the Sikes Lake newborns. Only a few of the goslings are seen with the two-headed goose.

There appeared to be three separate goose families, all allied together in what appears to be a Goose Tribe. The perimeter of the Goose Tribe is defended by three extremely aggressive honking Goose Guards.

Being stealthy I was able to get past the Goose Guards to take the closeup of the gosling group you see here...

And the ultra closeup of the shy gosling guy you see here...

And that brings us to the end of today's communing with nature...

Grapple Fort Worth's Bizarre Bridge Battle Boondoggle

This last Saturday morning of the 2019 version of April I woke up my computer to soon see I had been pointed to a post on Facebook, or tagged, or whatever the nomenclature is which means someone has stuck ones Facebook handle on a post so as to get ones attention.

This tagging was Elsie Hotpepper pointing me to yet one more article about America's Biggest Boondoggle. This one is in the Fort Worth Business Press, titled Bridge battle: Businesses, local officials grapple with project delays.
I read the article, then opined on Elsie Hotpepper's Facebook post something along the line of being really tired of this nonsense. I read these articles to find myself annoyed at mention being made of one thing or the other which just is not true.

At least this article did not repeat the ridiculous assertion that those pitiful little bridges being built in slow motion are being built over dry land to save money, and to make for easier construction, when the fact is there will never be any water running under those little bridges until a ditch is dug under them, with Trinity River water diverted into the ditch.

This particular article's worst instance of repeating nonsense without questioning it was repeating the idiocy that that ditch will "add flood control protection as well as carve out an 800-acre center island, which would create waterfront economic development opportunities. The bridges will cross the channel."

Add flood control protection? There has not been a flood of the Trinity River in the location in question since well over a half century ago when levees were built. Waterfront development opportunities? It's a ditch. It's a polluted river. How can anyone think someone this is going to end well, with any sort of viable waterfront opportunities?

I really don't know why I continue to bother opining about this, other than I just find it so aggravating to be eye witness to something so embarrassingly inept. With the nonsense just going on and on, year after year after year.

A couple days ago I blogged about the ridiculous Fort Worth Star-Telegram TRWD board endorsements in a blogging titled Fort Worth Star-Telegram Bizarre TRWD Board Endorsements. That blog post has only had a little over 800 page views when I saw the stats when logging in to write this current post. It feels like preaching to the choir. And never to the numbskulls who might benefit from wising themselves up to their civic reality.

As the Bridge battle: Businesses, local officials grapple with project delays title suggests this latest FW Business Press article about America's Biggest Boondoggle is mainly about the most visible symptom of the problem, that being the simple little bridges being stuck being built in slow motion.

The article points out various elements of the delay, such as "malfunction of design" problems, conflicts with contractors, conflicts with the management of the project. Yet, just like in a Star-Telegram article about this subject, we get zero details about what the precise design problems have been.

The article brings up the the recent revelations posted by the Texas Monitor, about emails discovered from 2016 in which it is clear J.D. Granger mucked around with the design of the bridges, thwarting a preferred design which the state agreed to pay for in total. Read the entire article for all the details, but suffice to say, why is Mary Kelleher the only current TRWD board candidate calling for the obvious? That being the firing of the ineptly unqualified J.D. Granger?

This latest article about America's Biggest Boondoggle is also about all the damage done to businesses affected by the long, messed up construction timeline. In my Facebook comment I opined that in addition to those currently being damaged there were also the hundreds damaged way earlier in this century by the Trinity River Vision's abuse of eminent domain, one of whom is a Fort Worth native, Bob Lukeman, who had his place of business taken, bulldozed whilst still awaiting a hearing in court, left damaged and not whole.

Criminal corruption, in my opinion, on the part of various elements of what passes for government in Fort Worth. And one of the reasons I hold the town in such low regard.

Bob Lukeman also commented on Elsie Hotpepper's Facebook this morning, after I commented.

The Lukeman comment in its entirety...

Wrote this in reply to Mark Greene’s post of the recent FWST article casually calling the levees obsolete and fostering the notion that I guess, we all agree with that.

Well! This is not what the Corp originally said (from the article)...

“The Panther Island project will replace levees the Army Corps of Engineers says are obsolete and pull about 2,400 acres out of the flood plain for what the Corps calls a “standard project flood,” which is the most severe flood considered possible for a region. This is a more traditional flood, such as when a river runs over its banks.”

The first idea about the state of the existing levee system from the Corp came after they routinely examined the current levee system and concluded that they needed to be raised in key areas to comply with the standard project flood requirements. This was budgeted at around 10 million dollars, and if initiated, would have been completed over a decade ago. This plan was disregarded with the ushering in of the TRV development plan and the Central City Corp plan adapted to comply with and compliment the TRV development plan. The statement that the levee system is obsolete is incorrect. These levees work as designed and implemented in the early 1950’s following the disastrous flooding in 1949. It’s the flooding along smaller tributaries and low lying areas that are damaging homes, property, threatening lives and in some cases causing deaths do to high fast flood waters.

I have copies of the Corp maps that show where their studies told them to bolster the existing levees. Anyone who categorizes these levees as obsolete is in the thrall of the development plan that takes down the levees to allow mixed use development right up to the waters edge in the TRV development plan.

Just like the promises of this new urban development, delivered to us via pretty pictures and the illusion of a San Antonio style river walk, the effectiveness of the flood control capabilities of the proposed bypass channel, with its mitigation of large and fast moving flood waters being downstream of the project, are unproven and are part of the same initial plan that submitted bridge designs that needed to be re-engineered at additional cost and are a part of the further delays in getting these bridges built over dry land, with the project claiming that this is a faster and less costly method.

Colorful Suspenseful Redrock Walk In Wichita Falls Lucy Park

The deluges of Tuesday and Wednesday added some colorful water to the Wichita River. But, not enough to flood Lucy Park like other recent deluges did.

This morning's walk across the Lucy Park suspension bridge provided a good look at the high flowing Wichita River, as you can clearly see here.

One would think after eons of water scouring the prairie that there would no longer be enough material to colorfully dye the Wichita River and neighboring Red River the redrock red color they are known for.

I have long been a fan of this color, ever since my first redrock experience in Utah, decades ago.

Earlier this century, I think the year was 2005, I was brought by the Knappsons to a party in the Washington town of Kent. The color scheme of the house in which the party took place was what I took to be shades of redrock. With light turquoise trim.

Ever since then I have wanted that color scheme for my own abode. The closest I have come is my current location, with brown carpet and matching wood floors. And turquoise rocks from Arizona.

Another look at the colorful Wichita River, with the view being from the center of the suspension bridge. Note the color coordinating with the color of the suspension cable complimenting the river color. I am sure this was done on purpose.

North of the suspension bridge I took a break in the Japanese pagoda and took the colorful picture you see here. I do not believe this is a natural collection of Texas wildflowers.

The Texas exterior color scheme is currently at about the most colorful it gets during the year. Soon all that you see in living color will be shades of one color.

Brown.

Lucky for me brown is my favorite color, if one includes the redrock color as being a shade of brown.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Bizarre TRWD Board Endorsements

A couple days ago, when I first heard of it via Facebook, I thought someone was making a late April Fool's Day joke posting that the Fort Worth Star-Telegram had endorsed the incumbent octogenarian, Marty Leonard, along with C.B. Team, as their recommendation regarding how those few allowed to vote should vote to represent them on the Tarrant Regional Water District board.

Read the entire Endorsement: Leonard, Team, for TRWD board editorial to get the full ridiculous illogical nonsense spouted in this typically embarrassing bit of Star-Telegram propaganda.

The endorsement starts off by stating the obvious fact that water is important.

And then goes from that bit of obviousness to telling us why this election is important....

That’s just one big reason why the impending election for the Tarrant Regional Water District Board of Directors — early voting in the May 4 election starts Monday, April 22 — should command your attention. We’ll give you another reason — in fact, over one billion of them: the Central City/Panther Island project, a $1.17 billion flood control and economic development program overseen in large part by the water board.

Yes, this is true, America's Biggest Boondoggle, also known as the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision, has been boondoggling along for most of this century, and that absurd boondoggle, brought upon Fort Worth by the TRWD board, should motivate sensible people to vote to replace those responsible, when given the opportunity to do so.

This boondoggle, when first first foisted on the not allowed to vote for it public, was touted as a vitally needed flood control project, and economic development scheme. This ill-conceived, ineptly implemented mess began near the start of this century, and is currently projected to possibly be completed sometime late in the next decade.

Yes. This is one "vitally needed" flood control project. To control floods where there has been no flooding in well over a half a century due to flood control levees already doing their job. Meanwhile multiple areas of Tarrant County regularly flood, as recently as today, due to irresponsible development, which was not required to properly mitigate the increased water run-off the development has caused.

I eye witnessed this development caused flooding yesterday on my once a month return to the Dallas/Fort Worth zone. I was heading south on 820, intending to exit to Randol Mill Road to check in on Mary Kelleher, but was unable to do so because Randol Mill Road was closed due to that aforementioned bad development caused flooding.

Now, let's take a look at why the Star-Telegram recommended re-electing Marty Leonard...

After interviewing and discussing each of the five candidates for the five-member board’s two available seats — you vote for two of the five — we recommend board veteran Marty Leonard and newcomer Charles “C.B.” Team.

Incumbency isn’t often thought of as a positive anymore, but the truth is that experience and knowledge have to count for something — especially when it comes to providing water to well over 2 million. In this regard, Marty Leonard is, frankly, a gem.

The 82-year-old businesswoman and daughter of the Leonard’s Department Store founder has been key plank of the TRWD board since 2006. Besides riding herd on the Central City flood control project, she has, for instance, been among those overseeing the $2 billion-plus Integrated Pipeline Project being built to eventually supply 200 million more gallons a day to TRWD customers and another 150 million gallons to Dallas.

You don’t learn how to do all this overnight.

Okay, well, I know Marty Leonard is a nice lady. Easy to get along with. I have been told this by person's with first hand experience with Marty Leonard. Those same people have also told me that Marty Leonard pretty much just goes along with what she is told to go along with, at the direction of the TRWD's un-elected boss, Jim Oliver.

Marty Leonard may also be a gem. But, she is not a gem at overseeing anything to do with what the TRWD is charged with overseeing.

The Star-Telegram is actually suggesting Marty Leonard has been riding herd on the TRWD's imaginary flood control project? If so, shouldn't the Star-Telegram be recommending instead that Marty Leonard be removed for being part of creating America's Biggest Boondoggle, and for the dawdling slow motion reality of this un-needed imaginary flood control project?

Marty Leonard has been a "key plank of the TRWD board"? What does that even mean? That integrated pipeline project is another problematic TRWD project, which has long been controversial.

Now, I have been told multiple instances of 82 year old Marty Leonard being charmingly doddery. My favorite is the time at a TRWD board meeting when Marty Leonard told her fellow board members she was walking the Trinity Trail and saw signs warning people not to eat the fish they caught. Marty Leonard asked why we would put up such signs. Unaware, apparently, of the polluted status of the Trinity River and its regularly elevated e.coli levels.

And then we have this ridiculous newspaper's endorsement of C.B. Tram.

Though a first-time candidate, Team, 36, has been attending TRWD meetings for three years and, as one board observer put it to us, is running for the right reasons and “doing his homework.” The son of a well-known ranch family, he teams a land-loving background with experience as a real estate broker — an exquisite combination for this board at this particular time. And despite his real estate background, he wants Panther Island to be a flood-control project first and foremost.

A real estate broker. Who the Star-Telegram tells us is running for the right reasons and who has done his homework via attending TRWD meetings for three years. And he comes from a well-known ranch family, which supposedly gives him a land loving background. And even so he wants the imaginary Panther Island to be a flood control project (where there has been no flooding for way over half a century) before considering anything else, like developing the real estate on the imaginary island.

The Star-Telegram opines Team has the needed experience. But does not endorse Mary Kelleher, who served a four year TRWD board term, and who the Star-Telegram endorsed the last time she ran.

And why did the Star-Telegram choose not to endorse incumbent Jim Lane? Or Gary Moates?

When the Star-Telegram interviewed Mary Kelleher she indicated she would advocate for the resignations of TRWD dictator boss, Jim Oliver, and TRVA executive director, J.D. Granger. And also advocated a thorough forensic audit of the entire Panther Island Boondoggle mess.

While Gary Moates told the Star-Telegram that he thought the ridiculously wasteful Trinity River Panther Island Vision installation on the ground floor of the Star-Telegram building should be removed.

Apparently the Star-Telegram does not think Mary Kelleher or Gary Moates have the "right reasons" to be running.

So, the Star-Telegram basically endorsed a pair of lackeys who will just go along with the incompetent mess which has been an ongoing Fort Worth eyesore for most of this century. With no current end in sight, and the only hope for a fix being booting those responsible...

Why Anyone Thinks Fort Worth Sports Would Get America Talking

A couple days ago I mentioned seeing a trio of headlines, all in a row, on the front page of the online version of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, with those headlines, just those, before reading the articles, causing the eye rolling head shaking reaction one has when reading something which seems obviously goofy.

Those three headlines were...

This north Fort Worth neighborhood will soon be getting a brand-new liquor store

Consultant for Amazon HQ2 explains how Fort Worth missed out

Why Fort Worth hopes sports is the tourism ticket

We will be discussing that third article headline in detail, but first let's make mention of the other two.

A newspaper in a town with a population nearing a million, on its front page, touts a "brand-new" liquor store which a north Fort Worth neighborhood will be getting soon.

How is that not an embarrassing thing to write a news article about?

And that consultant explaining how Fort Worth missed out on Amazon HQ2. Well, despite the headline, the actual article is more about how the entire Dallas/Fort Worth area missed out.

It does not take any sort of consultant to explain why Fort Worth is unable, despite multiple attempts, to lure any corporation to relocate to Fort Worth.

We have pointed out multiple times that it does not look good for a town to have few streets with sidewalks, to not have modern public mass transit, to not have sufficient city parks, and with way too many of those parks sporting way too many outhouses, and few modern facilities.

And a modern America city, which gets HOT in summer, to not have multiple public city pools is just wrong.

It is also not appealing to any corporation looking to relocate for a town to be hosting the world's biggest experiment in urban gas fracking. Which is an experiment which has mostly failed.

And, in addition to all that, what does Fort Worth think a corporation re-locator thinks when visiting the north end of downtown to find a boarded up eyesore park supposedly celebrating Fort Worth's heritage, with that park's boarded up overlook looking over America's Biggest Boondoggle, a failed public works project which has long been mostly stalled in neutral, with three little bridges partially built, over dry land, for years?

And now on to that Why Fort Worth hopes sports is the tourism ticket article.

First off, this type verbiage is annoyingly dumb.

"Fort Worth hopes..."?

Really? How did the author of this article determine what Fort Worth is hoping?

Can you imagine a similar article headline in a town with a real newspaper?

Why New York City hopes sports is the tourism ticket? Why Austin hopes sports is the tourism ticket? Why Albuquerque hopes sports is the tourism ticket? Why Seattle hopes sports is the tourism ticket?

I've long made note of the fact that Fort Worth gets few tourists, and that there is really only one remotely unique tourist attraction in town, that being the Fort Worth Stockyards.

Let's take a look at why, according to this article, Fort Worth is hoping sports may be the town's tourism ticket.

The first three paragraphs...

Athletics are big business, and Fort Worth wants to grow its slice of the pie.

This weekend’s NCAA women’s gymnastics championship at the Fort Worth Convention Center was expected to bring more than $2 million to the local economy, but that’s a tiny piece of the market. Fans spend more than $10 billion annually traveling for sporting events.

Jason Sands, Visit Fort Worth’s director of sports, thinks the city can tap in to a large chunk of the growing sports tourism market, especially with the 14,000-seat Dickies Arena opening this fall.

Now there's a newsflash for you. Athletics is big business. And apparently Fort Worth, or someone in Fort Worth, wants a slice of that pie.

And, oh my, this weekend's gymnastics championship at Fort Worth's Convention Center is expected to bring more than $2 million to the local economy.

Wow! $2 million! I read that and instantly thought of Austin Powers and Dr. Evil, who, after being in a long coma, wakes up to make a $1 million ransom demand, with Dr. Evil not realizing one million bucks is no longer a HUGE amount. It is a game show prize.

So, Fort Worth has a director of sports who thinks Fort Worth's relatively puny new arena will be able to tap into that growing sports tourism market.

Who thought it was a good idea, marketing wise, to name this new arena "Dickies"? This will just give Fort Worth few tourists one more thing to giggle about.

And then the next paragraph...

The $540 million arena will play host to three years of the collegiate gymnastics finals as well as the first- and second-round games of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament in 2022. Dickies will also host the American Athletic Conference men’s basketball championships from 2020 to 2022.

$540 million is a relatively small price tag for this relatively small arena in a relatively large big city. And some early round and low interest events have already been scheduled for Dickies? Does it not occur to anyone that major venues in major cities were likely not all that interested in hosting these events?

And then there is this gem...

Sporting events, like conventions, draw thousands from across the country and are Fort Worth’s chance to introduce itself to a national audience. Between those who visit and those who see Fort Worth locales on ESPN, sports can be the city’s introduction to tourists, Sands said.

So, now, in 2019, Fort Worth is ready to introduce itself to a national audience? Via sporting events? In Dickies Arena? Okay, so a tourist comes to see some sporting event in Fort Worth, thus introducing the town to the formerly not familiar tourist.

What does that tourist see when not watching those sporting events? A downtown with few hotels, no department stores, few restaurants for a downtown of a relatively large city, no downtown grocery stores. Molly the Trolley offering public transit between downtown, the Stockyards and the museums in the district devoted to culture. That tourist may also see that aforementioned Heritage Park eyesore which has been boarded up for a decade. Or take a look at America's Biggest Boondoggle, asking for an explanation for the odd forms stuck in the air trying to become a bridge.

That sport director we previously mentioned is then quoted with this gem...

“This stuff is immeasurable in terms of elevating Fort Worth in the national conversation,” Sands said.

So, this stuff is immeasurable in how it is able, or not able, to elevate Fort Worth in the national conversation?

Oh yes, I can see how being host to a few random sporting events well be boosting Fort Worth in the national conversation. People all over America will be talking about those Fort Worth gymnastic meets and basketball games, in addition to marveling at the town being host to America's Biggest Boondoggle.

And then a few more paragraphs of nonsense from that Fort Worth director of sports...

These events are just the beginning of Fort Worth as sports destination, Sands said.

He pointed to Omaha, Neb., which has made a name for itself hosting youth and college baseball tournaments as an example of Fort Worth’s ambitions, either with gymnastics or another sport.

“When you think of baseball you think Omaha,” Sands said. “That’s what we’re trying to build here.”

Oh my, these events are just the start of something big! The beginning of Fort Worth becoming an imaginary sports destination.

Like Omaha.

I had no idea that when I, along with the rest of the world, think of Omaha, we think of baseball.

So, that is what that Fort Worth director of sports is trying to build in Fort Worth.

Another Omaha.

I wonder if Omaha has any imaginary islands, bridges stuck over dry land, a downtown with few stores, city parks with world class outhouses, streets without sidewalks and river rocking inner tube parties in a polluted river

One would think that in its current form Fort Worth would not want to be being part of any sort of national conversation...

Wichita Falls Sikes Lake Fynn Family Goose Portrait Posing

What with today being the last day for a couple days with the outdoor world guaranteed to be dry, and lightning strike-free, at my location I decided to go on a long bike ride this morning.

And so it was back for a couple times around Sikes Lake as part of that bike ride.

My first stop at Sikes Lake was at the bucolic bayou scene you see here, with my handlebars pointing west, atop one of the two signature bridges which cross Sikes Lake.

Bridges built over water in less than a year, with no corrupt local congresswoman's son in charge of the building project.

Yesterday slightly north of this bridge I came upon the Fynn Family of Geese and Goslings. I looked for them at the same location today, and found them absent.

But a few minutes later, after crossing the signature Sikes Lake bridge at the north end of the lake, I came upon the Fynn Family at a new location.

I do not think the newborn goslings are yet certified to fly. I also do not know if they have yet been certified to swim. All I have seen them do is be mobile on land, such as when I saw them today in marching mode.

Did the Fynn Family march all the way from the other side of the lake, bravely crossing a bridge?

The geese were in a slightly shady location which was rendering the photo taking not optimal in the lighting department. I tried various settings and eventually just asked the Fynns if they would mind just posing for me whilst I quickly took their picture.

And so, mom and dad stood aside while the five siblings stood still for the photo you see above. And then a loud honk from mom or dad, or both, got them marching in line again.

I was not the only Goose aficionado taking photos and video of the Fynns today. They have become quite a tourist attraction.

Speaking of tourist attractions.

A couple days ago I mentioned three headlines I saw on the front page of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, all in a row, all which had my eyes rolling and head shaking in wonderment. At the time I indicated I had sort of worn out of feeling motivated to have fun making mocking fun of this type nonsense in Fort Worth's pitiful excuse for a newspaper of record in a town of over 800,000 population.

But, today, whilst pedaling, that Why Fort Worth hopes sports is the tourism ticket headline came to mind and had me thinking of all the reasons such an idea is embarrassingly ridiculous, and indicative of a larger civic pathology, which is reflected way too often in that town's one and only newspaper.

Maybe later today or tomorrow we will get around to talking about Fort Worth's forlorn hope to turn sports into a tourism ticket, in a town with few tourists, and few tourist attractions...

Wichita Falls Goslings Find Tacoma Easter Egg Hunting David, Theo & Ruby With Hopping Henry

On this 2019 version of Easter Sunday I opted out of anything to do with ham, instead making Polish tacos with Kielbasa.

But, before that gourmet feast there was no way I was not going to have some outdoor fun on this most perfect day yet of the year.

It does not take much for me to think I am having fun. Today that meant I had fun rolling my non-mechanized wheels north on the Circle Trail, then taking the Wichita Falls Beverly Hills route to the Midwestern  State University campus, where I stopped in the shade near the MSU fountain to check incoming text messages which had been making noise as I rolled along.

Among the text messages was one inviting me virtually attend a Tacoma Easter Egg Hunt with David, Theo and Ruby, plus a couple dozen more egg hunters.

But, before I virtually went to Tacoma I rolled my wheels around Sikes Lake, where I saw the Easter appropriate scene you see above. A couple of goose parental units with their newborn flock of goslings.

A few days ago I made mention of the fact this goose family has been the victim of a heinous crime, that being the Murder of Uncle Fynn.

So far no one has been arrested for the shooting death of Fynn.

Now, on to that virtual Tacoma Easter Egg Hunt, before we do some Hopping with Henry. I think I forgot to mention we would be Hopping with Henry today.

Above we see the 9th Annual David, Theo and Ruby Backyard Easter Egg Hunt moments before the ribbon was cut to start the hunt.

There were 32 Egg Hunters this year. Ranging from not quite one year old, to one teenager of 13.

It appears David's basket is empty of eggs. This photo must have been taken early in the hunt. As you can see David is a University of Washington fan. I don't know if he is already taking classes. He is a bit of a Sheldon, if you know what I mean.

Of course Ruby excels at finding Easter Eggs.

Ruby's Uncle Jake and I were masters at this when we were David, Theo and Ruby's age.

Many a Golden Egg we would find in the Easter Egg Hunt which took place across the street from our abode, in Burlington's Maiben Park.

Binoculars, along with parental units who did not tell us it was cheating, may have helped with those Golden Egg discoveries.

And then there is Theo.

Of course this Egg Hunting speed demon managed to fill his Easter Egg basket. I

And then a few miles north of Tacoma, in the Skagit Valley town of Clear Lake, we have Spencer Jack's cousin, Henry, doing some Easter Bunny Hopping.

When Henry's Great Aunt Jackie was Henry's size she did her hopping in a device we called the Jolly Jumper. I do not remember if the Jolly Jumper was still around by the time David, Theo and Ruby's mama Michele was of the Jolly Jumping size.



Easter is barely half over and I'm already worn out, what with miles of bike riding, visiting goslings, virtual egg hunting and hopping with Henry.

It's time for a nap. Or another Easter Taco...

Salubrious Sikes Lake Wichita Falls Wildflower Walk

Today I opted to follow my pseudo doctor's advice to stay off my bike and go on a long walk instead, because, according to that pseudo doctor's analysis, my aching joints are due to too much time spent sitting on a saddle and not enough time spent vertical in walk or hike mode.

And so today I took a long walk to Sikes Lake.

I was not long into walking before I realized it had been a long time since I had done such a thing. I soon found walking conducive to thinking about things I might not have thought about whilst engaging in the more active activity of riding a bike.

That and whilst walking I was easily able to stop and smell the roses. Well. Primroses. As in Evening Primroses, currently in their annual bloom mode.

Above you see a patch in the pink at Sikes Lakes.

Walking along whilst thinking I dwelled a moment or two on a subject which has grown old, as in I've grown tired of a particular subject. With that subject being the Texas town I used to live in.

Fort Worth.

This morning's Fort Worth Star-Telegram had way too much mocking material. Three front page headlines right in a row which caused a head shake and eye roll. Below are those three headlines, without the headlines linked to the actual pitifully embarrassing articles...

Why Fort Worth hopes sports is the tourism ticket

This north Fort Worth neighborhood will soon be getting a brand-new liquor store

Consultant for Amazon HQ2 explains how Fort Worth missed out

Anyone who has previously read what I have made note of about Fort Worth can probably guess what I might point out in these three articles.

Two of the three are examples of Fort Worth's tendency to delusion, as reflected in the town's sad excuse for a newspaper.

One of the three is just an embarrassing front page headline to see in a newspaper in a town of over 800,000 population.

I am sort of falling behind in pointing out embarrassing things I've been reading in the Star-Telegram. Maybe I will get around to catching up. Maybe not....

Two Egrets With No Regrets Monitoring Wichita Falls Rapids

When the sun arrived this morning I opened my bedroom window and heard the roaring of my neighborhood rapids.

The loud rapid roar had me wondering if last night's predicted thunderstorms, with heavy rain, softball sized hail, and possible tornadoes had struck in locations other than my location, which was peaceful all night long, with rain falling on other locations adding more water to the already heavily watered Holliday Creek.

The morning local news brought no info about any storming in the area adding to last Saturday's flooding.

Coming up on noon I exited my abode to push through the wind gusting on the Circle Trail to take a closer look at my neighborhood Holliday Creek rapids.

The rapids did not look all the much more rapid than they looked the day before. I have no idea why the rapids were roaring noisy this morning.

If you look close at the above photo documentation of those rapids you can see an egret on both sides of the whitewater, hoping, I assume, to catch a fish floundering through the high water.

Speaking of flooding. There was fresh nonsense in this morning's Fort Worth Star-Telegram, with the nonsense coming from TRWD board incumbents answering questions about the ongoing TRWD boondoggle scandals. I don't know if I can muster caring enough to point out the absurdity of what those two incumbents are propaganda-izing. It gets sort of tiring doing so...